Back to Poland with Endorfy, a brand that continues to delight us. The company is launching new air cooling heatsinks on the market, including the Fortis 5, a 140 mm single-tower heatsink with reduced dimensions. We’ll see in our test whether it proves to be silent AND high-performance, so let’s get started!
Presentation:
Broadly speaking, the Endorfy brand (formerly SilentiumPC) also offers air cooling heatsinks in addition to cases and AIOs. And in this range we have the Fortis 5, which is a ‘big’ model equipped with a 140 mm fan. Initially available in grey/aluminium with an aRGB version, the brand now offers it in black.
The most striking thing about this fan is that it is completely black, which makes it particularly sober and discreet. What’s more, we opted for the black version with no lighting, precisely with this in mind: to present a product without flashing lights all over the place.
However, with a 140 mm format, we can already imagine an imposing heatsink like the NH-U14S for example, but it’s nothing of the sort. The brand boasts a limited height of 159 mm, enough to fit into many cases on the market. What’s more, it has an eccentric base, making it compatible with RAM.
Noise also seems to be at the heart of the brand’s concerns. The company emphasises the silent operation of its fridge, pointing out that even if the PC is switched on, you wouldn’t even know it was on. To ensure silent operation of the ventirad, the brand has opted for a 140 mm Fluctus fan, which also has an optional semi-passive mode.
Finally, assembly should be simple, even for beginners. As for the thermal paste, the brand has announced that it will be supplying a syringe for three or four applications – generous!
In terms of price, Endorfy is positioning its Fortis 5 Black very aggressively, with an official price tag of €46. To give you an idea, at this price you’ll find DeepCool AK400s, Cooler Master Hyper 212s and Pure Rock 2s, as well as smaller models.
[nextpage title=”The Fortis 5 Black”]
The packaging is similar to the brand’s AIO kits. There’s a silly cardboard box with an illustration of the cooler and a detailed description of its features on the back. On the sides, we find the same points as before.
Inside, the heatsink is surrounded by two cardboard boxes, one containing the Fluctus fan, the second the various elements making up the bundle. Finally, the whole unit is secured by white foam parts.
The radiator :
Weight and dimensions :
In terms of dimensions, this is a fairly compact reference, as advertised. The Fortis 5 Black measures 144 (W) x 107 (D) x 159 (H) mm. So this model should have no trouble fitting into most mid-tower cases on the market. That’s a good thing, given its 140 mm format!
As for weight, don’t panic, this heatsink won’t be very heavy… Well, reasonably so, let’s say. On the scales, it weighs in at around 805g, a far cry from the 1.03kg of the Dark Rock 5 from be quiet! for example.
The base :
Turning now to the base, we notice that the brand has opted for direct contact mounting of the six copper heatpipes (6 mm each). However, the treatment of the heatpipes is so clean that you can’t even feel the change from one heatpipe to another. Frankly, it’s quite impressive.
Otherwise, the base of this Fortis 5 Black is slightly eccentric towards the front, the aim being to shift the stack of fins towards the rear. Once mounted and with the fan in place, the motherboard’s memory slots should be perfectly accessible!
The radiator :
This model is a single-tower reference. It features a single stack of aluminium fins. There are 47 of them, with a rather elaborate shape. On the front, where the fan is located, they are saw-toothed, while at the rear there is a recess for the clamping screw. Here, unlike the NH-D15 G2 for example, the first fins are not shortened to facilitate mounting with the RAM for example.
When handling it, you need to be careful how you grip it. The sawtooth pattern is quite sharp … Not sharp enough to cut yourself, but it’s not very pleasant all the same.
The finish :
As far as the finish is concerned, this Fortis 5 Black looks very good with its all-black coating. The black coating is found on the aluminium fins and copper heat pipes.
In addition, the top of the radiator has a black plastic cover, the purpose of which is to conceal the end of the heat pipes. Finally, in the centre, there is a cut-out showing the brand logo. However, the logo is held in place by four hexagon-head screws.
