Because liquid cooling systems are designed to be mounted in a case, we closed our side panels before taking thermal and noise readings.

Voltage regulator cooling is always a big concern whenever fans are moved away from the processor. Fortunately, Asus’ Maximus IV Gene is designed specifically for this type of build. As a result, we only see important differences in CPU temperature, where Asus' “Auto” fan control mode isn’t adequate for our overclock. Thermal throttling forced us to give up on automatic controls for the H₂O 620, so we tested it only at its maximum fan speed.
With a wide dual-fan radiator, the H100 easily tops our thermal charts. Meanwhile, Evga’s SuperClock tower-style heatsink and single fan prove the adequacy of cooling without pumps.

Automatic modes require a hot processor for evaluation, so isolating the cooler noise could only be achieved at maximum speed settings by connecting the fans directly to a silent 12 V power supply. Full system noise is far more pertinent however, and this is where hot temperatures give way to quiet measurements with the Kühler H₂O 920.

We calculated the average temperature and noise level for all coolers and developed a cooling-to-noise-ratio chart by simple division, which made the average 100%. Subtracting one from the result gives us a 0% average, where the charted results show gains or losses compared to the average of all coolers in this test.
Bold claims by Corsair and CoolIT about their new cold plate design are proven true in our Accoustic Efficiency calculations, which partly cancel out the benefits of super-fast performance- or super-slow silence-oriented fans. The Hydro H100 tops the chart, followed closely by its shorter/fatter H80 sibling.
I completely agree. Pretty much the only reason to go with these sealed water coolers is to say that you water cooled your PC.
I completely agree. Pretty much the only reason to go with these sealed water coolers is to say that you water cooled your PC.
I agree 100%. And I do, in fact have an H70. And when I'm at work describing the epic beast of computers I build, and I show off some pics of mine; I always point to the H70 and go "Theres the radiator for the water cooler" /gasp!
I think that's a perfectly good reason to buy any product. I like that I have a choice. But Noctua's tower coolers look pretty sexy too.
Remember these are easy to install closed loop water colling setups too guys.
They are not half inch or bigger professional units designed to keep your massively overclocked sub-critical mass uber rig cool as ice and quiet too.
You need a decent pump, a large or two smaller radiators, a tank, and a lot more hose ... and some more time.
http://www.swiftech.com/
Corsair, Asetech, Antec, Thermaltake ... these are all low end units ... not enthusiast's water cooling gear like Swiftech.
Good value for money though ... I am not knocking them.
Once again you do a comparison against an inferior air cooler, so your conclusion does not hold much weight with me.
Why do you not include the Noctua NH-D14 or a Thermalright Silver Arrow, both which cost about the same as your WC loops (or a bit less) yet are delivering better performance (and noise levels) with the Antec H100 at max speed as the exception. The H100 is comparable to the air coolers.
Oh I'd rather have a Noctua NH-D14 with a 3rd NH-12 fan, but I traded an old crappy PSU for this H70 brand new. So I takes what I can gets!
Furthermore you say "Once again..." even though the air cooler won the last time this editor wrote this type of comparison. Look it up, "Small water versus Big Air", I'm sure Google can help.
Furthermore you say "Once again..." even though the air cooler won the last time this editor wrote this type of comparison. Look it up, "Small water versus Big Air", I'm sure Google can help.
I read your last article as well, like I do most articles on the site.
The problem I have with this article is your intro where you mention noise and cooling performance, yet you chose an air cooler that is cheaper than the WC loops you are testing.
Had you chosen a comparable air cooler price wise (the Ncotua NH-D14 or Thermalright Silver Arrow), all of the WC loops would have performed worse than the air cooler, the H100 would have been the exception, but it would have to run at max speed, thus negating the noise level performance.