Antec A40 CPU Cooler Review

[rijinpk1]

Have a pleasant day guys . Here I am posting a review of Antec A40 CPU cooler recently bought from Snapdeal for Rs. 1583 . It is released for Asian market and that is why I could not find any reviews of it on internet. Not a single video on Youtube either . A close competitor to Antec A40 is the Hyper TX3 EVO from Cooler Master which is already a proven product from Cooler Master and is available in the market for many years.

I was little reluctant to choose this cooler because of lack of any reviews available. Anyhow, I finally chose to buy Antec A40 because of its smaller form factor which fits perfectly on my cabinet and 4 direct heat pipes(not a matter of fact though!). This is my 3rd Antec product after Antec X1 Case and Antec VP450P Power Supply Unit. Since there are no reviews available on internet, I thought myself to write one. First of all, here are the specifications and features as per Antec website.

Specifications
-------------​

• 
  Net Weight: 450g

• Unit Dimensions: 76(L) x 101(W) x 131 (H) mm

• Copper heat pipes: 4 x 6 mm

• Fab Dimension: 92 x 92 x 25 mm

• Fan spindle bearing: Liquid State Bearing

• Fan Speed: 800 – 1600 rpm

• Noise: 10 – 22 dBa

• CFM: 19 – 38

• Sockets Compatible: Intel LGA 1366/1155/1156/775 and
  Amd FM1/AM2/AM2+/AM3

Features
---------​

• Innovative Cartoon Style

• Bigger Aluminium Base

• 92mm LED PWN Fan

• Easy-Installation

PREVIEW
------------​

Antec uses small packaging.Here are some pics of the box.

*i.imgur.com/TqXqc1V.jpg​

Here it shows the specification of the cooler and compatibility with different CPU sockets. LGA 1150(for Intel Haswell and Haswell refresh), AMD AM3+, FM2 and FM3+ are not in the list. It is better, any potential buyer to contact Antec for checking the compatibility with newer sockets before buying. I didn’t like their Chinese writing. They should have used English, at-least in other Asian countries. From the picture, it is clear that fan is going to spin at 800 rpm if the load on CPU is between 0 to 20 % along with 19 CFM air flow. For any other loads, fan should spin at 1600 rpm along with 38 CFM.

Here are some more pics of other sides of box. Lol, this is the innovative cartoon design as specified by Antec. . I did not understand what the girl is saying, but it would have been better if Antec ships this cooler along with this girl.

*i.imgur.com/ta4gNGr.jpg​

Here is another innovative one

*i.imgur.com/z8zrpLp.jpg​

Here is another side showing picture of cooler indicating direct heat pipes, fan along with “Antec” logo on top of the cooler. Again Chinese words .
The most attractive feature of this cooler is that, it comes with a blue LED fan .

Let us open the package now….See the attached images.

*i.imgur.com/g0O4894.jpg

*i.imgur.com/K9rcB5R.jpg

It comes with all the accessories necessary to install on different platforms specified by Antec.The thermal paste is pre-applied to the cooler itself.

*i.imgur.com/A4wqv5g.jpg

It is already fading . It should also be noted that coolers like Cooler Master Hyper TX3 EVO or Hyper 101 or the like provide a small bottle of thermal paste along with the pre-applied one which should last 2-3 tries if you carefully apply it. But Antec has provided none. It is my honest request to Antec that at-least provide a small bottle of thermal paste like other manufacturers do .

Here is the top view of the cooler.

*i.imgur.com/ERbYY7A.jpg

It contains the serial number along with Antec logo and 4 heat pipes. It has the provision to install one more fan on the other side to have a push-pull configuration. Instead of the fan clips, Antec used rubber fan grommets. The top aluminium sheets were slightly bent on the one of the corners (you can see from figure!) and therefore it was difficult to put fan on this side using the fan grommet as it doesn't fit well. You can use a screwdriver or any small metal thing to adjust the bend though. Since I have only one fan to connect, I chose to install the fan on the other side .

Here is the manual provided by Antec.

*i.imgur.com/XlmsF3o.jpg

*i.imgur.com/L1thFRM.jpg


Again Chinese. However a picture is worth a thousand words. All the accessories that this cooler comes with are shown in the manual along with the instructions to install the cooler for both Intel and AMD platforms.

That’s all about the Preview. Now let us move on to the Installation Process.

INSTALLATION
------------------​

Installation is rather a simple process. However you have to take the motherboard out of your cabinet in order to install this CPU cooler. If you don’t find it difficult, then installation is rather easy. Take the motherboard out of your cabinet.

