Xtreme Gear HP-1216B CPU Cooler Review

Installation
The installation for the cooler was a little different than I was used to and a little more time consuming, but it wasn’t really that bothersome since it was a new experience. The first thing you have to do is to attach the fan to the heatsink. You do this by attaching four rubber inserts into the heatsink; they slide in pretty easily.

Xtreme Gear HP-1216B CPU Cooler Xtreme Gear HP-1216B CPU Cooler

Once you get the four inserts attached, then it’s just simple pulling them through the four openings on the fan, this requires some extra force. The inserts have a cone shape so you have to stretch them all the way through the holes in the fan. They are pretty sturdy and stretch pretty far, so don’t hesitate to give it a good tug. Once all four corners are secured there is a small gap between the fan and the heatsink. The rubber inserts provide as a noise and vibration dampener.

Xtreme Gear HP-1216B CPU Cooler Xtreme Gear HP-1216B CPU Cooler Xtreme Gear HP-1216B CPU Cooler

To secure the CPU cooler to the motherboard you have to attach some screws to the backplate. For this installation we used an Intel LGA 775. The backplate also supports LGA 1156 and 1366; it’s just a matter of securing the screws in the right position.

Xtreme Gear HP-1216B CPU Cooler Xtreme Gear HP-1216B CPU Cooler

Once you attach the backplate to the back of the motherboard you can then place the CPU cooler on top of the CPU, assuming you’ve already applied the included thermal grease (it’s quite thick). Once it’s lined up four thumbscrews will tighten the cooler to the motherboard.

Xtreme Gear HP-1216B CPU Cooler Xtreme Gear HP-1216B CPU Cooler Xtreme Gear HP-1216B CPU Cooler

The fan also has a blue LED on it, which also changes in brightness with the fan speed adjuster. It’s much brighter than the fans inside of my case and should brighten up any other case.

Xtreme Gear HP-1216B CPU Cooler Xtreme Gear HP-1216B CPU Cooler