2.11.2019

So I'll start this review off by saying that the first few days of heavy FPU/CPU stress testing and general average workload for my needs beats my previous AIO cooler. As mentioned on the title.Unboxing experience: I'm a box keeper. I love to keep boxes that have an exceptional unboxing experience and that allow me to keep spare parts (screws, mounting plates etc) in there without worrying about where I've put them. Corsair has never failed to provide their high-end/premium products with a luxurious and amazing experience when it comes to unboxing. All the parts are in their own dividers unlike some companies who throw them on top or below the main product.Or who pull an Apple and hide additional parts right under the main holding area.Installation process: If this is your first AIO purchase, then be prepared for a little more than you bargain for. While everything is mostly labeled, the instructions are not the best. They do not cover the entire process but cover the rough installation. But once you get everything connected the only problem I had was securing it to my Ryzen socket. This was true on my previous AIO and my guess is its a general AM4 nightmare so your mileage may vary if you're team blue. It does not feel right to have to apply a lot of mounting pressure when securing it to the AM4 mounts. Not only that but trying to get it clipped in might trouble some new people. If you're new to AIO cooling then don't try to rush it. Take your time and be patient and careful - my advice from experience is to make sure the little hook things are as loose as possible just before the screws fall off. This will make it slightly easier to install. With that said, it still makes me nervous every time it comes to installing a cooler to my chip. But once all of that sweating and anxiety is over. It becomes so much easier! (extra optional advice: have a large-ish room fan blowing cool air on you and have a lot of light so you can see what you're doing). The 2 included RGB fans are straight forward to install. I saw on some comments on YouTube for reviews where the uploaded forgot to mention whether you need an additional fan/RGB controller. This is not true. Everything connects to the motherboard with no need for a controller.Performance: So after installing the cooler and mounting it. The first thing I did after booting into Windows was. Stress test. (Software used - Aida 64 Extreme). I hit the FPU first and let it run for a few minutes just to see what stock speeds would be like, after coming back from getting a bowl of cereal, my computer was not powered on anymore. Turns out, the pesky BIOS has a temperature threshold in which if exceeded for a period of time, causes the system to turn off. After messing about and trying to disable it or increase the threshold. I eventually gave up and thought sod it, close enough. Then tried the test again. Temps spiked to 90c+ which at first made me panic but then they slowly dropped but had a few moments where they peaked up in the 100's. I let it run for 10 minutes and although I cannot provide with an average stable temperature, I can say that despite a heavy stress test, I was and am happy with the temps it balanced at. I then OC'd to 4.1GHz @ 1.55v (the max voltage and frequency my Zen 7 2700 can go to) and did another FPU test after letting the cooler reach roughly room temperature again. Instantly (relatively speaking) after clicking on start, the temps spiked to 120c~. Before you ask, yes, I did panic again but after letting them drop a little, for the frequency and voltage, they were surprisingly within margin of error. Bear in mind that all of my fans were at max speed. Needless to say, I am certainly happy with these results.Noise: I'll make this one short and simple. If you've got 2 GPU's, 2 rad fans, 3 case fans all at max speed. My system is extremely loud. As for everything else but the rad fans at their quietest and lowest speeds, they still make one heck of a noise. If there's a way to change to different cooling profiles on the fly, this would help greatly but at the moment because of my laziness, manual control of all fans to slow them down is something I don't bother doing anymore.RGB: A person's greatest addiction. RGB. The fans and pump colours fan be controlled through iCue. Individual lighting for all parts of the pump and fans makes for a tiny personal disco. Rainbow vomit I call it. Or if you want to be boring, they can all be turned off by clicking on 'Instant Lighting' and then clicking black.General thoughts: Living in Britain has its perks. Mainly the naturally cold weather, meaning that your temps will be a lot cooler if you have your window open overnight which I do. It also means your whole room is ice cold so the fans don't need to run as fast and admittedly, I should take them all off 100%. Regardless, the sexy RGB, massive rad and overall performance is something I absolutely love! An AIO cooler is definitely the way to go if air cooling isn't doing you any good but you don't want to deal with custom loops (although I would recommend a custom loop).TL;DR. Great cooler, price is fair and you get sick RGB bling. What more could you want?

