Review

Vigor Gaming Updates Its Peltier-on-a-Chip Cooler
by Victor Loh

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What's New in the Monsoon II

According to Steven Chien, Vigor Gamin's Director of Sales and Marketing, the Monsoon II uses the same thermoelectric cooler (TEC) as the old Monsoon but with a "better brain" and a much bigger heat sink with improved heat dissipation. Like its predecessor, the brains of the Monsoon II are housed in a management box that mounts into a 5.25-inch drive slot. Chien claims the new thermal management algorithm inside the box utilizes the thermal powering characteristics of the TEC more efficiently.

The heat sink has been completely revamped. Vigor's new design employs a horizontal orientation that generates airflow from its 92mm fan through the cooler and out the back of the case.

The heat sink consists of a copper base with two sets of copper heat pipes connected to aluminum fins. One set of heat pipes bypasses the TEC and moves heat directly off the processor. The second set draw heat from the hot side of the TEC. Chien says the purpose of this dual-heat pipe layout is twofold: Since the lower heat pipes can cool the CPU without using the TEC, the cooler conserves energy during idle and light duty. He says it also gives users more headroom for overclocking. Whereas the original unit could only handle around 100w of thermal power, the Monsoon II is rated at 155w - 160w. Vigor's website promises a CPU core temperature reduction of at least 10ºC. Continued...

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