Thermaltake Commander FT and Riing 12 Review – Cooling on a Whole New Level!

INSTALLATION

The installation of the Riing case fans and the Commander FT touch screen fan controller could appear to be a daunting task for some, but take it from us … it is much easier than you would think!

Thermaltake Riing-3

While our installation took longer than expected, mainly because we got caught up in our spring cleaning, the installation of the Riing 12 Case Fan is exceptionally easy. Just unscrew the old case fans and screw in the new ones. For our install, we also threw the Riing 12’s onto our Corsair H110 All-In-One radiator.

Thermaltake Riing-14

The Commander FT touch screen controller was also very easy to install. It mounts in the front panel of your pc chassis. We mounted our sample at the top for easy access to the controls. Once screwed in, you simply connect the 4-pin molex power cable to your PSU, and connect it to the case fans and you are away to the races.

Thermaltake Commander FT-6

TECHNOLOGY X TESTING PROTOCOL

At Technology X, we test our cooling devices slightly different depending upon the device’s marketed purpose.  Our goal is to test in a system that has been optimized with our SSD Optimization Guide, however CPU C State alteration may or may not have occurred depending on the motherboard and BIOS configurations. Additionally, we also try to include links to the benchmarks used in our report so that you as the reader can replicate our tests to confirm that your device is top-notch.

CHRIS SYSTEM JULY 2014

SYSTEM COMPONENTS

This Test Bench build was the result of some great relationships and purchase; our appreciation goes to the below mentioned manufacturers for their support in our project. All of the components we use for testing and evaluation can be easily purchased at a relatively affordable price. The links provided below can assist in pricing, as well as availability for those of you who may find interest in our equipment.

PC CHASSIS: Cooler Master CM Strom Stryker Chassis
MOTHERBOARD: ASUS P8Z77-V Premium Motherboard 
CPU: Intel i7 3770K CPU
CPU COOLER: Corsair H100 CPU Cooler
POWER SUPPLY: be quiet! Dark power Pro 850W
SYSTEM COOLING: N/A
MEMORY: Crucial Ballistix Dual Channel DDR3 Memory
GRAPHICS CARD: Zotac GeForce 680 Amp! Edition

AIDA64

In order to test our CPU cooler, we’ll be running a CPU stress test and monitoring our temperatures using AIDA64, which is a great utility for benchmarking, testing the stability of, and monitoring your system.

COOLING PERFORMANCE

To test our cooler, we ran AIDA64’s ‘System Stability Test’ for 1 hour and recorded the highest temperature reached on any CPU core. We also monitored the motherboard temperature to assess chassis fan efficiency.

The interior ambient temperature according to our Commander FT, was between 79 and 83F.

Riing 12 - Temps

As you can see above, our Asus motherboard had an average temperature of 28C, peaking at 29C. We found that during the stability test, our Riing fans at 1700 RPM, there were no concerns regarding temperatures. Even the CPU only reached a max temperature of 50C. A huge thumbs up in our books!

As technology progresses, we see the progression from what we typically think of as standard computer components, to something one may have seen on The Jetson's. One of which that this is most common with, is Thermaltake. Constantly it seems; day after day, week after week! Thermaltake throws the norm out the window, and brings in a new standard. Today, we have the privilege of taking a first hand look at the new Commander FT Touch Screen Fan Controller, as well as the Riing 12 Case Fan. Both of which throw the previous norm quickly out the window! COMMANDER FT…

Review Overview

Build Quality
Features
Performance
Pricing
Warranty

Taking Cool to a Whole New Level!

The Thermaltake Commander FT was possibly the best piece of technology we have seen so far in 2015. The Riing 12 cooling fans proved to be solid performers and pair up exceptionally with the Commander FT touch screen fan controller!

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One comment

  1. Brechan Fraser

    While the touch screen is rather pleasant to the eye; this fan controller – and the many others that try be the best – can’t hold a candle to Lamptron.

    Lamptron is the only manufacturer I’ve seen (and owned) that can handle 30+ watts of power per channel; great for powering numerous fans (even the now discontinued Triebwerk fans), and powering a D5 Laing and/ or a DDC pump without a problem,

    So if Thermaltake (or the others) want my hard-earned cash, then they’re going to have to do better than what they’re currently offering.

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