Corsair H80 High Perf. Liquid CPU Cooler Review @ [H]

Any opinion on stock vs other fans? I've read and seen both good and bad reviews, so I'm curious what others think.
 
Samury, I think the stock fans are great, perfectly acceptable up to high speed, then it gets pretty darn loud. I figure any fan spinning above 2000 rpm is going to be pretty loud, two of them more so.

alas, the grinding noise came back from my pump, time for RMA. I really do like the cooler so i am going to wait for a replacement, my H50 never gave me ANY problems so i figure i won't let a bad apple ruin my experience.
 
Thanks, cwest, I'll keep the fans and run them on medium to balance the two factors. Hell, low doesn't really look that bad on the reviews; not great, but not bad either.
 
My H80 is alright! Got it through an employee purchase plan, so I paid about 60 bucks for it. I keep it on the quietest setting since I run a little studio, imagine going from a stock amd fan to this.

Super quiet, it just hums along, no grinding issue yet.
 
Do I need to remove my motherboard to install this puppy?

Depends on the motherboard and your case's backplate hole. On an LGA2011 you don't need to, and if there's a big enough hole in the case to fit the backplate, you're good to go.

One question: I tightened the cooler as much as I could with just my fingers. Is that good enough, or should I use a screwdriver to tighten it even more?
 
Just fyi. Cooler installs fine on Zalman Z9+ case and cooler I received through Amazon is working fine.
 
Thanks for the review [H] crew

All parts in sig ordered and due to arrive Tuesday. Stoked! Finally replacing my 5 yo Maingear F131 which still runs alike a champ, but I am a builder at heart, so, ya, back to building my own. Excited to go from a q6700 / 680i / platter HDDs, to i7 2600k / M4 256 SDD

Also decided to try this H80 out, hoping it will allow a nice 4.3-4.5 OC without monster Air heatsinks in this TJ08-E mATX case
 
Depends on the motherboard and your case's backplate hole. On an LGA2011 you don't need to, and if there's a big enough hole in the case to fit the backplate, you're good to go.

One question: I tightened the cooler as much as I could with just my fingers. Is that good enough, or should I use a screwdriver to tighten it even more?

No it is not good enough. This Thermalright cooler has adjustable pressure up to 70 pounds: http://thermalright.com/products/?act=data&id=172&cat_id=27

Tighten it as tight as you can with your fingers, and then start doing equal rotations across all the screws with a screwdriver until it starts to become difficult. There are plenty of guides that cover this.
 
No it is not good enough. This Thermalright cooler has adjustable pressure up to 70 pounds: http://thermalright.com/products/?act=data&id=172&cat_id=27

Tighten it as tight as you can with your fingers, and then start doing equal rotations across all the screws with a screwdriver until it starts to become difficult. There are plenty of guides that cover this.

Thanks, I figured that out shortly after writing it with an solid application of logic. Good to know I was right. Is it possible to turn the screws too tight, without destroying the core and rendering it dead? I'm having some issues and can't decide if it's the device or the thermal paste - I used stock, which i read was excellent, but I'm not quite sure now.
 
No it is not good enough. This Thermalright cooler has adjustable pressure up to 70 pounds: http://thermalright.com/products/?act=data&id=172&cat_id=27

Tighten it as tight as you can with your fingers, and then start doing equal rotations across all the screws with a screwdriver until it starts to become difficult. There are plenty of guides that cover this.

yes, and that cooler is 10 pounds above the maximum intel spec and has been known to bend socket pins on intel boards. You want a 60 pound max ;)

Thanks, I figured that out shortly after writing it with an solid application of logic. Good to know I was right. Is it possible to turn the screws too tight, without destroying the core and rendering it dead? I'm having some issues and can't decide if it's the device or the thermal paste - I used stock, which i read was excellent, but I'm not quite sure now.

Turn the screws as far as they go without breaking the threads. The screws are very precisely made to get the right amount of pressure.

And yes, the stock paste is fine. You will notice almost zero difference between stock and something else. And if you do notice something, it will be to the order of 1-2 degrees, which is low enough to be considered in margin of error anyway.
 
yes, and that cooler is 10 pounds above the maximum intel spec and has been known to bend socket pins on intel boards. You want a 60 pound max ;)



Turn the screws as far as they go without breaking the threads. The screws are very precisely made to get the right amount of pressure.

And yes, the stock paste is fine. You will notice almost zero difference between stock and something else. And if you do notice something, it will be to the order of 1-2 degrees, which is low enough to be considered in margin of error anyway.

Nice! I didn't know any of that, thank you. I was just using the thermalright cooler as an example because I remember they had specific pressure numbers advertised. I'm sure 40-50 pounds would be more than acceptable, which is still beyond what the average thumb and finger can apply, I would guess.
 
No it is not good enough. This Thermalright cooler has adjustable pressure up to 70 pounds: http://thermalright.com/products/?act=data&id=172&cat_id=27

Tighten it as tight as you can with your fingers, and then start doing equal rotations across all the screws with a screwdriver until it starts to become difficult. There are plenty of guides that cover this.

That's impossible for me, my bolts don't have slots for a screwdriver in them. I just got this cooler today after trying the H100 and it wouldn't fit. The instructions show screws that have a phillips head cutout so you can use a screwdriver with them to tighten them.

The ones I got are flush at the top and are only knurled for thumb screwing with your fingers so my fingers are all raw and in pain now.

