# Disappointing Corsair H50 Performance



## TheShad0W (Nov 18, 2009)

Hi there,
I built a new i5 rig a couple of weeks ago, decided to get a corsair H50 into it as I'd heard the cooling was pretty decent and I didn't fancy having a cooler the size of mars crammed into my case (NZXT Lexa Blackline - not that roomy inside plus I have a non-modular power supply, so space is at a premium)

Aaanyway I've been busily turning the clocks up and I'm a bit disappointed in the performance of the H50:






It's a shame, because I can take it past 4.2Ghz without going over 1.4Vcore, it just runs far too hot.

Is this par for the course or is it more likely I've done something wrong? I'm thinking from the difference in core temps across the 4 cores that it may need reseating, but it is only 4 degrees... hmmm...

Either way, my first approach will be to stick two high CFM fans on its radiator in push-pull and see what happens, just ordered two of these:
http://www.candccentral.co.uk/Scythe-Kaze-Jyuni-1900RPM-Slip-Stream-120mm-Fan.html

Any advice?


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## Reefer86 (Nov 18, 2009)

i have read that using better fans on a push and pull combo works best. pushing air from out side the case and pulling into the case.


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## RejZoR (Nov 18, 2009)

Still, this isn't much better than my Thermalright AXP-140 running with 120mm Noiseblocker fan at low RPM in pull position. It should perform far better. But it doesn't seem to in this case. Strange.


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## Homeless (Nov 18, 2009)

Turn the rad upside down and have a push / pull setup.  Also having the air blow out of the case instead of into it may help also.


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## TheShad0W (Nov 18, 2009)

Homeless said:


> Turn the rad upside down and have a push / pull setup.  Also having the air blow out of the case instead of into it may help also.



Out of curiosity, why turn the rad upside down?

Also, Decided to give superpi a blast at 4.2Ghz (Turbo Mode on)
The weird temperatures are due to me starting IBT in single-threaded mode just a few seconds beforehand to get the multiplier back up to 21x, I don't really have a 22 degree difference in core temperatures, I just wanted a more impressive screenshot


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## Zehnsucht (Nov 18, 2009)

Seriously, what did you expect? It's a single radiator setup, i.e. very similar to a standard 120mm tower cooler. 
Also, you want to have coldest possible air over the radiator, use fresh air drawn from outside of your case. If  you can lower the air intake temperature for the radiator with 1 degree you will lower the CPU temp with one degree. Roughly.


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## TheShad0W (Nov 18, 2009)

Zehnsucht said:


> Seriously, what did you expect? It's a single radiator setup, i.e. very similar to a standard 120mm tower cooler.



Well... for £60, I wanted it to perform better than my old scythe ninja... it's debateable whether it does or not...



Zehnsucht said:


> Also, you want to have coldest possible air over the radiator, use fresh air drawn from outside of your case.


^Already using this setup, however neither of the fans I have on it (using push/pull) shift very much air (the one I added shifts air at 37.5CFM and the corsair one feels fairly similar), hence the move to the two 110CFM Scythe fans I've got planned...


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## Reefer86 (Nov 18, 2009)

the corsair h50 is only as good a a good air cooler tbh.


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## 3volvedcombat (Nov 18, 2009)

Somethings wrong with your H50. Right now im pushing loads of below 49-50c on a hot high vid e5200 with 1.45 volts pumping threw it. >.>


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## Bo$$ (Nov 18, 2009)

3volvedcombat said:


> Somethings wrong with your H50. Right now im pushing loads of below 49-50c on a hot high vid e5200 with 1.45 volts pumping threw it. >.>



A E5200 at any insane clocks cannot even match the heat given out by any Quad core CPU   especially an i5


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## 3volvedcombat (Nov 18, 2009)

Bo$$ said:


> A E5200 at any insane clocks cannot even match the heat given out by any Quad core CPU   especially an i5



I know but still a 1.38 volted i5 with 45nm tech shouldnt push 80c on that cooler. Or its really bad setup or something i can probably get loads of 65c with that processor with voltage, but hopefully i get a i5 that can clock so well  Also this cooler seems to withstand high voltages because i can only get loads of 60c with 1.58-1.6volts in my e5200 which i dont care what it is, a high vid e5200 at 1.6 volts IS HOT.


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## Bo$$ (Nov 18, 2009)

3volvedcombat said:


> I know but still a 1.38 volted i5 with 45nm tech shouldnt push 80c on that cooler. Or its really bad setup or something i can probably get loads of 65c with that processor with voltage, but hopefully i get a i5 that can clock so well  Also this cooler seems to withstand high voltages because i can only get loads of 60c with 1.58-1.6volts in my e5200 which i dont care what it is, a high vid e5200 at 1.6 volts IS HOT.




you really dont see that even though it is 45nm it's still can double the heat output of an E5200 with real ease


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## Wile E (Nov 18, 2009)

3volvedcombat said:


> Somethings wrong with your H50. Right now im pushing loads of below 49-50c on a hot high vid e5200 with 1.45 volts pumping threw it. >.>





3volvedcombat said:


> I know but still a 1.38 volted i5 with 45nm tech shouldnt push 80c on that cooler. Or its really bad setup or something i can probably get loads of 65c with that processor with voltage, but hopefully i get a i5 that can clock so well  Also this cooler seems to withstand high voltages because i can only get loads of 60c with 1.58-1.6volts in my e5200 which i dont care what it is, a high vid e5200 at 1.6 volts IS HOT.



The i5 is WAAAAAAAAYYYYYYY Hotter than even pushing 1.8v thru your e5200.

The H50 is not a good water cooler. To put things into perspective, my proper loop sees a max in the mid 50s at 1.65V on my QX with silent fans. My e6750 sees around 40C at the same voltages.

The H50 isn't any better than a good tower cooler, like the Megahalems or TRUE.


