Introduction

Scythe has seen a thing or two when it comes to the DIY PC market as they have been around for 19 years and counting. They entered the market in 2002 and have rapidly grown since, becoming a well-known and respected manufacturer of CPU coolers and fans with a dedicated following. Their solid portfolio of products along with a firm commitment to quality has resulted in a company that, while lacking the brand recognition of some of its peers, still readily competes with them all the same.


Today's review looks at the Scythe Mugen 5 Black Edition, which has a clean all-black design, as the name should make very clear. In terms of design, it is your traditional tower cooler, but has the modern features you expect. First and foremost, its asymmetrical design means memory clearance shouldn't be an issue, and with six 6-mm heat pipes, it should perform quite well in theory. So let's take a closer look at what Scythe has to offer!

Packaging

Much like the cooler, the packaging is all black. The front has a nice high gloss image of the cooler that wraps around to the right side. Due to the high gloss nature of the image, it stands out much better on the black background. Turning to the left side, there is an image of the cooler again, this time from the left-hand side. Next to that are a few of the cooler's features, such as the improved memory compatibility thanks to its asymmetrical design, optimized size, and Kaze Flex fan. Another turn, this time to the back, results in the product name and a continuation of the image from the previous side. Other than that, there's not a whole lot to see here.


It is on the right side that we find all the detailed specifications for the cooler. I am pretty happy to see the warranty listed here as well. While it may only be two years, the fact that I didn't have to search for it or ask a company rep is always a good thing. Finally, the top of the box has the Scythe logo, which, while unique, is the only item of note to be found.

Contents

The cooler comes encased in cardboard for protection, with the heatsink itself situated in the center. The outer edges contain the mounting hardware and fan. I will say that compared to some boxes, the Scythe packaging was extremely sturdy, but as always, I prefer to see foam as it has some give to absorb impact far better than cardboard. However, with that said, the cooler arrived safe and sound with no bent fins or issues, so I suppose all is well.


While many companies have dropped support for AMD's older sockets, Scythe has not. The Mugen 5 Black Edition supports All AMD sockets from AM4 all the way back to AM2. Only TR4 is not supported. On Intel, all mainstream sockets and even LGA2011 and LGA2066 are supported. It should be noted that since Scythe was nice enough to send a matching fan, I will be testing dual-fan performance on the Mugen 5 as well.

Common parts supplied for mounting include:

• 4x Fan clips
• 4x Bolt nuts
• 4x Plastic spacers
• 4x AMD screws
• 4x Stud nuts
• 2x Intel mounting plates
• 2x AMD mounting plates
• 1x Intel backplate
• 1x Tube thermal paste
• 1x Screwdriver
• 1x Heatsink
• 1x 120 mm Kaze Flex PWM fan