Corsair H90 Liquid Cooler

Corsair H90 is a closed loop high performance liquid cooler. It offers hassle free setup. It features a 140mm fan which is big enough to keep your processor cooler at extreme overclocking. The benefit of buying this cooling kit is because of simple connectivity. Corsair H90 takes care about all popular CPU sockets. It is simple to assemble. The Retention Rings offers firm grip to the socket and also a heatsink comes with the cooler. This removes the gap left between processor and heatsink to offer better cooling. The benefit of having a closed loop liquid cooler is that you get a leak free structure. It is extremely low on maintenance. The tubes are thick and easy to bend. They feature leak free design. To use it you need a big size cabinet to place the fan. The fan features 140mm size which is bigger compared to the regular 120mm fan. You can find that in the specification. From performance point of view Corsair H90 is impressive. It does not matter if you are using your system for overclocking or not, it is ideal for gaming pc also. Corsair H90 features smart design where everything is properly configured. You just have to pull it up and fix it on your CPU. To apply the kit you will have to remove the existing fan cutout from your motherboard. This high performance liquid cooler comes for Rs. 6900. Coolermaster also offers more budget models which are cheaper than H90. Some of those are CoolerMaster Seidon that comes for Rs. 5100 and offers 120mm fan and Corsair Hydro Series H40 that comes for Rs. 4900. H90 is a high end series meant for overclocking purpose. If you need a closed loop liquid cooler only for gaming purpose then you can go with CoolerMaster Seidon. It is more compact.

Corsair H90 comes with 3 different Retention Rings that supports different CPU sockets. Being a versatile cooler you can use it with many processors. Below I have provided information on different CPU compatibility based on socket. So you can have a look on that and checkout instantly whether your processor will support it or not. It is essential to verify that it matches with your existing hardware. This cooler features 140mm High Torque fan offering up to 1500 RPM speed. It is good enough to draw out maximum heat. High rpm does not mean the fan is noisy. You can use this on Intel/AMD CPU. For Intel it supports LGA 1150, 1155, 1156, 1366 & 2011, while for AMD it supports FM1, FM2, AM2 & AM3. Below is the specification of Corsair H90 and later on we will checkout the cooler in more detail.

Specification:

• 3 Retention Rings that supports all modern processor
• 140mm High Torque Fan
• Radiator dimensions: 140mm x 170mm x 27mm
• Fan dimensions: 140mm x 25mm
• Fan speed: 1500 +/- 10% RPM
• Fan airflow: 94 CFM
• Fan dBA: 35 dB(A)
• Fan static pressure: 1.64mm-H2O
• Thermal compound (pre-applied)
• Socket Compatibility: Intel - LGA 1150, 1155, 1156, 1366, and 2011. AMD - sockets FM1, FM2, AM2, and AM3

Features:

Simple mounting bracket: Corsair H90 features a set of 3 mounting panels (Retention Rings). Each of them supports different CPU socket. Overall it supports 11 different CPU sockets that feature Intel’s 1st, 2nd 3rd & 4th Generation processors. Other than this it supports Intel Core i7 Extreme Edition (LGA 2011 & 1366). For AMD you can use cpu like AMD Quad Core APU (4 Core), AMD Athlon, AMD Phenom, AMD FX4, AMD FX6, AMD FX8 Core and AMD A series processor. So here it covers almost all type of CPU socket and due to which you won’t have to worry about compatibility. For AMD AMD2/AM3 and older CPU you have to remove the board cutout which is placed at the bottom. The Retention Rings are easy to apply. It comes with simple assembly.

Closed Loop Liquid Cooler: Closed Loop Liquid cooler like Corsair H90 are low on maintenance compared to open looped. They also have minimum parts to attach. In Corsair H90 you have to fix up the fan with radiator and hook it on the board through Retention Rings. While on open looped you have to assemble the heatsink, tubes, liquid coolant, etc. There are major chances of leakage that can harm the internal hardware. Closed loop coolers have a single assembly where the tube, heatsink and the radiator all are fixed. Corsair H90 features a leak proof design. Tubes are bendable so that you can adjust the fan easily.

High performance 140mm Fan: Corsair H90 features a big size 140mm fan. The radiator dimension is 140mm x 170mm x 27mm. The big size fan fits well on the radiator. Hot air rotates from tube continuously, cooled down by the 1500rpm fan. The fan does not produce noise. It can be applied at the top side or towards the back bottom. If you are attaching the fan on the top then ensure that there are maximum openings. System kept under a table will not have proper ventilation. It is better to place it at backside with decent space.