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## 3volvedcombat (Nov 18, 2009)

Wile E said:


> The i5 is WAAAAAAAAYYYYYYY Hotter than even pushing 1.8v thru your e5200.
> 
> The H50 is not a good water cooler. To put things into perspective, my proper loop sees a max in the mid 50s at 1.65V on my QX with silent fans. My e6750 sees around 40C at the same voltages.
> 
> The H50 isn't any better than a good tower cooler, like the Megahalems or TRUE.



Lets put it this way, will a megahalems or TRUE perform so badly with the i5 at 1.38 volts?


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## dir_d (Nov 18, 2009)

Your doing something wrong h50 and Mega are equal heres a link to a test.
http://www.overclock.net/air-cooling/609119-updated-official-megahalem-vs-h50-battle.html


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## Binge (Nov 18, 2009)

Reefer86 said:


> the corsair h50 is only as good a a good air cooler tbh.



By all reviews it should be better, but that's worse than any air cooler I own.


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## Wile E (Nov 18, 2009)

3volvedcombat said:


> Lets put it this way, will a megahalems or TRUE perform so badly with the i5 at 1.38 volts?





dir_d said:


> Your doing something wrong h50 and Mega are equal heres a link to a test.
> http://www.overclock.net/air-cooling/609119-updated-official-megahalem-vs-h50-battle.html



Actually, his results look exactly on par with the results in the link. His cpu is exactly at the temp it should be with the H50, especially if you consider that review had 2 Ultra Kazes in push pull on the coolers.


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## mlee49 (Nov 18, 2009)

Time to upgrade to a custom watercooling loop.  Return the H50 and get your 60 back and put in another 100 and you've got a killer watercooling system that will handle these temps.


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## dir_d (Nov 18, 2009)

Wile E said:


> Actually, his results look exactly on par with the results in the link. His cpu is exactly at the temp it should be with the H50, especially if you consider that review had 2 Ultra Kazes in push pull on the coolers.



Yea you are right his temps are right inline...He needs a real H20 setup to go any further.


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## 3volvedcombat (Nov 18, 2009)

I got my H50 free, thanks to my dads company gift of 300 bucks on a bestbuy card for free  

I was damed surprised to actually see corsair products and a H50 over at my bestbuy, they have started stocking more computer components on the online stores and stores around the U.S. now. You can actually build a computer at best buy now. Amazing.


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## TheShad0W (Nov 18, 2009)

Wile E said:


> The H50 is not a good water cooler. To put things into perspective, my proper loop sees a max in the mid 50s at 1.65V on my QX with silent fans. My e6750 sees around 40C at the same voltages.



I did consider putting together some decent water cooling but was put off by the cost and the wince-inducing-ness of the potential for leaks having never done it before.

Out of curiosity how much did yours cost?

I think my next cooler/build is likely to be Custom water or some sort of water or air kit with TECs in it (coolermaster V10 or something similar...).

I may also wait a while til I have some spare cash and try to get my hands on something mad like a vapochill LS, was considering the possibility of trying out my old E6600 with one to see what I could get out of it at sub-zero temperatures


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## Wile E (Nov 18, 2009)

TheShad0W said:


> I did consider putting together some decent water cooling but was put off by the cost and the wince-inducing-ness of the potential for leaks having never done it before.
> 
> Out of curiosity how much did yours cost?
> 
> ...


My cpu loop was around $150, with a used rad. Add a little more for all new stuff. Great thing about it tho, is you can improve it piece by piece as better things come out, or add to it as needed.


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## pantherx12 (Nov 18, 2009)

Turn the fan round so it blows through the rad instead.

That will knock a big ol chunk off those temps.

Other then that have you tried cleaning up and reaplying thermal paste? using as little as possible so it just about covers the CPU.

Also, touch the main block area, is it vibrating ?


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## Binge (Nov 18, 2009)

TheShad0W said:


> I did consider putting together some decent water cooling but was put off by the cost and the wince-inducing-ness of the potential for leaks having never done it before.
> 
> Out of curiosity how much did yours cost?
> 
> ...



This makes my head hurt.  If you didn't forsee the H50 being like this I doubt you know what's in store for you with a tec cooler or phase change.


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## TheShad0W (Nov 18, 2009)

pantherx12 said:


> Turn the fan round so it blows through the rad instead.
> 
> That will knock a big ol chunk off those temps.



They're already both sucking air in through it from outside, should be as good as I can make it, but they're relatively low CFM, so I'm getting better ones and the adjustable thermaltake streetfighter as a new top fan (only an 80mm slot on top of my case).



pantherx12 said:


> Other then that have you tried cleaning up and reaplying thermal paste? using as little as possible so it just about covers the CPU.
> 
> Also, touch the main block area, is it vibrating ?



Main block is vibrating, and warm in fact, it's plugged into the CPU fan pins on the motherboard which should be okay really... Also no I haven't tried cleaning up and reapplying yet, but I'm a student with december exams  Also that bracket was a bitch to get in (had to modify it very slightly to fit flat onto the back of the motherboard due to some other stuff on the back - MSI P55 GD65) and I don't want to have to take it off again 



Binge said:


> This makes my head hurt.  If you didn't forsee the H50 being like this I doubt you know what's in store for you with a tec cooler or phase change.



I expected it to outperform a £25 air cooler, shoot me.
I wouldn't describe the coolermaster V10 as a serious tec cooler (in fact to be honest I doubt it'd be vastly better than the H50 so it may not even be worth trying).
And the phase-change would take some getting used to on my part, but it's just something I want to try. I said earlier I wasn't planning on using it with my main rig even if I could afford one, frankly it wouldn't be a tremendous loss to me if I messed up and blew up something dramatic on my old E6600 machine...


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## pantherx12 (Nov 18, 2009)

It should out perform it, I've a Domino ALC which I've modded so I can put fans on how ever I like.

