Thermaltake Engine 27 1U Low-Profile 70W Intel 60mm Low Noise PWM Fan Forty Fan Blade CPU Cooler

So the Engine 27 is the product of Sandia Labs's boundary layer effect cooler, which uses metal in the fan to provide additional metal for heat dissipation. The boundary layer effect is very real. And the Engine 27 is proof of that. It's the lowest profile cooler of all time that can feasibly cool up to around 70-watts.Positives:* 25mm in height from base to top of the heat sink (shorter than 27mm).* It also uses air dynamic bearings, meaning there are no bearings to wear down over time.* More effective cooler than other sub 30mm coolers around.* Relatively quiet compared to similarly sized coolers.Negatives:* Expensive at $50.* Only cools up to around 70-watts.* Might not fit in some motherboards.* Intel only.Overall, it's the best cooler for super compact builds. I would have preferred a version that can cool up to a Haswell Core i5 (around 84-watts) for the entry level unit. 70-watts is kind of an arbitrary number because most processors are either 50, 65, 85, or 100 watts.

It really says it all in the description, low profile, quiet, and also looks rad.Good for smaller builds.Installation was a bit hairy since you have to hold the fan in place on top of the CPU and push the spring loaded screws down to hook them into the base while not sliding thermal paste all over.

Pros:Aesthetics- It just looks good and feel solid in the handMounting- this is replacing a H60 in anticipation for a shift to a mini-itx case, mounting hardware doesnt feel as fragileSandia Tech- The science behind this is cool (pun intended)Height- Super low, planning on an A4-SFX build decided to test it out earlyCons:Cooling- Obviously its no AIO water cooler, but even compared to Noctua L9 or Cryorig C7, its only barely better than a stock cooler. Use a top of the line thermal compound (MX4, Artic Silver, IC Diamond, etc) to ensure youre getting the best performance. (Havent compared the paste it comes with)Price-$50 for the performance is a lot, even when better competitors are selling for less.Other Thoughts:This is in a media PC so sound isnt a huge concern as the surround sound will drown it out, I couldnt say how loud it is.There is a Linus Tech Tips video on this product, "An All-metal Fan??". ITs has good insight on this and competing products.

Have installed 2 of these in different mini-ITX machines, they work really well. If I had to complain about anything, it's price is pretty high and may not be worth it if you're trying to keep a CPU cool that has less than 65W.