Installation Tips

Like the standard aluminum cooler modification, the new TRUE Copper Ultra-120 eXtreme can be installed on two platforms: Socket AM2 and LGA 775. The installation principle is the same for both socket types: the cooler is pressed against the CPU heat-spreader with steel retentions and fastened to the mainboard with spring-screws:

Socket AM2

LGA 775

The backplate on the reverse side of the mainboard PCB ensures reliable contact between the cooler base and the processor heat-spreader. However, almost 2 kg of pure copper placed onto the processor should already provide proper contact for efficient heat transfer even without any additional effort and any sort of retention. Taking into account significant weight of this cooling solution, Thermalright recommends users to avoid horizontal installation and suggests that you should better use it in “desktop” type cases.

The cooler is pretty compact in its lower part (around the base) and doesn’t interfere with any electronic components in the area around the CPU socket on the mainboard:

Even though I used a DFI LANPARTY DK X48-T2RS mainboard, which socket is surrounded with MOSFET and chipset heatsinks, the cooler still fit perfectly into its spot.

 To lower vibrations you should stick bundled silicone strips to the heatsink where it contacts the fan(s). Now there are four strips like that included with the cooler:

A fan or fans are attached to the heatsink with two or four wire clips. And as I have already mentioned in one of my previous articles, for added reliability you may want to install the clips not as the manual suggests, but the other way around. When installed as the manual suggests, the clips seem too loose so that they can jump out of the retention holes in the fan frame. I believe that with all the time they had, Thermalright could have thought of something more reliable.

TRUE Copper Ultra-120 eXtreme paired with a 120-mm fan (38mm tall) didn’t hit against the tall heat-spreaders on the memory DIMMs:

The distance from the cooler base to the lower heatsink plate measures 41 mm. the cooling efficiency doesn’t depend on the direction the cooler is facing. As I have already said before, since it boasts record-breaking weight, it is not recommended for Tower cases. Or you should put your case sideways like this:

This photo is provided as an example for your reference. All tests were performed only in an open testbed. Here I would only like to add that you can download installation instructions for Thermalright TRUE Copper Ultra-120 eXtreme cooler from the company’s official web-site (PDF file, 1.75MB). There is also a pretty long list of compatible mainboards that is being constantly updated.