PCCooler CPS RZ820: Against the elite, weighing over 1.8 kg

PCCooler CPS RZ820 in detail

They were so emphatic about their cooler being optimized for Intel LGA 1700 processors that we had to try it out. And given that the CPS RZ820 is a “hefty chunk” of material, the reference sample selection included the kind of competitive coolers that are at the top of the tower model database. These should give the PCCooler CPS RZ820 a good run for its money. At the same time, this cooler should not be more expensive.

Conclusion

In terms of cooling performance available for the CPU, the PCCooler CPS RZ820-BK can be described as the winner of the test. The lead over the second CM MasterAir MA824 Stealth is quite “high”, –4 °C, at the specified, very high load. However, it’s important to note the RZ820 cooler is also the noisiest at maximum fan speed, and the lead over the second-noisiest cooler (DeepCool Assassin IV) is also quite pronounced, or rather, there’s no way you’ll fail to hear it.

At lower speeds, after slowing down to a comparable noise level, the RZ820 cooler already dips a bit towards the middle of the pack in the relative rankings, to the level of the Noctua NH-D15 G1 cooler. The Noctua cooler’s great placement in these tests is a big surprise, as on the LGA 1200 platform at lower loads we get a slightly different result, and the NH-D15 (G1) is usually a step behind of the company of tested coolers. What does that in these tests (also surprisingly), at higher noise levels, is the BeQuiet! Dark Rock Elite and at lower ones it’s already the PCCooler CPS RZ820-BK cooler as well.

The cooling performance of the RZ820 drops the fastest as the noise level decreases, and although it was possible to set it to the quietest “31 dBA” mode, under such conditions constant CPU performance was no longer achieved. This was reduced by approximately 20 W due to excessive temperature and therefore this result was not included in the comparison as these are no longer comparable conditions.

Only two coolers passed the quietest mode – the BeQuiet! Dark Rock Elite and the Noctua NH-D15 G1. Both with the same temperature average of the P cores – 96.5 °C. If it were not for the fact that the monitoring of the hottest cores does not go past 100 °C, the results would be a bit different. But the important thing here is not so much the temperature as the fact that the aforementioned coolers have maintained a stable performance. But it’s true that it was already at the very limit, which could be exceeded even after a very small reduction in fan speed.

But back to the RZ820, which is why we did these tests in the first place. Its results are great, but especially so at higher speeds. At those, it outperforms the competing coolers with the very high load of the Core i9-13900K, for which PCCooler definitely deserves praise. Especially when the competing coolers are well-known models that have long been known to be at the very top of dual-tower coolers.

Whether the RZ820 cooler was pushed this high by optimizations at the level of the contact between the base and the processor IHS or simply because it has a few extra grams, it is hard to guess. It will most likely be a combination of both, but actually it doesn’t matter that much and the main thing is the result – at maximum speed the RZ820 cooler beats the top-notch solutions of the competition quite clearly. That is, noting the use of Intel’s LGA 1700 platform and a Core i9-13900K processor with a power consumption of around 250W.

When it comes to cooling the surrounding area of the socket, the RZ820 can no longer be said to excel and ranks among the other coolers, or rather, at lower noise levels, below them. This looks to be largely due to the only 120mm fan on the front tower. It is “shielded” by the fins of the radiator, and so there is less intense airflow underneath than in coolers with larger fans. However, unlike with the Noctua NH-D15 (G1) and the BeQuiet! Dark Rock Elite, you can fit taller memory in the DIMM slots. And that’s without having to move the fan on the heatsink upwards, increasing the overall height of the cooler and making it less compatible with cases. It’s a quid pro quo.

Overall, we can say that the RZ820 is a really proper cooler suitable for cooling the most powerful processors that you can fit into the LGA 1700 socket. In terms of design elegance, however, we have to pause at its very high weight. If one were to calculate the cooling performance per gram, it wouldn’t stand out as much. Either way, if it’s only about maximum cooling performance without considering anything else, it’s going to be hard to beat. That’s why the PCCooler CPS RZ820 deserves the “Top-notch” editorial award.

The suggested price for the RZ820 cooler is still TBD. However, PCCooler is thinking of a price of around 110 EUR. What will be the reality (in stores) will be revealed sooner or later.

English translation and edit by Jozef Dudáš

* The MSRP has not yet been set, so take this amount with a grain of salt. We got it directly from PCCooler, but with a note that the price may eventually be different.

• Contents
• PCCooler CPS RZ820 in detail
• Results: Maximum performance
• Results: Higher performance (45 dBA)
• Results: Medium performance (42 dBA)
• Results: Lower noise level (39 dBA)
• Results: Low noise level (36 dBA)
• Results: Very low noise level (33 dBA)
• Results: Audibility threshold (31 dBA)
• Conclusion