First up, the Apogee XL CPU block. While I will cover it in more detail separately, I feel the restriction and orientation results are important here.
Liquid flow restriction was measured for just the CPU block using a Dwyer 490-1 manometer hooked up to between the two ports on the CPU block, the rest of the loop had a FrozenQ 400 mL cylinder reservoir, a Swiftech MCP50X pump and an Aquacomputer Aquaero 6 XT with a High flow non-usb flow meter previously calibrated.
The other thread I mentioned will cover this in detail with other CPU blocks as well but as part of the H220-X kit, people won't really switch over to other blocks so I didn't include it here. I will say that of the 3 CPU blocks I have, this is the most restrictive one.
There is a slight effect in orientation of the block, but not enough to justify people choosing the block orientation over a cleaner tube routing. The CPU block being 0º is the "regular" orientation with the 90º one being the "goofy orientation. The explanation of these terms and also the testing methodology here is here. Incidentally, that thread is what I will turn into a small CPU block roundup with the Apogee XL added in as well.
Next, the pump. The MCP30 as I said earlier is based off the MCP50X except with a max RPM of 3000 +/- 10%
Compare that to the MCP50X:
The PWM response and noise levels were recorded using the aforementioned Aquaero 6 setup and a sound probe held 6" away. Inside a case that is a couple of feet away, the noise levels would be lower. To get even more info on how this pumps would behave with added restriction, if expanding the H220-X I would refer you to my MCP50X review. Incidentally, that will also point you towards if swapping pumps is worth it for the added speed and noise.
Finally the fans:
The Helix120 PWM has a less linear PWM response than the pump. So using the 8 way PWM splitter and controlling the pump and fans on a PWM % curve won't give you the same effect, if you know what I mean. If possible, control the pump and the fans separately. The fans are a bit noisy at full speed but do push a lot of air through a low-med FPI radiator. One would suspect at this stage, without the thermal tests being done, that staying at 50% or less would be a good compromise between airflow (measured through the H220-X radiator using an Extech 45158 thermoanemometer 6" away) and noise (sound probe 6" away). If you would rather change fans, then look up fan reviews from someone like Coolingtechnique or Martin. I will have a few comparisons coming up soon as well.
So if you keep the splitter signal at 100% then the fans are going to be the louder component by far. Seeing my numbers for the MCP50X, the fans are not too far off from the full 4500 rpm pump at full speed either. This is even more of a reason to try to control the fans and the pump separately if possible.
5) Thermal performance as CPU cooler
Knowing what I know now, the CPU block was placed in a "goofy" orientation and the tests were done on an Intel i7 4770K at 1.25 Vcore and 4.5 GHz. Each test/scenario was done in a climate controlled hotbox at 25 ºC ambients but the results will still be reported in terms of a delta T (component - ambient) in ºC. Each test/scenario was repeated three times and the average value taken to account of possible issues with mounting and TIM. Speaking of TIM, cure time was accounted for by measuring values after steady state was achieved post burning in with an Intel XTU run. Realtemp was used to measure the core temperatures.
Scenarios tested
1) As-is with TIM MATE 2, MCP30 pump at 50%, 2 Swiftech Helix120 fans at 50% PWM signal (Cooler noise ~35 dBA)
2) As-is with TIM MATE 2, MCP30 pump at 100%, 2 Swiftech Helix120 fans at 50% PWM signal (Cooler noise ~38 dBA)
3) As-is with TIM MATE 2, MCP30 pump at 100%, 2 Swiftech Helix120 fans at 100% PWM signal (Cooler noise ~54 dBA)
4) Modified with Gelid GC Extreme, MCP50X pump at 100%, 3 Noiseblocker NB-eLoop B12-P fans at 100% PWM signal (Cooler noise ~ 53 dBA)
The scenarios 1-3 are for the cooler with the accessories provided with the box. Scenario 4 is to see if changing components to push towards higher performance will benefit much. Note that this scenario can be changed around to get lower noise also- keep the pump to the MCP30, have the fans at 50% or lower.
So based on these results, and from what I know about the Apogee XL separately, it doesn't scale great with flow rate. The lower flow rate also means a higher mean residence time in the radiator leading to slightly more heat dissipation. I would still go with the stock pump if using this only for a CPU cooler. The fans at 50% vs 100% also don't do a lot of difference thermally but a world of difference in noise levels. Again- these noise levels are likely higher than what it would be in a case further away but the point remains the same. Finally, for those looking to get the max performance possible then you can go with a lot of things- add a 3rd fan, change TIM, put on the bigger pump, change all the fans. This is totally a person to person choice depending on noise levels, temps and budget.
As and when I get more CPU coolers, I will seek out another scenario that can be as consistent as possible- same TIM and fans would be the easiest way to go. I will then add in another plot here to compare the H220-X against the other coolers in the same scenario.
6) Expansion
Ah now this is a section not many CPU coolers can boast about. The Swiftech H220-X is a compact, pre-assembled custom loop. Calling it a simple CPU cooler or AIO would not do it justice in my opinion. With the disassembly section above, I hope everyone has an idea as to what's needed in order to expand this. This section is more of an exploratory one seeing how the components I choose to expand with need not be what you have but hopefully you get an idea. Here is what I ended up going with:
1) Swiftech G/14 adapter for MCP30/MCP50X top
2) Primochill advanced LRT 1/2" x 3/4" tubing
3) Bitspower 1/2" x 3/4" compression fittings and angled adapters
I was hoping to have used the Swiftech R9-LE (a low restriction block) on the AMD R9-290 GPU instead but thanks to it being involved in a separate test going on simultaneously I had no choice. The EK block is not bad either when it comes to restriction added to a loop, and the SR-2 radiator is the least restrictive 360mm radiator I have tested out so far. So I hope you can see I was going for low restriction here for the items added in. Thus the MCP30 will not be as taxed as, say, if you go with an Alphacool GPX block, HardwareLabs Nemesis GTS radiator, and some quick disconnects.
