INTRODUCTION

   AIO Liquid CPU Coolers may be in the spotlight lately due to the fact that many manufacturers have released several new models but judging by your emails and FB messages it seems that normal CPU Air Coolers are not going anywhere anytime soon. Sure the high-end models are larger which may result in clearance issues with other components and no one can deny that in some cases they are harder to mount compared to AIO Liquid CPU Coolers but at least in terms of performance many CPU Air Coolers still hold their ground while being more affordable and for many consumers out there that's what really matters. The Ashura CPU Cooler by Scythe has been in the market for quite a while and since we recently started working with them again we decided to take it for a spin and see if it too can hold its ground.

   Scythe Co., Ltd., (Registered and incorporated in Tokyo Japan) originally started its business operation in Japan's famous "Akihabara Electric Town" located in the metropolitan Tokyo, where visitors can find a variety of products from the latest computer parts to the world's most advanced high-tech electric devices. Scythe Co., Ltd., began its operation and business since November, 2002 as a distributor and the manufacturer of passive and low-noise PC parts. Since then, the company has established the R&D facility in Taiwan & China for production and quality control, and the USA office (in Los Angeles, California) & European office (in Hamburg, Germany) for customer care and sales support. At Scythe, we believe that the best ideas for product come simply from knowing customers' needs and their expectations. Based on this philosophy, the PC enthusiasts working at Scythe know what to develop because that is exactly what we would like to have for ourselves too! We offer products with 100% quality assurance and total pride, and if the product has the Scythe name on it, you can rest assure that its quality will be up to the "Zero Tolerance" standards!

   Much like the majority of CPU Air Coolers in the market currently the Scythe Ashura is based on the very popular tower (U-type) design so it basically consists of a single medium-sized heatsink connected to a nickel plated copper base via six all-copper heatpipes. The asymmetrical design of the heatsink allows the use of even tall memory modules while the newly designed mounting system is not only universal and thus can be used with virtually every mainboard out there but it also makes mounting the Ashura a matter of minutes. Scythe also bundles a low-noise GlideStream 140mm PWM fan which you can pair with a second one in push and pull configuration to further improve cooling efficiency. Unfortunately we only have a single GlideStream 140mm PWM fan so we can't test performance in push and pull but most of you will obviously wonder how it performs straight out of the box so let's find out.

SPECIFICATIONS AND FEATURES

PACKAGING AND CONTENTS

Some of the supported mainboard sockets along with 3 awards, a large product image and some of its main features are the things we see at the front of the box.

The mounting system is showcased on the left side right above the specifications table.

Both the measurements of the heatsink and the fan are placed on the right side along with detailed information regarding the design of the fins and the base.

As always warranty information is present at the rear of the box.

You can check the contents of the bundle from the top.

The box contains the Ashura heatsink, GlideStream 140mm PWM fan, 4 mounting fan clips, thermal grease, wrench, installation instructions and all the necessary screws and backplates to install the cooler onto Intel LGA775/1150/1155/1156/1366/2011/2011-v3 and AMD AM2/AM2+/AM3/AM3+/FM1/FM2/FM2+ mainboards.

THE ASHURA

The heatsink of the Ashura measures 161mm in height, 145mm in width and 65mm in depth while it weighs 750g.

Scythe painted the top aluminum fin black and placed their logo at the center to improve the looks of the Ashura and i think they succeeded.

With the top fin the heatsink has a total of 51 aluminum fins.

The fins are designed in such a way to improve the airflow coming from the GlideStream 140mm PWM fan.

Thanks to the placement of the 6 all-copper heatpipes you can use mid-sized memory modules with the Ashura.

As you can see the nickel plated copper base is polished but doesn't have the mirror-like finish we were all expecting.

The GlideStream 140mm PWM fan used can go up to 1300RPM (+-10%) to produce airflow of up to 97.18CFM with just 30.7dBA of noise.

With the GlideStream 140mm PWM fan the Ashura gets 90mm in depth and weighs 905g.

