Scythe Zipang Quiet CPU Cooler with 140mm Fan

The first thing you will notice about Scythe’s newest CPU cooler is the sheer size of it. The strangely named Zipang weighs in at 815g and boasts a 140mm fan. Six heatpipes attach to the base of the cooler and are bent at opposite sides. One side of the heatpipes feeds directly into the centre of the vertical fins where the heat from the CPU is dissipated. The other side of the heatpipes are bent and actually rest on the bottom of the main heatsink. Grooves have been cut into the base of the heatsink giving a snug fit. This method also helps to transfer the heat from the CPU on to the main heatsink.

Scythe Zipang

The equipped massive 140mm fan produces almost 52 CFM at a noise level of only 21 dBA. If you prefer to have control over the Zipang’s fan speed then we would recommend that you use a Zalman FANMATE 2 or similar fan controller, which will allow you to set your preferred cooling/noise balance. Many processors simply won’t need the fan running at full speed in order to keep them cool.

Another advantage about this large fan is the fact that it is blowing air directly towards the motherboard. This will aid not only the CPU but also surrounding components will benefit. I am sure you are aware that more and more motherboards are using heatpipes and heatsinks to cool the Southbridge, Northbridge and MOSFETS around the CPU. This all generates heat and therefore the direct airflow supplied by the Zipang’s fan will aid cooling these components.

Compatibility

As always with any large CPU cooler there may be some compatibility issues. We have therefore produced this image which shows the important dimensions of the Zipang. Hopefully this should help determine its compatibility.

The Zipang fits all major older socket types, Intel’s S478, LGA775 along with AMD’s AM2/AM3/939 sockets are all covered. Mounting the Zipang on S478, AM2 and 939 motherboards is straight-forward and very secure. The heatsink will use the existing retention module found around the CPU socket. For LGA775 motherboards the cooler uses push-pins to hold the heatsink in place. This is a more than adequate mounting method but if you are a person who regularly moves their PC around then we recommend a more secure mounting method.