Compatibility :
In terms of compatibility, Endorfy states that its ventirad can be mounted on the following motherboards:
- Intel: LGA-115x – LGA-1200 – LGA-1700 – LGA-2000
- AMD: AM5 – AM4 – AM3(+) – AM2(+) – FM2(+) – FM1(+)
Unlike many new references on the market, Endorfy allows us to mount its heatsink on older sockets such as the AM3(+) or higher-end sockets such as Intel’s LGA-2000 platforms. This is good news for anyone looking to upgrade an old configuration! However, the box does not mention compatibility with the LGA-1851, which shares the same dimensions as the LGA-1700.
The fan :
With this Fortis 5 Black, Endorfy is offering us a single 140 mm fan: a Fluctus in 140 mm. Unlike the standard version sold by Endorfy, the Fortis 5 has a round frame, allowing the fan to be mounted on the radiator while taking up a minimum of space.
In any case, when it comes out of the box, the frame could not be more basic, as there are no rubber silent blocks , for example. However, these are supplied, and simply need to be fitted during assembly.
As for the blades, they have a peculiar shape, to say the least, as they are jagged like a shark’s teeth. This is a feature also found on the Navis F360 fans. Otherwise, there are a total of nine blades on offer, all of which have a significant curvature but are still rather slim.
In terms of characteristics, the fan has a wide operating range with a fairly low maximum speed. It will run from 250 to 1400 rpm ±10%. Unfortunately, we can’t go any further in describing the fan’s technical characteristics, as the brand doesn’t give any information on airflow or static pressure. This is a shame. What’s more, we won’t be able to use the technical data sheet for the classic Fluctus 140, firstly because it operates faster, and secondly because these data are not provided either.
Finally, the connectors consist of a double four-pin PWM fan connector. There is one male and one female plug, enabling the fans to be connected in chain.
The bundle:
The accessories section focuses on the essentials, offering the following items in a small, dedicated cardboard box:
- Assembly instructions in leaflet form
- A universal mounting arm
- Metal backplate for Intel socket
- Assembly screws and bolts
- Rubber silentblocks for the fan
- Flat spanner
- Syringe of thermal paste
- Four steel clamps for mounting a second fan
In terms of accessories, we have something complete that will allow the heatsink or even a second fan to be fitted, provided it has a round frame. And that’s all there is to it. However, the brand has the good taste to supply mounting parts in black rather than grey!
Roughly speaking:
With this Fortis 5 Black, Endorfy offers us a new reference that’s very sober and rather compact given the size of its fan. The finish is good for a fan of this size at less than €50, although the cut-out on the fins doesn’t make it particularly pleasant to handle. Finally, the accessory section is complete and will even allow a second fan to be fitted.
[nextpage title=”Installation”]
For installation, you’ll need to keep your AMD backplate, as Endorfy doesn’t supply one. If you don’t have one any more, a quick look on ebay should enable you to find one easily.
Assembling the Fortis 5 Black :
Before you start, you should bear in mind that depending on the model of your motherboard, there may be incompatibility problems with the VRM heatsinks on it. We encountered this problem with our usual ASUS Crosshair X670E Extreme, which is why we switched back to an MSI X670E Carbon WiFi.
Otherwise, fitting the heatsink is very simple and straightforward. If you have an Intel LGA-1000 platform, you’ll need to position the backplate on the back of the latter before screwing on the spacers supplied. On the AMD side, you’ll need to remove the original mounting arms before screwing on the spacers.
There is no distinction here in terms of the spacers to be used. Whether you have an AMD or Intel LGA-1000 platform, they are the same. You’ll recognise them by their black plastic banding.
All that’s left to do is position the mounting arm and screw it in place using the small black crosshead screws. Finally, apply a little thermal paste to the CPU, position the radiator and fix it to its mounting mechanism. Be careful, though, as the spring-loaded screws on the transverse tongue aren’t the most pleasant, and it’s clear that they could do with a small dose of lubricant.
