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A very compact design, power and price, almost everything we have always wanted from a heatsink is what we get with the DeepCool AK400. A high-performance heatsink with up to 8 fine copper pipes and a fan that barely makes any noise, having as little as 120mm and dynamic fluid. This heatsink protects RAM and CPU from overheating at a TDP of 220W, in itself this component may seem small, but let’s get into context so you can understand why it fascinated us.
External features and general design
Specially created for PCs with enough performance for gaming, the DeepCool AK400 heatsink is a powerful cooling alternative for gaming-oriented CPUs and RAM memories. It is perfectly compatible with different PCBs since the pipes can be adapted to RAM memory sockets, even if they take 4 spaces. These heat pipes have a thickness of 45 mm, which installed along a 4th RAM memory would make only 97 mm, so there will be enough space to fit it perfectly. In the event that it has another unit of DIMM modules it would not be a problem neither, it will be ok in terms of space either having this configuration or having a workstation-type board.
It is also possible to install it on ATX-type heatsinks, which is necessary to highlight since normally all of these are compact. However, the installation won’t be possible on those with SFF configuration and only on very few with ITX configuration.
The heatsink block itself is made of aluminum, which provides excellent heat dissipation and reduces weight in its body. The corners of the heatsink have a double coating to prevent it from being damaged due to a blow. The corners have an area where the brackets can be fixed and thus hold the fan.
A toothed design can be seen on its surface to facilitate the entry of air and thus achieve a higher rate of revolutions per minute. In its upper area there is a plastic layer that gives this heatsink its unique gamer style. The latter can be removed easily, but don’t let this fool you: it is a component of extreme quality with very well-crafted channels and terminations.
The cooling ducts or heat pipes are high-quality, made of copper with a nickel finish and about 6 mm in diameter. These carry the heat generated in the cold plate to the cooling block and are also the means of holding the block metal sheets in place.
The fan of the DeepCool AK400
The fan in this piece of hardware is about 25mm thick and has a total area of 120mm. In each corner it has rubber shock absorbers to prevent annoying vibrations, the good thing is that, even if there is minor vibration, it won’t be transferred to the metal block. The fan is attached to the metal block by means of two hooks we normally see in other models.
The maximum airflow of this heatsink is about 66.5 CFM, with a static pressure of about 2 mmH2O, modest benefits knowing that it only emits noise levels of about 29 dBA when it is running at full power.
The bearing performs without problems while the PWM rate can also be controlled. This is an indicative that this component is not easily damaged, and therefore can yield more than 100 thousand hours of operation. We found this fantastic, considering it only requires about 1.56W to run. On the downside, it is kind of unfortunate you must access the BIOS in order to control the RPM, neither possible to do using LNA-type adapters.
Installation and compatibility
Regarding its level of compatibility, the DeepCool AK400 is a heatsink that does not disappoint, to say the least. Starting with the fact that it is compatible with a wide variety of Intel sockets such as 1150, 1151, 1155, 1200 and 1700.
As far of its compatibility with AMD, it can be installed perfectly with the AM4 socket, although it is not yet compatible with the AM5 socket. It is most likely that in the meantime, more work will be done to allow this compatibility in the short term. As for workstation-type motherboard sockets, it is compatible with LGA 1700. It is also important to know that although it can fit with Alder Lake-type processor sockets, these are not supported due to the heat they generate.
Now, if we talk about the mounting system, it is something similar to the classic two-hook system of virtually all other heatsinks on the market, it unifies both major CPU brands being compatible with Intel and AMD processors. The plate itself is rigid and very stable. The bad thing about this heatsink, or rather, the combo included for its assembly, is that it does not bring a syringe to inject thermal paste, it only has a tiny bit that is placed at the time of assembly.
Final words on the DeepCool AK400
Both the price, power and size of the DeepCool AK400 seem totally reasonable to us, in fact, its closest competitor, the Noctua U12S Redux, is a more expensive and less powerful heatsink than the one in question. Now, in terms of physical characteristics, it is a heatsink in a tower format with a 120 mm fan area. Its weight is standard, and it is a suitable option for processors with up to 12 cores. May have some compatibility with Alder Lake, but it is not recommended when all their cores are unlocked.