*i.imgur.com/exWiXye.jpg

Remove the stock cooler and the RAM. Clean the residual thermal paste on the CPU using a linen cloth and isopropyl alcohol (Spirit). I used a towel and isopropyl alcohol. if you have a good quality TIM like artic silver 5, you can safely apply it.

*i.imgur.com/lKcUgr2.jpg

Now place the following on the bottom of the motherboard. You can adjust the distance which makes it compatible with different CPU sockets such as LGA 1366 or 1155.

*i.imgur.com/HyXXhA0.jpg

Now connect the provided accessory to the cooler at both sides as shown in figure.

*i.imgur.com/zBe802X.jpg

And now you can install the cooler onto the motherboard with the provided screws.

*i.imgur.com/jDFF7Pd.jpg

*i.imgur.com/fyTjGiv.jpg

*i.imgur.com/cVzttj4.jpg

And Lol, Yeah… It blocked my one of the RAM slots . If you don't have a RAM with huge heat sink, it is not a problem at all. But my Corsair Vengeance have huge heat sinks and hence made one of the slots unusable for me.
Now let us put the setup on to the cabinet to assemble it before testing .

*i.imgur.com/AHTx0NQ.jpg

*i.imgur.com/FaEGLyu.jpg

Also a last look at stock Intel cooler .

*i.imgur.com/WZzYd3c.jpg

It served my purpose for almost one year and still no dusts .

That’s all about the Installation. Now let us move onto Review.

REVIEW
--------​

Test Setup
-----------​

• Intel core i7 3770 (3.4 GHz stock, 3.9 GHz turbo)

• Intel DH77EB (LGA 1155)

• Corsair Vengeance Blue 2 x 4 GB @ 1600 MHz

• Western Digital Blue 1 TB

• Antec A40 cpu cooler

• Intel stock cpu cooler

• MSI R7770 2PMD1GD5/OC

• Antec VP450P PSU

Software used
--------------​

• Real Temp 3.70

• Prime 95

• NFS Hot Pursuit 2010

• Crysis 2

Reviewing is not a simple process, so please pardon me for any errors . I don’t have any other CPU coolers to compare with this Antec one except the stock Intel cooler that came with my CPU. Here are the results after testing the cooler.


*i.imgur.com/ORf2sgy.jpg

*i.imgur.com/jQv3Yno.jpg

As you can see, Intel stock cooler did not succeed in prime 95 blend test. It reached 85°C within a minute after running the test.

Now some gaming test

*i.imgur.com/2fzWXsP.jpg

*i.imgur.com/KOFrWAM.jpg

Final thoughts
--------------​

Antec A40 did well as a CPU cooler. It is much better than the stock Intel cooler and also portable in size. With just 131 mm height, it should fit in most cabinets. But it blocked my one of the RAM slots. Although it may not be that good for overclocking builds, Antec A40 is still a capable CPU cooler provided at its approximate current cost of Rs. 1500.

The Good
---------​

• Price

• Easy installation (If you don’t mind taking the motherboard out!)

• Blue LED PWM fan

• smaller form factor

• Nice temperature results

The Bad
--------​

• Blocked one of the RAM slots.

That’s all for now……………
Looking forward to your comments and suggestions
Thank you.

BTW, all pics are taken on my Lumia 520

 

[quicky008]

a very comprehensive and well written review-thanks for posting this.

 

[rijinpk1]

a very comprehensive and well written review-thanks for posting this.

welcome thanks for your input.

 

[snap]

great review

 

[rijinpk1]

great review

thank you

 

[Gollum]

photo pf pc running with blue fan?

 

[rijinpk1]

photo pf pc running with blue fan?

will try this saturday or sunday. The thing i did not post the picture of a fully assembled PC is because of the fact that I am unable to remove one of the sidepanel of the cabinet and hence the cables are really messed up.

 

[The Sorcerer]

Does the backplate come with any silicone or any type of cushioning? Or is it bare metal part that is attached against the rear portion of the motherboard.

 

[rijinpk1]

Does the backplate come with any silicone or any type of cushioning? Or is it bare metal part that is attached against the rear portion of the motherboard.

It looks like the metal part is attached to the rear portion of the motherboard or the assembler pushed it too hard after assembling and gave it to me.dont really see any type of cushioning there. Anyway asked antec about this and waiting for their reply. Since warranty is remaining , they should replace it if there are problems, right?