All that’s left to do is mount the fan using its steel claws after installing the rubberised silent blocks… This is something we initially forgot to do, as these elements are not described in the instructions. Be careful when positioning the claws too, as they tend to bend the tips of the fins.
[nextpage title=”Protocol”]
We will only show you the readings taken on our Ryzen 7 7900X consuming 105W and 170W. No 65W, as we don’t think this consumption is relevant for assessing the performance of CPU cooler kits.
Here, we are now measuring the delta between the temperature measured on our CPU and the ambient temperature. Finally, the management of the fan speed is now entrusted to our motherboard. During the tests, we run the fans successively at 100%, 66% and 33%.
What’s more, because of an incompatibility between the Fortis 5 Black and our Crosshair X670E Extreme, we retested a few models to form a basis for comparison. We found the following references:
- AK500 (DeepCool)
- Fortis 5 Black (Endorfy)
- Noctua NH-D15 G2 (Noctua)
- T120 RGB (NZXT)
[nextpage title=”Speed and noise”]
Fan speed :
So we’re starting our series of temperature readings from scratch. Let’s specify the fan speeds recorded during our readings (for 12V, 8V, 5V):
Let’s start with the operating speeds of the Fluctus 140 PWM fan. As you can see, this model is particularly slow, especially at full speed where it runs slower than the NF-A14x25r G2 of the NH-D15 G2. Otherwise, at 66% and 33% PWM signal, we find equivalent speeds with 500 rpm and 1,000 rpm respectively.
Noise :
Naturally, with operating speeds as low as 100%, noise levels are very low… Especially as the fan is running by itself. As it happens, this model will barely tickle our sound meter with its 32 dB. At 66% the noise will be a distant memory and we’re back down to 30 dB. So there’s no need to run the fan any louder to gain in silence.
[nextpage title=”AMD CPU temperatures”]
65W processor :
We start with our 65W profile, a fairly low power consumption, especially when you consider the current monsters. This power consumption is designed to simulate small processors with few cores or low power consumption.
Change of motherboard = different results. However, on a processor with low power consumption, the temperatures are quite good, as we can see. While it is behind the AK500 at 100%, it is equal at 66% and 100%. As for the D15, it remains untouchable thanks to its dual-tower format and its two fans!
105W processor :
Here, our CPU will run at 2.70 GHz constantly and on all its cores. We apply a VCore of 1,030 to obtain a power consumption of around 100 watts. This corresponds to the TDP of a Ryzen 7 7700X.
With a slightly higher power consumption, the Fortis 5 Black performs very well, this time positioning itself between the NH-D15 G2 and DeepCool’s AK500. In the end, this positioning is coherent given the size of the radiator and fan. Remember that the AK500 is a 120mm single-tower model mounted on a thick radiator with five heat pipes.
170W processor :
Finally, we end with our 170W profile. Here the heat output is higher, and corresponds to the default TDP of the 7900X. Let’s see how our coolings fare!
At 170W, power consumption is starting to pose a problem for our heatsinks. Most of them won’t make it to low revs, while the T120 RGB, which is too light, won’t make it to 66%. In any case, the NH-D15 G2 retains its intermediate position between the NH-D15 G2 and DeepCool’s AK500 once again.
Summary :
Broadly speaking, the Fortis 5 Black is a formidable competitor to single-tower heatsinks. In fact, it beats out DeepCool’s AK500, which is not only thicker, but also has a faster fan. The Endorfy model also has an extra heat pipe. In any case, it’s no match for Noctua’s flagship, but for less than €50 you can’t expect much more.
[nextpage title=”AMD temperature-to-noise ratio”]
On these perf/noise ratio graphs, we remind you that it’s best to be positioned as far to the bottom left of the graph as possible. For reading purposes, the leftmost point symbolises ventilation at 12V, the centre point ventilation at 8V and the rightmost point ventilation at 5V.
