Corsair H100i Pro AIO Cooler Review
Introduction and Technical Specifications
Published: 19th July 2018 | Source: Corsair | Price: |
Introduction
It seems to be still very recent history that water-cooled processors were the stuff of the very wealthy or time rich, and usually both, whilst the enormous majority of us picked a 120mm tower cooler and looked on with envious eyes.
The world of All-In-One (AIO) coolers changed all that. Combining the lower noise and temperatures one could expect from a water cooled setup, with the simple 'get out of box, assemble CPU clamp, play' installation of an air-cooled offering, they were all things to nearly all people.
In fact they are so popular, and so relatively affordable, that we'd wager more people have an AIO cooled CPU than an air one, and as far as the enthusiast world that we inhabit goes, we'd be tempted to say 9 out of 10 systems have got a radiator in them. The Corsair H range is one of the most popular of all AIOs, with a model to suit pretty much any pocket and the reliability one hopes to have when putting a liquid in with expensive electricals.
The H100 is probably their most popular offering as the larger radiator really lets you either unleash the performance of your CPU or just turn your fans down and stop giving yourself a headache during those long days in front of the keyboard. If you fall into the latter group then the H100i Pro, today's review, should be very much up your alley as it has been specifically designed to be extremely quiet.
Does it prove to be so? Is the cooling capacity still good enough that you aren't paying for silence with toasty temps? Let's find out.
Technical Specifications
When you bring the outstanding Corsair ML fans to the party you know that you'll not be limited by the quality or the blades pushing the air onto your radiator. Add that to an RGB logo which supports all the flashy effects available from the Corsair iCUE software along with tailored fan profiles and there is much to get excited about.
Most Recent Comments
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Originally Posted by RedgyK
Hi there! Used to be more active on here years ago, but I've kept watching your videos from time to time. This time I had to chime in with something
At around 9min 30sec (in the video review ofcourse) when you mentioned you wanted more options on the "GRAPHING" screen, I believe the "DASHBOARD" tab at the top of the software does exactly what you were asking for? The Dashboard tab is basically Corsair's replacement for using HWmonitor and such.. I remember setting it up for fun at one point, it was a bit tricky to set up, but it will definitely give you graphs for GPU/CPU/MOBO/RAM temps and fan speed! If I remember correctly you have to start with all graphs and remove what you don't want. |
It was more of I think that it should be easily accessible and then when selected it links the fan speeds to cpu core #1 for exampleQuote
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Originally Posted by tinytomlogan
It was more of I think that it should be easily accessible and then when selected it links the fan speeds to cpu core #1 for example
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Just interested though - is it really worth it? The cooling is at best on a par with the Noctua NH-D15 at 100% on the fans, and I'm guessing the fans on the air cooler are also at full tilt, too - how do they compare volume-wise?
When I'm doing a blender render or encoding or compiling a large project, I occasionally hear my computer - but given I can't do anything else when the machine is at full throttle anyway, I just go off and make a cup of tea and no longer hear it. Maybe it's just me but I don't get why someone would go for this instead of a good, quiet air cooler unless the cooling potential is significantly greater (is it? It doesn't seem that way from the graphs!).Quote
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Originally Posted by Roobubba
I've got an Noctua NH-D14 in a really fairly open Xigmatek mATX case. It's so quiet, I can barely tell when the machine is on. A mate got one of the Corsair H100-line (predecessor to this) and was astonished at how loud it was on pretty much every setting and several different fan makes on the rad, so I'm glad to see Corsair take noise seriously with this update.
Just interested though - is it really worth it? The cooling is at best on a par with the Noctua NH-D15 at 100% on the fans, and I'm guessing the fans on the air cooler are also at full tilt, too - how do they compare volume-wise? When I'm doing a blender render or encoding or compiling a large project, I occasionally hear my computer - but given I can't do anything else when the machine is at full throttle anyway, I just go off and make a cup of tea and no longer hear it. Maybe it's just me but I don't get why someone would go for this instead of a good, quiet air cooler unless the cooling potential is significantly greater (is it? It doesn't seem that way from the graphs!). |
CSS Valid
At around 9min 30sec (in the video review ofcourse) when you mentioned you wanted more options on the "GRAPHING" screen, I believe the "DASHBOARD" tab at the top of the software does exactly what you were asking for?
The Dashboard tab is basically Corsair's replacement for using HWmonitor and such..
I remember setting it up for fun at one point, it was a bit tricky to set up, but it will definitely give you graphs for GPU/CPU/MOBO/RAM temps and fan speed! If I remember correctly you have to start with all graphs and remove what you don't want.Quote