Radiator comparison @ Effiziensgurus

[Fairydust]

Effiziensgurus.de compared the Alphacool NexXxos Extreme III Rev.2, Hardware Labs Black Ice GT Stealth 360 chrome, Hardware Labs Black Ice GT Xtreme 360, Hardware Labs Black Ice GT Xtreme 360 Lite, MagiCool Slim Triple, ThermoChill PA 120.3, Watercool HTF3 Triple X with a YL D12S-L12 @400, 800 and 1200 rpm.

Google translation

German version

[LockBreaker]

Hey. I was just wondering if this pump is enough for my watercooling setup? I am going to cool CPU and two GPUs with a 3x120mm HW-Labs GT Stealth 360 radiator and a 1x120mm Swiftech MCR-120 radiator.

The pump: http://www.petrastechshop.com/ladd1mcin12p.html

Btw, first post here at XtremeSystems.

And sorry for my bad English.

[disruptfam]

awesome thanks

[Tw1st3d]

Yeah really awesome..

The HW Labs rads get some ass kicking with the fan on low speed..

Funny to see the cheap scale magicool is doing so well ^^

[Talonman]

Thanks for the link.

[disruptfam]

is magicool the same rad as a blastflow/flow/radical etc all the same rad different branding?

[GAM]

Interesting review. Thanks for the link FairyDust.

Cheers
GAM

[Waterlogged]

WOW! The OP was 11-27-2007 and it got no responses until a n00b asked a completely unrelated question.

Fairydust, I need to offer a belated thanks for the links as I read them when you posted them. Good stuff

[Marci]

is magicool the same rad as a blastflow/flow/radical etc all the same rad different branding?

Yep...

[demonbane23]

Is this that test that all the guys over on OCN keep referring to in saying that the GTX 360 beats the PA 120.3 with anything over 47 cfm. Taking a look at it it looks that way. I wonder if that is at all heat loads and watt handling or only at what they tested.

Anyone know??

[RockfordFosgate]

Nice test i love my Thermochill

[Yeknom]

Are the units that they are using equivalent to CFM?

[demonbane23]

Are the units that they are using equivalent to CFM?

I love my thermochill as well I am just wondering if anyone has tried to reproduce this and show that the GTX beats the thermochill with any fans over 47cfm???

[demonbane23]

I have both,

No way I'm ever going back to a HL GTX, to freaking noisy to get anything out of it. PA 120 series suits me fine and can't be beat IMO.

andyc

Yeah it is a top notch radiator for sure I am just curious why so many other forum communities all swear by the GTX. I was wondering if with extreme heat loads it really does outperform the thermochill.

Would be nice to see someone do some testing state side.

[gojirasan]

Nice test i love my Thermochill

Even though it basically lost in this review? Is there any reason to doubt these results? Why not give HWLabs some credit for a design that finally beats the long standing champ? The fan used was not a Delta, but a measly Yate Loon D12SL-12, which is not exactly what you would call a loud fan even at 12 volts.

I am seriously wondering at my recent order of a thermochill rad to go with my 3 Sanyo Denkis. If it weren't for the fact that the Extreme 360 is only $10 cheaper at Petra's I would seriously consider canceling my order. Actually, I am wondering about it anyway. The problem is I haven't yet tested the Sanyos to see how loud they get at a given CFM or voltage. Nevertheless this test seems to call into question the gospel that the thermochill 120.3 is hands down the best triple 120 rad money can buy regardless of CFM.

No doubt if this were SPCR instead of xtremesystems and noise were our only concern the Thermochill would win by a wide margin, but noise is not the only issue here. I am going for max 'tolerable' sound with my triple Sanyo Denkis, not utter silence. I kind of like the sound of whooshing air anyway as long as it isn't high pitched, buzzing, or whiny like a Delta. Everyone seems to have a different tolerance in this regard and mine seems to change on a daily basis, which is why I will have my Sanyos on a rheostat and my computer as far away from my desk as possible (with long cables).

Better temps for $10 less sounds pretty good to me. It just means sacrificing the ability to go absolutely quiet while still maintaining good temps. At 400 U for instance the Extreme 360 gets absolutely stomped, but that is an awfully low RPM (I assume U = RPM), especially for a Yate Loon fan.

The Thermochill still wins by a large margin in terms of flow and it wins by a larger margin at low speeds than the HWLabs does at high speeds. But, assuming these results are accurate, the bottom line is that someone with a Thermochill who runs their fans at a 'reasonable' or medium-high fan speed will have higher water temps than they would if they had bought a Extreme 360 instead. Whether the higher flow resulting from a less restrictive rad would make up for the higher coolant temp is another question.

I agree that we need some more people to replicate this experiment before it is absolutely definitive. No need to test such an extensive list either. Just a final showdown between the HWlabs rad and the Thermochill.

The only objection I can think of is that the testing loop was more restrictive than most of us on the other side of the pond would be using. So it would be especially nice to test with a higher flow loop. The differences between the rads may be less pronounced with a higher flow. And the Thermochill would win even if the HWLab fan beat it at a higher CFM by a quarter of a degree or so due to its lower flow restriction and better performance at low CFMs.

[Agent11]

There isn't really a 'winner' here.

The PA120.3 dominates with slower quieter fans and has great flow rates.

The GTX dominates with loud powerful fans.

Some people don't care how loud their computer is... Others do.

And then there are those who cannot justify the price of either the PA or the GTX.

There are many good watercooling products that all aim at a different niche, with advantages and disadvantages.

Inform yourself and decide what is 'best' for your application.

[sobih25]

good comparison

[Eddie3dfx]

I don't know. It still shows that people who want very low db ratings would be much better suited with thermochill.
I wish an mcr320 was also in this test.

[gojirasan]

The GTX dominates with loud powerful fans.

So are you saying that the Yate Loon D12SL-12 is a "loud and powerful fan"?

[Vapor]

At 12V, for WCing purposes, it sure is.

A unit of three of them is not quiet and pushes 140CFM total...that's a lot of airflow considering cases are ~1 cubic foot.

[Agent11]

I prefer delta's :P

[MpG]

Post on any forum, asking for a "silent but powerful" fan, and half the responses will be suggesting fans that run at 1600 rpm and higher, many with claims that they "can't be heard". And a 1200 rpm YL is doing better on a GTX?

+1 for seeing another test between the two. These results really fly in the face of commonly offered wisdom around here, that the GTX design doesn't start to outperform the TC until at least the 75cfm/fan mark, if not higher.

[Makubex_GB]

At 12V, for WCing purposes, it sure is.

A unit of three of them is not quiet and pushes 140CFM total...that's a lot of airflow considering cases are ~1 cubic foot.

Just because they are pushing 140CFM total doesn't mean it's loud. Even if it's 140CFM total, with each Yates pushing just under 50CFM the set-up is still pretty silent.

But then again, that depends on what each individual considers silent.

[NickS]

MCR320 plix?

[silverphoenix]

Post on any forum, asking for a "silent but powerful" fan, and half the responses will be suggesting fans that run at 1600 rpm and higher, many with claims that they "can't be heard". And a 1200 rpm YL is doing better on a GTX?

except on SPCR lol

The other factor is that the more turbulence there is technically you get more noise as well.