The new card you won’t hear – Asus RTX 4080 Super Noctua

Asus and Noctua managed to launch the latest joint graphics card earlier than ever this time. The Asus RTX 4080 Super Noctua Edition is being released alongside the other models. Noctua has apparently already optimized its cooler to satisfaction on the older variant, the RTX 4080, and the situation on the RTX 4080 Super hasn’t changed enough to require design intervention. Everything is ready for production. Read more “The new card you won’t hear – Asus RTX 4080 Super Noctua” »

Aorus RTX 4080 Super Master 16G: A problem for the RX 7900 XTX

The new RTX 4080 in the Super variant attacks the competing Radeon (RX 7900 XTX) fiercely in every way. Their advance is not only due to faster GPUs (versus the non-Super RTX 4080), but also for higher memory bandwidth. Of all the GeForces built on Nvidia’s Ada Lovelace architecture, the latter is the highest on the RTX 4080 Super. On top of that, the RTX 4080 Super in the tested Aorus Master 16G variant is a truly extreme graphics card. Read more “Aorus RTX 4080 Super Master 16G: A problem for the RX 7900 XTX” »

Sapphire RX 7600 XT Pulse or the cheapest 16 GB graphics card

Higher GPU clock speeds and double the memory. These are the parameters that characterize the Radeon RX 7600 XT compared to the non-XT model (RX 7600). At the same time, it is a very affordable solution attractive for users prioritizing large video memory, even with a relatively weaker GPU (it doesn’t matter that much…). In our tests, we’ll break down how Sapphire’s design – the RX 7600 XT Pulse – fares in games and beyond. Read more “Sapphire RX 7600 XT Pulse or the cheapest 16 GB graphics card” »

MSI officially about RTX 4070 Ti Super 16G Ventus 3X faults

MSI has released a statement saying that the RTX 4070 Ti Ventus 3X graphics cards did indeed come out with an untweaked BIOS that prevents this graphics card from achieving its maximum performance. However, there seems to be a fix already that could solve everything. Still… let’s revisit this topic and try to sort through the possible technical reasons that cause the significant fluctuation in the performance of the cheapest three-fan MSI RTX 4070 Ti Super. Read more “MSI officially about RTX 4070 Ti Super 16G Ventus 3X faults” »

MSI RTX 4070 Ti Super 16G Ventus 3X: Big cooler w/o a markup

The biggest hardware changes compared to non-Super cards concern the GeForce RTX 4070 Ti Super. What’s different is the GPU, the amount of GDDR6X memory or the width of the memory bus. We have the RTX 4070 Ti Super in one of the cheapest non-reference designs, the Ventus 3X, for analysis and it will be about “reputation repair” as well. MSI has tarnished it a bit in this line of graphics cards in the past, but now it’s a very attractive solution. Read more “MSI RTX 4070 Ti Super 16G Ventus 3X: Big cooler w/o a markup” »

Return to FDB – the main new feature of the Arctic P12 Max White

Arctic has released a new, white version of the P12 Max fan. However, it is not only a choice between light (P12 Max White) and dark (P12 Max Black), but also between different types of bearings, fluid dynamic and ball ones. In any case, it is once again a 120 mm fan that will be taking the top ranks in comparison tests with its performance characteristics. It has all the prerequisites to do so. Read more “Return to FDB – the main new feature of the Arctic P12 Max White” »

A gaming cooler? DeepCool AK620 Zero Dark Zoria in details

DeepCool has modified its successful AK620 Zero Dark cooler in line with the theme of Zoria: Age of Shattering. Thus, we can legitimately talk about a gaming cooler, as long as this designation refers to the visual design. It is literally a work of art, and one of the goals was to make sure that the cooling performance was not degraded in any way after this intervention. It was to remain at the level of the original design, so top-notch. Read more “A gaming cooler? DeepCool AK620 Zero Dark Zoria in details” »