Copper based Cold Plates: Heatsink consist of copper cold plates with pre-applied thermal paste. This enables maximum heat transfer. This heatsink draws out heat instantly when the CPU gains temperature. This is common in overclocking. It is not fair to say that through Corsair H90 you can break overclocking records, but you can still protect your system when you are experimenting under limit. While for gaming it is an ideal choice.

Package Content:

• Corsair Hydro Series H90 High Performance Liquid CPU Cooler
• 140mm High Torque Fan
• 3 Retention Rings with Retention Clip
• 2 Motherboard Cutouts
• Fan and radiator mounting screws
• Thermal compound (pre-applied)
• Quick Start Guide

Design:

Corsair H90 is a full size cooling solution for overclocking. A big size radiator is assembled with the heatsink and features leakage free design. After fitting up everything the radiator gets thicker. The fan is placed above it. You need to have a good space in your CPU tower or you must use a big size case. Else it will be complicated to manage the cooler. The tubes can mess with graphic card or any other hardware in the case. For clean adjustment tie-up the hanging cables. Lets checkout each and every component of Corsair H90.

Radiator + Heatsink Assembly:

You can see in the image below to checkout the Corsair H90 radiator assembled with cold platter copper heatsink. When you buy the package the heatsink comes with thermal paste. The tube features a leakage free design. Due to closed loop layout, this cooler does not demands much maintenance. Once configured in your system you just have to forget it. It will start working on it. It is essential that you must fit it well on the CPU. There should be no gap left between the heatsink and processor. Being an extreme level cooler, Corsair offers a good quality thermal paste on the same.

140mm High Torque FAN:

The fan rotates at 1500 rpm to boost out cooling. The fan is fitted over the radiator and then the entire assembly is placed in the system. You can place it on upside or on the backside of the system case. The size is big here so you need a full size ATX cabinet. The fan has a 4 pin connector which is also compatible with 3 pin fan header on the board. It is also essential that your psu must be atleast 700W, whether you have a gpu or not. Power is required by the processor when you overclock it. So a PSU lower than that can affect the overall performance.

Socket Mounting Rings:

Back Plates:

There are two back plates for different motherboards. The first is a full size that supports Intel LGA 1150, LGA 1155, LGA 1156 & LGS 1366 socket. Check the first one from the below image. You have to apply the back plate on the backside of the motherboard to fix the liquid cooler over it. The second is a bit thinner one which is for AMD AM2 and AMD AM3 socket.

There are only 4 set of pins available for the back plate in the package. These pins are like screw holders on which the liquid cooler is placed. So just take care that you don’t lose any of these. Corsair must offer around 3 sets of pin extra so that you can use the back plate for any other or existing Corsair liquid cooler if you have any.

Retention Rings:

There are 3 retention rings available for different sockets. You can see them in the below image in the next post. The first two are for LGA 1150, 1156, 1155 & 1366 and the next one is for AMD AM2 and AMD AM3 socket. This will be placed over the coolant and locked with retention clip from the bottom. Separate set of screw are available for fixing the clips on board. 12 of them are available under and 4 are separate for Intel LGA 2011. You can see them in images. They are supported by a set of holders which are placed between the screw and ring. So that it can set firmly and does not fall back.

Retention clip:

Retention clip lock the cooler into a single design. Without it the cooler will not fit properly. This is an important part of the assembly. It is placed at the bottom side and attaches Retention Rings to the cooler. And then it is tighten on the motherboard. Ensure that you don’t tighten it too much. It must be enough to hold the cooler on the board.

CPU Compatibility list / Socket Support:

I had already mentioned above the CPU compatibility for Corsair H90. I will still mention that separately so that you can get all the socket compatibility details at one place. I will go with each socket that is supported by this cooler with existing CPU model in the market. This will help you to find whether the processor which you are using right now will be supported by this cooler or not.

