The Volcano 12 heatsink is all copper. The 66 fins are soldered to the copper base plate. The fan is a rather unique size. Most 80MM fans are 80x25 while ones like the Tornado fans are 80x38MM. This one is 80x32MM. Also you see the three fan blades, most fans have around seven fan blades. The idea is to 'increase air flow and eliminate air turbulence'. The ring on the bottom of the fan is suppose to help 'centralize air to help heat transfer'. Total weight of the fan and heatsink is 708g, that's equal to 24.9 oz.

The metal sheath is, as you can see, mirror like. That adds to a nice looking heatsink and will help make it stand out more if your case has a side window. Couple that with those red fan blades and here you have a very unique looking heatsink/fan combo. When spinning, the fan looks more like a blood-red color.

Below you see how the heatsink compares in size to another very popular heatsink, the SLK800. The Volcano 12 is the one on the right in each picture.

Test system~ *parts that matter

• Chieftec case (2 80mm fans as intake, 2 80mm fans as exhaust (no side fan)
• Shuttle AN35N Ultra
• AMD 2500+ overclocked @ 3200+ (11x200)
• 2 512MB sticks of Mushkin pc3200 DDR
• BFG 5600U
• Fortissmo III
• Maxtor 160GB 7200
• WD 120GB 7200
• TV Card
• CDRW & DVD
• Coolmax 550W psu (3 fans)

Testing was done with room temp maintained at 75 degrees. Idle temp is taken after a fresh boot, waiting 30 minutes and while surfing the net. Load was accomplished by running the prime95 cpu torture test for at least an hour. Side panel is closed.

Using the fan controller, below you see the results using three various speeds. At the lowest speed (2000rpm), the highest speed where the fan was quiet (3500rpm) and the top speed, 5500.

Temp readings are in fahrenheit

Not shabby at all!. Keep in mind all the above temps are from testing on my overclocked system, never at default speed. Even on the lowest speed of 2000rpm, heat wasn't a problem and prime95 never showed any errors.

Thermaltake has a winner here and there is no doubt this is their best heatsink/fan combo yet. The very unique fan is plain killer! It puts out from 26.5 - 72.92 cfm depending on the fan speed, so the airflow is superb. But one major thing I love is it isn't nearly as annoying as the delta fans. On the top speed of 5500 it does have a loud 'roar' to it but there is no intolerable high-pitched sound. At 3500 and below, it's relatively quiet.

It's very easy to install. Attach the rear clip and use a proper fitting flathead screwdriver on the front slot and guide it over the notches. The idea of including a fan controller is simply awesome. And Thermaltake goes even further by including two fan controllers. You can either use one that fits a rear pci slot cover, or one that goes in a front 3.5" bay. As you can see below.

The fan control knob has a nice smooth resistance to it as you adjust it.

If you are in the market for new cpu cooling then this Thermaltake Volcano 12 is one to certainly consider. At mid-level and quiet speed on up to the top speed, it is great for overclocking. And as is tradition at Thermaltake, it looks cool too.

• Cools very well
• The unique 3-blade fan, it is one of the very best
• Heatsink is all copper
• Two (2) fan controllers included (you can use one, not both at once)
• Easy to install
• Fan can also be temp controlled
• Looks cool
• Excellent full-color instructions included
• Has 3-prong clips

• Rather heavy at 708g

Many thanks goes out to Thermaltake for making this review possible. Direct Link to the Volcano 12 page. It should be available soon from your favorite retailer.