SilverStone NT06 Evolution Heatsink Review

There are typically 2 reasons for buying an aftermarket cooler; the most common is the system builder that buys OEM parts to save a few bucks.  Since OEM processors don't have heatsinks you're left with no choice.  The other instance is the hardware enthusiast that is looking to get the most out of their hardware purchase.   In either instance you’re faced with the daunting task of choosing what cooler best fits your particular situation.

The SilverStone NT06 Evolution is a specially designed heatsink for the popular SUGO SFF case.  The SUGO cases are very compact and don’t leave much room to move things around.  So to maximize the space designated for CPU cooling they opted to place the radiator near the cooling fan for the PSU.  Once the cooler has been installed you may need to bend the radiator position up so to make good contact with the underside of the PSU.

The interesting thing about the NT06 is that in our tests it didn’t perform much better than an OEM unit which is smaller.  However on the positive you won’t need to add another fan to your SUGO system to keep things cool, and one less fan is one less thing to make noise.

Finally don’t let the lack of an included fan stop you from using this heatsink on a regular system.  There is a complement of screws available to attach any 25mm fan to the NT06-E and is precisely what we did for our benchmarks.

Now for the ever popular list of Good things and Bad things. 

Special design specific for the SUGO SFF
Low noise OEM alternative
Allows for custom fan installation

Large radiator makes installation difficult
Inability to install a fan under the radiator
Cooling isn’t much better than stock

We would like to thank SilverStone for helping make this review possible.