OCZ Hydroflow Mini Review

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09-30-2008, 07:54 AM
Bojamijams

Ahhh... I understand now... thank you for the lesson guys .. love this place :)
09-30-2008, 02:46 PM
SNiiPE_DoGG

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tony

We put a lot of work into the top material, it had to have a good resistance to cold and well as being good when hot...and it had to be tolerant to our injection moulds.

I have mentioned this to Martin already and i did mention this in the preview thread...If you increase mounting pressure to around 75LBs the temps will improve. Flow is accross the block in line with the channels as per Martins pic....it will flow the other way also with increased resistance although I never measured performance.

I test here a little different to Martin, I understand he asked you guys how you would like to see tests performed and i respect those wishes...From my tests using a controlled mount (IE the same exact pressure for all blocks) and temperature controlled water (average 20.5c) I had the Fusion just over 1C better than HF and HF better than the Apogee GT, however when all blocks were tested with 75LBs pressure the HF pulled away by near 2C, the Fusion did not react to mounting pressure increases anywhere near as good as the HF did and for that matter the Apogee GT. Each review you will see will be slightly different though, each has their own methods etc and we at OCZ respect that. I said we were here to compete and compete we do...I think pricing is on our side with this block and if I can get it down further with the next order I will be sure to pass the savings on to you guys.
If you want to try 75LBs pressure just add a 1mm thick Nylon washer under the spring but on top of the mounting plate...2mm will give 100LBs.

Overall I think the block did ok and I thank Martin for spending some of his personal time testing for you guys.

Just to confirm, can the backplate and mount plate handle this kind of pressure without risk?
09-30-2008, 05:48 PM
Martinm210

Thanks guys.
I'm out of town at the moment, so I can't do much of anything, but I did all my testing with one red washer under the springs. This really didn't feel like it was necessarily a ton of pressure, I was able to tighten the screws down with my fingers and didn't have to use a screwdriver, but I hear this was probably a good amount of pressure.

This one washer under the springs is what the instructions noted to do, so it was fitting of my intent to test the block "As Shipped" per the instructions. I did however try two orientations, one with the inlet on the upper left and a second on the lower left. The lower left was performing best for me, so that's how I ran all the rest of the mounts. I'll try a couple of mounts when I get back home with the additional washers in place and see if there is any change.
10-01-2008, 01:42 AM
Tony

Quote:

Originally Posted by SNiiPE_DoGG

Just to confirm, can the backplate and mount plate handle this kind of pressure without risk?

Anything over stock mounting you are on your own, that being said 99% of XS users look to be running with 100lbs+ on blocks some even without backplates.

I tend to apply pressure till just before the board starts to bend...even with a backplate the board still gives a little.
10-01-2008, 04:17 AM
Eddy.Jones

Hello.. nice block.. i am new here and have been wanting to cool my pc with a water setup.
i bought a few components a while back but after i mounted an air cooler, shut the case and loaded vista i got to slack and haven't got around to even starting it.
So Tony, consider yourself like a Tony Robbins. you, along with Martins great review have changed this mans direction in life.
I will now be buying your block and getting around to water cooling.

you have reached out and lent a helping hand.
10-01-2008, 06:21 AM
Levish

All this talk about cost effective cooling has me remembering my Hydor L30 pump which went for 30$ iirc "back in the day" and would likely be no worse off in temp in a single block loop, not to mention the heatercores and shrouds (although I don't miss those, took up a lot of space)
10-01-2008, 07:45 AM
Hondacity

Tony

Will there be a revision on the block? Seeing Martins review its far from the fusionv1 which can be for 7$ more.
10-01-2008, 08:29 AM
Praz

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hondacity

Tony

Will there be a revision on the block? Seeing Martins review its far from the fusionv1 which can be for 7$ more.

Far from the Fusion? Lowest temperature was 1.9C difference and highest was 1.6C difference. The edge goes to the Fusion but I don't see how it can be viewed as significant.
10-01-2008, 09:00 AM
SNiiPE_DoGG

not to mention the extra pressure wasnt applied to the hydroflow, which is a stepped block and needs the extra pressure :fact:
10-01-2008, 10:11 AM
Hondacity

I'm sure improvements are welcome. I'm still waiting on martin's test with higher pressure..i hope it won't destroy his quadcore..otherwise he's got to redo his testing. I'm doing some tests too but i don't wanna test something that performs less than the fusionv1.

I was expecting some wc users reacting to my question. 1.6C-1.9C from the Dtek Fusion is still marginal. some lap cpus to gain those deltas. xtreme are you?
10-01-2008, 10:21 AM
nikhsub1

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hondacity

I'm doing some tests too but i don't wanna test something that performs less than the fusionv1.

Umm, what? If that is your attitude, I suggest you don't bother testing at all. I mean, the point of testing is to see how something performs (and on YOUR testbed, the more the merrier). How do you know something will or will not perform better than a certain benchmark without even testing it? :( Sigh.
10-01-2008, 10:24 AM
migueld

If this blocks costs only $40 then this will probably be the best overall value block. It looks great, great build quality, it's compression-fitting-friendly, ease of use, decent pressure drops, and decent thermal performance (within 1-3C of top blocks √ ).

