With the speeds that modern chipsets push data through the northbridge these days, their operating temperatures just keep getting hotter and hotter. A few years ago most chipsets were passively cooled, and typically ran at temps 10 or 20° cooler than the processor. Now most northbridge heatsinks are actively cooled or are oversized, (if passively cooled) and run temps that equal or surpass the CPU operating temperature! For many enthusiasts and overclockers this means you may be looking into aftermarket solutions for keeping that chipset from having a total meltdown.

Cooler Master and OCIA.net have had a long standing relationship when it comes to testing and using their products, and they've often sponsored contests and giveaways for our members. So when I was in the market for a replacement chipset cooler for my nForce4 board I headed over to coolermaster.com and took a look at their latest offering, the Blue Ice Pro. The Pro version offers improvements over their standard Blue Ice cooler, such as using skived copper for the heatsink material rather than aluminum. Many nForce4 board owners also don't have a whole lot of room to work with when looking at replacement northbridge coolers, and the Pro offers a low profile design. The Blue Ice series also use blue LED fans, which would match the lighting already in my system. When I found the Blue Ice Pro on sale over at SVC.com I decided I had to check out this little cooler for myself.



Join me as I take a closer look at the Cooler Master Blue Ice Pro!