Conclusions

[ad#review986-top]The Falcon II performed very well. I really didn’t expect full-sized cooler performance, but I got it anyway. The temps were very respectable for any air cooler, any size, at any price. An overclock load temperature a full 11C under a full-sized 120mm air cooler, that I always considered a decent one, is very impressive. I actually got that on an in-case water cooler I reviewed.

CoolJag has a winner here, the Falcon II is the answer to running a high performance rig in a small form factor case. No, it probably won’t fit every small case, but it should fit nearly all of them, as the cooler is just 3/8″ taller than Intel’s stock LGA 1366 cooler.

Considering the size of the Falcon II’s radiator, I have to credit the great cooling performance on the skived heatsink on the upper half of the cooler’s base. CoolJag really has something here with this hybrid styled configuration, which I guess is unique, I haven’t seen anything quite like it.

Besides the slight difficulty in installation, trying to hold everything in place while starting the base screws, the only issue I might have is the lack of a baseplate for LGA 1366 application. Installation with the included nylon spacers would be fine on an HTPC, or a rig that doesn’t get moved around much, but I’d definitely want a baseplate on a LAN rig, or any other rig that gets carried around some, such as my digital recording rig.

Our friends at CrazyPC ask $41.99 for the CoolJag Falcon II. I consider that a value for such a specialized CPU cooler, especially one that performs as well as full-sized coolers costing $10-$15 more. ThinkComputers.org gives the CoolJag Falcon II CPU Cooler a 10 out of 10 score.

Pros:

- Very low profile, only 3/8″ taller than stock Intel cooler
- Unique hybrid design provides cooling performance far beyond the cooler’s size
- Excellent choice for high-performance HTPC or other small form factor rig

Cons:

- Baseplate for LGA 1366 not included

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