![]() ![]() As for the rest, the 240, 280, and 360 series are worth consideration. They mostly exist for system integrators or for special SFF PCs that don’t have the physical space for a tower of any kind. As a quick advisory, we almost unilaterally reject 120mm closed-loop liquid coolers on the basis of horrible performance to price. The Arctic Liquid Freezer II 280 is what we’re reviewing, although variants at 120, 240, and 360 are also prominently featured online. We won’t be reproducing the methodological information on this page as it’d be redundant. If you’d like to read how we do this testing, you can click this link. Continue to for CPU cooler testing methodology.Arctic cooling’s Liquid Freezer II came right in time for Zen 2 system builds toward end of 2019, but that was when we were in the middle of upgrading our testing methods. EVGA strikes a mix and lands dead center in terms of price-to-customization, with regard to visuals. As expected, the cooler is an assemblage of plastic and a coldplate comprising the pump housing, with densely packed copper microfins for increased surface area.Ĭolor tuning and profiles are more limited than what you’ll find with NZXT, but also more advanced than what Corsair offers on the H115iV2. The software offers usual fan speed control options and relies on an internal thermocouple for liquid temperatures, which we show in our tear-down video that goes live tomorrow. For this reason, building fan speed based upon liquid temperature is inadvisable, but EVGA was responsive to criticism and (as we understand it) has updated the software to function with greater sense. This is particularly true with Kaby Lake, where it is neither unreasonable nor uncommon to see a ~29-33C liquid temperature while pumping a 95C package temperature. It’d be interesting if EVGA also explored this for their motherboards.Īt CES, we criticized EVGA’s initial plans to rely on liquid temperature for the fan speed adjustment, as we’ve proven that liquid temperature is hugely disparate from actual core temperature. The software wasn’t ready for us to fully dig through prior to this review’s publication, but we’ve worked with the basics and can go through a few features that are noteworthy: EVGA plans to offer user-upgradeable firmware are major, we think, as is their intent to synchronize GPU and cooler LEDs through the software. Nothing is new with regard to mounting – it’s using the same trivial-to-install Asetek cap screws and standoffs as always, which we’ve come to appreciate for their simplicity and strength.Ī mini USB cable runs to a USB2.0 header on the board to provide RGB LED control via software. You can view our NZXT tear-down here for a comparison.ĮVGA’s cooler comes with the usual Intel and AMD brackets, and will offer free AM4 brackets for those who purchase a unit prior to the Ryzen launch. This is similar to the Corsair H1XXi series PCBs, but significantly different from the NZXT X42/X52/X62 series. ![]() The outer PCB is for the LED management and controller, the inner PCB is for pump control and is provided by Asetek. Two PCBs exist internally and are oriented in an outer/inner layout. Internally, the pump block consists of the impeller, the coldplate and its densely packed microfins, and a foam noise damper between the top of the pump block and the pump plate. The EVGA CLC 280mm cooler uses the expected Gen5 Asetek pump with minimal internal customizations, beyond the usual LED plate and diffuser. We’ve got a full tear-down video going live tomorrow, but some photos from the process are embedded below. Relatedly, we would strongly recommend reading our Kraken X42, X52, & X62 review for further background on the competition. Note that we also have A/B cowling tests toward the bottom for performance analysis of the unique fan design. For frame of reference, the competing-sized NZXT Kraken X62 is priced at ~$160, with the Corsair H115i priced at ~$120. The EVGA CLC 280 enters the market at $130 MSRP, partnered with the EVGA CLC 120 at $90 MSRP. We first discussed the new EVGA CLCs at CES last month (where we also detailed the new ICX coolers ), including some early criticism of the software’s functionality, but EVGA made several improvements prior to our receipt of the review product. The EVGA CLC 280, like both of these primary competitors, is built atop Asetek’s Gen5 pump technology and primarily differentiates itself in the usual ways: Fan design and pump plate/LED design. ![]() We’ve fully benchmarked the new EVGA CLC 280mm versus NZXT’s Kraken X62 & Corsair’s H115iV2 280mm coolers, including temperature and noise testing. EVGA’s closed-loop liquid cooler, named “Closed-Loop Liquid Cooler,” will begin shipping this month in 280mm and 120mm variants.
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