And it out does a Xig 1283 and True 120ex by a fare ammount.


10c of max load temps and idle is pretty much ambient.


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## phanbuey (Nov 18, 2009)

pantherx12 said:


> Turn the fan round so it blows through the rad instead.
> 
> That will knock a big ol chunk off those temps.
> 
> ...



Not on the h50 it won't... push fans only work better when RPM is above 1800... with fans that have less static pressure, pull is much better.

You need more CFM and/or more rad.  Unfortunately a 120MM rad is just not enough for a quad, and actually has never really been.  Best thin you can do is to use a shroud... and as has been said before, use "fresh" air from outside the system (ever seen those reviews that compare air coolers on a test bench vs a case and the test bench is always 5C or so better? - same thing applies).

Pull = better when static pressure of the fan is not enough to compress air through the rad.

Push = better when you have a 38MM fan at a high rpm/CFM (75+cfm) and a high static pressure...


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## PaulieG (Nov 18, 2009)

The biggest problem with this cooler is the size of the rad. I'ts just too damn small and inefficient to cool the liquid enough for i7 chips. I had an old Swiftech setup that was similar to this in one of my s775 rigs, and honestly I had better temps with a TRUE. That's when I moved to custom water cooling for awhile.


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## phanbuey (Nov 18, 2009)

Paulieg said:


> The biggest problem with this cooler is the size of the rad. I'ts just too damn small and inefficient to cool the liquid enough for i7 chips. I had an old Swiftech setup that was similar to this in one of my 5775 rigs, and honestly I had better temps with a TRUE. That's when I moved to custom water cooling for awhile.



yeah me too... except for me it was the swiftech kit and a Q6600 at 3.6Ghz   thing would load at 80C, thats when I went custom.

@ OP - alot of people think that watercooling's benefits lie in the "water's ability to cool better"... 

The real benefit of watercooling is that it allows you to increase the surface area with which you can cool.  It allows you to use 3 120mm fans to cool the cpu, for example... try to fit an air cooler with the same surface area on that lol. 

Cooling, in this case, is mainly a function of surface area*airflow.

Unfortunately, a 120mm radiator has the same surface area as a tower cooler (if not even less) and will cool actually a bit worse since you also have the heat of the pump in the loop.

Unless you're going with a doube or a triple rad, or using watercooling only for the videocards, a single rad isn't worth it.   Thats why all these cooling solutions with a single 120mm radiator get ripped apart in our forums.  

Here are some ways to improve the performance of what you have now...

1.  A shroud - bascially take an old fan, cut the 'fan' part out, and use it to put space between the stock fan and the rad.  This has shown a temp performance increase of ~15% by skinee labs by increasing the amount of air that flows through the 'dead spot' in the rad.

2.  A more powerful fan - I highly recommend something like the arctic cooling turbine xtreme or a 38MM yate loon - stay away from scythe slipstreams as they get slaughtered by rads... their cfm drops off pretty drastically.  Noctua's are good as long as you guy the newest one and not the ones that have a ton of space between the blades.

3.  Give the rad the coldest air you can... its hard with the H50, but see if you can put the rad somewhere where it isnt using already warmed air to try to cool your proc.


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## TheShad0W (Nov 18, 2009)

^Cheers for that, Will try the shroud method because I have no shortage of spare 120mm fans, I'd already ordered the scythe slipstreams when I posted this :S, but hopefully they'll do better than the fans I have on it at the minute, and the PC already draws in cold air from the back.


Another little side-thought - how much do you think adding a basic air filter to the intake would reduce the overall flow rate through the radiator? It's the only intake fan on my system without any kind of filter at all (NZXT puts them into all the "intake" fan slots as standard...) and I don't want to take this setup apart to find it full of dust in 6 months time.


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## phanbuey (Nov 18, 2009)

TheShad0W said:


> Another little side-thought - how much do you think adding a basic air filter to the intake would reduce the overall flow rate through the radiator? It's the only intake fan on my system without any kind of filter at all (NZXT puts them into all the "intake" fan slots as standard...) and I don't want to take this setup apart to find it full of dust in 6 months time.



Dust filters will increase your temps pretty drastically.

I just take a can of air to the case every 2 months or so (mine is acryllic now, so I can see when it starts to need it...)


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## douglatins (Nov 18, 2009)

Temps look good, though i dont see ambient temps


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## Wile E (Nov 18, 2009)

phanbuey said:


> Not on the h50 it won't... push fans only work better when RPM is above 1800... with fans that have less static pressure, pull is much better.
> 
> You need more CFM and/or more rad.  Unfortunately a 120MM rad is just not enough for a quad, and actually has never really been.  Best thin you can do is to use a shroud... and as has been said before, use "fresh" air from outside the system (ever seen those reviews that compare air coolers on a test bench vs a case and the test bench is always 5C or so better? - same thing applies).
> 
> ...



Not true. Depends on the fin density of the rad. My swiftech rads all do better with push fans, regardless of rpm. Even my old original-style BIX 360 did better with 1200rpm fans in push. Never tested with a lower speed fan to comment. Push is almost always better than pull.


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## phanbuey (Nov 18, 2009)

Wile E said:


> Not true. Depends on the fin density of the rad. My swiftech rads all do better with push fans, regardless of rpm. Even my old original-style BIX 360 did better with 1200rpm fans in push. Never tested with a lower speed fan to comment. Push is almost always better than pull.



Skinnee labs tested with an XSPC rad which is not very dense at all... also did shroud and push - pull testing.  All showed that the ~1600 RPM it made no difference and that below that Pull was better...  Push was better above that.

their testing methodology was solid, so im inclined to believe them.

http://martin.skinneelabs.com/Radiator-Fan-Orientation-And-Shroud-Testing-Review.html

same one posted by Martin himself ...


