INTRODUCTION

   Much like mechanical drives and solid state drives regular CPU air coolers are nowhere near to be replaced by the rather new in comparison AIO (all in one) liquid CPU coolers. When the first "serious" AIO models made their appearance just over a year ago some of us did think that it wouldn't take long for that to happen but since to date AIO models haven't really achieved much higher cooling performance compared to high-end CPU air coolers it will obviously take longer for that to happen (if of course something new and better comes along until then). Because of that it doesn't really come as a surprise that there are many manufacturers out there that still focus in the design and manufacture of CPU air coolers one of which is Scythe and today with us we have their latest Ninja 4 model.

   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!

   As stated by its name the Ninja 4 CPU cooler is not the first model by Scythe to bear the name Ninja and as a matter of fact this line is perhaps their most popular one since it spans slightly over a decade and was amongst the very first ones manufactured by them and is still considered as their flagship one (It wasn't however until the high-performance all-copper Ninja limited editions made their appearance that Scythe really became popular amongst gamers and professionals all over the world so a newer model hitting the market was just a matter of time). So the new Ninja 4 CPU cooler is paired with a GlideStream 120 PWM fan that features a build-in manual speed controller and features a new T-M.A.P.S symmetrical square fin design supported by six 6mm nickel-plated all-copper heatpipes and an nickel plated all-copper base. Scythe has once again used their H.P.M.S mounting system for easier installation and their flexible fan mounting design which allows the end user to mount the 120mm fan on any of the four sides (even mount four 120mm fans although single push & pull may produce better results).

SPECIFICATIONS AND FEATURES

PACKAGING AND CONTENTS

A Ninja is placed at the front of the box right above a product picture and the mainboard compatibility list.

The specifications and features table is placed on the right side of the box right beneath several drawings showcasing the product size.

All four main product features are showcased on the left side of the box.

Contact and warranty information can be found at the rear of the box.

Inside the box you will find the Ninja 4 heatsink, GlideStream 120PWM fan, 4 fan mounting clips, Philips screwdriver, Alen key, thermal paste tube, backplate, installation instructions and brackets for installation on Intel LGA 775/1150/1151/1155/1156/1366/2011/2011-v3 and AMD AM2/AM2+/AM3/AM3+/FM1/FM2/FM2+ compatible mainboards.

THE NINJA 4

The 780g heavy Ninja 4 is quite massive (looks great however) and measures 155mm in height, 130mm in width and 130mm in depth.

The heatsink features a Shuriken design (easy to see from above) and has a large hole in the middle used to attach the mounting bracket with the bundled screwdriver.

Unlike most similar solutions the heatsink just has a total of 37 aluminum fins.

It may not draw much attention but the center of the heatsink is designed in such a way which should increase airflow.

The six 6mm nickel plated all-copper heatpipes pass through every single fin.

Scythe has given the all-copper base of the Ninja 4 a mirror-like finish.

The GlideStream 120 PWM fan bundled with the Ninja 4 features grooved fan blades for reduced air resistance and can spin up to 1500RPM (+-10%) to produce airflow levels of up to 84.64CFM with just 29.5dBA of noise.

If you decide to plug the fan into a 3pin connector you can control its speed via the built-in 3-way controller (high/medium/low).

With the 120mm PWM fan attached the Ninja 4 measures 155mm in height, 130mm in width and 153mm in length.

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

   When the original Ninja CPU cooler made its debut in the market over 10 years ago tower (U-Type) models were very new in the market so we were all impressed by its looks and cooling efficiency. Unfortunately by the time Scythe released the Ninja 2 and 3 models things were not the same so with a large number of similar models in the market they didn’t have the same impact as the original. The all-copper limited Ninja editions did offer improved cooling efficiency but because of their high price and limited availability they didn’t manage to become as popular as the original. Well with the Ninja 4 CPU cooler it almost feels that Scythe is not ready to give up on the popularity of the original and they could be on to something here since during testing not only did we record very good temperature levels (very close to the larger NH-D15 by Noctua) but the GlideStream 120 PWM fan is almost silent even at high-RPM. I still can’t wrap my head around the real benefits of adding up to four 120mm fans on all sides of the Ninja 4 but I have to admit that it would look nice.

   Availability inside the USA has been a problem for Scythe ever since their branch there went bankrupt back in late 2012 so as expected only a single store carries the Ninja 4 CPU Cooler (SCNJ-4000) for just USD47.95 (Coolerguys) while in the EU it retails for 70Euros (Amazon.co.uk). We do feel that the price could be slightly better inside the EU (even a 15% price decrease would be fine) but when its direct competition asks for even more I think it’s safe to say that Scythe can keep things as is. Bottom line the Ninja 4 is perhaps the only model to bear the name Ninja since the original (and the copper editions) to actually leave us with the best possible impressions and for that it gets our Platinum Award.

PROS

- Solid Build Quality
- Excellent Cooling Performance
- Quad Fan Solution
- Noise Levels
- 120mm PWM Fan with Built-In Speed Controller
- Mainboard Compatibility
- Price (USA)

CONS

- Current USA Availability