Closer Examination

Courtesy its acrylic and nylon construction, the CORSAIR Hydro XD7 is lighter than it appears, which is a good thing given a large pump/reservoir combo such as this one can be quite heavy once filled with the coolant. The design is really what brought you here as it's meant to look like three of CORSAIR's LL/QL series fans used as case fans, and it goes as far as replicating the rubber pads on the "fan" corners that are of course functional by dampening any vibrations in either direction when installed. The CORSAIR logo sticker is in the center of each of the three segments too, again to make it seem as though these are fans with the sticker on the front fan hub. It is only when you get closer that you see the acrylic plate and missing rotors. Of course, the illusion only goes so far as it's bottom-heavy courtesy the Xylem D5 pump on the back, and it's a thick unit even so, with ample room to accommodate ~140 mL of coolant inside the flat reservoir section with accordingly cut channels.


If you are now wondering why it only fits 140 mL of coolant despite the large size, a closer look at the channels shows that they are deliberately designed to work with the nine BSP G1/4" threaded ports on the back. You see, this is not just a flat pump/reservoir combo in an interesting design since CORSAIR has made the Hydro XD7 a near-universal distro plate, too. The reservoir section has specific inlets and outlets going to other components in your loop—your CPU block, GPU block, and radiator, for example. As such, it's actually on the larger side of average. Further close-ups show 12 threaded brass inserts on the front for the installation akin to three 120 mm fans again, which is where the provided 12 screws from earlier come in. I appreciate the M4-threading as the screws add considerable support with the Hydro XD7 directly installed on a radiator mount and/or case panel.


The pump is a latest-generation Xylem D5 PWM, which has been iterated upon for more compliant PWM control when it comes to PC DIY controllers. The pump is excellent and has long since been the go-to option for PC watercooling. You can refer to my review of the CORSAIR Hydro XD5 for a closer examination of the internals. Removing the pump from the Hydro XD7 is not trivial and requires specialized screwdriver bits I did not have on hand. Cables for a 4-pin PWM connector for pump-speed control and full-size MOLEX connector for PSU power are on the pump. Two other cables on the other end power and control the 36 individually addressable RGB LEDs, of which one is for a compatible CORSAIR iCUE LED controller or more standard 5 V ARGB LED header with the provided adapter cable and the other a passthrough to use with, say, a CORSAIR Hydro series CPU and/or GPU block. The cables are all sleeved black and ~45 cm long, and I like that the two pump cables are sleeved in paracord rather than the stock multi-color wiring of the Xylem D5.


Installation is simple enough but dependent on your case and build profile, so I chose to simply show the various possibilities here. The included tool is handy for plugging spare ports, but as there are nine in total, you will only have 1–2 spare ports if all is planned out well. Six of these will be for components such as the CPU block, GPU block, and radiator, with the bottom two ports for draining and/or coolant flow and temperature monitoring, where the provided temperature sensor stop plug is handy. The top-most port is best left as a fill port and to let air out of the loop, and here too a stop plug may be used if not needed. This means the installation options of the CORSAIR Hydro XD7 are vertical unless you are confident enough to have it at the top with the pump facing down. The demo loop from CORSAIR above would be my go-to, and you may of course go with soft tubing to simplify it. The thick acrylic and nylon construction deals with hot coolant better and is resistant to compression and accidental bumps, and the acrylic is polished clear for a good look at the coolant and LEDs for function and form alike; visual feedback of air bubbles leaving the loop, for example.

Software and Lighting

As with anything with LEDs under the CORSAIR umbrella, the Hydro XD7 has native support with CORSAIR's iCUE software suite. To be more specific, it is a controller such as the CORSAIR Commander PRO I am using here that the Hydro XD7 connects to with the LED and pump PWM cables. You will have to configure the device accordingly, which then allows iCUE control and monitoring of the LEDs for aesthetics, and setting the pump PWM curve to the feedback mechanism of your choice.


Seen above is the CORSAIR Hydro XD7 both by itself and installed in a CORSAIR 5000D case. This is done to show the product lit up in a few different lighting effects, including all white to test for color fidelity, and a few different dynamic modes for a bright light show. The LEDs also light up the top and middle system segments inside, and it can be blindingly bright on the front, too. The plastic ring diffuser over the LEDs cuts down on what would otherwise be 36 discrete light sources in favor of a more cohesively outward-spreading light source. At night with the pump running quietly, you'd be hard-pressed to tell these are just three RGB fans!