Koolance CPU-300, how?

[PhoenixMDM]

A friend of mine is looking to get a watercooling kit, and he seems to be sold on the Koolance PC2-650BU found here (xoxide)
I noticed the block they reccomend adding it the CPU-300 H06, so I searched for some reviews. First thing I found was that the base is copper with 21K gold plating.

Is it just me or is this counter-intuitive? Gold is a horrible heat conductor, why would they make the base out of it?

So, does anyone actually have this system or block? If so, could you please post about how it's performing for you? I'd hate to see my friend drop $55 on a block that's all hype.

 

[Xenocide]

don't get a koolance what so ever...and dont buy from xoxide, they rip you off.

you can get a better DIY kit for less and it will kick mr koolance's ***

 

[clocker2]

The gold "plating" is only a few microns thick, hardly likely to hinder heat transfer at all.
More than likely it's main reason for being there is to stop the copper base from tarnishing.

 

[PhoenixMDM]

Well, only way he can go to watercooling is if he buys a kit. Parents are convinced he'll screw it up if he doesn't. Are there any good kits out there, or will I have to peice something together for him and claim it's a kit?

 

[Bios24]

There are some good kits out there, but they are really just package deals, like the dangerden kits. There really isn't a reason his parents should care if it's a 'kit' or not. Anything you buy as far as watercooling you can screw up. Installation and good maintenance is the key.

 

[nartac]

i was going to get the same case as your friend but after reading this forum, I'm changing my mine. I am very reluctant to mod my case but it has room I have to admit (antec 1240) but so confused in what to get. Most recommends DIY and get parts and put them together but I have no idea what is good and what to avoid . Wish it was as simple as buying an aircool heatsink but it's not. Most kits from known brands are too expensive. I would like to spend anything less than $200 if I can.

 

[fafnir]

koolance isn't bad (just ask clocker2),

its just there are better things for the money


as for the koolance case + waterblocks, the difference between the best and worst waterblocks is 8 celcius on a northwood (see the oc database), and the koolance is definitely not the worst block, performance should be similar to a maze-3 at the same flow

the koolance kits always come with a pretty big alluminum radiator, and therefore their gold waterblocks; helps to eliminate corrosion with the gold; the radiator isn't bad either, but for the price, there is better stuff


don't listen to all them people who keep putting down koolance, performance isn't where they suffer, its the price, and therefore the cost/performance ratio

i still don't believe ANY aircooling can beat the koolance kits (cpu-300+exos AL), assuming no peltiers or what have ya


_

 

[billy_cat]

I am. I posted this on another thread so forgive the cut and paste.

I'm using a stock Exos Al with CPU300H06.

I've got a Athlon XP mobile 2600+ at 12.5x 200 = 2.5 GHz @1.675v

The Loaded temps using the Koolance Exos is:
Ambient 28-29 C (welcome to California... )
MBM5 reported temps:
Case: 28-29 C
CPU Diode: 33-35 C Seen it hit 36 for just a sec but this may just be fluctuations.
CPU Socket: 40 C

The case temp sensor reads 28-29 C

I'm using prime95 to load it and reading the temp of the MBM5.

Of course it gets cooler at if the ambient gets cooler.

Seems to perform well enough.. probably get can get better with 1/2" tubing, WW/TDX/Swiftech blocks, but not an order of magnitude better. To do that you would probably need a waterchiller or phase change setup. This thing was VERY easy to setup. I also dont have to worry about temp monitoring/shut down since it handles that for me. Since it has 2 pumps, if one goes down it can limp along on the other until I can shut it down or whatever. (In case I'm away when it happens. My pc is on pretty much constantly so it needs to take care itself when I'm AFK.) Those were the primary concerns for me to making the decision to go with exos. It's not as cool as a DIY (in all senses of the word) but it does the job, performs pretty well and is hassle free.

EDIT: forgot to say case is Antec P160 (matches the exos pretty much exactly) and I'm using the front read out for secondary case sensor. For video I've got a Radeon 9500 -> 9700pro (hard mod/modded firmware) running at 384/297 (damn infineon ram) with a vga silencer from a previous setup. Since the silencer is quiet, performs well, and pulls heat from the case, I've left it as is and not mounted my GPU180 waterblock.

Having said that, you CAN build higher performance setups than that of Exos as I mentioned above. What you do get is built in monitoring/failsafe, a bit of redundancy, and pretty good performance with low noise. Also easy as heck to set up but then 1/2" set up is not that hard either if you don't have to mod the case much.

 

[lilneel12]

i would say make a swiftech setup. or get a kit, since they it isn't true DIY if you get all swiftech parts. or the astec waterchill

 

[clocker2]

koolance isn't bad (just ask clocker2),

_

Why ask me?
I do not, nor have I ever, had a Koolance kit.
I simply refuse to condemn it just because it's a kit.
As billy_cat's post demonstrates, for many folks the kits are just what they want/need.
His results seem perfectly acceptable to me.

