Review on 🔥 Cooler Master Hyper 212 Black Edition: Superior CPU Air Cooler for AMD Ryzen/Intel LGA1151, Silencio FP120 Fan, Gun-Metal Black Design by Hurst Batiste

I've had several Cooler Master CPU coolers over the years including some of the infamous GeminII (GIANT, not smaller, more modern) . The Hyper 212 was an excellent design, so much so that every system I've built for the past three years has had one, and I've even bought cases specifically for it. So when it came time to create a system with more aesthetics, I really wanted to try this slimmer black version. Conclusion - complete disappointment; CM broke so many great things about 212 and I can't figure out why. They've taken a big step back in everything but aesthetics, staying the same only in performance: 1) The mounting system has been unnecessarily changed (in my opinion and experience) to be more complicated, and allows (actually, almost encouraged) you to do so Lay fastening screws easily. almost imperceptibly. in the wrong position so screw alignment is frustrating when trying to install the heatsink. THERE WAS NO PROBLEM BEFORE, WHY NOW?! 2) The fan mounting system is something engineers should be truly ashamed of. They have evolved from a removable plastic clip system that screws into any 120mm fan and allows you to mount any fan of your choice on a heatsink that is a bit underdeveloped but fully functional. Now it's spring wire that seems to need a specific hole location to even work in the mount, but all of my more modern fans DO NOT HAVE SUCH HOLES. Worse, if you have a somewhat cramped case and can't wrap your fat fingers around the entire top and back of the heatsink deep inside the case, you're going to have one of the most frustrating experiences of your life mounting the damn thing. It literally took me an hour to turn the fan back on after the install (yes, the fan MUST be off to install the motherboard). I eventually resorted to inserting a hex wrench into the fan to hold the spring clip in place while I moved the fan in place. AGAIN, THIS PROBLEM DID NOT EXIST BEFORE! Very disappointed in SM. I actually want to apologize for doing something so frustrating, especially when in the past they obviously knew how to make a good product. My advice is don't buy this. Get a standard Hyper 212 or other branded product.