Is this normal? Did they change the design because people were torquing too much with tools? It was a pain in the ass to tighten the bolts, especially the corner ones near the motherboard heatsinks.

h80qo.jpg
 
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Originally I was going to buy an H100 but it turned out to be a few mm too long for the rad slot on my case which was designed for real radiators and not the Corsair units with the big bumps on the ends. The options were dremelling or drilling into the steel and I didn't feel like it this time around.

Worked out well because Corsair's recommended method is for the fans to act as intakes so I bought an H80 pulling air through the back and in the place where I would have mounted the 240mm rad, I placed two 120mm fans instead exhausting out the top with natural convection. Works great with H80 as intake,
 
That's impossible for me, my bolts don't have slots for a screwdriver in them. I just got this cooler today after trying the H100 and it wouldn't fit. The instructions show screws that have a phillips head cutout so you can use a screwdriver with them to tighten them.

The ones I got are flush at the top and are only knurled for thumb screwing with your fingers so my fingers are all raw and in pain now.

Is this normal? Did they change the design because people were torquing too much with tools? It was a pain in the ass to tighten the bolts, especially the corner ones near the motherboard heatsinks.

h80qo.jpg

Sounds like QC was zzzZZZZzzzz
 
I would personally (and will, when I get one) swap them out for ones that are screw-able (that's what she said). That's just not right. I wonder how much pressure the average person is really able to exert with those thumb screws... and how evenly, considering your heatsink proximity is fairly common.
 
I am quite frustrated with this unit and am considering returning it. The pump is making grinding noises when the case if upright. If I lay it flat, it's dead silent.

The Corsair forums are flooded with many people complaining of the same issue I see. They are told to lay it flat for a few hours (I've laid it flat for days) and to forcefully hit the tubes or the pump. Neither work, the grinding comes back after a few seconds or the slightest bump. It's supposed to be trapped it that is causing the problem. The solution is "RMA". Bugger.
 
I've been running the H80 with stock fans on my I7 950 since October. Overclocked it last week, got it nice and stable at 4.0 gigs (191x21) and my temps are great IMO. Running 35-38 idle (core dependent) and on Prime95 tops out at about 68*C. Can't complain at all. No noises, fans are responsive to load, running nice and cool.
 
You could try needle-nose pliers to tighten them more, but that really sucks. It may at least hold you over if you have to order the parts or locate a shop in your area that carries them.

While I have y'all here: what's a more reliable measure of your heat output in Hardware Monitor, the CPUTIN temp or the individual core temps? I'd assume the latter, but that's bitten me before.
 
That's impossible for me, my bolts don't have slots for a screwdriver in them. I just got this cooler today after trying the H100 and it wouldn't fit. The instructions show screws that have a phillips head cutout so you can use a screwdriver with them to tighten them.

The ones I got are flush at the top and are only knurled for thumb screwing with your fingers so my fingers are all raw and in pain now.

Is this normal? Did they change the design because people were torquing too much with tools? It was a pain in the ass to tighten the bolts, especially the corner ones near the motherboard heatsinks.
I didn't have any trouble with it but that is most likely because I installed it with the motherboard out of the case. With the mobo lying flat on my desk, I had no problems with tightening the bolts by hand on all 4 corners. It was a piece of cake. I have the same motherboard and H80 as you do. The reason I had it out was because this is a new build. By habit I was putting it on like I would an air cooler. From looking at your picture, I would imagine it to be quite difficult if you're trying to do it inside the case.
 
That may or may not be the reason my CPU seems to be running hotter than it should. I'll check that out later: hint, I tightened the screws while it was vertical.

Let's see if it makes a difference.
 
I didn't have any trouble with it but that is most likely because I installed it with the motherboard out of the case. With the mobo lying flat on my desk, I had no problems with tightening the bolts by hand on all 4 corners. It was a piece of cake. I have the same motherboard and H80 as you do. The reason I had it out was because this is a new build. By habit I was putting it on like I would an air cooler. From looking at your picture, I would imagine it to be quite difficult if you're trying to do it inside the case.

It's pretty dangerous to mount any heatsink out of the case because the board is not supported evenly on the corners by standoffs and you are often applying weight and pressure on a wobbly board. Water cooling units are a little better though.
 
It's pretty dangerous to mount any heatsink out of the case because the board is not supported evenly on the corners by standoffs and you are often applying weight and pressure on a wobbly board. Water cooling units are a little better though.
That is not something you need to worry about. It's much easier to have the motherboard out of the case especially when you're installing a giant heatsink. It's the only way until recently when case makers started having specific holes in the cases to allow you to install heatsinks without taking out the motherboard.

To make you feel even worse, I even lift up the motherboard with the heatsink once I'm done installing it to put it back in to the case. Remember when Thermalright's heatsinks are solid copper with no back plate support? I do the same thing.
 
How tall is the waterblock/pump? I haven't been able to find this anywhere. Trying to figure out if I've got enough room to run boh fans. This CM GeminII S was fine until I got this Z68 board. I'm hitting 80C at 4.3GHz now in IBT :(
 
This seems to work great when I game. At non-stressed levels I run in the 40s or higher without OCing. But when I game it drops to the teens in temp. This may be a glitch that I'm working with since the cores seem to stay the same not matter what, but the CPUTIN changes dramatically.
 
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