Core Cooling Performance – 4.5/5
If we ignore the Alphacool block because of it’s restriciton then EK was in the lead. However we can not ignore it entirely and so therefore have to take off half a point for not demolishing the competition on every metric.
VRM Cooling Performance – 4.5/5
There were several great blocks here but EK did exceptionally well.
Restriction – 4.5/5
EK improved their restriction on this generation and are now comparable with medium to low restriction cpu water blocks.
Supplied TIM – 4/5
The TIM did not test badly, but it also could have been better than our regular MX2.
Mounting Hardware – 4/5
We normally love EK mounting hardware but we have to dock a point for including the wrong length screws.
Backplate – 4.5/5
EK have the cleanest and most classy look on their backplates. The nickel version however would benefit from being replaced with a mirrored chrome.
Aesthetics – 4.5/5
Always subjective but with many different versions of the block EK is sure to have something you like.
Quality – 4.5/5
More work to clean up the machining marks on both copper and plexi would put the icing on the cake here.
Overall – Gold Award
EK worked hard to improve this block from the 290 generation and it shows. Thermal performance is excellent without giving up on flow. The price is great and the only negatives are quite frankly niggles.
Where to buy: PPCS – $113-125 (block) + $35-44 (optional backplate) + $15 (Clear Terminal -optional)
Price as configured – $125 + 44 + 15 = $184
Nice work as usual Stren. I wonder if you could perhaps test the impact of flow direction on the EK block seeing as GPU’s are often subject to differing flow with multiple blocks and the centre impingement is new for full cover GPU blocks?
[…] of course have been busy also releasing a Titan block: This features the same core design as the 980 block which won the gold in our 980 roundup. As usual there are a ton of different versions. EK also […]
I really wanna ask if this is actually needed because adding this gpu in your loop will cost more or less 200$. Does the watercooling make any significant improvement (to this particular card)?
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