Cooling [SFF Network] Scythe Big Shuriken 2 Rev B - Big Name for a Small Cooler

confusis

John Morrison. Founder and Team Leader of SFF.N
Original poster
SFF Network
SFF Workshop
SFFn Staff
Jun 19, 2015
4,129
7,057
sff.network
One of the standard CPU cooler options when it comes to building a SFF system is the the Scythe Big Shuriken 2, and this comes as no surprise: the cooler has been around for a while. The low-profile nature of the otherwise generously-sized design means it can fit in a plethora of enclosures that are otherwise height-restrictive above the motherboard, all while providing performance characteristics that are closer to those of large tower-style coolers.

A recent revision of the Big Shuriken 2 - Rev B - added support for LGA2011 and 2011 V3 sockets. As such, we're taking advantage of this minor refresh to see if the Big Shuriken 2 still holds its own in the SFF CPU cooler battle. Featuring 5 copper heatpipes and a slim 120mm fan, the Big Shuriken 2 is certainly one of the larger SFF orientated coolers on the market - but with its size comes the ability to cope with higher wattage processors.

Read more here.
 
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Phuncz

Lord of the Boards
SFFn Staff
May 9, 2015
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4,902
An interesting cooler, nice to see that it performs well even though it has limited dimensions in height and fan height.
 
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Vittra

Airflow Optimizer
May 11, 2015
359
90
This is the cooler I had in my Lone Industries L1, although I switched out the fan after some time for a Prolimatech Ultraslim Vortex (140mm with 120 mount points). The only bad thing I could really say about it is that I was not overly fond of the mounting system.

It performed fairly well with the 4770S it was paired with.
 

NFSxperts

SFF Lingo Aficionado
Aug 7, 2015
112
53
Nice review, I found that the fan clips are a pain to remove.

You mentioned some potential problems with compatibility on m-itx boards. Due the the small space of the m-itx form factor, a lot of components are crammed next to each other. The location of the cpu socket and cooler base will determine if its suitable for your motherboard.

I did some testing and found that there are generally 3 areas where the cpu socket is located. Next to the pci-e slot, in the centre, and next to the edge.
If the cpu socket is not in the centre of the board, it will either block the pci-e slot or go outside the dimensions of the m-itx board.
The majority of intel boards have the socket either next to the pci-e slot or next to the edge and AMD's socket are in the centre, making this cooler more suitable for FM2 systems.
 
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confusis

John Morrison. Founder and Team Leader of SFF.N
Original poster
SFF Network
SFF Workshop
SFFn Staff
Jun 19, 2015
4,129
7,057
sff.network
Really depends on the board - i note that this cooler is compatible with the FM2+ board in the graphic :) Intel sockets seem to be located closer to RAM and pcie slots