Intel RTS2011LC CPU Water Cooler Review

[Apoptosis]

Intel RTS2011LC CPU Water Cooler Review

Did you know that the new Intel Sandy Bridge-E-based Core i7 processors do not come with a cooling solution of any sort? Instead, Intel is now selling a closed-loop water cooler and cost-optimized heat sink/fan combination separately, allowing enthusiasts to pick between two options from Intel or a host of other third-party products. Today we will be looking over the new Intel RTS2011LC water cooler and seeing how does against a high-end air cooler on the new Intel Core i7-3960X CPU.

We first learned that Intel would be releasing a stand-alone water cooling kit for Intel Sandy Bridge-E LGA2011 processors at IDF 2011. It was also at this show that we learned that Asetek had won the design contract and would be producing the sealed and easy to use water cooling kits for Intel. This means that both Intel and AMD have released water cooling solutions for their high-end desktop CPUs this year and both companies are using solutions from Asetek, which is huge for them. The Intel Core i7-3960X and Core i7-3930K are both costly processors as they retail for $1049.99 and $599.99, respectively. Neither of these processors come with a retail boxed air cooled HSF assembly. This means that many enthusiasts will be looking for a CPU cooler and water cooling is easier and more affordable than ever.

Article Title: Intel RTS2011LC CPU Water Cooler Review
Article URL: http://www.legitreviews.com/article/1784/1/
Pricing At Time of Print: $82.33 Shipped on PriceGrabber

[INeedAFnSuffix]

Granted it costs 83$ and is more expensive then a Antec Kuhler ,
it still does badly compared to the Noctua , i would not mind getting a Noctua instead .
If i do not use tall HS's for RAM's ... which i don't .

[Major_A]

I have yet to see a self contained system I'd rather pick up than a highend air cooler. The worst thing that can happen to the air cooler is a fan goes bad. The worst thing a water loop can do is leak.

Looking at this picture...
http://www.legitreviews.com/images/revi ... lc_008.jpg

Are some of the screws holding in the baseplate stripped? It looks like someone got a little overzealous with the wrong sized screwdriver/nut driver.

[bubba]

I have yet to see a self contained system I'd rather pick up than a highend air cooler. The worst thing that can happen to the air cooler is a fan goes bad. The worst thing a water loop can do is leak.

Looking at this picture...
http://www.legitreviews.com/images/revi ... lc_008.jpg

Are some of the screws holding in the baseplate stripped? It looks like someone got a little overzealous with the wrong sized screwdriver/nut driver.

Na, reflections on the phillips head screws.

For the Asetek self contained units like this I have yet to have any of them leak on me, don't remember seeing a report of one leaking. Now, as for the early CoolIT designs, those had issues for sure. Running water the chance of leaks is what you have to accept.


With the new X79 board layout there is issues with air coolers and RAM slots. Just getting started in on testing a batch of air coolers, but its looking like ~41mm+ tall RAM like these Dominator GT's isn't going to be an option with X79 and lot of the high end large air coolers. That's where the water comes in, but with water there are other issues like getting enough air flow across the board.

Here in a week or so will have a better idea

[SpDFre@k]

It allows for tighter bends than corrugated tubes like those used on Corsair Hydro Series coolers

The corrugated tubing has a much tighter bend radius than any rubber tubing. Rubber is much more flexible than FEP but will collapse under tighter bends where as the less flexible tubing will keep its shape in tighter bends and not kink restricting flow in the system.

[bubba]

Can't bend the corrugated stuff on the Hydro series coolers like this, as easy as this. I've tried, its not pretty. When it is done the tubing looks like if you breath wrong by it, it would fold over into a kink.

[eunoia]

The blue LED fan makes it appear cooler?