8.8.2019

Ok, the cooler is well reviewed here, but I add my experience and some (I hope useful) tips at the end.I use it to cool an Intel i7 9700K.I can summarize the usual things: it does keep the CPU nice and cool, I never get above 50degC (CPU temperature) even when the CPU is under constant load. The fluid temperature depends on the room temperature, it is just a few degrees over the room temperature (which makes sense, temperature difference and flow rate make the heat transfer possible).Even under load and with the room being warm, this is quite a large cooler so the large fans tend to keep to a relative average/low speed. You can tune pump and fans speeds using the Corsair software.Also the RGB lights can be personalized to do...pretty much anything you want. I don't have a "christmas tree" setup, so I tend to keep it simple.On a note, at the time of review the Amazon page states the fans are dual 120mm. Of course they are not, as the radiator is a 280mm. The fans (from the Corsair spec page) are "dual 140mm ML PRO Series RGB magnetic levitation PWM fans".When overclocking the CPU it gets hotter, but I didn't invest much time on overclocking properly, I just used the motherboard settings which are known to not overclock in the best way. Despite that, the CPU speed went to just over 5Ghz and it was working stable. The temperature on the CPU at the time was maintained at about 70/75degC under 100% constant load. But again, proper overclock and proper test should be made on this.Now, the advises (based on my direct experience).1) do not just fix the fan screws as tight as possible to the radiator. The screws are holding from the external "flaps" of the fan frame, so if you tight them too much the frame will bend slightly and the fan become noisy. Just get them tight enough to hold the fan firmly in place and nothing more, they will be ultra silent2) make sure you have decent case fans extracting how air from the case. The cooler exhausts air just slightly above room temperature inside the case, but if you have a powerful graphic card, that will most likely exhaust A LOT of hot air (mine you can feel the heat on the sides on the glass, planning on mounting it vertically). The large fans of the cooler pushing in don't mean you will have the correct air flow to dissipate the heat of the GPU. You need decent fans pulling the hot air out as well. If the case fans are not great (mine weren't), buy good ones. My GPU under 100% constant load was holding 70degC set-point with the GPU fans at almost full speed with the standard case fans, it now holds 70degC set-point with the fans running at 50% even in summer.3) I prefer fans to "pull" aut from the radiator than "pushing" air through the radiator. The exhaust of a fan will be a turbulent flow, whether the inlet is usually a lot more laminar. It should improve the efficacy of the the radiator. Ok ok, there are different opinions here. But I just base this on what I know from work that's all. And I would add that a laminar flow hitting a surface should also be less noisy... but haven't tried that4) the fans are large and fast. If you ramp them up at full speed they are noisy (of course). Don't go heavy on the fans, you don't need to. Being large they move a lot of air without having to spin fast, that's the beauty of it. You will notice that at a normal speed the fluid temperature will be maintained just above room temperature with no issue

24.9.2016

I recently built a new gaming PC and I chose to purchase the H45 from Corsair as my CPU cooler. This cooler consists of 1, 120mm x 120mm fan/radiator block; rubber tubing and a CPU block. Simple, yet effective.First things first, installation. Well installing this thing was easy, it came with clear instructions so even a complete novice could do it. I installed it onto an Intel processor; but I assume it would be just as easy on an AMD because the parts and instructions looked almost identical, in fact the AMD ones looked easier if anything. It even came with thermal paste pre applied, which was a very nice touch as I was able to return the thermal paste I purchased and save myself just under£10.Now because this is a pre-built liquid cooler and not a custom loop there is no need to ever maintain it, (apart from the obvious dust removal or clean of the fan blades). This was perfect for me, because a custom loop is very expensive and can go wrong very quickly if you do not know what you're doing. I chose this over fan cooling just for that extra piece of mind that my CPU was getting enough cooling; it also gives me the option to overclock my CPU and still have it run at safe temperatures which most fan coolers won't.I have had no issues with this product and think it is great value for the price (around £50). My CPU has always run below 50°C. However, things could always be better. The build does feel a bit ‘plasticy’, but that is to be expected for the price. I feel as if it is quiet, but it could be quieter. I can’t hear it over a film or through my headset but there is a slight hum of the blades spinning when my room quiets down; this might not even be a concern if you are using your PC whilst listening to media. The aesthetic is very minimal; It consists of black tubing, a fan and it has a corsair logo on the CPU block. I quite like this, but some may agree otherwise.All in all, I feel this product is massive jump from a fan cooler. So it’s a great choice if you want the peace of mind from liquid cooling without the hassle of maintaining a full loop. It is working great for me and I love it. However, if you want to really overclock your CPU to its maximum potential, I suggest getting one of the more expensive hydro series coolers by corsair, because they have a better build quality and larger radiators for better cooling which yields better performance, hence why they are called their ‘extreme’ performance coolers. With the better construction of the higher end models in my eyes will make them more reliable which is what you want most from a cooling unit. It is there to keep your CPU safe, spend some more money on it for that peace of mind. However, this is a great option for those wanting to turn their dials up a little for overclocking whilst keeping the temperatures down.