The key factor is the pricing, and if that's kept low then this is a clear winner IMO :up:
10-01-2008, 05:44 PM
Martinm210

FYI,
I tried two 1mm washers for one mount and temps went up by about 1 degree (Hottest core was 51.9C). My processor is lapped though, so the gains with more pressure are probably much more significant with a stock IHS that may be concaved.

Anyhow, you guys with a stock IHS will have to try the higher pressure, it's not helping my lapped processor any.
10-01-2008, 06:02 PM
funny

nice block~I like the design and surface finish
10-01-2008, 06:48 PM
SiGfever

Nice work as always Martin. :up:

This is a very nice looking block and should have a large market interested in it.
10-02-2008, 02:49 AM
Tony

martins test results seem to be going the wrong way :( I found 75LBs was the optimum pressure, here the block during my tests beat the Fusion and the apogee GT...each testers results are going to be a little different though.

As i mentioned in my other thread I doubt block design is going to get much better than where it is now, I have a design for a jet block here that pretty much beats everything you see out there, the issue is it would cost a pretty penny to make it and would probably retail for $100, which i feel is just not worth doing.

it would be nice to see a performance/cost graph for all blocks tested so you can see what you are getting for your $$'s, in this age of collapsing banks etc i actually feel this may be what most end users will look for.

Also I don't see the Fusion doing as well just using convection ;)
10-02-2008, 07:04 AM
crash5s

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tony

martins test results seem to be going the wrong way :( I found 75LBs was the optimum pressure, here the block during my tests beat the Fusion and the apogee GT...each testers results are going to be a little different though.

As i mentioned in my other thread I doubt block design is going to get much better than where it is now, I have a design for a jet block here that pretty much beats everything you see out there, the issue is it would cost a pretty penny to make it and would probably retail for $100, which i feel is just not worth doing.

it would be nice to see a performance/cost graph for all blocks tested so you can see what you are getting for your $$'s, in this age of collapsing banks etc i actually feel this may be what most end users will look for.

Also I don't see the Fusion doing as well just using convection ;)

Why not make both and have a high and low end offering. There are blocks that retail for about that (see AC's products) and people do buy them.:shrug:
10-02-2008, 07:16 AM
nikhsub1

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tony

As i mentioned in my other thread I doubt block design is going to get much better than where it is now, I have a design for a jet block here that pretty much beats everything you see out there, the issue is it would cost a pretty penny to make it and would probably retail for $100, which i feel is just not worth doing.

You underestimate people's need for having 'the best'. Cathar could have always sold more blocks, he didn't stop due to lack of customers, rather lack of interest... Ever see 'Field of Dreams'? 'If you build it, they will come'.
10-02-2008, 08:42 AM
SNiiPE_DoGG

I would buy a 100$ block if it truely beat the pants off all others and looked as good as the hydroflow :up:
10-02-2008, 09:17 AM
smee

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nate P.

I really like the fact they stepped the base right out of the box.

Yes I agree!!

Great review Martin!! You da man. :up:

*cough*Hey Petra....... when are ya getting them in stock????*cough*cough*
10-02-2008, 02:27 PM
SiGfever

Quote:

Originally Posted by nikhsub1

You underestimate people's need for having 'the best'. Cathar could have always sold more blocks, he didn't stop due to lack of customers, rather lack of interest... Ever see 'Field of Dreams'? 'If you build it, they will come'.

:up:
10-02-2008, 02:38 PM
Hondacity

Thanks Tony...

70-100$ aint bad ...i'll get one if you promise its best :)

about watercooling...if you've noticed most retailers are out of stock with the good stuff...hwlabs 480gtx ...weeks ago the fusionv2..bitspower fittings... asian/aus countries are importing hordes of waterblocks...

i can surely smell some greens there...
10-02-2008, 03:10 PM
Martinm210

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tony

martins test results seem to be going the wrong way :( I found 75LBs was the optimum pressure, here the block during my tests beat the Fusion and the apogee GT...each testers results are going to be a little different though.

Exactly, that's why I emphasized that the testing is so specific to a system. Different amounts of pumping/radiator systems will likely result in slightly different preferences/tradeoffs in pressure drop losses. In addition the shape of the IHS itself likely plays a huge role in what sort of mounting pressure is optimal for a processor. Mine is lapped flat which seems to be pretty happy with the single washer under the spring...but that's not to say a stock IHS with something less that flat or a different processor die size wouldn't act differently...it probably will.

After testing 15 blocks in the last couple of months, I've pretty well convinced myself of two things:

Pressure drop and measurments of restriction are fairly repeatable measures although manufacturing variances still create some variation.

Thermal performance on the other hand can really only be approximately measured. Maybe to .5C on any particular setup, but that's only good for that one system, that one pump setup, that one radiator/fan combination, that one thermal paste used and applications methond, AND that one processor.

The best we can do as reviewers is state our testing specifications and hope there are plenty of others testing to help provide some sort of trend that's not based on any one review, but rather a collection of reviews on several setups under a wider range of conditions.:up:

Great job on the block, I'll be passing it along to Skinnee next for his own experiences..:up:

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