Manufacturer: AlphaCool
Product: Alphacool Cool Answer III 120 Compact 12V
Information: website
Product webpage: website
Price: 159 EUR

Hey my fellow PC enthusiasts! I'm sitting here behind my PC today during one of the longest heat waves in the history of the Netherlands. As we speak it's 31 Degrees C in my office and I'm wondering what the hell I'm still doing here. Well, it's too hot to do anything else and since the topic today is about water I guess I can spend a couple of hours writing this piece for you.

Do you guys remember that in summer 2004 time ago we reviewed a pre-modified water-cooling PC-casing from a company called H2O Computers ? Well, it really is a tough market and that company has merged with a company that you probably have heard from one or twice, the company AlphaCool.

AlphaCool is a German based company that specializes in wide range of cooling and modding solutions, especially water-cooling. Browsing through their product line I was immediately impressed because whether you need a single small component, pre-modified water-cooled PC or even a complete PC water-cooled .. hey this is a really good place to do your shopping. You can order their products online but also through a various e- and retailers here in Europe. They offer IRC support, support trough phone, email and forums. So from a generic perspective they are looking quite good.

This company, if they do their marketing right, can easily reach the same high standard that Asetek currently offers. Today we will be doing the first article which will be followed by an intensely impressive second review. The first product however is targeted at mid-range/mainstream users. I'll admit straight away that it's weird to look at yet this product is so clever in the way it has been setup. Allow me to ask you a question, what do you hate the most about water-cooling ? Well, besides leakage that is :) Exactly, the installation. You often have to modify your PC, remove your mainboard, make space to mount the radiator even drill some holes for the fans... it can be quite complicated.

So... why watercooling ? Simple, it's one of the most efficient ways to cool down a component, it can be very quiet and if we take it one step deeper... overclocking.  But water-cooling is not just for overclocking geeks anymore. The past year or two PC's and their internal components have faced two growing problems. Increased heat has added the need for better (and more expensive) cooling solutions and these cooling solutions have gotten much louder (when air cooling).
 

So again, the product looks weird when you'll first see it, but I guarantee you .. you can have your system up and running with a processor nicely chilled with water in 15 minutes. There's only one requirement .. you need to have a 120mm fan mount in your case, preferably right under the PSU.

Today's tested product is the Alphacool Cool Answer III 120 Compact, no external boxes, no difficult installation procedure, you mount a waterblock on the processor, mount the Cool Answer III unit, connect it towards a Molex connector and you are good to go bro ...it's even pre-filled with coolant and everything.

For 159 EUR to good to be true you say ? Well, let's find out .. next page please.