XIGMATEK ACK-I7751 Retention Bracket

Pros: It's definitely a more solid alternative to the LGA 775 push-pins if you move your case around a lot and/or get nervous about that kind of thing. There's a nice plastic pad between the metal and the PCB that prevents shorting.

Cons: It's a one time installation. The adhesive is excessively sticky; it's like super glue. Do NOT use this unless you know for an absolute fact that you'll never want to use anything other than a Xigmatech cooler on the motherboard you're installing it on.

Overall Review: I ended up doing a motherboard swap post installation. Removing the back plate was not pretty, it took the better part of a day and is effectively destroyed. The adhesive is still stubbornly attached to the motherboard (which is in the family computer now), but it's not hurting anything. I also chipped some of the PCB off one of the mounting holes, but thankfully that did no (functional) damage either. My Xigmatech cooler is now installed with the push pins, which is how I'll be leaving it for a while. I blame this on my own indecisiveness, not Xigmatech. I just want to stress that this thing is quite permanent.

Pros: If you dont like hurting your thumbs with pushpins this helps alot.

Makes mounting the HS way easier. Highly reccomend, read the cons though.

Cons: The super strong sticky tape is far too strong. I almost broke my MOBO trying to get the bracket off.

The tape eventually gave way... but get this, the tape split in two before it came off. Yep the foam core of the tape split before the tape separated from the motherboard or the metal bracket.

You then have to pick at the remaining tape stuck to your motherboard and metal bracket with your fingernail. Which takes about another 5-10 minutes.


Oh and if your struggling to get the bracket off, dont try lifting it, just twist it off. that way your not bending your mobo's pcb. try to use the edge of the board as a grip point when twisting. dont use the headers on the back of your board like the ps2 ports and such. you might break those off.

Overall Review: I originally gave this a 5, because it made mounting the HSF much easier.

I'm making sure it looses 2 eggs on this review to make up for the 5 star review i posted before, either way, i think it should get 4 eggs because it does make mounting the HS a heck of alot easier. They just need to use weaker tape.