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## Kantastic (Nov 18, 2009)

Bo$$ said:


> A E5200 at any insane clocks cannot even match the heat given out by any Quad core CPU   especially an i5



My i7 at 4.0 1.28v tops out at 70C.


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## Wile E (Nov 18, 2009)

phanbuey said:


> Skinee labs tested with an MCR 320 rad which is not very dense at all... also did shroud and push - pull testing.  All showed that the ~1600 RPM it made no difference and that below that Pull was better...  Push was better above that.
> 
> I cant find the link to the article atm bc im at work, but its the same one that they did the shroud testing - google it.
> 
> ...


My methodology is just as solid. Absolutely nothing changed between setups except for fan orientation. Even ambients were the same. No blocks were removed or shifted in any way. Tubing was not moved or altered, nothing.

This is with YL fans and no shrouds, so that may make a difference as well. Push has so far always done better for me for anything 1200rpm and above.


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## phanbuey (Nov 18, 2009)

Wile E said:


> My methodology is just as solid. Absolutely nothing changed between setups except for fan orientation. Even ambients were the same. No blocks were removed or shifted in any way. Tubing was not moved or altered, nothing.
> 
> This is with YL fans and no shrouds, so that may make a difference as well. Push has so far always done better for me for anything 1200rpm and above.



I mean those are some completely contradicting results.  Especially with the MCR series as their FPI is relatively low.  They tested with and without shrouds, and either way, a shroud didnt change whole lot.

I would love to see a your results as well (if you can post them).  I personally have never noticed a massive difference either way - for me pull is easier to clean dust out of the rad, makes less fan noise, so i use that with shrouds...

Ive only ever seen one real, methodical review done to answer the question.  And that was it.  It basically said that push is better when the fan can overcome the restrictiveness of the rad - which makes sense.

Where that line is in terms of RPM is completely up to the FPI of the rad... i agree with that.

In any case, I would be very interested to see your numbers... ill flip the fans on my triple too - to see if that will make a difference.


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## Wile E (Nov 18, 2009)

phanbuey said:


> I mean those are some completely contradicting results.  Especially with the MCR series as their FPI is relatively low.  They tested with and without shrouds, and either way, a shroud didnt change whole lot.
> 
> I would love to see a your results as well (if you can post them).  I personally have never noticed a massive difference either way - for me pull is easier to clean dust out of the rad, makes less fan noise, so i use that with shrouds...
> 
> ...


Ahh man, I posted them a long time ago. I wouldn't even know where to begin looking for the results anymore. After a few formats, they aren't on my hard drive anymore.

But you also aren't considering setup differences between Martin's setup and the setups mentioned here. That test was done using a completely different rad, a very specific flow amount, and different fans from the setups we are commenting on in this thread. Not exactly apples to apples.

At any rate, it wasn't entirely significant. On the order of 2-3C under load. Don't think that's gonna matter much for his H50 anyway.


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## TheShad0W (Nov 18, 2009)

douglatins said:


> Temps look good, though i dont see ambient temps



On mine? It's 24-26 in here usually.


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## PP Mguire (Nov 18, 2009)

These temps seem about right. Its a tad lower than my true with 1 fan at 4ghz.


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## PP Mguire (Nov 18, 2009)

On second observation


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## TheShad0W (Nov 18, 2009)

^Try 15 minutes of IBT on a 3072MB problem size, see how it does then 

If I only run a couple of passes on IBT, or run something else like prime95 on blend my core temps don't pass 80.


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## PP Mguire (Nov 18, 2009)

No need to waste my time. My temps never go above that anyways when playing a game or anything else.


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## 3volvedcombat (Nov 18, 2009)

Is there any mods you can do to the H50 that will better the temps overall. I cant lap the base, which i would almost do and i might go buy some nice thermal paste. Is there anything better the Arctic silver 5. Piont me to it cause i would love to see a 1-3c drop because changing thermal paste did the job ;D.

I know theres better paste then AS5 but for a water cooling of some sort application the best thermal paste would be?


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## phanbuey (Nov 19, 2009)

put another fan on it for push/pull...


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## 3volvedcombat (Nov 19, 2009)

phanbuey said:


> put another fan on it for push/pull...



I have a antec 3 speed fan and the corsair fan in a P&P setup, now should i add a spacer or what, I dont have room for a spacer anyways because my rad is almost hitting the block its self. T_T


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## PP Mguire (Nov 19, 2009)

Higher RPM fans work to.


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## Tom20 (Nov 19, 2009)

Ouch!


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## Nick89 (Nov 19, 2009)

the H50 is garbage compared to an actual water cooling system with a decent radiator. The single 120mm Rad is easily overwhelmed by the overclock on your i5.



3volvedcombat said:


> Is there any mods you can do to the H50 that will better the temps overall. I cant lap the base, which i would almost do and i might go buy some nice thermal paste. Is there anything better the Arctic silver 5. Piont me to it cause i would love to see a 1-3c drop because changing thermal paste did the job ;D.
> 
> I know theres better paste then AS5 but for a water cooling of some sort application the best thermal paste would be?



AS5 is the *best* thermal paste. The only other thermal paste that gets the same performance is: Shin-Etsu MicroSi G751

*80-way Thermal Interface Material Performance Test:* http://benchmarkreviews.com/index.p...k=view&id=150&Itemid=62&limit=1&limitstart=12


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## Kantastic (Nov 19, 2009)

Nick89 said:


> the H50 is garbage compared to an actual water cooling system with a decent radiator. The single 120mm Rad is easily overwhelmed by the overclock on your i5.



An actual water cooling system with a decent radiator is garbage compared to liquid nitrogen. The decent rad is easily overwhelmed by the 2.0v on your overclock.

See what I did there?


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## Binge (Nov 19, 2009)

Kantastic said:


> An actual water cooling system with a decent radiator is garbage compared to liquid nitrogen. The decent rad is easily overwhelmed by the 2.0v on your overclock.
> 
> See what I did there?



