Review: Corsair H115i PRO LCS cooler

#5512306 Posted on: 01/19/2018 03:44 PM

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The problem I've had with any self-contained liquid cooling solutions for CPUs that I've tried from NZXT Krakens through Corsair solutions (tried just about every one up to the 110i) is the fans get so darned loud I can't stand it. All the reviews said these things were quieter than anything else and it never turned out that way for me no matter the case ambient temperature. I used these things for 5 years, exclusively, swapping them out one for another and couldn't find one of which I could stand the sound.
Then I turned to the NH-D15 and couldn't believe the difference. It controlled temps better. Max temps were 10C lower at load than the 110i and the fans multitudes quieter than any of the self-contained liquid cooling solutions I have used. I hate the big chunk of metal blocking everything in my case and I've sliced a finger a few times on the fins while working around the NH-D15, but hands down it's done a better job than any of the pre-built liquid solutions I've tried.
If this Corsair is really that quiet, it would be worth a try.

#5512310 Posted on: 01/19/2018 04:01 PM

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The problem I've had with any self-contained liquid cooling solutions for CPUs that I've tried from NZXT Krakens through Corsair solutions (tried just about every one up to the 110i) is the fans get so darned loud I can't stand it. All the reviews said these things were quieter than anything else and it never turned out that way for me no matter the case ambient temperature. I used these things for 5 years, exclusively, swapping them out one for another and couldn't find one of which I could stand the sound.
Then I turned to the NH-D15 and couldn't believe the difference. It controlled temps better. Max temps were 10C lower at load than the 110i and the fans multitudes quieter than any of the self-contained liquid cooling solutions I have used. I hate the big chunk of metal blocking everything in my case and I've sliced a finger a few times on the fins while working around the NH-D15, but hands down it's done a better job than any of the pre-built liquid solutions I've tried.
If this Corsair is really that quiet, it would be worth a try.

Uber, You mention 5 years old, and that = ancient in hardware land. I run the Kraken X62 on my primary graphics card test rig as setup in silent mode (5960X 8c/16t @ 4.2 GHz), it CANNOT be hard whatsoever. Same with this Corsair kit, tweak fan RPM with the fantastic ML fans (like I advise) and you cannot hear this kit.

#5512318 Posted on: 01/19/2018 04:18 PM

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Seems pretty ok, but look at that NH-D15 go! No regrets getting that one quite a while ago.

Very nice to see so many coolers compared in these tests Hilbert!

#5512342 Posted on: 01/19/2018 05:49 PM

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I'm going to have to try this one.

#5512363 Posted on: 01/19/2018 07:21 PM

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If I turn the fans to max on my 115i it's like my PC is about to take off (2400 RPM on 140mm fans!!!).

They do cool excellently (and my 5820K at 4.4GHz requires a LOT of cooling), but if my case wouldn't be so sturdy I would be afraid it would collapse, that's how strong an airflow they create.

Now that it's winter I can have a more relaxed profile in Corsair Link, however in summer when it's getting to 30-40 degrees celsius ambient temp I increase RPM a lot and I'll just use my headphones more often, so I can cancel out the noise from the fans. That or I revert to stock clocks. #1 reason why I hate summer. :p

#5512392 Posted on: 01/19/2018 09:05 PM

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If I turn the fans to max on my 115i it's like my PC is about to take off (2400 RPM on 140mm fans!!!).

They do cool excellently (and my 5820K at 4.4GHz requires a LOT of cooling), but if my case wouldn't be so sturdy I would be afraid it would collapse, that's how strong an airflow they create.

Now that it's winter I can have a more relaxed profile in Corsair Link, however in summer when it's getting to 30-40 degrees celsius ambient temp I increase RPM a lot and I'll just use my headphones more often, so I can cancel out the noise from the fans. That or I revert to stock clocks. #1 reason why I hate summer. :p
Delidding your CPU with liquid metal is the thing to do if you really hate the noise during the Summer, I got a 13 degC drop in temperature by doing so - it's a real boon to realise that you don't have to run your fans anywhere near max - since doing so all the fans in my case (CPU/GPU/case fans) never spin more than 75% (I've configured it that way). I know delidding invalidates your warranty, but if you value silence it's a no brainer. Combine a good air cooler or liquid cooler with a delid, and you're set!

EDIT: although if your room temperatures is 40 degC then you probably need to spin the fans faster regardless, but in the region of 15 degC drop in CPU temperature is not to be sniffed at. Max room temperature I've had is 27 degC.

#5512411 Posted on: 01/19/2018 10:03 PM

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Delidding your CPU with liquid metal is the thing to do if you really hate the noise during the Summer, I got a 13 degC drop in temperature by doing so - it's a real boon to realise that you don't have to run your fans anywhere near max - since doing so all the fans in my case (CPU/GPU/case fans) never spin more than 75% (I've configured it that way). I know delidding invalidates your warranty, but if you value silence it's a no brainer. Combine a good air cooler or liquid cooler with a delid, and you're set!

