Introduction

Well, my original plan was to finish reviews of the individual CORSAIR Hydro X watercooling parts to then put it all together in a build article, but the best laid plans don't necessarily work out. The build got delayed because of reasons beyond my control, and CORSAIR complicated it further by putting out a second pump/reservoir combo after the original entry in the form of the Hydro X Series XD5 which, as the name coincidentally suggests, used a Xylem D5 pump paired to a rectangular cuboid reservoir that worked very well. No Xylem D3 pump is used in this market, so CORSAIR has gone with a smaller number to signify a smaller profile unit instead. We take a look at the all-new Hydro X Series XD3 today, and thanks again to the company for sending along a review sample!


Given it continues the trend of very long product names, I am henceforth using "Hydro XD3 pump/reservoir combo" for CORSAIR's second open loop pump and reservoir, if only to save my fingers a touch. The image above definitely shows that CORSAIR intends this to be a lower profile alternative to the Hydro XD5, and it indeed uses a more cubical form factor with a Xylem DDC pump, which was the more popular pump only a few years ago, in an age when high-restriction water blocks were the norm and people were at times looking to counter it with as many as two of these DDC pumps in series. Today, the Xylem D5 is the more popular choice owing to a better balance of noise, flow rate optimization, and active cooling with the coolant, but there are definitely situations where the pump is too large to fit. This is all the more true when paired with a taller reservoir, if you wish to stick to the CORSAIR offerings, so the new Hydro XD3 may be to your liking. We will go over this and more in the review beginning with a look at the specifications below.

Specifications