The MO-RA can handle a 2.0V OC with low speed (30CFM) fans and it costs less than most 120.3 rads.


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## Nick89 (Nov 19, 2009)

Kantastic said:


> An actual water cooling system with a decent radiator is garbage compared to liquid nitrogen. The decent rad is easily overwhelmed by the 2.0v on your overclock.
> 
> See what I did there?



No, I see no point in what you did there. He would get better temps with a good air cooler.


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## Kantastic (Nov 19, 2009)

I don't see why people keep bashing the H50. How many of you have actually used the H50 before deeming it shit-in-a-box?

It's performing like a champ for me in it's stock config, no 40dBa high CFM fans in push/pull, no lapping/pressure modding, no worries about warping, I just slapped it on the way it came. Even at 100% fan speed it's no louder than the 200mm Tri-Cool in my P180 Mini. 

For $77 ($60 at BB) what else can you ask for?


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## 3volvedcombat (Nov 19, 2009)

Nick89 said:


> No, I see no point in what you did there. He would get better temps with a good air cooler.



The H50 aint garbage, and good reviews show that there aint any aircoolers for a total price of 80-100 bucks all together that can perform better, and if they did it was by 3-1c wow what a big difference. Also i would rather take a H50 then even the New Noctua heat sink because i have a nice little test bench config with a bowl of ice water, so when im pushing high volts my processor will stay at idles of 30c with 2.0v anything. But thats just for suicides and high clock achievements. Ive gotten no problems after dipping it in water and now my as5 has gotten to be cured now so im getting super low temps otherwise .


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## Nick89 (Nov 19, 2009)

You guys keep telling yourselves what ever you need to to justify your purchases. 

At least I have the satisfaction of knowing I didn't waste any of my money on an inferior product.


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## Binge (Nov 19, 2009)

Nick89 said:


> You guys keep telling yourselves what ever you need to to justify your purchases.
> 
> At least I have the satisfaction of knowing I didn't waste any of my money on an inferior product.



They'll hate themselves when the pump dies from getting too hot.


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## 3volvedcombat (Nov 19, 2009)

Binge said:


> They'll hate themselves when the pump dies from getting too hot.



Check on that, I know for a pretty good fact that in my case my pump wont go out, because the back of my case were the 120mm exhaust is I have switched to a intake, and i have a side intake and the 2 fans in the front of my case are in a intake direction. I know that the pump couldn't possible overheat because my hand freezes at the sector were the block is. My case is safe in sound when it comes to airflow, The pump can randomly die, but im taking my chances, and i got the cooler for free. Theres nothing to bash about it when you get it for free, its 60 bucks and runs with the megahalems and TRUE's out here and suits my needs for High clocking and suicides with the way i see it perform and the way it performs when i want to do suicides. Keep in mind the cooler has a 2 year warranty so let the pump die out ill just receive another one.


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## Kantastic (Nov 19, 2009)

3volvedcombat said:


> Check on that, I know for a pretty good fact that in my case my pump wont go out, because the back of my case were the 120mm exhaust is I have switched to a intake, and i have a side intake and the 2 fans in the front of my case are in a intake direction. I know that the pump couldn't possible overheat because my hand freezes at the sector were the block is. My case is safe in sound when it comes to airflow, The pump can randomly die, but im taking my chances, and i got the cooler for free. Theres nothing to bash about it when you get it for free, its 60 bucks and runs with the megahalems and TRUE's out here and suits my needs for High clocking and suicides with the way i see it perform and the way it performs when i want to do suicides. Keep in mind the cooler has a 2 year warranty so let the pump die out ill just receive another one.



They're crapping on the H50 without a valid reason, there's no reason to even bother arguing. I'll acknowledge their opinions when they can back it up with data.


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## Nick89 (Nov 19, 2009)

Kantastic said:


> They're crapping on the H50 without a valid reason, there's no reason to even bother arguing. I'll acknowledge their opinions when they can back it up with data.



Keep telling yourself that. High end air cooling always beats low end water cooling.

*Reviews:*
http://www.legitreviews.com/article/1025/6/

http://www.overclock.net/air-cooling/609119-updated-official-megahalem-vs-h50-battle.html


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## Binge (Nov 19, 2009)

Look I'm only saying that I know what pump is on that head and it might be modified to take temperatures of 70C+, but even if it can take them for some time it will die before a good system fan dies because of being so close to the HS.

Most water cooling pumps start to fail at 60C+, and the water isn't supposed to ever get that hot.  If it does fail... your PC should shut off when the cpu reaches a dangerous level, but it's not fun when a pump fails.  It's happened to me once and I always have a spare in case it happens again.


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## pantherx12 (Nov 19, 2009)

My Domino ALC pump stays nice and cold, and the over all water temps stay around human body temperature even under full load.

Got my Xeon 3220 @ 3.6 ghz at the moment (1.5v) and my temps max out at 70, I've only got one fan on it at the moment running in its second setting.

That's with running prime 95 large ftts.

Much much better temps then my true, which was hitting 89c under full load with much less voltage and a slightly lower clock.


I'd say the H50 was a better peice of kit as well, I'm sure for most users its fine and dandy.

Does beat a True 120ex after all 

Costs less as well, both brand new over here set you back about 50 quid, and the hydro comes with a fan.


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## Binge (Nov 19, 2009)

I've gotta point one thing... the Thermalright 120Extreme Rev C is only $55, one with a fan costs $60.


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## pantherx12 (Nov 19, 2009)

How much are ALCs and H50's over in the states?


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## Binge (Nov 19, 2009)

H50 as low as $60 on sale and the ALC is as low as $64, but shipping hurts on the ALCs.  The problem with running an ALC on the i7 is overloading the pelt.  Please remember this thread started because of an i7 owner.

