X-bit labs

Four Liquid-Cooling Systems for the Masses (page 15)

Category: Coolers

by Vasily Melnik

[ 10/14/2005 | 03:30 PM ]

Let’s start with the main components, particularly with the water-block:

The cute design with a copper foundation and a plastic cap looks similar to water-blocks from Thermaltake, but there are some differences, too. For example, the metal plate is used as a fastening element here. It also protects the plastic cap from damage. If you remove this plate, the internal structure of the water-block becomes apparent:

The Gigabyte engineers made use of one of the best possible designs which had earlier been a prerogative of Swiftech’s systems – a needled internal surface. Well, discussing and comparing different water-block designs is out of the scope of this review – it would require a special and long article. The systems presented here are ready-made and the user is unlikely to purchase one to redesign anything in it. It would be simpler just to choose another ready-made solution.

The only drawback of this water-block is that the fittings are plastic and constitute a single whole with the cap. Considering that the system comes with a rather thick pipe, this aroused my apprehensions a little: plastic isn’t a very robust material, so you should be most careful when assembling a 3D Galaxy.

There’s a protective sticker on the base of the water-block:

This is a called-for measure since the bottom is polished just perfectly and needs protection during transportation and installation:

The thickening of the sole where it touches the processor should positively affect the cooling efficiency. If the water-block had a thin base, it wouldn’t take heat off the CPU quickly enough.