Thermalright is no stranger to the high end heatsink market. Their designs have performed near the top of the pack for years, and the Ultra-120 promises to be no exception. It’s not Thermalright’s first tower heatsink, but it is the biggest. As a general rule, bigger is better when it comes to heatsinks, so we expect great things from it. Nevertheless, it seems a little odd that Thermalright felt the need to develop the Ultra-120. After all, they already has an excellent tower cooler in the HR-01, why develop another one?

The answer is probably that the HR-01 is designed for fanless operation; it lacks fan mounts and is intended for low-airflow performance. With proper system and airflow design, the HR-01 is capable of cooling nearly any processor on the market, but the absence of a fan mounting system does not give it much headroom. More to the point, these characteristics mean the overclocking community is unlikely to perceive the HR-01 as a good fit for its needs.

Hence, the Ultra-120, a massive tower heatsink designed for the speed-at-any-cost enthusiast. It stands to the HR-01 as the Scythe Shogun stands to the Ninja: The Ninja is the clear victor at low fan speeds, but their roles are reversed when the fan is cranked up.