The Phononic HEX 2.0 TEC CPU Cooler Review
by E. Fylladitakis on September 26, 2016 9:30 AM EST- Posted in
- Cases/Cooling/PSUs
- Cooler
- TEC
- Phononic
- HEX 2.0
Conclusion
In this review we had a look at perhaps the only consumer CPU thermoelectric-based cooler that has been released after 2010. While Phononic has extensive knowledge and experience on various cooling and refrigeration topics, this is their first retail product aimed at household consumers. The use of a TEC to support the performance of a typical air cooler is not a new concept but Phononic has managed to offer an electronically controlled product that is both simple and safe to use right out of the box.
The most distinct advantage of the Phononic HEX 2.0 is its size. The 12.5 cm tall cooler can easily fit in narrow cases, even some Mini-ITX and desktop designs. When space is an issue and neither large air or liquid coolers are an option, the Phononic HEX 2.0 can provide very good thermal performance on a modern CPU. However, do note that the TEC of the HEX 2.0 will insert additional thermal losses into the case. We do not recommend using it with a case that has very limited cooling capabilities.
The thermal performance of the HEX 2.0 is a complicated matter. The presence of the TEC allows the HEX 2.0 to provide exceptional performance when having to deal with low thermal loads, but the performance degrades as the thermal load increases. For very high thermal loads, the HEX 2.0 is equivalent or worse than an advanced air cooler, hardly justifying its price and energy consumption. That being said, while the HEX 2.0 is good for low temperatures in low power environments, it does add another 20W to the power consumption, perhaps negating the point of a low power system. It should work wonders if installed on a modern energy-efficient CPU, even with some moderate overclocking, but it cannot compare against top-tier air coolers and liquid coolers for advanced overclocking. Bluntly put, if thermal performance is your primary concern and space is not an issue, this is not a product for you.
In summary, the Phononic HEX 2.0 is a very interesting product but it is clearly aimed at a very specific segment of the market, which is users that have serious space limitations and or cannot use liquid cooling solutions for any given reason. If large air coolers or liquid coolers can fit, it is highly unlikely that the HEX 2.0 will have any distinct advantage, let alone justify its $150 retail price.
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MrSpadge - Tuesday, September 27, 2016 - link
"As the load increases, the thermal resistance of the HEX 2.0 decreases, particularly with thermal loads above 200W. With a thermal load of 340W, the thermal resistance of the HEX 2.0 drops down to 0.1685 °C/W"Yep.. this should be:
"As the load increases, the thermal resistance of the HEX 2.0 INCREASES, particularly with thermal loads above 200W. With a thermal load of 340W, the thermal resistance of the HEX 2.0 INCREASES UP to 0.1685 °C/W"
bug77 - Tuesday, September 27, 2016 - link
Oh goodie. A cooler with Windows-only software. Where do I sign up? /sBulkSlash - Tuesday, September 27, 2016 - link
It's great to see someone experimenting with TECs again, I think the last time I used one was with the ATI Radeon 800 XT! It's a pity this doesn't really work for really high temperatures as that's really where a TEC can come into its own.Haravikk - Wednesday, September 28, 2016 - link
Seems like some odd choices. For me it always seemed like a TEC made most sense as an external unit for liquid cooling, since the liquid can transfer the heat out and the TEC then cools it somewhere that the condensation problem can be controlled. Plus externally you can have a massive heatsink or even a huge plate for dissipating passively.Trying to squeeze it inside a case like this just doesn't seem all that practical, and it doesn't really seem to offer much in the way of advantages; I'm not that fussy about how cool my processor is when it's idle so long as my fans are quiet at that point. Most good coolers will keep a CPU from exceeding 40-50ºC under light load without making too much noise (some will even do it passively in the right case) so I just don't see what this unit offers for the price and complexity.
Also, while aesthetically I like the fan in the middle, practically I don't see the point; horizontal space usually isn't so tight that you can't fit the fan on the front or back of the cooler, plus with that design it's easy to provide mounts for a second fan. Sandwiching in the middle just seems like it limits the heatsink unnecessarily.
dave_the_nerd - Wednesday, September 28, 2016 - link
On one hand, this is a compact, nice looking cooler that performs very well with the 50-65w TDP CPUs that Intel makes and sells.OTOH, I really want a Reeven Okeanos now.
zodiacfml - Saturday, October 1, 2016 - link
Other reviews were not able to find that advantage at low loads.The question now is, which chips are suitable for overclocking to 65W. If it did, will it improve highest possible overlclock?
Sunburn74 - Tuesday, October 4, 2016 - link
Was I the only one who thought the conclusion was a bit off? Why didn't the reviewer just say it's a bad product at a terrible price point? I mean, it appears to be that there is always a smaller, quieter, cheaper and equally if more efficient cooling option in almost every situation testedSadler2010 - Monday, August 22, 2022 - link
I used to run an Ultra Chilltec Black until the Peltier died it successfully cooled a Phenom II 970T and my FX-8350 until it flatlined. So my experience with TEC's was good, but now I'm looking at AIO's to avoid the issues brought by TEC's.