Corsair H50 Questions

[ExcaliburMM]

Was considering getting an H50 for my 920. I know Aigo is probably going to see this and smack me and tell me to make a real loop. Unfortunately, AFAIK, that costs more, and is a bit more complicated. I also don't feel even a very basic CPU loop would play nice with my RC690 in terms of space, and I'm not sure I'm comfortable making a loop just yet. One step at a time ya know?

To begin my 690 is by no means in a stock cooling configuration. I've got it loaded down with 4 Yate Loon 120mm highs and one 140mm slow as a bottom intake, along with one stock CM fan for front intake and another stock intake on the door. However in the short time I had my 920 running before I had to send the damn ASRock board back, the temps I was getting considering how low the ambient is down here in the basement were unacceptable. So even with a lot of nice airflow in the case, stock intel wasn't cutting it, and with air coolers getting heavier and larger, and actual loops being a bit beyond me at this point, I figured the H50 would be nice to try.

My questions are as follows:
In all reviews I've seen, it appears the H50 is pre-loaded with liquid. Can it be replaced, should it be replaced, and can this be done to get better performance?

Could I switch the single rad out for a double? The 690 could fit a nice 2x 120 rad up top I think. Even if I keep the stock rad I'm going to sandwich it in between two high speed 120mm yates in push/pull. I know Corsair recommends it blowing into the case, but I think that's a load of shit and since I'll be using push/pull anyway, I don't think the fact that I'll have it blowing out will matter much.

Reviews also talked about the H50 having a weird putty like paste. Would replacing it with a high grade grease like TIM consultants or OCZ freeze extreme be a good idea?

 

[Hey Zeus]

Was considering getting an H50 for my 920. I know Aigo is probably going to see this and smack me and tell me to make a real loop. Unfortunately, AFAIK, that costs more, and is a bit more complicated. I also don't feel even a very basic CPU loop would play nice with my RC690 in terms of space, and I'm not sure I'm comfortable making a loop just yet. One step at a time ya know?

To begin my 690 is by no means in a stock cooling configuration. I've got it loaded down with 4 Yate Loon 120mm highs and one 140mm slow as a bottom intake, along with one stock CM fan for front intake and another stock intake on the door. However in the short time I had my 920 running before I had to send the damn ASRock board back, the temps I was getting considering how low the ambient is down here in the basement were unacceptable. So even with a lot of nice airflow in the case, stock intel wasn't cutting it, and with air coolers getting heavier and larger, and actual loops being a bit beyond me at this point, I figured the H50 would be nice to try.

My questions are as follows:
In all reviews I've seen, it appears the H50 is pre-loaded with liquid. Can it be replaced, should it be replaced, and can this be done to get better performance?

Could I switch the single rad out for a double? The 690 could fit a nice 2x 120 rad up top I think. Even if I keep the stock rad I'm going to sandwich it in between two high speed 120mm yates in push/pull. I know Corsair recommends it blowing into the case, but I think that's a load of shit and since I'll be using push/pull anyway, I don't think the fact that I'll have it blowing out will matter much.

Reviews also talked about the H50 having a weird putty like paste. Would replacing it with a high grade grease like TIM consultants or OCZ freeze extreme be a good idea?

1.The H50 is a sealed system which means you cannot open it and it doesn't need to be opened.
2.The putty should be replaced with some high end stuff.
3. You cannot modify the lines because they are simply a hard plastic

 

[Skott]

On my unit I replaced the Corsair H50 thermal putty/grease with AS5. The thermal grease the H50 comes with is not bad but there is better available. I used isopropyl alcohol to remove the original grease and then applied AS5.

 

[KLin]

I just picked one of these up, but I think the Windows 7 system cooling policy is throttling my AMD 965BE.

I turned off cool'n'quiet in my ASUS bios settings, but doing a prime95 test and watching coretemp shows the speed dropping to 800mhz every now and then. My CPU is only getting to the upper 40c echelon. I think it has something to do with how the h50 is reporting the "cpu fan speed". :|

 

[MagickMan]

I got an H50 and I love it, really impressive cooling for something so inexpensive and quiet. Took my Q9550 to 4.15GHz @ 1.36v and it's running at only 57C during IBT (2 low RPM 120mm fans in push/pull). Did scrape off the stuff that came on it and put on a fresh application of SE MicroSi MPU 3.7, it dropped my temps ~2C.

Oh, and I was able to keep C1E running, which is a plus.

 

[Yellowbeard]

The stock cooling TIM is Shin Eitsu and is good stuff but there is no harm in replacing it. As far as modding the H50, yes it can be done including replacing the tubing and radiator etc. However, this WILL VOID YOUR WARRANTY.

