Testing:

Leak testing of 12 hours is usually the advised method. Since time is of the essence, I opted to let it run for 2 hours while checking the connections and wiggling the tubing to see any unforeseen leaks. Once convinced the system was leak proof, the motherboard was then carefully put back in the case. Since all the wires and components were completely taken out, there was little resistance or difficulty getting the motherboard in place. All the power and components were reconnected to the motherboard which leaves us with some testing.

No Leaks! Let's Test It.

Test Notes: Room and distilled water temperatures were kept to 75 degrees Fahrenheit. Additives were not added due to the short use of the water cooling system and to eliminate any possible performance hindrances.

 

First, we should get the obvious out of the way. The temperatures foremost speak for themselves and the quality of the components. We've seen water blocks that didn't have the most mirror like bottoms affectively cool processors within a couple degrees but couldn't maintain a low temperature under heavy load. Water temps were also very slow to rise with the EHX. Still, these temps are among some of the best to come across the test system.

The CPU cooler does a great job of keeping the processor very cool, especially in its over clocked frequency. What helps this is the size of the GPU-300-V10 and its dispersion surface. The base covers the entire processor fully and tapers out to gain another near 1/2 inch of internal surface and receives the bulk of the 10mm tubing's water flow.

Video cards will continue to have the hottest processors as long as the processor makers keep their thermal properties in check in the next few years. Smaller graphics processors would help keep the heat low, but we aren't going to see these for some time. The GPU-180-L06 and V06 uses a smaller tubing diameter which means it is able to cool the GPU and Nvidia chipset cool using less water. Both the L06 and V06 do a very good handling rising temperatures. Overclocking maxed out at the very same settings as any other VGA block mainly due to the fact that the 7800 GT comes factory overclocked.

Working with the RP-1000 was actually pretty cool. With each press of the <SET> button, it would report each water block's temperature and within one degree of the AbitEQ software. Naturally, the water block sensors are more accurate as Windows isn't guaranteed to report and work correctly with the onboard thermal sensors. Pressing <SET> four times would cycle through each temperature sensor: Sensor 3-CPU, Sensor 2-Chipset, Sensor 1-VGA. With each press of the arrows the fans would speed up or slow down and if this is too much control, AUTO will adjust the fans to match any of the 10 modes you select.
 

Nice Blue Lights

Reservoir Access

Sliding Back In

Level Indicator

And then there is the blue LEDs inside the reservoir and face of the RP-1000 that adds a bit of light to the entire system. The LEDs are bright and clear which makes them very easy to see. The red number is the block sensor which corresponds with the temperature displayed. For example, these particular pictures show sensor 3 which is the CPU. When the RP-1000 was pushed back in on the Coolermaster Mystique which already had a blue LED 12cm inside, it made the entire front bezel glow which was very cool.

Lights On

Dimming Lights

In the Dark

Bezel Door Closed

This brings us to the fans and noise. On highest setting, the fans were very audible and throwing out about 40db. At the lowest setting, the fans were nearly inaudible and also much nicer to work around. Temperatures are affected by a couple degrees at most and would really only benefit a system in a very hot area, or perhaps a system going for some over clocking record. Low or Medium fan speeds will perform perfectly fine and with good results.

Blue Cooling by Koolance

Summary:

  And Koolance said, let there be EHX 1050SL Water Cooling and it was good. What you get is a high quality product designed to work with any system whether its an internet only computer or an extreme gaming system. From the water blocks to the screws, this is one extremely detailed water cooling kit that utilizes the new RP-1000 Reservoir and Pump unit to give the user manual or automatic control of their system.

   It looks great in just about any installed configuration conceived for every possible use. The EHX should easily please the most avid user demanding results from their kit. We'd like to extend a big Thank You to Koolance for providing the EHX 1K giving us a opportunity to experience the gold side of water cooling.