 

[White Rhino]

I own that kit

I have just bought the pc-650bk and am very happy with the result's.At stock air cooling on my 3200+ i was running at 70c under load. Now at a clock of 2.5 i am running at 49c to 53 under load. So i would say that they work even though they are a (KIT). I ran 2 prime95 torture's for 13 hour's and never reached above 53c.

 

[berwin]

hello and yes i am useing a CPU-300 H06 water block on my system on a asus p4c800-e deluxe mother board a p4 3.2 overcolcked to 3.5 and my temps are between 27°c and 32°c in my koolence exos - AI system it works great it is a good water block!

 

[Icebl@ster]

Diy

 

[anwar1337]

put together a swiftech kit (buy all the parts together and say its a kit) and u can foolp his parents even though "kits" can leak and screw up hardware too.. :\

 

[NavyDood]

There's nothing wrong with the Koolance Exos. I wouldn't get a Koolance case though. Yes you can DIY cheaper and get overall better temps. But I am more than happy with my results. See my sig. These temps are during the summer TX heat. The room I have the confuser in stays right around 79-80°F.

 

[enlightend]

Stay FAR FAR AWAY from Koolance! Tell your friend to do some reading up on these forums before suggesting Koolance.

 

[jaydog]

enlightend, that is a very ignorent comment(get it). If you are going to respond so negitivly to someones question at least explain why. You write the post to help him not to condem a product.

I have a koolance PC2-650BU. What do I think?

GREAT for beginers who are a little bit nervous to build one from scratch. I don't care what these other guys say. I wouln't listen to the guys who can't back up why they hate a product so passionatly, not just the previosly mentioned. The cooling you get from a koolance is in my opinion far superior to any pre assembled kit. right now I only have p4 1.6 wth an Intel board(no oc, I fried my last board), but my cpu temp is only 25-26c idle, and never breaks 29c full load, ambiant is 22-23. The case looks good too. I have checked out many different kits and none of them compared to koolance.

There are downfalls to the koolance case:

If you want to build your own water cooling from scratch, you can build a better system for the same money. As far as your friends folks saying they will only let him buy a kit, thats crazy, the same variables are involved and you have the same chances to fry your comp as you do with Koolance. The only thing you have to is make sure you read the forums to know which components to buy (if your unsure).

If I had to do it all again I would build mine from different components(and soon will). Maybe that's because I'm more comfortable and confident with water cooling now, and maybe it's because I wish I would have been able to customize it the want it.

You will find many people will be against pre mod. Most of them not because of the preformance, but because it takes away the fun and creativity(I think, What the hell do I know?)

If you are dead set on getting a cooling kit, I would VERY much recommend a Koolance case. If you feeling brave go for "Do it yourself". If anyone knows a water cooling kit better than Koolance let him know.

Good luck dude

 

[Randall]

Jaydog, I love you. In the "keeping the forums helpful and informative" way. It's always good to see people helping keep the focus of the forums.

That said, the EXOS isn't a bad kit at all, except for price, like others have said. If money isn't a huge issue, check it out and mate it with a decent 3/8" block. Otherwise, yes, a DIY kit would be better in the performance category and the price category. If your friend's parents are so paranoid that he'll mess it up, then I would advise, like others, to check out the "build-a-kits" from DangerDen or Swiftech.

The Zalman Reserator is good, too, but only for NON-OC applications where noise is the primary issue. Keep us informed about what happens.

-Randall

 

[enlightend]

enlightend, that is a very ignorent comment(get it). If you are going to respond so negitivly to someones question at least explain why. You write the post to help him not to condem a product.

I am giving the original poster (not you) my advice. It is an opinion, which you may choose to accept or not. Before you accuse me of being "ignorant", I suggest you do some searching around these forums. Seeing that you have registered merely a week ago, I am assuming that you have not did your homework.

It is common knowledge around here that buying the koolance kit is hardly better than high-end air cooling. In fact, kits such as these leave some people with a false impression of the true capability of watercooling.

I can easily criticize every part of a koolance kit, but I don't want to waste my time. Just to give you a small example though, their cpu waterblock has a base made of gold-plated copper.... GOLD!! LOL!! (gold has a lower thermal conductivity than copper). http://www.koolance.com/products/product.html?code=cpu-300-h06&category_id=3

If you must have a kit, I recommend a swiftech or danger den one. At least they have parts which were made in this century.

 

[jaydog]

Sorry to take someone else words but he's already said it;

The gold "plating" is only a few microns thick, hardly likely to hinder heat transfer at all.
More than likely it's main reason for being there is to stop the copper base from tarnishing.

here is a couple of reviews read them for yourself. Enlightened, find some that show how crappy they are.

http://www.bit-tech.net/review/150/1
http://www.ocprices.com/index.php?rev_id=133&page=1&action=reviews
http://www.overclockers.com/articles636/