With that said, there are a couple of very good threads with lots of examples of modded H50s.

http://forum.corsair.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=174

http://forums.overclockers.co.uk/showthread.php?t=18036199

 

[Zap]

On my unit I replaced the Corsair H50 thermal putty/grease with AS5. The thermal grease the H50 comes with is not bad but there is better available. I used isopropyl alcohol to remove the original grease and then applied AS5.

Ahhh, replacing good stuff with similar-good stuff. ^_^ Guess that's fine as long as you're bored and looking for extra stuff to do.

^This is a reference to several heatsink compound roundups that I've read which highly rates Shin Etsu stuff.

The stock cooling TIM is Shin Eitsu and is good stuff

May as well give up now. Most people only understand "Arctic Silver" and "other crap."

 

[MagickMan]

May as well give up now. Most people only understand "Arctic Silver" and "other crap."

Bah, never used AS5 and never plan on it, I just grab SE from the local service shop for $1 /syringe.

 

[Skott]

Just for clarity sake I should tell you the reason why I used AS5. During the install one of the leg/anchors on the back plate had come loose and I had a hard time getting it back on. The problem turned out to be a bad screw. Anyway I had to take the cooler part off the cpu to fix things and the Corsair grease got messed up while doing so. So instead on taking a chance I wouldn't get a good covering of the original grease I cleaned it off and used some AS5 I had on hand. I felt it was better to play it safe and reapply after I messed up the original grease application. Thats why I used AS5.

 

[Krakn3Dfx]

I caved and picked up one today at lunch to replace the Scythe Katana 3 I've been using as a "temp" cooler since getting my i7 920 set up and running. Can't wait to get it home and installed.

 

[aigomorla]

the best upgrade you can do to it would be to use a push pull setup on it with fans.

Meaning have 2 fans on the radiator, one pushing air, the other pulling.

 

[Krakn3Dfx]

the best upgrade you can do to it would be to use a push pull setup on it with fans.

Meaning have 2 fans on the radiator, one pushing air, the other pulling.

Would you have it pulling air out of the back of the case, or pushing it into the back of the case and have another fan somewhere else in the case pulling hot air out, like on the top?

Trying to figure out the best way to get this set up in my CM690 case.

 

[BadOmen]

the best upgrade you can do to it would be to use a push pull setup on it with fans.

Meaning have 2 fans on the radiator, one pushing air, the other pulling.

In a recent thread about Noctua NH-U12P SE2, they say the push-pull config only gives you 2C of improvement.

Are you sure the push-pull in the H50 makes a better difference?
Sounds odd to me to have to use two fans in such a junior league WC set. Wouldn't it add enough noise to neutralize the silence advantage of the H50?

 

[nitromullet]

I'm not sure I'm comfortable making a loop just yet. One step at a time ya know?

<snip>

My questions are as follows:
In all reviews I've seen, it appears the H50 is pre-loaded with liquid. Can it be replaced, should it be replaced, and can this be done to get better performance?

<snip>

Could I switch the single rad out for a double? The 690 could fit a nice 2x 120 rad up top I think.

If you're comfortable to consider doing any of those mods to the H50, you can certainly build your own loop from scratch. If you were to disassemble the H50, you pretty much would have to re-assemble it with the same skills/knowledge it would take to build your own, but you'd be limited to the parts used by Corsair instead of standardized parts/fittings designed to work with each other.

Nothing against the H50... I considered one myself, but ended up taking the plunge on a full fledged wc loop. If I were to do it again knowing what I know now, I'd probably pick up the Swiftech H20-220 Ultima XT kit. Although, instead of using the nasty HyrdX stuff it comes with, I've been recommended to just use straight distilled water and a silver kill coil. This is what I'm running in my loop now, but I have no personal long term experience with this so I can only defer to those with more experience then me.

Yes, it is WAY more $$$ than an H50, but it comes with good components that you can re-use in your next loop should you decide to expand. I'm using the variable speed version of that pump with a 4x120 and 1x120 radiator, and the Swiftech Apogee XT is currently one of the best performing blocks out there. The H50 can only be improved upon so much until you've replaced the whole thing.

Normally I wouldn't try to dissuade someone from the H50, but you really sound like you want to tinker...

 

[Krakn3Dfx]

Installed mine earlier this week, first thing I noticed was how much hotter my NB chip got without the runoff cooling from my old air cooler hitting it, like 10 minutes into playing Metro 2033, the PC shutdown because the NB hit 100C. So I picked up a Scythe Mini Kaze 40mm fan and mounted it on the nb heatsink, and that seems to have helped quite a bit. This weekend I'm probably just going to pull the heatsink completely and either replace it with a copper solution or at least replace whatever is between it and the nb chip with some Artic Silver 5.

Otherwise, the H50 seems awesome, running my i7 920 @4Ghz and load temps with Prime95 never get over 70C. With Linpack, they peak at around 73C, but I'm still okay with that.