EDIT: although if your room temperatures is 40 degC then you probably need to spin the fans faster regardless, but in the region of 15 degC drop in CPU temperature is not to be sniffed at. Max room temperature I've had is 27 degC.

Yeah it sucks, it's a combination of hot summers, small gaming room and sun shines in all afternoon (and the at night it's actually still hot because of the asphalt cooling). I have the AC on most of the time, and that one alone is noisy too so yeah...

I'm too afraid of deliding, and I'm still pissed that people have to do this, especially for high end CPUs which cost a ton and should have this done by default.

#5512430 Posted on: 01/19/2018 11:14 PM

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Besides the fact that the H115i(280mm) outperforms even if slightly the bigger H150i(360mm), I'm still waiting for the H110I GT to be dethroned!

Its been at the top for like, forever.. To the point that each time HH reviews a new Air/AiO cooler, I can't wait to reach the test page to see if it beats the H110i GT! :p

#5512437 Posted on: 01/19/2018 11:42 PM

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I wanted a new cooler and my sister and wife bought me The Hydro H150i PRO RGB for xmas, this cooler is great, very quite and the zero rpm works great, the cooler block is quite big thought, I'm running on a ROG RAMPAGE VI APEX with 32gb ram and i9-7900X, delidded and overclocked to 4.7, the temp are not bad at full throttle gets to around 70 + never gone above 75, and most part to 55 to 65, Origins gets the most heat when playing, I must admit though since the microcode bios update for the intel problem it seemed to have pushed up a bit as before never went above 68

#5512448 Posted on: 01/20/2018 12:18 AM

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interesting.
in the US, you can get an Asetek (Enermax) 240mm aio from about $70. couple that with the two pack of the Corsair ML 120 ($40) to get the same thing as the 240mm version of Corsair's for $50 less, with "rgb" and w/o corsairlink

#5512498 Posted on: 01/20/2018 04:48 AM

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The problem I've had with any self-contained liquid cooling solutions for CPUs that I've tried from NZXT Krakens through Corsair solutions (tried just about every one up to the 110i) is the fans get so darned loud I can't stand it. All the reviews said these things were quieter than anything else and it never turned out that way for me no matter the case ambient temperature. I used these things for 5 years, exclusively, swapping them out one for another and couldn't find one of which I could stand the sound.
Then I turned to the NH-D15 and couldn't believe the difference. It controlled temps better. Max temps were 10C lower at load than the 110i and the fans multitudes quieter than any of the self-contained liquid cooling solutions I have used. I hate the big chunk of metal blocking everything in my case and I've sliced a finger a few times on the fins while working around the NH-D15, but hands down it's done a better job than any of the pre-built liquid solutions I've tried.
If this Corsair is really that quiet, it would be worth a try.

I only had a h115 from corsair but my experience is the same, even with maglev fans from corsair, it gets loud, dunno if its too warm in my apartment but i moved to the nh-d15 and temp wise not a whole lot of difference ,but noise related its night and day, noctua is really quiet. But i like overclocking high, and decided 4.6-4.7 ghz isnt enough but i dont want to delid, so i bought a custom loop from EK, can't wait to get home and assemble it, it's my first ever.

#5512549 Posted on: 01/20/2018 09:33 AM

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Besides the fact that the H115i(280mm) outperforms even if slightly the bigger H150i(360mm), I'm still waiting for the H110I GT to be dethroned!

Its been at the top for like, forever.. To the point that each time HH reviews a new Air/AiO cooler, I can't wait to reach the test page to see if it beats the H110i GT! :p

+1. I also like the H110i GT design better.

#5512585 Posted on: 01/20/2018 01:36 PM

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I´m not a big fan of liquid cooling but i really like cooler, specially the fact that it´s silent. If the cooler was 80€ max i would give it a try just for fun but at 140€ is too much.

And they really should come with a more elegant solution for all those wires, they ruin the look and seem like Corsair forgot they needed them and then added them in the last minute...

#5512602 Posted on: 01/20/2018 02:57 PM

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Yeah it sucks, it's a combination of hot summers, small gaming room and sun shines in all afternoon (and the at night it's actually still hot because of the asphalt cooling). I have the AC on most of the time, and that one alone is noisy too so yeah...

I'm too afraid of deliding, and I'm still pissed that people have to do this, especially for high end CPUs which cost a ton and should have this done by default.
Definitely, Intel should have optimised the thermal interface between the silicon and the IHS - delidding brings so much improvement in temps that Intel's current solution is far far away from being optimised, and it almost makes a mockery of people buying high end coolers in a bid to get reasonable temperatures!

#5512603 Posted on: 01/20/2018 03:12 PM

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/offtopic:

Take your time assembling/installing/testing and enjoy it! 480mm+240mm D5 here.