27.10.2016

Having owned this for about a week now, I thought I might leave a review and give some advice to those looking at getting a AIO liquid cooler. First let me say that this is my first water-cooler that I have ever installed, so with that in mind I want to highlight the following.1. For those of you building a PC on a tight budget with not much care for aesthetics, I would go with an air cooler with a big heat-sink (e.g. Hyper Evo 212 or ARCTIC Freezer 7 Pro) because if you stick a Noctua fan on there you'll have a far quieter and probably better experience, for far less. However if you are like me and love the aesthetic that a water-cooler provides and hate big heat-sinks getting in the way of your RAM sticks and motherboard,then water-cooling is definitely the way to go.2. The noise. These fans are very noisy at anything over 50% speed, and are small vacuum cleaner level at 100%. Corsair tell you in the manual to plug both fans into the cable coming off the pump housing, and then the cable that comes off that into the cpu fan header. This didn't work for me because while running basic tasks the fans would ramp up to 100% sporadically which became very distracting. I started looking on forums and people were having similar issues. I read somewhere that the pump should stay at 100%, because this provides the best cooling and means less wear and tear on the pump (a changing load is much worse for it). To fix this I simply plugged the main cable that comes off the pump housing into the 3 pin water pump header on my motherboard (this stays at 100% all the time), and plugged in the two fans into CPU_FAN and CPU_OPT on my motherboard. Then I controlled them all using the fan controller in my UEFI BIOS to keep them both below 50% as much as possible.3. With all that being said it really does keep my processor very cool - my core i7-6700k clocked at 4.7 GHz wasn't going above 70*C and at idle it sits around 20 - 25*C depending on room temperature. I also like the RGB control of the corsair logo, which can be changed with corsair link software and configured to changed based on CPU temperature. I have mine on white most of the time and set to change to red when it goes over 70*C.All in all a very good all in one closed loop cooler, but I have to knock off a star for the fan design. While they may be high static pressure fans and work well at pushing air through the radiators, they far too noisy at anything above 50%. Those who have their hearts set on this you have two options: A) Do what I outlined above, if your motherboard allows it -enough fan headers, fan control in UEFI BIOS- or B)You can swap the fans out for some quieter 120mm fans. Noctua NF-P12 PWM fans would probably be a good option, though brown doesn't look too great in most builds.

15.11.2018

I used this to replace an existing Cooler Master - Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler, (so this Corsair cooler is about 3 times the price) in a Fractal Design - Define R5 w/Window (White) ATX Mid Tower Case on a i7-6700K processor which is mildly over-clocked.It comes well packaged and protected, with the large radiator already connected to the sealed CPU cooler. You need to put the fans on yourself.The Fractal case comes with removable panels to allow the radiator to be mounted on the top of the case, one thing to note is that by installing this radiator in this (and I assume other cases) the radiator does not span the entire width of the case so what was a sealed case at the top is now one which has open holes so dust can fall in.

3.1.2019

Once upon a time, the idea of water-cooling your computer seemed alien and daunting - after all who would want to run the risk of damaging your components for a cooler operating conditions? Times have changed and water cooling kits like this Corsair Hydro H100 brings the option to all levels of builders.This "all-in-one" cooler features a 240mm high density radiator, two 120mm fans with adjustable speed, mounting kits for most CPU sockets and fitting screws. Installation is reasonably easy if you are using this in a new build system, however if you are upgrading your current CPU cooler then the chances are you will have to take your system apart to allow correct installation.

29.8.2019

I was fed up having my Windows machine crash with heat issues when transcoding video using Handbrake so I decided to upgrade my Noctua fan to this water cooler. Glad I did.The unit is easy to install as long as you have a basic understanding of your case and motherboard. Carefully check which risers you need for your board (Have a look in your motherboard manual if unsure on type to use).Comes with pre applied thermal paste which is great although I suggest you make sure of position over the cpu so as to avoid moving it about after fitting and smearing the paste.Under normal load the pump and fans are barely audible provided you download and configure the iCUE software from Corsair.

