Sytrin KuFormula SHF1 Ultra

Earlier this month we presented an exclusive preview of the Sytrin KuFormula SHF1 Ultra, and today we are back to share our concluding thoughts on this HDD cooler. In the remainder of this article we focus primarily upon the installation and performance. Since publishing our KuFormula SHF1 Ultra preview we have also learned a few additional details from the folks over at Sytrin.

Below is a PR description provided by Sytrin for why the KuFormula SHF1 Ultra is unique.

Different from the other HDD coolers, our "SHF1 Ultra", following the spirit of "VF1's", features in providing excellent cooling and also flexibility of "free cooling playing". The front 40mm fans can be flexibly changed to other different sizes of fans, just as per end-users' own preference, and in a addition, a special "multi-functional bracket set" is included for extra fan or HDD mounting, while you normally can do nothing to the other HDD coolers.

The MSRP for the SHF1 Ultra black and silver models is $22 USD while the red and yellow versions will sell for $25. These prices are significantly lower than what we had anticipated with other HDD coolers selling upwards of $40 USD. For users wishing to use multiple SHF1 coolers for a RAID configuration this price will certainly come as a blessing.

The aluminum faceplates on the SHF1 Ultra are designed to match whatever color you may desire, and Sytrin has stated that they are especially made for case modding. The SHF1 Ultra should be able to adapt to most environments.

We had installed a Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 320GB hard drive into the Sytrin KuFormula SHF1 Ultra for testing. As mentioned in the preview, the SHF1 Ultra is compatible with all 3.5" HDDs whether it be IDE, SATA, SCSI, or SAS. Setting the Barracuda 7200.10 drive into the designated position, we first secured it in place using two screws on both of the sides. The SHF1 also has the option of securing the hard drive from the bottom.

With the drive secured, we then laid the thermal pad on top of the drive. This pad is designed to assist in transferring the heat from the hard drive to the top heatsink. After the thermal pad was in place we then tightened down the heatsink in all four corners. After that, the installation is near complete with connecting the 3-pin fan connectors to the 4-pin molex adapter.

Following the instruction manual, the final step is to simply install the drive into an external 5.25" drive bay. For optimal use, you will want to use a case that has no front panel door or other covering on the 5.25" drive bay.

While the chassis doesn't have open access to the 5.25" drive bay, we had installed the Sytrin SHF1 Ultra inside the SilverStone Milo ML01. The entire installation was very easy and straight forward.

During operation the Sytrin KuFormula SHF1 Ultra had operated relatively quiet with its 40mm LED fans. The appearance was also fascinating, but it wasn't anything ground-breaking. While the SHF1 Ultra is able to dampen the noise produced by the hard drive, the Seagate HDD was already relatively quiet so there was not much to be heard. The SHF1 Ultra had also done its job of actively cooling the enclosed hard drive. Overall, the Sytrin SHF1 Ultra is a simple yet great creation and at $22 USD you really can't go wrong. In the near future look for additional Sytrin cooling products. Of the products coming out in the near future include a Northbridge heatsink, water cooling pump, water cooling block, and 700W Nextherm power supply.