I have used two high end air coolers on a 920 @ 4.0GHz+ and I have to say my results weren't as bad using a yate loon medium fan on my Mega or TRUE rev C.

::EDIT:: I think the OP should get another model.  To me it seems like he got a bad one.


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## pantherx12 (Nov 19, 2009)

Binge said:


> ::EDIT:: I think the OP should get another model.  To me it seems like he got a bad one.




Agreed RMA time me thinks.


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## Kantastic (Nov 19, 2009)

pantherx12 said:


> How much are ALCs and H50's over in the states?



I'm not sure if this question has been answered since half of the posts on this page aren't displayed for me , but off the Egg it's $78 shipped. Best Buy has them for around $60 at this moment.


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## codyjansen (Nov 20, 2009)

isnt the h50 not meant for extreme overclocking


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## Kantastic (Nov 20, 2009)

codyjansen said:


> isnt the h50 not meant for extreme overclocking



I don't know any sub-$100 cooler that's meant for "extreme" overclocking.


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## phanbuey (Nov 20, 2009)

I really dont think he needs to RMA... those temps are after some extreme LINPACK... and is the highest temps he will ever see by far. 

That cooler prolly keeps temps around 65C normally, and I bet his temps now are better than the chip running at stock with the stock cooler.  Put the stock cooler back on, run the chip at stock, and I bet you will see even higher temps .


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## CDdude55 (Nov 20, 2009)

codyjansen said:


> isnt the h50 not meant for extreme overclocking



Nope, thats what liquid nitrogen is for.


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## CorsairX (Nov 20, 2009)

I have the H50 and my cores temp are below 55C. Tomorrow I will be putting some more fans and Im positive it will drop a bit more.


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## Binge (Nov 20, 2009)

CorsairX said:


> I have the H50 and my core temps are below 55C and GPU below 45C.



You have a different processor, gtfo.


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## CorsairX (Nov 20, 2009)

Binge said:


> You have a different processor, gtfo.



So? still an H50.


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## Kantastic (Nov 20, 2009)

CorsairX said:


> So? still an H50.



Your processor doesn't run as hot, it can't really be used as a valid comparison. Oh and this is always an option if you don't like being spoken to that way :


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## CorsairX (Nov 20, 2009)

Kantastic said:


> Your processor doesn't run as hot, it can't really be used as a valid comparison. Oh and this is always an option if you don't like being spoken to that way :
> 
> http://i47.tinypic.com/2vt1aoy.png



oh ok thanks. 

As for my post, I meant to comment on the H50, I wasnt really comparing on cpus.


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## Nick89 (Nov 20, 2009)

Kantastic said:


> Your processor doesn't run as hot, it can't really be used as a valid comparison. Oh and this is always an option if you don't like being spoken to that way :
> 
> http://i47.tinypic.com/2vt1aoy.png



The truth hurts doesn't it? I feel sorry for such an ignorant person.


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## CorsairX (Nov 20, 2009)

Do you guy keep ur case open all the time?


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## phanbuey (Nov 20, 2009)

CorsairX said:


> Do you guy keep ur case open all the time?



NEVER! 

then the pets get into it.


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## CorsairX (Nov 20, 2009)

phanbuey said:


> NEVER!
> 
> then the pets get into it.



lol 

No but say you dont have any pets or anything around just a house fan blowing to the open case? Im planning on doing it but dont know if is recommended.


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## Kantastic (Nov 20, 2009)

CorsairX said:


> lol
> 
> No but say you dont have any pets or anything around just a fan blowing to the open case? Im planning on doing it but dont know if is recommended.



I know people who do that. I wouldn't open my case fan because it messes with the airflow, but if your intention is pointing a huge m'fkin fan at it then yeah sure.


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## CorsairX (Nov 20, 2009)

Kantastic said:


> I know people who do that. I wouldn't open my case fan because it messes with the airflow, but if your intention is pointing a huge m'fkin fan at it then yeah sure.



yea Im actually trying to put my whole inside pc below 40C lol. Whatever it takes i guess.


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## Kantastic (Nov 20, 2009)

CorsairX said:


> yea Im actually trying to put my whole inside pc below 45C lol. Whatever it takes i guess.



Why not get like 2 intake fans for your CM690? It's got great aircooling capabilities.


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## CorsairX (Nov 20, 2009)

Kantastic said:


> Why not get like 2 intake fans for your CM690? It's got great aircooling capabilities.



Whats a good intake?


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## CDdude55 (Nov 20, 2009)

Kantastic said:


> Why not get like 2 intake fans for your CM690? It's got great aircooling capabilities.



Agreed.

I have one and it has some great airflow with the right placement of fans.


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## Kantastic (Nov 20, 2009)

Try some of these?

Oh I should mention that they aren't actually as quiet as the specifications have them, but the noise level should be tolerable if that matters to you.


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## RaPiDo987 (Nov 20, 2009)

Hey TheShad0W, thanks for making this thread. I was thinking on buying this cooler for my Quad but seen peoples specs may me realize that it might be good for dual but not quad. Might go with a thermolab baram and save me some $$$$


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## CorsairX (Nov 20, 2009)

Kantastic said:


> Try some of these?



I just bought one of those 120mm but it hasnt arrive yet. Its Thermaltake brand.


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## Kantastic (Nov 20, 2009)

CorsairX said:


> I just bought one of those 120mm but it hasnt arrive yet. Its Thermaltake brand.



Aiming a large fan inside your case is always an option, but I wouldn't recommend it for long term solution though. There's nothing wrong with it, just seems too much of a hassle and hideous looking to me. To each his own! Which Thermaltake model btw?


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## CorsairX (Nov 20, 2009)

Kantastic said:


> Aiming a large fan inside your case is always an option, but I wouldn't recommend it for long term solution though. There's nothing wrong with it, just seems too much of a hassle and hideous looking to me. To each his own! Which Thermaltake model btw?



This one. 