In this loop, the MCP30 gave a max flowrate of 1.1 GPM while the MCP50X kicked it up a few notches to 1.4 GPM. But does that extra flowrate help out if the block(s) can't take advantage of it? To test it out, I went with the Helix120 and eLoop B12-P fans at 50% and the pumps at 100% PWM signal. Intel XTU on the CPU (4.5 GHz, 1.25 Vcore) and Unigine Heaven 4.0 on the GPU (1300 MHz core, 1900 MHz memory, 1.35 Vcore, 1.65 Vmem) was used to apply load with Realtemp and GPU-Z used to monitor clocks and temps till steady state was reached. These tests were done a total of 3 times to account for mount variability (Gelid GC-Extreme TIM).
For this particular loop, the extra 0.3 GPM helps reduce temperatures but at the expense of a lot more noise. Personally I would stick with the MCP30 pump itself. However, things may well chance for you depending on the components added and the increase in the overall loop restriction. Irrespective of the pump/fans/blocks used, expanding the H220-X is very easy. Use an angled adapter/fill line on the fill port and then bleed the loop accordingly. Just remember this when installing the H220-X if deviating from the top case mounting:
7) Conclusion
I have used "Best bang for the buck" before when describing the MCP50X pump. At the risk of coming off repetitive, I will do the same here. Let's tally up the cost of the individual items:
1) Apogee XL CPU block- $64.95
2) MCP30 pump (not available separately, so including the cost of MCP50X here)- $69.95
3) 2x Helix120 PWM fans- $23.9
5) MCR-220 radiator- $85
6) Reservoir/TIM/tubing/fittings/clamsp- ~$40
for a total of $283.80. This is very likely an exaggerated total since the H220 240mm radiator with 2 Helix120 PWM fans included is currently on sale for $39.95. But then again labor hours for assembling the loop, filling it, bleeding it and leak checking it are not included either. The point I wanted to make is this- you are saving a lot of money here going with this kit as compared to other components alone. The true competition for this will not be AIOs or air coolers, but rather custom loop kits from manufacturers like EK, Alphacool, XSPC and so forth. If you are only using this to cool your CPU, then there may well be other alternatives that do the job at a lower cost- I will hopefully find out soon for myself. You will then have to justify that additional cost in terms of aesthetics, expansion and being able to switch components quickly. Whether or not this is worth it is a personal decision then, and hopefully this review has helped you make that decision for yourself.
Hey peeps. Just giving away a game code I recently got with my nvidia videocard. Just post you want in. Winner will be selected by Random.org. Will do the draw on Wednesday afternoon. Good luck.
Hey peeps. Just giving away a game code I recently got with my nvidia videocard. Just post you want in. Winner will be selected by Random.org. Will do the draw on Wednesday afternoon. Good luck.
Hey peeps. Just giving away a game code I recently got with my nvidia videocard. Just post you want in. Winner will be selected by Random.org. Will do the draw on Wednesday afternoon. Good luck.
New beta drivers are out. Hopefully this will fix titanfall crossfire issues.
Highlights of AMD Catalyst™ 14.4 Windows Driver
Support for the AMD Radeon R9 295X
CrossFire fixes enhancements:
Crysis 3 – frame pacing improvements
Far Cry 3 – 3 and 4 GPU performance improvements at high quality settings, high resolution settings
Anno 2070 – Improved CrossFire scaling up to 34%
Titanfall – Resolved in game flickering with CrossFire enabled
Metro Last Light – Improved Crossfire scaling up to 10%
Eyefinity 3x1 (with three 4K panels) no longer cuts off portions of the application
Stuttering has been improved in certain applications when selecting mid-Eyefinity resolutions with V-sync Enabled
Full support for OpenGL 4.4 Mantle beta driver improvements:
BattleField 4: Performance slowdown is no longer seen when performing a task switch/Alt-tab
BattleField 4: Fuzzy images when playing in rotated SLS resolution with an A10 Kaveri system
[sOURCE] http://www.pcper.com/news/Graphics-Cards/AMD-Catalyst-144-Release-Candidate-now-available
Interesting note in the slide is that a r9 290x gets a bump in FPS from 38 to 55 from directx to mantle (take it with a grain of salt). That is a pretty good performance increase if its true
Interesting note in the slide is that a r9 290x gets a bump in FPS from 38 to 55 from directx to mantle (take it with a grain of salt). That is a pretty good performance increase if its true
Interesting note in the slide is that a r9 290x gets a bump in FPS from 38 to 55 from directx to mantle (take it with a grain of salt). That is a pretty good performance increase if its true
What you guys think of the new design? Personally I think it looks better. The CPU block is sweet. The whole rad, pump and reservoir combo looks limiting into where you can place it in your case. Also it will probably have compatibility issues with a lot of smaller cases.
Great to see Nvidia dropping the prices. Cause the 780 was a absurd price from the get go. Hopefully this will make AMD release the new 'Never settle bundles' faster with their 290 series cards.
Great to see Nvidia dropping the prices. Cause the 780 was a absurd price from the get go. Hopefully this will make AMD release the new 'Never settle bundles' faster with their 290 series cards.
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