28.2.2019

This is a very good CPU cooler which runs very quite and keeps the i9 9900k around the low 60’s (degrees) under full load, so it’s defiantly up to the job. When idle my CPU is around 28 degrees. The build quality seems pretty solid and lights look good. You will need to download software to customise the pump and fan speed as well as changing the light. I’ve left mine on white as I think this looks best for my case and I’m not really into the RBB stuff.My only real criticism is the poor instructions and bag of screws. You have 3 different types of mounting screw (intel, AMD and threadripper) which all look very similar and are all in the same bag without any labels.

14.11.2018

The H100x is basically an excellent AIO cooler. Performance is very good in terms of cooling (i5-8500 in a micro ATX case with MSI Mortar motherboard) - though with heavy loading on the system the fans can ramp up somewhat - but not to levels which are too distracting. In the main things run quietly. Fitting in the case is pretty straightforward - though you should obviously check size versus case for compatibility. In terms of fitting the CPU cooler itself - this is basically a doddle - easier also with an AIO than with an air cooler - mainly because you're not wrestling with something of the size and weight of most air coolers. From my reading the H100x supports pretty much all of the Intel and AMD sockets of recent years.

27.6.2019

Like everything that ends up on my wanted list I made sure to do my due diligence before purchasing to ensure that this would be a good fit for my system and I was not disappointed. My rig is a 17 6700k (recently overclocked to 6.4) I have an ASUS Z170-a motherboard, MSI GTX 1070 all snugly fitted within my NZXT S340 case.Up until now my rig has been cooled by a Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO which I must say has done a brilliant job of keeping my CPU temps at bay, although recently I have noticed the temps creeping up above 70 degrees c whilst gaming, granted I live in a very well insulated and hot new build…I must say that I have always wanted to try water cooling but was too intimidated and

3.12.2016

I originally bought this product after a pre-order for the new NZXT Kraken X62 failed to arrive on the promised date, and I was unable to complete my new build without a CPU cooler. I read some reviews and comparisons online and found that this AIO unit was a leading competitor, checked Amazon and found that it was £25 cheaper, so I cancelled my pre-order and purchased this. I'm so pleased I did.It was very easy to install the pump/waterblock with clear instructions, the only minor improvement that I thought could be made to the process would have been to label and bag the different Intel socket and AMD pump mount stands separately. I had no issues with the included thermal compound,

29.7.2016

Really love this cooler. Installed in the top of my case (Phanteks Enthoo Primo) with the fans pulling air through the radiator, as an exhaust, so didn't expect the best results ever, but pulling air instead of pushing air makes it easier to clean any dust on the radiator fins, but to my surprise my I7 6700k still runs at a very cool 22-23 degrees idle and when stress testing under load it topped out at 62 degrees (Overclocked at 4.6GHz) so really happy with the results from the H115i.The Corsair Link software is ok, not brilliant but does the job, allowing to set fan / pump speed with some preset options and allows to set a custom fan curve if needed and change the LED colour on the cooler too.

27.6.2020

Corsair iCUE H100i PRO XT RGBExcellent quality cooler very easy am4 install just using stock board mount Intel is a little more work by the looks , am4 just two ring hooks with thumb screws just clip on and tighten up done ,, I switched out the fans for uphear rgb fans as had couple spare was cheaper than buying the rgb fan version, if like me you incounter the rgb pump not lighting up even though all connection are connected as in the manual you will find its down to the sata cable that connects to the sata link for the light for some reason it needs the 5 pin/cable prob for the 5v if like me my modular psu has 2 sets of sata leads one with all sata and one with a 4 pin molex as well as sata

10.12.2014

If you're looking at the H55 as an entry into the world of all-in-one liquid coolers, I can assure you that this is a very capable little cooler.Features:Unlike its bigger brothers, the H55 isn't really meant for crazy overclocks. The unique feature of this cooler is that it operates very quietly (~1500RPM for the pump), yet manages to cool stock or mildly overclocked CPU effectively. The slim radiator should ensure that it fits most cases without issues and comes with all mounting kits nesescery to be used with both AMD and Intel CPUs.Noise:This unit is very quiet, HOWEVER, you must replace the stock fan since it is quite loud and cannot be controlled through the motherboard.

9.7.2019

First one of these that I got had clearly been used - there was no thermal paste on the pump. The second had an intermittent fault where one fan could not be speed controlled and always ran at full - noisy! I thought this was software related so put up with it trying to find a fix but became aware that moving the wires would temporarily resolve the issue - seems to be a loose connection or a broken wire but I couldn't track down the culprit so it was returned. The third seems to be working perfectly. I don't use the RGB - my fans are hidden behind the radiator in a NZXT H500, but the features are pretty comprehensive and it looks better than most of these if that's you're bag.

Corsair Hydro H45 - Reviews

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