• Socket AMD AM2 : Athlon 64, Athlon 64 FX, Athlon 64 X2, Phenom X3, Phenom X4, Second Generation Opteron & AMD Sempron 3400.
• Socket AMD AM3: AMD Athlon II X2, AMD 2.8 GHz AM3 Sempron 145, AMD 3.3 GHz AM3 Phenom II 560, AMD 3.6 GHz AM3 FX4100, AMD 3.8 GHz FX 4130, AMD 3.3 GHz AM3 FX6100 & AMD 3.6 GHz AM3 FX 8150.
• Socket AMD FM1: AMD E2-3200, AMD A4-3300, AMD A4-3400, AMD A6-3500, AMD A6-3600, AMD A6-3620, AMD A6-3650, AMD A6-3670K, AMD A8-3800, AMD A8-3820, AMD A8-3850 & AMD A8-3870K.
• Socket AMD FM2: AMD A4-4000 Processor, AMD 4.1 GHz FM2 A10-Series A10-6800K Four Core, AMD 3.9 GHz FM2 Quad-Core A8-6600K APU & AMD 3.4 GHz FM2 A4-5300.
• Socket Intel LGA 1150: 4th Generation CPU - Intel 3.1 GHz LGA 1150 i5 4440, Intel 3.4 GHz LGA 1150 i3 4130, Intel 3.5 GHz LGA 1150 i3 4330, Intel 3.5 GHz LGA 1150 i7 4771, & Intel 3.6 GHz LGA 1150 i3 4340.
• Socket Intel LGA 1155: Intel 1.8 GHz LGA1155 Celeron G460, Intel 2.6 GHz LGA1155 Celeron G1610, Intel 2.9 GHz LGA1155 G2020, Intel 3.1 GHz LGA1155 G2120, Intel 3.3 GHz LGA1155 Core i3 2120, Intel 3.3 GHz LGA1155 Core i3 2125, Intel 3 GHz LGA1155 Core i5-2320, Intel 3.1 GHz LGA1155 Core i5-2400, Intel 3.1 GHz LGA1155 Core i5 3450, Intel 3.4 GHz LGA1155 Core i5 3570K, Intel 3.4 GHz LGA1155 Core i7 3770, Intel 3.5 GHz LGA1155 Core i7 3770K, Intel 3.5 GHz LGA1155 Core i7-2700K, Intel Pentium Processor G630 & Intel 3.3 GHz LGA1155 Core i5 3550.
• Socket Intel LGA 1156: Intel 3.06 GHz LGA1156 Core i3-540, Intel 3.2 GHz LGA1156 i3-550 & Intel 3.33 GHz LGA1156 Core i5-661.
• Socket Intel LGA 1366: Intel 3.06 GHz LGA 1366 Core i7-950
• Socket Intel LGA 2011: 4th Generation CPU - Intel 3.7 GHz LGA 2011 i7 4820K, Intel 3.4 GHz LGA 2011 i7 4930K & Intel 3.6 GHz LGA 2011 i7 4960X.

Installation:

For liquid cooler two things are very important. The first one is assembly. And the second one is maintenance. Being a liquid cooler there is always a risk of leaking. In Corsair H90 things are better. It is compact, easy to assemble and features a leakage free design. For maintenance you just need to remove the fan and clean radiator if there is too much dust inside. It is also very easy to clean. Fitting and removing it is quite simple. You have to take care about the cooler assembly part where Retention rings must be placed properly. There must be no gap between the cooler copper plate and processor to get maximum cooling. It is compatible with different sockets. It looks finely engineered for every day usage. Once installed properly you don’t require to open up your case or worry about the cooling stuff. You can use a good CPU temp monitor to find out the difference. Corsair H90 is quite reliable compared to big size Air cooler. The design does not mess with the space inside cabinet. Big size air cooler are heavy and can put pressure on the processor socket when placed vertically. It is the right time to upgrade cooler from air to liquid if we have this kind of models in the market.

Performance:

To get efficient output you must have good motherboard whose bios have smart fan management. The cooler offers liquid cooling that reduces the temperature copper plate instantly. Cool Air constantly flows inside the radiator and further cooled by the fan. For overclocking this cooler is ideal. I am repeating again that to get optimum output your system must have smart fan management. At test we are capable of settling the temperature below 30 degree after overclocking. High end board from Gigabyte, MSI and Asus offer smart bios tweaking utility inside the bios itself through which you can keep a close eye on constant changing processor voltage. The best thing I can recommend you is to use a ready to use overclocking profile available in the motherboard bios instead of tweaking the voltage manually that can cause problem. But if you have Corsair H90 you will surely push the processor to its limits.

Conclusion:

Corsair H90 costs around Rs. 6900. The cost is nothing for a high performance liquid cooling kit. For processors like Core i7, or Core i5 that heats up really fast, this cooling kit is ideal. There is a bit buzzing noise when the CPU temperature rises. The fan rotates at fast speed and this produces vibration. Otherwise it goes well. If you are building your own extreme pc for overclocking or for gaming, Corsair H90 is a good CPU companion. It offers simple installation and no maintenance. It has minimal parts to assemble. Corsair H90 is smartly design to offer hassle free setup. It is also easy to clean. It is necessary to check the size of your system case. It must be a full size cabinet. The cooler easily manages high temperature. Corsair H90 can also help extreme overclockers to push the processor at high limit.

Pros:

• Hassle free setup & Smart Design
• Easy to setup
• Durable Quality
• Low on Maintenance
• Great Performance

Cons:

• Ideal only for full size Cpu Case
• Competitive Price
• Works with single fan only