RTX 4070 Super FE gigatest: RX 7800 XT challenged at its own game

The cheapest of the new GeForce RTX 4000 Super graphics cards – the RTX 4070 Super – has the biggest increase in SM blocks compared to the non-Super variants (i.e. to the RTX 4070), yet the price, at least on paper, doesn’t increase too much. The price-performance ratio is thus very attractive and attacks the competing Radeon (RX 7800 XT) even if you disregard the typical Nvidia “premium” stuff, such as significantly faster ray tracing, DLSS 3 or CUDA. Read more “RTX 4070 Super FE gigatest: RX 7800 XT challenged at its own game” »

Intel Core i5-14400F – refresh in the most popular range

Also on the list of lower-power Intel Raptor Lake Refresh processors with 65W TDP is the Core i5-14400F. That is, a model that, mainly because of its attractive price-performance ratio, often ends up in lower-budget PC builds. In the 14th generation, Intel sped up the single-core boost and also E cores. And there are more changes in the small details. For example, the fact that different steppings built on different silicon are again common in e-stores. Read more “Intel Core i5-14400F – refresh in the most popular range” »

Seasonic MagFlow ARGB: Lighting with LCP? The right way

A concept in which an LCP impeller and ARGB LEDs meet is particularly rare. But it has enormous potential for achieving top-notch results. That is, as long as everything fits together optimally and there are no weak spots somewhere that increase the noise level. There are still a few things to tweak with the MagFlow ARGB fan, but already now, in its current form, it is a premium fan, and not only among lighted models. Read more “Seasonic MagFlow ARGB: Lighting with LCP? The right way” »

DeepCool at CES 24: Panoramic case and dark liquid coolers

DeepCool has introduced a heavily glass-clad case with an atypical system fan layout (with an emphasis on negative pressure) and affordable liquid coolers. These will be attractive for users who do not like lighted elements and for whom the highest possible cooling efficiency or the most attractive price/performance ratio is paramount. DeepCool’s new liquid CPU coolers have the prerequisites to score points in this respect. Read more “DeepCool at CES 24: Panoramic case and dark liquid coolers” »

Noctua NF-A14 PWM: Relevant even after a decade

There aren’t many 140mm fans that are more popular than the NF-A14 (PWM). This Noctua model has maintained that for a long time, for over a decade. In the meantime, naturally, a host of newer competing solutions have come along, and the question is how Noctua’s still-flagship 140mm fan will hold up against them in the present day. By analyzing the NF-A14, we’ll also shorten a bit the interminable wait for its successor. Read more “Noctua NF-A14 PWM: Relevant even after a decade” »

MSI MAG Z790 Tomahawk Max WiFi: Mainly faster network

The second wave of Z790 motherboards, released alongside 125W Intel Raptor Lake Refresh CPUs, is also attractive for its upgraded network connectivity. The latter is also cutting edge on the Z790 Tomahawk Max WiFi. It’s one of the cheapest boards with WiFi 7. But in our tests of it, we’ll naturally be interested in the overall implementation of all the features. That is, what MSI managed better or worse compared to competing models. Read more “MSI MAG Z790 Tomahawk Max WiFi: Mainly faster network” »

A few fans are missing to 70. What will the future bring?

It went by so quickly. Only recently we painted 2023 as the “year of the fan.” In the end, it didn’t work out as expected, but you don’t have to worry that we’ll slack off on that front, quite the opposite. Fan testing is a key topic for HWCooling, we just need to plan all things more sensibly (realistically, so that they can be done). But no excuses. The big goals, which drive us forward, remain for 2024. Read more “A few fans are missing to 70. What will the future bring?” »

Test of Thermalright HR-10 2280, a premium SSD cooler

One of the most powerful SSD coolers reminds a bit of the era of massively finned heatsinks that used to be on motherboards. Thermalright is well known for producing small coolers with a large number of fins. Such a concept in the form of the HR-10 2280 cooler should score points on SSDs as well. And it does so even in comparison with almost 60 competing solutions. Read more “Test of Thermalright HR-10 2280, a premium SSD cooler” »