- - - Updated - - -

photo pf pc running with blue fan?

finally done

*i.imgur.com/X0Ro4To.jpg

*i.imgur.com/FaEGLyu.jpg

I should have welcomed more CFM than blue LED

 

[The Sorcerer]

The cushioning is required. It prevents soldering points on the back or any metal component from touching the backplate. If its Antec India, don't bother. They don't want to listen and take criticism that's usually beneficial for them. Antec Taiwan should be more responsive, unless they're passing the buck to Indian management!

 

[rijinpk1]

The cushioning is required. It prevents soldering points on the back or any metal component from touching the backplate. If its Antec India, don't bother. They don't want to listen and take criticism that's usually beneficial for them. Antec Taiwan should be more responsive, unless they're passing the buck to Indian management!

yeah, no reply from them. Will most probably contact the person from where i bought this. But a bit busy now with final semester programs and works.

- - - Updated - - -

yeah, no reply from them. Will most probably contact the person from where i bought this. But a bit busy now with final semester programs and works.

contacted antec global and they replied that both panels are removable. now i need to check closely.

- - - Updated - - -

finally removed both panels. . the problem was that it was pushed too hard....

 

[Desmond]

Why is your fan facing the interior of your case? It would only contribute to increase in the temperature in your case. It would be better if you face it backwards.

I bought this cooler recently and the chinese instructions put me off as well since this is the first time I was installing an aftermarket cooler. But I am glad that at least they wrote Intel and AMD in English, that way I figured how to install it.

The aluminium sheets in the one I bought were slightly bent on the corners and therefore I couldn't insert the rubber pegs into the holes, I had to bend them with a screwdriver to get this done. Everything else went smooth. Also, the thermal grease was spread evenly on the unit I brought, unlike yours.

As for performance, I have observed that it is doing a pretty good job. On the stock cooler, my CPU used to run at around 59-60 degrees on idle and around 70-80 on load. Now, it does not rise more than 54-55 under load and the idle temps are 45-50.

A really good budget cooler IMHO.

 

[rijinpk1]

Why is your fan facing the interior of your case? It would only contribute to increase in the temperature in your case. It would be better if you face it backwards.

I bought this cooler recently and the chinese instructions put me off as well since this is the first time I was installing an aftermarket cooler. But I am glad that at least they wrote Intel and AMD in English, that way I figured how to install it.

The aluminium sheets in the one I bought were slightly bent on the corners and therefore I couldn't insert the rubber pegs into the holes, I had to bend them with a screwdriver to get this done. Everything else went smooth. Also, the thermal grease was spread evenly on the unit I brought, unlike yours.

As for performance, I have observed that it is doing a pretty good job. On the stock cooler, my CPU used to run at around 59-60 degrees on idle and around 70-80 on load. Now, it does not rise more than 54-55 under load and the idle temps are 45-50.

A really good budget cooler IMHO.

not sure why didn't i do like that. probably because it has already blocked one of my ram slots and is looking to block the other. if i place it backwards, i guess it would block my 2nd ram slots too. nevertheless i have to check to confirm. anyway, temperature will be a little higher than normal as the thermal paste has already got dried out on some places on my piece. I will try to configure on the backward direction when i will get hand on a deepcool Z5 ,but not now.

you are not the only one who got the corner bend problem on the cooler. but the problem was only on one side and hence it was easy to install the fan on the other side. forgot to mention in the review.will edit later.

59-60 degrees is higher even on stock. any way ,again 45-50 is a little bit high i think. what is your config?? i did not observe much better results compared to stock cooler under idle conditions. anyway, load performance was much better.

 

[Desmond]

Probably because I set the CPU clock to 3 GHz as opposed to auto in the BIOS.

 

[anirbandd]

very well written review bro!!

 

[rijinpk1]

very well written review bro!!

Thanks dear

 

[bhvm]

What an Ugly Girl! Don't know why brands like antec are doing with such 'suggestive' themes.
Otherwise the cooler is very cheap. 1.5k for antec is very good. Thanks for detailed review.

 

[rijinpk1]

What an Ugly Girl! Don't know why brands like antec are doing with such 'suggestive' themes.
Otherwise the cooler is very cheap. 1.5k for antec is very good. Thanks for detailed review.

welcome.
it is the cartoonish style from antec.

 

[Desmond]

What an Ugly Girl! Don't know why brands like antec are doing with such 'suggestive' themes.
Otherwise the cooler is very cheap. 1.5k for antec is very good. Thanks for detailed review.

You don't have to date her. Just use the cooler.

 

[tarunbhatia]

You don't have to date her. Just use the cooler.

I am planning to buy this CPU i'm getting a goo deal here, But i dont know whether this website is legit or not, they are offering a Tshirt with the purchase, please suggest me about this website
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