"Both units performed similarly under idle conditions, but the Aero 7 Lite
outperformed his all-copper brother while under load. However, there's one
thing that doesn't show up on the chart: The Aero 7 Lite took noticeably
longer (2-4 minutes, depending on fan speed) to return to idle temperatures,
compared to the all-copper Aero 7+. This is the one situation where copper
is clearly superior to an aluminum/copper heatsink. Also, the CPU locked up
(only once) while using the Aero 7 Lite, when the fan was set to the lowest
speed setting and the system was under heavy use (during the load tests).
This was while using the included thermal pad; under all other situations,
the Aero 7 Lite performed flawlessly."
from -
http://tinyurl.co.uk/6t9l
Also there are
http://tinyurl.co.uk/tivp
http://tinyurl.co.uk/83ne
Just a few reviews. Be a bit wary of methodological differences in reviews,
i.e. CPU's used (some give off more heat) and thermal interface used.
Reviews can be found via
www.google.com searching for aero 7 lite review
Hope this helps and merry christmas!
Thanks for your links. Ironically though, I came across all 3 by
myself before I got them from you...
I originally though I had been a bit hasty in my assumption DataFuse
were using the 70mm fan with Aero 7. I knew that most Aero 7+ have 80
mm fans now and there used to be an 70 mm version with the Aero 7.
However, it appears (from other sites) there was an 80 mm version as
well. According to the review who I emailed (who got back to me very
fast, well done) it was the smaller version. They quoted the official
specs without even mentioning whether they were using a 70mm or 80mm
version... So their comparison is not that useful since I am pretty
sure the one I will be getting, if I get one will be the larger one.
http://www.datafuse.net/aero.php
Bjorn3D were using the 80 mm version I think (they did say the fan
size was the same) and they also noticed size differences. This and
the fact that they have found the specs to be a bit unreliable (the
specs even claim the Lite has a tool free clip which does not seem to
be true) made me realise perhaps I was being a bit hasty to assume
that the Aero 7+ and Aero 7 Lite were the same size as the CM website
claimed. However, even though they also found the Aero 7+ to be worse
then the Lite there is still some doubt in their review as their Aero
7+ might be a bit defective.
http://www.bjorn3d.com/_preview.php?articleID=297
http://www.bjorn3d.com/_preview.php?articleID=315
CTZ found similar results. They also found the Aero 7 Lite to be
better. Although they did find the sizes to be different, there is no
indication they were using the smaller Aero 7+ or that they had a
defective version (of course, if two reviewers have defective
versions, it does make me wonder how many defective versions there are
out there). However, there is nothing to say they are not using a
small one or a defective version either since I couldn't find an Aero
7+ review on their site.
http://cooltechzone.com/reviews/cooling/coolermaster_aero_7_lite_1.html
I've looked for other reviews and although I've found a few more about
the Aero 7 Lite, some of which are on sites that have also review the
7+, I have not yet found any comparison. This is a bit odd to me since
it would seem logical to compare the two given that they are from the
same company, and one is a copper while the other a copper+aluminium.
One thing I do wonder is if some of the reviewers did in fact review
both but after getting results which they did not expect, abandonded
the plan. I'm a bit disappointed at the DataFuse reviewer for the
silly way he failed to make it clear what size HSF he was using but at
least he responds to e-mails fast. I've emailed also e-mailed the CTZ
person to check up further, hopefully he will get back to me soon but
given it's the holiday season, I suspect I might be out of luck.
Things are not as clear as I would like them to be and the fact that
the Aero 7+ does have a very different price tag (about 25% but it's
not really that much) make me uncertain of what to do. The 7+ does
lose heat faster when left to go idle (as indicated by Bjorn3D) but
this doesn't seem to make a difference in how well it is able to keep
the processor cool after long use. But I would have to agree, in the
absence of more information, it does look like the Aero 7 Lite is a
better performer. And it does weight less which is good given certain
experiences I have had in the pass...
Regardless, another good thing is I did confirm hat the Jet 7 is a
piece of crap that looks good but does nothing else right. For those
of you wanting to look, see here:
CTZ and TTL clearly found the Jet 7 to be a POS
http://cooltechzone.com/reviews/cooling/jet7_11.php
http://www.thetechlounge.com/review.php?directory=cooler_master_jet_7
Datafuse weren't so sure but as they weren't comparing the HSFs at the
same room temp, their readings are a bit unreliable. Furthemore, they,
for some reason, compared the Jet 7 to the Aero 7 (they said + but we
have already established their is a non-plus not a +), not the Aero 7
Lite even though they had already found their Aero 7 to be worse then
the Lite.
http://www.datafuse.net/jet7.php