65W consumption :
As you can see from the graph, the Fortis 5 Black is positioned very low on the graph, greatly helped by its virtually non-existent noise levels. As it stands, it’s more interesting than the AK500 and doesn’t lose out to a NH-D15 G2 operating at least at half throttle.
105W power consumption:
This time, with a consumption of 105W, DeepCool’s heatsink finds itself completely left behind by the Polish competition, as we can see. However, given the sluggish curve at low revs, we’re thinking that adding a second Fluctus 140 wouldn’t be a bad idea!
170W fuel consumption:
With even more power consumption, from what’s left of the heatsinks, the NH-D15 G2 remains the big winner of the competition. Here, the gap between the Fortis 5 and the AK500 widens considerably, demonstrating the dissipation capacity of the Polish ventirad. Finally, the little T120 finds itself all alone at the end of the race, not big enough to cool our CPU efficiently.
[nextpage title=”Conclusion”]
We’ve come to the end of this test of Endorfy’s Fortis 5 Black. Are we dealing with a successful product? Let’s take a closer look!
A compact 140 mm single-tower ventirad!
The first thing you’ll notice about this model is its very small overall dimensions. Despite its 140 mm format, Endorfy has managed to offer us a reference that is less than 160 mm including the fan, which guarantees compatibility with many cases. What’s more, its eccentric base ensures maximum compatibility with memory, which is also very pleasing.
Otherwise, in terms of design, we’ll appreciate the matt black coating throughout, which gives it a sober, but above all very discreet look, a far cry from the exuberant models with their aRGB diodes all over the place. Coupled with an NZXT card, you’ve got the makings of a stealth PC!
On the other hand, be careful when handling it: the saw-tooth shape of the fins is not necessarily the most pleasant to the touch, and they tend to be quite sharp, but not cutting.
Simple assembly:
The assembly part will be easy to complete – it’s done in a matter of minutes. It has to be said that there are only a few components to handle, and the steps follow on quite well. However, don’t be surprised when you finally screw in the heatsink, as the tongue screws are quite hard and not very pleasant. Similarly, the steel claws tend to bend the fins they come into contact with, so be careful.
Finally, the manual does not describe all the components supplied, in particular the silentblocks for the fan. It wasn’t until we looked at the visuals on the brand’s website that we understood what they were for.
Good temperatures, in silence!
In terms of performance, the Fortis 5 Black is very convincing, with the heatsink coming in ahead of DeepCool’s AK500, a particularly thick 120mm reference. However, what really stood out for us was its very aggressive temperature/noise ratio, without sacrificing the temperature aspect as is all too often the case!
Affordable pricing!
Let’s finish with the price of this heatsink, which turns out to be extremely affordable. In fact, Endorfy has officially positioned its heatsink at €46, a very aggressive price. It’s a very serious alternative to the Pure Rock 2, AK400 and other Arctic dual-fan heatsinks in terms of price, while offering far superior performance.
Endorfy Fortis 5 Black :
We like:
- The all-black design – no RGB here for a change!
- Compatibility with older sockets.
- Black mounting elements!
- Its limited height after all.
- Maximum memory compatibility.
- Easy to assemble, despite a few minor blunders.
- Absolute silence in operation.
- Low temperatures.
- Affordable price!
What we didn’t like :
- Unclear instructions on all the components supplied.
- Steel claws that bend the fins in which they are caught.
- The screws on the ventirad side are a bit seized up.
In the end, we’re going to give this Fortis 5 Black the gold award. Apart from a few inconveniences related to assembly and handling, it performs well while remaining silent. Despite its 140mm format, it remains sufficiently compact to fit in a number of cases, while ensuring total compatibility with RAM. Last but not least, its price tag puts it head and shoulders above entry-level models, while offering far superior performance!
Many thanks to Endorfy!
