Corsair H100 Self-Contained Liquid CPU Cooler Review

Since our normal CPU cooler test system was not used, the results from the H100 testing will not be added to our temperature database, but that shouldn’t really matter since it’s in a class of its own. There are no other 240mm all-in-one liquid coolers on the market that are as readily available as this one. Asetek was supposed to have its Waterchill 2011C ready to roll around July or August but news about it has been pretty scarce since.

Ideally I would have liked to test the H100 with four fans in a push/pull configuration but also put it up against a full blown water-cooling kit like the XSPC Rasa 750 RS240 and one of the best air coolers on the market today such as the Noctua NH-D14 or the Thermalright Silver Arrow. That simply wasn’t in the cards but comparing it to the Vantage C240 however does show just how powerful the new design is and how far all-in-one liquid coolers have progressed when compared to previous technology.

Even though the installation was skipped over this time around, novices will find it easy to slap the H100 into their case assuming there are no clearance issues. In a way it’s a good thing that there was a problem during installation because it reinforces the fact that proper research should be done before buying any components to ensure compatibility.

The H100 retails for ~$119, which is about $25 more expensive than the H80 – so it isn’t for the faint of wallet. This price puts the H100 well above the aforementioned Noctua and Thermalright air coolers, which might be a hard pill for some to swallow. Also, not every case can support a radiator of this size so for some who really want to own one, a case upgrade may be required too. The trade off is that you do not have a gigantic chunk of metal hanging off the motherboard and aren’t forced to give up a DIMM slot.

Pricing aside, the H100 is a powerhouse and can whoop any of the all-in-one liquid coolers on the market today so it gets a big thumbs up in my books based on price versus performance where the former is warranted based on the latter. Couple that with a 2 year warranty and you have a winner that should be able to keep any system cool.

Corsair H100 Self-Contained Liquid CPU Cooler

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