Corsair Hydro Series: H60, H80 and H100 Reviewed
by Jared Bell on November 7, 2011 12:00 AM EST- Posted in
- Cases/Cooling/PSUs
- Corsair
- Water Cooling
Introducing Corsair’s Hydro Series: H60, H80 and H100
Closed-loop liquid CPU cooling solutions are gaining popularity as more and more vendors are carrying their own variation. We've even seen both Intel and AMD announce the inclusion of liquid-coolers for their upcoming processor lines. Today we're going to take a look at the Corsair Hydro Series H60 High Performance, H80 High Performance, and H100 Extreme Performance liquid CPU coolers. Corsair has teamed up with CoolIT Systems this time around. They have previously partnered with Asetek for other Hydro Series products (H40/H50/H70/H70 Core), but our focus here is on the H60, H80, and H100.
The Corsair Hydro Series of liquid CPU coolers aim to give you the power of liquid-cooling in a compact, easy to install package, without the complexity of traditional water-cooling kits. They are designed to be a closed-loop solution with no maintenance required at all. But just how well do these Corsair liquid-coolers perform against the current cream of the crop air-coolers? After all, Corsair is targeting the high-end air-cooling market with these cooling solutions, both in price and performance. First, let's take a look at the specs for the units being tested today.
| Corsair Hydro Series Specifications | |||
| H60 | H80 | H100 | |
| Radiator Dimensions | 120mmx152mmx27mm | 120mmx152mmx38mm | 122mmx275mmx27mm |
| Fan Dimensions | 120mmx120mmx25mm | 120mmx120mmx25mm (x2) | 120mmx120mmx25mm (x2) |
| Fan Speed | (+/- 10%) up to 1700RPM |
(+/- 10%) up to: 1300RPM (Low), 2000RPM (Medium), and 2500RPM (High) |
(+/- 10%) up to: 1300RPM (Low), 2000RPM (Medium), and 2500RPM (High) |
|
Fan Airflow / dBA, Static Pressure |
74.4 CFM / 30.2 dBA, 3.2mm/H20 |
46-92CFM / 22-39 dBA, 1.6-7.7mm/H20 |
46-92 CFM / 22-39 dBA, 1.6-7.7mm/H20 |
| Cold Plate / Radiator Material | Copper / Aluminum | Copper / Aluminum | Copper / Aluminum |
| Tubing | Low-permeability for near-zero evaporation | Low-permeability for near-zero evaporation | Low-permeability for near-zero evaporation |
| Intel Sockets | LGA 775, 1155/1156, 1366, 2011 | LGA 775, 1155/1156, 1366, 2011 | LGA 775, 1155/1156, 1366, 2011 |
| AMD Sockets | AM2, AM3 | AM2, AM3 | AM2, AM3 |
| Warranty | Five years | Five years | Five years |
| MSRP | $79.99 | $109.99 | $119.99 |
Facebook
Twitter
RSS
91 Comments
View All Comments
Mjello - Monday, November 7, 2011 - link
If you don't mind temps howering in the 70C-75C range the h100 can do it passive mounted externally in a horisontal position in a 25C room.Just did an hour of LoL. It wont do prime95 for more than 10 min. however. So heavy loads is a nogo passive. And a silent fan doesn't make any noice so i'll switch mine back on. Was a fun experiment though.
double0seven - Tuesday, November 8, 2011 - link
"We could hook up our video cards and CPU to the loop."This part doesn't make logical sense. If you "hooked up" multiple heat generators to a coolant loop, only the first one would get cooled.
ggathagan - Monday, November 7, 2011 - link
Page 3, last sentence of the 1st paragraph: I didn't have any filament problems....I'm guessing fitment is the word you intended.
Hey, someone has to pick at this stuff...
fixxxer0 - Tuesday, November 8, 2011 - link
what was the ambient temp of the room on average? just curious to see what your actual temps were...compudaze - Tuesday, November 8, 2011 - link
Ambient temps were 22.2C - 24.8C with an average of 23.8C.medi01 - Tuesday, November 8, 2011 - link
It's been a while, that most power hungry part of the system is a graphic card.What a pity they don't make water cooling solution for them.
I don't quite get why on earth I would install this thing, if I still have to care what to do with graphic card heat.
kg4icg - Tuesday, November 8, 2011 - link
Cool IT does make a sealed solution for video cards.http://www.coolitsystems.com/index.php/products/gp...
Sabresiberian - Tuesday, November 8, 2011 - link
It's good to see these coolers get to the point where they are really good, even if the cost is a bit high still. I think pretty soon, liquid coolers will be the thing to use in all but inexpensive systems.I'm not sure the H100's price is too high; it depends on what a serious overclocker wants, and whether it allows more room than something like the Silver Arrow. Adding another 2 fans will make even more difference (and add to the cost), which will give more of a performance edge to it. Theoretically, anyway, air flow through the radiator may not be the limiting factor in the system.
I use the CoolIT Eco on one of my rigs (similar to the H60). It's a decent cooler, but the main reason I used it was because I needed a lower profile solution with my Antec Skeleton "case", and these type coolers really work great for that. Of course, you are just moving the space issue to a different location, since there's the radiator to deal with, but that's not an issue with the Skeleton since I just made a bracket to hang it off a side.
;)
Googer - Wednesday, November 9, 2011 - link
Shame corsair didn't show off the "Corsair Link" kit and demonstrate its abilities. I guess they don't want to sell too many of those $100-129 (USD) kits. Sounds like the Bob's Rug Syndrome (GTE)http://www.ricklatona.com/2008/06/01/the-bobs-rug-...
Drekkyk - Wednesday, November 9, 2011 - link
I tried the H60, but at 4.5 Ghz the temp was 8 degrees C hotter than my Cooler Master Hyper 212+. under load and at idle. What I really noticed was how much slower the temp reduced when going from full load to none. I really wanted to like it, I even tried remounting, ensuring thermal compound was applied correctly, etc. I used the same compound for both coolers. My case is a Haf-X with plenty of airflow.