TEST BED

TESTING METHODOLOGY

   We always take things quite seriously when it comes to work so just like with the previous LGA1366 database we will not be testing each CPU Cooler on its own and with different ambient temperature levels and thus we can actually have yet another valid CPU Cooler database. Testing a CPU Cooler automatically means that you need to know where it stands against the immediate competition and to accomplish that we have spent both money and time through the years, something that we plan to continue to do so in order to get the most accurate results for the end consumers who read these lines. Every CPU cooler in this database is tested with the bundled 140mm/120mm/92mm/80mm fans while working at both idle speed and 100% of their speeds for all the temperature tests. CPU Coolers that do not come bundled with a fan/s are measured using a Noctua fan (size dependent on the model) to test for the temperature tests but due to the lack of a stock fan dBA level tests are obviously skipped. Single (120/140mm) watercooling solutions are tested with the radiator mounted at the rear of our test rig while dual/triple/quad (240/260/280/360/420/480/560mm) solutions with the radiator mounted at the top. For the dBA tests every cooler in the database was measured both while on idle mode or with the fan controller in the minimum setting and while on extreme load or with the fan controller all the way to the highest possible setting (PWM fans do that on their own without our intervention). Every single test takes place in a temperature controlled room of 23 degrees Celsius Ambient Temp with the help of two AC units placed diagonally inside the room. The Arctic Silver 5 thermal paste is used with every CPU Cooler in our latest LGA2011 database (although initially this was not the plan we had to change things to get the most accurate results). Finally it's very important to point out that just because a CPU Cooler is better than another when tested with our test rig that does not necessarily mean that the same performance differences will apply 100% for other CPU models and in other situations (such as different ambient temps and system configurations).

     To successfully record the load temperatures we use the latest OCCT application for around 6-10 minutes to push the processor to its limits and after that is done and the temperatures are recorded we wait for about 10-20 minutes for the CPU to cool down and record the idle temperatures. This is done to allow time for the thermal conductive material to achieve the optimal performance level. Same procedure is then repeated with the Passmark BurnIn Test as a failsafe just in case the OCCT results are wrong. This procedure takes a lot more time than the usual peltier/thermometer tests but this way not only can we deliver real world results to our readers based on real CPUs but we can also triple check the results using a variety of programs. Last but not least the temperatures were recorded using both the latest versions of AIDA64 and RealTemp while the noise level tests are performed using a high precision ExTech HD600 Decibel Meter placed about 10-15cm above the CPU Cooler. Still although the same testing procedure applies to all units do take into consideration that unlike the official numbers which are measured in special noise isolated labs with just the fans here we also have both the rest of the cooler and the rest of the system (although all system fans are turned off when recording noise levels).

TEST RESULTS

CONCLUSION

   Since the Scythe Ashura CPU cooler is a medium-sized single-heatsink CPU Cooler i can't say we had high expectations from it so from the very moment we started our tests we didn't expect anything special. However as you can very easily tell from our charts we were only half right since although it certainly doesn't impress with its performance it does manage to surpass other similar models and thanks to the very good GlideStream 140mm PWM fan it does so without higher noise levels. Installation is also very easy just as Scythe claims (not really the fastest and sturdiest system around but very good overall) although i have to admit that i did find the bundled fan clips to be somewhat harder to use/fit compared to what other manufacturers offer. This isn't really a problem since these too can be used to mount the fan quickly without issue but we've just seen better ones that's all.

   As far back as i can remember Scythe has always followed a good pricing strategy since their products are known to offer a very good price/performance ratio thanks to which are very popular especially amongst gamers and overclockers. So as we speak the Ashura CPU Cooler retails for USD54.99 inside the USA (Amazon.com) and for 45Euros inside the EU (Amazon.co.uk) a price tag which although we all feel it could be slightly better/lower in the USA still it's quite good. Overall the Ashura CPU Cooler may not offer something we haven't seen many times in the past in terms of cooling performance but it does offer a better price/performance ratio than other similar models and that's why it gets our Golden Award.

PROS

- Build Quality
- Very Good Performance
- No Clearance Issues
- Can Add a Second Fan (Clips Included)
- Easy Installation
- Price (EU)

CONS

- Price (USA)