Author: Pavel Sekerka

DeepCool AK400 Zero Dark Plus – The golden middle way

Cooling, CPU coolers, Extra tests | | Pavel Sekerka

At the end of this year I have prepared a review of the DeepCool AK400 Zero Dark Plus cooler. This is an interesting mid-range cooler with a modern design. The Zero Dark and Plus attributes refer to the black edition of the cooler and the second fan in the package respectively. I’m also quite interested to see how the AK400 Zero Dark Plus will fare against the Fera 5 and Fortis 5 coolers from Endorfy, with which it competes both in price and advertised TDP. Read more “DeepCool AK400 Zero Dark Plus – The golden middle way” »

Noctua NH-U12A chromax.black – The legend back in black

Cooling, CPU coolers, Extra tests | | Pavel Sekerka

The Noctua NH-U12A is a cooler that has previously proven that with a little effort, it is possible to offer the performance of high-end dual-tower coolers in a more compact design. However, the last time I tested it, I was still using the older methodology, so with the release of the chromax.black version, there’s an ideal opportunity to conduct new tests. The question also remains whether the NF-U12A chromax.black can justify its high price tag. Read more “Noctua NH-U12A chromax.black – The legend back in black” »

DeepCool AK620 – Solid dual-tower cooler for a good price

Cooling, CPU coolers, Extra tests | | Pavel Sekerka

While modern processors offer high performance, this is inevitably linked to the need for highly effective cooling. So I’m always happy to welcome a cooler on the market with the promise of high effectiveness at an interesting price. One of them is the AK620, which represents the top of DeepCool’s range. It offers a modern design, an attractive price tag and the potential to cool even high-end processors. So we’ll see how well it performs in our stress tests. Read more “DeepCool AK620 – Solid dual-tower cooler for a good price” »

Endorfy Navis F280 – Another bullseye among AIO coolers

Cooling, CPU coolers, Extra tests | | Pavel Sekerka

The SilentiumPC brand is undergoing a change to Endorfy today, and along with this change is the launch of the new liquid all-in-one cooler from the Navis series. Similar to the Navis F240, today’s new addition features the excellent Fluctus series fans. Moreover, the Endorfy Navis F280 will also surely impress you with its attractive price tag of just under 100 EUR. What we have here is a solid potential for a very attractive price-performance ratio. Read more “Endorfy Navis F280 – Another bullseye among AIO coolers” »

MSI MEG CoreLiquid S360 – You won’t hear it coming

Cooling, CPU coolers, Extra tests | | Pavel Sekerka

The MEG CoreLiquid S360 currently represents the top of MSI’s liquid AIO cooler lineup. What sets it apart from most coolers in this category is the large LCD display above the pump block, and the supplied MEG Silent Gale P12 fans, which are some of the best on the market. What we have here is therefore a promise of an attractive design as well as solid cooling effectiveness. The big question is whether this cooler can justify its very high price tag. Read more “MSI MEG CoreLiquid S360 – You won’t hear it coming” »

Gelid Tranquillo 5 – the fifth revision of the legendary cooler

Cooling, CPU coolers, Extra tests | | Pavel Sekerka

Tranquillo coolers from Gelid Solutions have been very popular in the past for their solid cooling efficiency at an affordable price. Recently, the fifth revision of this cooler was launched, offering a change in overall design and featuring a matte black finish. Price-wise, however, the Gelid Tranquillo rev. 5 is a direct competitor to some very solid coolers of late and so I am very curious to see how it fares against them in today’s review. Read more “Gelid Tranquillo 5 – the fifth revision of the legendary cooler” »

SilentiumPC Navis F240 ARGB: A small AIO with a big potential

Cooling, CPU coolers, Extra tests | | Pavel Sekerka

At the end of April, SilentiumPC launched a pair of new AIO coolers from the Navis series. These are the F240 and F240 ARGB models, which differ only in RGB backlighting. Both of these coolers are equipped with Fluctus fans, so you can expect a pleasant acoustics as well as solid cooling effectiveness. Combined with a very attractive price tag, these coolers have the potential to become bestsellers in their class. Read more “SilentiumPC Navis F240 ARGB: A small AIO with a big potential” »

Noctua NH-D12L: A breath of fresh air for short twin-tower coolers

CPU coolers, Extra tests | | Pavel Sekerka

Noctua has recently launched the Noctua NH-D12L, a fairly compact cooler with a height of just 145 millimetres. This makes it an ideal cooling solution for smaller cases, but also for servers with a height of 4U. Thanks to its interesting design and high-end fan, this cooler should offer very solid cooling effectiveness. But of course this assumption needs to be thoroughly verified, which is the aim of today’s article. Read more “Noctua NH-D12L: A breath of fresh air for short twin-tower coolers” »