 

[daw123]

Could I switch the single rad out for a double?
If you are going to start swapping out components from a pre-sealed and assembled wc kit, you might as well just build your own loop to begin with. If you serach on here, you can find threads where people have built their own custom loops from as little as $150 upwards, depending on what components you choose, how complicated your loop is and whether the components are second-hand or new. Have a look on fleabay and FS/FT for second-hand stuff if you want to save $. You can also save some $ by just having a T-line instead of a res.

Would replacing it with a high grade grease like TIM consultants or OCZ freeze extreme be a good idea?
Yellowbeard confirmed the supplied TIM is Shin Eitsu - there is very little difference in performance between the top TIMs based on the reviews on the 'Net, so why bother as Zap previously stated

See above.

 

[aigomorla]

Would you have it pulling air out of the back of the case, or pushing it into the back of the case and have another fan somewhere else in the case pulling hot air out, like on the top?

Trying to figure out the best way to get this set up in my CM690 case.

How close is that rear vent to your PSU exhaust?
If its close, then it makes more sense to have it push air out the rear, then pull that hot air from your psu.

In a recent thread about Noctua NH-U12P SE2, they say the push-pull config only gives you 2C of improvement.

Are you sure the push-pull in the H50 makes a better difference?
Sounds odd to me to have to use two fans in such a junior league WC set. Wouldn't it add enough noise to neutralize the silence advantage of the H50?

Well first off i dont like Noctuna fans.
They straight up suck for radiator usages.
The old ones are terrible, the new ones, do not provide enough static pressure for the radiator design on the H5O.

The more air you can get though its fins, the better the radiator will work. Its not the best radiator for quiet water operations because of its high fin density, which is why i said if you want a good instant upgrade, add another fan and get more static though its intended design.

Would it add noise?
Well 2 fans are louder then 1.

However if both are downvolted, you can yield greater static and lower noise levels.

On another note, if you gonna get this to custom parts for it out of the box, then i just suggest you piece out a full blown custom setup.
The cpu block intigrated pump will only get you so far, and your better off getting a new from start.
Also the cpu waterblock design is nothing compared to the more modern blocks of today, that its in your best interest to get a custom, if water is something you really want to try.

This kit is great however if u are gonna use it the way it was designed for out of the box.
The second fan upgrade is not something thats gonna require u to break any warranty tags either.

 

[Bad Dude]

I bought my H50 on Dec. 2009 and just now installed it today. As soon as I turn it on, I got a loud buzzing sound from the pump. I unplugged it briefly and the noise gone away. So it's the pump. Is that normal? Quite a few people with this setup said it's suppose to be almost silent. Mine is buzzing but cools well.

 

[Zap]

This kit is great however if u are gonna use it the way it was designed for out of the box.

The H50 is also pretty popular with the SFF crowd.

 

[Skott]

I bought my H50 on Dec. 2009 and just now installed it today. As soon as I turn it on, I got a loud buzzing sound from the pump. I unplugged it briefly and the noise gone away. So it's the pump. Is that normal? Quite a few people with this setup said it's suppose to be almost silent. Mine is buzzing but cools well.

No, it should not buzz. I have heard a couple of people had this problem and they RMAed the unit as you should too if it persists.

Edit: Also make sure the buzz is coming from the pump unit itself and not something loose on your mobo that is making the noise do to a vibration from the pump.

 

[Rich3077]

The H50 is also pretty popular with the SFF crowd.

I don't know what SFF is, but I have installed 3 of them in the last month and like them all. I just hope they don't start leaking in a couple of years.

 

[john james]

CoolIT ECO A.L.C is better & more affordable than H50, here is proof, you always have options.

 

[Zap]

I don't know what SFF is

Small Form Factor

CoolIT ECO A.L.C is better & more affordable than H50, here is proof, you always have options.

I think CoolIt has an uphill battle with consumers after the Domino ALC and all the negative press it garnered on broken barbs, leaks, failing pumps and mediocre performance. The Corsair H50 is at least not known to be likely to drip coolant on your graphics card, even though performance (IMO) is also pretty mediocre with one fan as an exhaust (the optimum airflow for a normal tower case).

 

[Skott]

Small Form Factor



I think CoolIt has an uphill battle with consumers after the Domino ALC and all the negative press it garnered on broken barbs, leaks, failing pumps and mediocre performance. The Corsair H50 is at least not known to be likely to drip coolant on your graphics card, even though performance (IMO) is also pretty mediocre with one fan as an exhaust (the optimum airflow for a normal tower case).

Yep. CoolIt has some serious PR work to do.

 

[Yellowbeard]

CoolIT ECO A.L.C is better & more affordable than H50, here is proof, you always have options.

I'm sorry but that "review" is not proof of anything. Read the entire thread.