Its kind of ugly though lol

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835106133&Tpk=AF0018


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## CorsairX (Nov 20, 2009)

I dont have it installed yet since I ran out of 3pins connectors. I had to buy more 3 pin adapters but hasnt arrive yet.


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## 3volvedcombat (Nov 20, 2009)

CorsairX said:


> oh ok thanks.
> 
> As for my post, I meant to comment on the H50, I wasnt really comparing on cpus.



My H50 has jumped on a q9550 and my loads are 50c at stock, i5 is way hotter then q9550 i bet, i did 1.3ish volts and got 66-70c loads omg im overheating with a H50 >.>.


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## Wile E (Nov 20, 2009)

3volvedcombat said:


> My H50 has jumped on a q9550 and my loads are 50c at stock, i5 is way hotter then q9550 i bet, i did 1.3ish volts and got 66-70c loads omg im overheating with a H50 >.>.



Yeah, a single 120mm rad is just overwhelmed by i5/i7.


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## 3volvedcombat (Nov 20, 2009)

Wile E said:


> Yeah, a single 120mm rad is just overwhelmed by i5/i7.



Sarcasm  
Isnt a 12mb l2 Cache 4 cores non HT Processor going to be almost just as hot as a L3 with 8mb of Cache i5 processor? Im just saying something here. Maybe the die size is bigger of 1156 so that mite produce more heat but maybe transfer better to >.>


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## Wile E (Nov 20, 2009)

3volvedcombat said:


> Sarcasm
> Isnt a 12mb l2 Cache 4 cores non HT Processor going to be almost just as hot as a L3 with 8mb of Cache i5 processor? Im just saying something here. Maybe the die size is bigger of 1156 so that mite produce more heat but maybe transfer better to >.>



i5/i7 is hotter. More transistors. Your sarcasm kinda failed.  Besides, 70C on 1.3V is not good performance on a Yorkfield anyway.

Seriously, a single 120mm rad is not meant to cool a quad efficiently. It just get heat soaked/overwhelmed.


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## Binge (Nov 20, 2009)

Wile E said:


> i5/i7 is hotter. More transistors. Your sarcasm kinda failed.  Besides, 70C on 1.3V is not good performance on a Yorkfield anyway.
> 
> Seriously, a single 120mm rad is not meant to cool a quad efficiently. It just get heat soaked/overwhelmed.



You just say it more nicely than I could ever and they love you


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## Wile E (Nov 20, 2009)

Binge said:


> You just say it more nicely than I could ever and they love you



I have kids. I understand the patience needed to get a point across most of the time. lol


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## 3volvedcombat (Nov 20, 2009)

Both you guys are just  Im ganna stick with my H50, im also suprised at the REV C TRUE with fan so im also going to get people to look at that deal. But im stick with my H50 neeguu's I don't know what you did binge but when Nick was putting out some were a$$ post i was really looking down on how he can say the cooler is terrable. I might acctualy go ahead and put a q9550 in my rig to see what my H50 can do with it lol i lied about the temps XD. Your nice binge, your nice .


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## Kantastic (Nov 20, 2009)

Wile E said:


> i5/i7 is hotter. More transistors. Your sarcasm kinda failed.  Besides, 70C on 1.3V is not good performance on a Yorkfield anyway.
> 
> Seriously, a single 120mm rad is not meant to cool a quad efficiently. It just get heat soaked/overwhelmed.



How long does it take on maximum load (P95) before a single 120mm rad gets heatsoaked?


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## phanbuey (Nov 20, 2009)

Kantastic said:


> How long does it take on maximum load (P95) before a single 120mm rad gets heatsoaked?



depends

1. volume of water.
2. ambient temp.
3. airflow...
4. your individual chip...

You know when the temps stabilize for a few hours... like do an OCCT linpack 4 hour run, and look at the temp graph.  once it stops climbing, those are your peak temps, thats when your rad has hit equilibrium.

It also depends on your noise threshold... im sure if you put two 140CFM delta screamers in push pull on that sucker it would outperform my triple haha.


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## RaPiDo987 (Nov 20, 2009)

with all this said, which WC set-up would be good for $100 - $150?
keep in mind that my quad is running at 1.43v and load is at 55c...
links please....

thanks


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## Binge (Nov 20, 2009)

RaPiDo987 said:


> with all this said, which WC set-up would be good for $100 - $150?
> keep in mind that my quad is running at 1.43v and load is at 55c...
> links please....
> 
> thanks



Why would you want water if your load is 55C?  I'm confuzzed.


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## RaPiDo987 (Nov 20, 2009)

Binge said:


> Why would you want water if your load is 55C?  I'm confuzzed.



 oh, I'm @ 3.7ghz and want to hit 4.0+ghz!


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## PP Mguire (Nov 20, 2009)

Good luck with that feat. I had better luck getting my 720 to 4.


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## TheShad0W (Nov 20, 2009)

The two 110CFM Scythe fans turned up today - definite improvement and not too noisy:

190FSB+Turbo Mode on:






Off tonight but I think I'm tempted to try to push things a bit further when I get back now


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## Nailezs (Nov 20, 2009)

shadow this is the same cooler and same fans i chose as a x-mas present for my e8400  if it keep your chip at those temps on that OC then i have no fears about using the h50 to get my e8400 past 4GHz


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## Nick89 (Nov 21, 2009)

I had a Realization: Ignorance is bliss.


H50 is still harder to maintain than a good air cooler.


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## Binge (Nov 21, 2009)

Nick89 said:


> I had a Realization: Ignorance is bliss.
> 
> 
> H50 is still harder to maintain than a good air cooler.



and harder to keep in working order than a quality WC loop... it's hard to condone a closed loop after doing real water cooling.


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## Nick89 (Nov 21, 2009)

Binge said:


> and harder to keep in working order than a quality WC loop... it's hard to condone a closed loop after doing real water cooling.