Gammaxx vs. Castle – Battle of DeepCool liquid coolers

Cooling, CPU coolers, Extra tests | | Pavel Sekerka

What is better than one liquid AIO cooler? Two liquid AIO coolers. Today it’s time for the Gammaxx L360 V2 and Castle 360RGB V2 coolers. Both are among the top of DeepCool’s lineup, both use 360mm radiators, and both also feature Anti-Leak technology. However, our standardized noise methodology is generally very strict with AIO coolers. So I’m curious to see how Gammaxx and Castle perform in our stress tests. Read more “Gammaxx vs. Castle – Battle of DeepCool liquid coolers” »

SilentiumPC Fortis 5: Fera’s bigger and quieter brother on steroids

CPU coolers, Extra tests | | Pavel Sekerka

The SilentiumPC Fera 5 concept recently showed us how even a small cooler can be really efficient if the heatsink and fan optimization is done well. Today it’s the turn of the SilentiumPC Fortis 5, which is another iteration of SilentiumPC’s popular cooler, but now optimized in collaboration with Synergy Cooling. What’s more, today’s article is a straight triple test as we’ll be testing all three variants of the Fortis 5 cooler against each other. Read more “SilentiumPC Fortis 5: Fera’s bigger and quieter brother on steroids” »

DeepCool Assassin III – Silent killer of noise and temperature

Cooling, CPU coolers, Extra tests | | Pavel Sekerka

Today I have the pleasure of introducing the Assassin III premium air cooler from DeepCool. Its size and construction is majestic, yet its design is pleasantly minimalistic without unnecessary bling. It also boasts high cooling efficiency (claimed TDP is up to 280 W). So I’m really curious to see how it performs in real tests on a hot CPU and what its acoustic performance will be like. Read more “DeepCool Assassin III – Silent killer of noise and temperature” »

Asus ROG Ryujin II 360: A missed opportunity with a déjà vu vibe

CPU coolers, Extra tests | | Pavel Sekerka

The Ryujin II 360 represents the pinnacle of Asus’ liquid AIO cooler range. This water cooler is based on the seventh generation of Asetek coolers. It boasts a trio of top-of-the-line Noctua NF-F12 Industrial PPC fans, and the ROG Fan Controller is also included. The premium components, however, come with a higher price tag. So I’m curious to see if the Ryujin II 360 can live up to it, or if it will fit in with the average of other AIO coolers. Read more “Asus ROG Ryujin II 360: A missed opportunity with a déjà vu vibe” »

SilentiumPC Fera 5 ARGB – Quiet, efficient and colourful

CPU coolers, Extra tests | | Pavel Sekerka

After a long hiatus, which was caused by a crash of the test setup, I am back again with CPU cooler reviews. Today I will focus on the ARGB version of the Fera 5 cooler from SPC. The Fera 5 cooler performed well beyond expectations in the tests and offered an interesting price to performance ratio. However, the ARGB version is equipped with a slightly different fan, so the cooler needs to be tortured again on a hot CPU and have its noise level measured. Read more “SilentiumPC Fera 5 ARGB – Quiet, efficient and colourful” »

SilentiumPC Navis Evo ARGB 360 – AIO cooler for everyone

Cooling, CPU coolers, Extra tests | | Pavel Sekerka

In today’s review, I would like to show you another all-in-one liquid cooler. This time it is the highest AIO model from SilentiumPC – Navis Evo ARGB 360. In terms of price, AIO coolers from the Navis series are very attractive and offer an interesting price-performance ratio. So today, we’re going to check whether the manufacturer did not save costs in the wrong areas and whether this cooler can defend its place in a market full of competitors. Read more “SilentiumPC Navis Evo ARGB 360 – AIO cooler for everyone” »

Computex 21: Q&A with EK Water Blocks

Cooling, Interview | | Pavel Sekerka

Just a few days ago, we covered a plethora of exciting news and upcoming products from EKWB, a leading company in the water cooling industry. But we’ve also reached directly to EKWB for an „under the hood“ interview. In order to pierce the veil a bit, we sent a set of questions to EKWB. Just a few days ago, we finally received EKWB‘s answers to those questions and we’d like to share the whole interview with you today. Read more “Computex 21: Q&A with EK Water Blocks” »

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