SilverStone Technology Nitrogen Series Low Profile CPU Cooler

Using on a Gigabyte LGA 1150 Intel Q87 vPro Dual LAN SO-DIMM Memory slots UEFI DualBIOS Mini ITX DDR3 1600 Motherboard (GA-Q87TN) with Intel Core i5-4590S BX80646I54590S Processor (6M Cache, 3.3 GHz). The 23mm meant that the additional headroom in a Silverstone Tek Aluminum Top Cover/Steel Body Thin Mini-ITX Media Center/HTPC Case PT13B - Black was about 3mm. Installation was a breeze. It is quiet at low/medium/high (1600/2000/2800 rpm). The backplate is not metallic, and I was worried it would be as there are a lot of components and exposed legs under the mobo. I checked out the Akasa AK-CC7124EP01 which appeared almost identical but it didn't have a backplate, no copper core, and more importantly nowhere to be found. Cooler performance was so so, and to be expected for a cooler of this size. Temps at idle was about 50-55C with Arctic Silver tim on medium speed, going on hi did not help much. For my intended use, ie media playback and light computing it's adequate.Update 10/24/15. Performance has improved as the tim set in. Idle temperature at 41C, extended load at 49C. Still very quiet, I have to put my ear right up to the case to hear it. Bumping it up from 4 to 5 stars.

Great fan and low style that fits in my case. It runs quiet enough that i don't hear it. Im running a pentium chip and my temps average 34C and full load never gets past 47C but ymmv. The screws are so much better then the stock intel fans. There is a back plate that needs to go under your motherboard so everything can be hooked up properly.Cons:The only issue i had is my asus motherboard had two capacitors in the way so i needed to trim 2 of the fins. It was no big deal to do but i advise to check clearance measurements before purchasing.Other Thoughts:I didnt use the thermal paste that came with it so i can't leave a comment about that. The thermal paste that i use for all my builds is IC Diamond and never had any issues. I got temps to drop as much as 10C when compared to using artic silver. So if you want a good paste look into that brand. You can search Amazon for it.

Working well. Much quieter and a little cooler than the stock fan that came with my chip.

The fan is great, but after a week of using it, the fan sounds like the bearing goes out. Silverstone told me to do an RMA which did not work. I am on my fourth fan already because the fan will run for a week and then after that, the bearing will literally spin and make a whining noise. These are gonna be addressed. Are they replacement somehow?