Also how would you control algae? Does the H50 come with an anti algae additive, and you cant change the water? Whoa it sucks more than I thought! I guess you just RMA it when the water goops up.


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## 20mmrain (Nov 21, 2009)

I considered buying that same cooler. The Video review I saw on it sad that the cooler is only as good as the fan that pushes the air past the radiator. I would consider finding the best fan you could. 
If it hasn't already been suggested. Other things you could try are.... what kind of thermal paste are you using. Try a different kind. You could also try lapping the CPU(if you are not concerned about voiding the warranty.) But I do understand your frustration....... you shouldn't have to do such a measure in the first place. 
Also how long has it been since you bought the cooler. If it is still under 30 days..... return it and buy yourself a Cooler Master 212 Hyper Plus. It's cheap and I have been getting amazing performance out of it. It's also air cooled if you have a problem with that.

But when I did some studying on the cooler you just bought....... I didn't purchase it because I also saw that there was a lot of mixed reviews on it's cooling capability. I too think it's a great idea to have such a small water cooler. But I think I will let the technology catch up a little bit before I purchase one.

Sorry for the bad purchase hope this helps and good luck !!!!


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## Binge (Nov 22, 2009)

Nick89 said:


> Also how would you control algae? Does the H50 come with an anti algae additive, and you cant change the water? Whoa it sucks more than I thought! I guess you just RMA it when the water goops up.



Algae can't grow in the absence of sunlight.  There is no way a microbial could grow in the H50.


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## Nick89 (Nov 22, 2009)

Binge said:


> Algae can't grow in the absence of sunlight.  There is no way a microbial could grow in the H50.



Why did I not know that, it makes perfect sense. 

Much thanks to the US public school system!


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## Bjorn_Of_Iceland (Nov 23, 2009)

How bout scoring one of these?





made by asetech also.. northq tiger II. May perform better than the h50's single rad. Not sure where you can get an i5 retention though..


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## Nailezs (Nov 23, 2009)

that thing looks wicked!


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## TheShad0W (Nov 25, 2009)

Bjorn_Of_Iceland said:


> How bout scoring one of these?
> http://northq.com/img/pics/nq3590_01_640.jpg
> 
> made by asetech also.. northq tiger II. May perform better than the h50's single rad. Not sure where you can get an i5 retention though..



Looks like the mount from the H50 would do just fine  would have to do some sort of interesting case mod to get it in though...

Meh, I'm happy enough, got it stable at 3.92Ghz with peak 78 degree load temps on IBT, can get to 3.98 before I hit my original temperatures.

And it can top 15K P score on 3dmark with a single barely-overclocked 5850:


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## TheShad0W (Nov 27, 2009)

(sorry for the double post mods)


Nailezs said:


> shadow this is the same cooler and same fans i chose as a x-mas present for my e8400  if it keep your chip at those temps on that OC then i have no fears about using the h50 to get my e8400 past 4GHz



Well, ran prime 95 overnight on "blend" for 8 hours, then on a single core for a further 8 hours (Vcore is around 25mV lower when it's loading a single core instead of all four on my board) at 4Ghz, max temps were recorded at 77 degrees on the hottest core, but for the most part sat at 73-75.

4Ghz - 190.5Mhz with locked 21x multi:






So yes, 4Ghz on an e8400 should be no problem at all


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## Flak (Dec 16, 2009)

I was worried after reading all the posts on this forum from a select number of people actively voicing that the h50 sucks.  I got mine for less then $50 from BB, have a single san ace on it and it keeps my i7 920 @ 4ghz (so far) below 72C (30 IBT passes).  I never considered it a "water" cooler, just an alternative to the tower air coolers though.  Couldn't pass on the price to just play with something new.  Is there an air cooler for less then $50 that would perform similarly or better?


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## Binge (Dec 16, 2009)

Flak said:


> I was worried after reading all the posts on this forum from a select number of people actively voicing that the h50 sucks.  I got mine for less then $50 from BB, have a single san ace on it and it keeps my i7 920 @ 4ghz (so far) below 72F (30 IBT passes).  I never considered a "water" cooler, just an alternative to the tower air coolers though.  Couldn't pass on the price to just play with something new.  Is there an air cooler for less then $50 that would perform similarly or better?



Can't say there is.  That price is a steal especially if it was after taxes.


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## Flak (Dec 16, 2009)

The actual price after tax was $46.  I have a couple san ace's laying around so I have one on every cooler.


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## Nailezs (Dec 16, 2009)

yeah, i dont understand why people call this a crappy cooler, its not meant to be a replacement for true watercooling but an alternative to tower cooling. something like this works great for people with motherboards like mine that have a high NB heatsink that cant fit a lot of tower coolers(or atleast not fit well).
im gettin one of these for xmas and i cant wait.


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## GAMERIG (Dec 16, 2009)

I really never have problem with my Hyro series H50 for almost two months. I play the high ended video games all day, sometime 24 hours without stop. I am surprise  H50 in my rig keep lowest temp. I love it..

Have you visit at Corsair Cooling™ Hydro Series H50 Push-Pull Performance Guide ? if not, there you should check out.


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## TheShad0W (Dec 16, 2009)

GAMERIG said:


> I really never have problem with my Hyro series H50 for almost two months. I play the high ended video games all day, sometime 24 hours without stop. I am surprise  H50 in my rig keep lowest temp. I love it..
> 
> Have you visit at Corsair Cooling™ Hydro Series H50 Push-Pull Performance Guide ? if not, there you should check out.



I use far higher CFM fans than the ones in that test, before I switched them it wouldn't have been stable at the clocks it's at now 

Still, gets to a degree or two over 80 degrees at 4Ghz at around 25-27 degrees ambient, and it's blowing a worrying amount of warm air at my RAM (It's at 1600Mhz/6-7-7-20, so I don't think there's just a whole lot of headroom)


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