Final Thoughts
Scythe we’ve always known for making high quality CPU coolers and the Kabuto 3 is no different. It provides great cooling as evident in our test results where it sits right in the middle of our test group and even out performs many tower-type coolers. The cooler has eight nickel-plated copper heatpipes, a thick base, large aluminum heatsink and a 120 mm cooling fan. All of these elements working together help keep your CPU nice and cool. Since the fan blows down on the cooler it also helps cool your VRMs and even your memory.
The main advantage of a top-flow cooler like this is that it is not all that tall. Tower coolers are tall and that can be a problem if you are working in a case that will have size restrictions on your CPU cooler. This cooler is great for builds in smaller cases and it is designed with maximum compatibility in mind. So you will not run into clearance issues with memory, VRMs or your graphics card.
When it comes to installation it is pretty easy to get the Kabuto 3 installed. If you are installing this cooler inside of a case, rather than on a motherboard before you put it in your case, it will be a bit tight when you are trying to press the push-pins down to look it in place. While this installation system is quite easy, and is almost identical to the method on the Intel stock cooler, as I mentioned I am not a fan of the plastic push-pins. I would like something metal holding my CPU cooler down, especially a larger on like this.
The Kabuto 3 should be available for around $45, but we cannot seem to find it online for sale. At that price you are getting a great top-flow CPU cooler with good performance and great compatibility. Overall ThinkComputers gives the Kabuto 3 CPU a 9 out of 10 score!
Pros:
– Great compatibility (no clearence issues)
– Good overall performance
– Easy installation
– Price
Cons:
– Not a fan of the plastic push-pins
– Not compatible with Intel LGA2011 and LGA2011v3 sockets
