5-Way Radiator Round-Up

When it comes to PC water-cooling, there are so many possibilities not only for the various waterblocks but also the radiators in addition to the pumps, tubing, and reservoirs. Radiators designed for computer usage range from traditional 80/120mm single-fan solution to triple-fan radiators like that from Prime Cooler. In addition, there are a whole slew of possibilities for running a water cooling setup while abiding by a low-speed low-noise fans or an eccentric fanless solution such as the Zalman Reserator series. Alternatively, there is a large variety of home-brewed radiator solutions along with evaporative coolers or better known as water bongs. The primary function of radiators are for heat transfer to cool the water before returning it to the array of waterblocks and many enthusiasts over the years have come up with creative contraptions for transferring the heat away from the water, but today we will be looking at a few of these retail products. When looking at any radiator or heater core product it is always important to keep in mind the size of the unit, overall design, type of metal, as well as the connectors. The radiators we have chosen for part one of our Phoronix Radiator Round-up are the Black Ice Xtreme I and II from Hardware Labs (provided by Danger Den), Danger Den Dual Heater Core, CoolingWorks CoolRad 12T (provided by CrazyPC), and also a Thermaltake 12cm Big Radiator. These radiator adversaries are apart of a two-part round-up where we will meticulously examine these products as well as an in-depth performance look in our second article. Without further ado, let's start with looking at the Dual Heater Core made by the talented craftsmen at Danger Den.