SP97 is no more?

[Sadistic]

I just got an email back from the folks at crazypc about the SP97 and why they no longer have a listing up for the heatsink. According to him thermalright is ceasing production of the SP-97 and replacing it with the XP90 and would have a shipment of the new heatsink in by next week.

For those of you who arent familiar with the product, its a rather unique looking (then again what Thermalright product isnt?) all aluminum heatsink with 4 heatpipes which attach close to the outer most edge of the heatsink (which is good, more CFM's hitting there).

It would seem based off the results at this link http://www.overclockers.com/articles1094/ this new heatsink topples everything to date. At .13 C/W this sink ranks in the realm of watercooler performance at least when it comes to cooling a P4 chip. For whatever reason the Xp-90 wasnt benchmarked on the AMD test rig so I went ahead and did some really rough guestimation to figure out the C/W for the AMD system.

I figure if the SLK800U pulls a .15C/W on the P4 rig and a .23C/W on the AMD rig and then XP-90 pulls a .13C/W on the P4 rig then it should be roughly a .19C/W on the AMD test rig.

My assumption for the .19 comes mainly from the fact that since the tests are artificial to begin with theyre going to be extremely consistent from test to test. Knowing this comparing heatsinks designed for double duty like the 800U and XP-90 will perform as a ratio to one another.

Good things to note is that being lighter I wont be afraid to move my case around to lan parties since its aluminum, but one thing still bothers me. Obviously this design is superior to the SP-97 in terms of heatpipe placement. Why not make this sucker outa copper?

[Crax]

Woohoo! Glad I bought my SP97 this summer :)

[crazygoat]

i wanted a sp-97 :( maybe i can find one still before its to late

[Devils00Champs]

I got the 947U for sale

[bluegreenshxt]

the xp-90 is a k8/p4 heatsink...so thermalright's site says...dunno how it can replace the sp97...maybe another version of it...

[Assimilator87]

the xp-90 is a k8/p4 heatsink...so thermalright's site says...dunno how it can replace the sp97...maybe another version of it...

Yeah, bluegreen is right. The XP-90 doesn't support Socket A. It's probably just a more mainstream option for people whoes motherboards are incompatible with the XP-120. Since that's the case, I also don't think the SP-97 is being cancelled. Why would Thermalright cancel the world's best Socket A heatsink?

[crazygoat]

. Why would Thermalright cancel the world's best Socket A heatsink?


ive been loookin for one and every place is out of stock..... neweggs been out for 30 days or so with no eta it doesnt look good :(

[Sadistic]

Still got no power at my house due to the hurricane bleh. Anyhow from what I can tell a number of the official Thermalright US based distributors are listing the Sp-97 as discontinued by the company. As per an above post the current specs for the XP-90 dont list Socket A/462 as being compatible. However at the bottom of all the spec sheets for thier products it says "* Specs subject to change without notice". Currently there arent FAQ's listed for the XP-120 let alone the newer XP-90. It could very well be an oversight by the company.

I went ahead and emailed Thermalright to see if it was an oversight or if the SP-97's successor is still on the drawing board/unreleased. Ill keep you all posted.

As for what Assimilator said, the XP-90, if able to mount to an AMD board would probably boast better temps then the SP-97. Dont get me wrong it seems like a good sink but theres definitely room for improvement. Just look at the heatpipe layout on the XP-90 vs the SP-97.

[Sadistic]

It looks as if its worse than we originally thought. Below is the last message in an email correspondence between me and Nick over at Crazypc.com:

"Sorry about that, I blanked and thought it was for socket a. Thermalright
appears to moving away from Socket A coolers. We still have 1 SLK800u and a
few SLK947Us left in-stock. We also have a lot of other Socket A coolers
including the Swiftech MCX462. Sorry for the mistake."

Sad face in rl =(. Newegg was supposed to have some Sp-97's in on the 3rd of this month, thier ETA was pushed back to the 30th. If your not in the market or was thinking about getting a cooler, act now before its too late =/.

[Crax]

Moving away from Socket A??? Dang, they are screwing themselves on this one. I mean, move forward but dont make the past obsolete.

[PCgeek]

well considering that they create products for enthusiasts, and most enthusiats are moving to the athlon64 within the next few months...

[Crax]

Thats true, most either already have the socket A cooling they need or will be switchin from it like you said.

[Sadistic]

Any suggestions on what I can do in the meantime. Ive tried checking numerous places for the SP97 but to no avail. Everyone is outa stock on em, brining my HSF upgrade to a screeching halt =/.

[bluegreenshxt]

there are other options...is any of the 900 series available?! my swifttech with a high cfm fan isnt bad either

[Crax]

Keep an eye out on ebay. Im sure there has to be one for sale somewhere.

[bluegreenshxt]

there's still a few up here in canada at bigfootcomputers :p

[berty]

www.crazypc.com has the sp-94 but it does not say if it is in stock or not. And it's $48. something. It's 1 of thermalrights "where to buy" companies.

[Sadistic]

Found a place to pick up a SLK 947U for 45ish USD. I havent really read much on this heatsink. Anyone out there using it?

[ElrichMeister]

me, same as a SLK900U

[bluegreenshxt]

My friend has the 947U. It's pretty good actually, only one or two degrees behind the SP97 especially under low airflow conditions. It's about even if you put a tornado on it :)

[gokusimpson]

I want an sp97. Wow. Ima get one when I get a new proc.

[Sadistic]

My friend has the 947U. It's pretty good actually, only one or two degrees behind the SP97 especially under low airflow conditions. It's about even if you put a tornado on it :)

I plan on it actually. My box came in yesterday with my rounded IDE cables, the 947U with neo plate and a 92x92x38 tornado. Had my step dad put in an order at his shop for a new roll of 1/4th inch and 3/8th inch corrugated split tubing. Also managed to find 1000,1500, and 2000 grit paper to get the sink to a shine and some 99% pure alcohol for cleaning.

This weekend is gonna be a blast. A friend of mine bought my sink, cables, and fan in exchange for me researching and shopping a HS and fan combo + install for him. So its gonna be a lapping/wiring/install fest this saturday :)

On a brighter note, I got the following email from someone over at thermalright the other day:

Dear Christopher,

A new model will be released soon to replace SP-97!

Best Regards,
Jack
Thermalright, Inc.
sales@thermalright.com
Tel: 909-597-7003
Fax: 909-606-6919

So, I guess us Socket A folks will have something to look forward to. Personally, I hope its something with similiar design features as the XP-90 :)

[Assimilator87]

I'm interested in the Thermalright SB-2. It's completely unlike Thermalright to make an orb cooler. It's wierd how they've chosen much weaker recommended fans.

[Sadistic]

Been keeping correspondence with someone over at Thermalright. He told me the new replacement sink for the SP-97 will be up by next week. Its called the SI-97.

Also I sent him a suggestion on a design change for the XP-90 to improve the performance on the sink. He seems really interested so far as I can tell. Ill keep you all posted.