Introduction

We took a look at an Aqua Computer product before here on TechPowerUp, in the form of their CPU de-lidding and re-lidding kit, and I had alluded then that Aqua Computer was among the few companies in the PC DIY watercooling and modding market to not rest on their laurels and think beyond the box. They are a relatively small German company who began in 2001 and whose reputation has only grown over the years for making high build quality, high performance, high customization products to the point where Corsair is now using them to sell Corsair-branded custom watercooling parts soon. One of the products of interest here has been their recently released flagship CPU water block, the aptly named cuplex kryos NEXT. I had taken a detailed look at one particular configuration at launch, and of the many new updates over the predecessor there were three I was very excited about but unable to test since they were not available at launch. Well, it is now eight months since that day and here we are with one of the most "complete" versions of the product. Thanks a lot to Aqua Computer for providing a review sample.





I did something different here and added in a marketing video as well. I shy away from even mentioning marketing specs as a general rule given they tend to exaggerate a product's virtues to the point of even being misleading at times, but this product is so different relative to other CPU blocks and chock-full of features that the video is apt here. You see, there are over ninety different combinations to choose from when configuring the cuplex kryos NEXT - be it the top material, the base plate material, or the extra added features, including VARIO and VISION - that the video above just happened to be for the exact same configuration I have here - a titanium-PVD-coated brass top and nickel-plated copper cold plate with both the VARIO and VISION features included. We will get into the latter two in more detail soon, but the video is a good introduction already.

Specifications