 | |||
|
|
|
|
|
 |
CoolIT Domino Review December 22, 2008 Tom Colarusso |
|
 |
|
| |
Summary: Looking for a high performance cooler for your Core i7, Core 2, or Phenom CPU? If so, you'll want to check out CoolIT's Domino cooler. Featuring liquid cooling this cooler delivered tremendous performance at an affordable price. See why it earned our Editor's Choice Award in this review!
 CooIIT Domino CPU Cooler Review | Page:: ( 1 / 6 ) |
Heat discharge is the archenemy of any computing or performance enthusiast. High temperatures can lead to system instability, as well as a decreased lifespan of components. Without proper cooling, high-end processors tend to eat themselves alive, taking surrounding components with them in a nice flambéed dish that is best served with a chilled red wine. This is one of the reasons why we at Firingsquad are always on the lookout for new and innovative ways of cooling processors and graphics cards. Liquid cooling is one such way in which enthusiasts are developing new techniques to bring down ever increasing temperatures.Although hardly a new idea, liquid cooling has never really found mainstream success mostly due to high costs. There also tends to be a somewhat higher level of technical expertise required for proper use and maintenance. Previously, the only way to go the liquid route was to do the research and build the system yourself, although this could be quite daunting with the number of choices on the market and cost associated. Many users have had a hard time finding the proper guidance for their setups, and since not all setups are the same, it becomes more difficult to troubleshoot.
It’s also important to note that a custom liquid cooling setup could cost anywhere between $200 and $400 depending on the number of radiators and water blocks utilized.
Some manufacturers offer prebuilt liquid cooling kits, but their performance hasn’t been as good as a custom setup, so they are barely an alternative to traditional heatsinks. Also, prebuilt kits still require a reservoir to keep fluid levels high thanks to the combination of the permeability of silicone tubing and the evaporation of coolant over time. These technical and cost problems have kept liquid cooling a niche market, just waiting for someone to develop a product that will give consumers the thermal performance of water cooling setup. Well, enter the CoolIT Domino Advanced Liquid Cooler for CPUs.
Liquid Cooling for the Common Man
CoolIT Systems specializes in self-contained liquid cooling solutions for a myriad of applications. From notebooks, to servers, CoolIT has developed a way to provide the benefits of liquid cooling to the general and OEM markets. Now they have developed the Domino A.L.C., a self-contained liquid cooler that is designed for the hardware enthusiast who might not have the money to spend on a custom liquid setup, but is still looking for an alternative to air cooling. The Domino is designed around ease of use and performance, while also being priced to compete against traditional heatsinks and fans.
| CoolIT Domino A.L.C. | |
| Cooler Type | Self Contained Liquid |
| Radiator Dimensions | 157 x 133 x 25 mm |
| Fan Size | 120 x 120 x 25mm |
| Fan Speeds | 1030 to 2550RPM |
| CPU Block Wt. | 122g |
| Socket Support | AM2/AM2+ LGA 775 LGA 1366 |
| |
The radiator and fan assembly on the Domino can be mounted to any 120mm fan position and comes pre-installed with rubber grommets for quiet operation. CoolIT also includes additional mounting hardware should users wish to secure the Domino traditionally or for travel. The Domino sports a pretty nice LCD that gives the user all the information they would need to ensure proper operation, from coolant temperature to fan speed. On the side of the Domino sits a small button that allows the user to change the fan and pump speeds on the fly between Quiet, Performance, and Full. On quiet and performance, the Domino will automatically adjust the fan and pump speeds depending on the coolant temperature, so overheating should never be a problem. While full mode runs with the fan and pump at their absolute maximum speeds. Should someone encounter any failures, either from a pump, fan or temperature, the Domino LCD features an audible alarm that sounds every 10 minutes until acknowledged. The Domino A.L.C. is powered by a single 3-pin fan header, which controls everything on the whole assembly, including the pump, fan, and LCD.
The entire setup of the Domino is a closed loop, so there is no need for a reservoir. This means no monitoring fluid levels, as well as no chance of silicone tubing breaking and turning your motherboard into a glorified coaster. CoolIT also includes all the hardware needed to install the Domino on all major sockets, including AM2+ and LGA 1366.
| Installation | Page:: ( 2 / 6 ) |
| <% print_image("01"); %> | <% print_image("02"); %> | <% print_image("03"); %> |
[image]
| <% print_image("04"); %> | <% print_image("05"); %> | <% print_image("06"); %> |
Installation wasn’t completely painless for us, as the plastic tubing lacks flexibility, making it a bit of a challenge to mount the CPU block. We’d recommend an extra hand, which would alleviate the need to balance the radiator while tightening the screws for the CPU. Overall though, once the CPU block is tightened down, fastening the radiator is fairly simple. The radiator comes with grommets instead of screws pre-installed, which work to cut down on vibration noise. The grommets were surprisingly easy to install in the place of traditional screws and requiring only a small tug to yank them through the screw holes. They held firm when tested, but also were pretty easy to release when it came time to move the Domino to another system. If you do a lot of moving or LAN gaming with your computer, we’d recommend you screw the radiator in just in case, otherwise the grommets work great.
| Installation con’t. | Page:: ( 3 / 6 ) |
| <% print_image("07"); %> | <% print_image("08"); %> | <% print_image("09"); %> |
System Setup
Intel Core i7 965 Extreme Editon @ 3.60Ghz
AMD Athlon X2 5000+ Black Edition @ 3.05Ghz
Asus P6T Deluxe
Gigabyte GA-MA790FX-DS5
Kingston Hyper-X 3x1GB PC1800 DDR3 RAM
OCZ Reaper 2x4GB PC8500 5-5-5 DDR2 RAM
ATI Radeon X1800
Western Digital 300GB SATAII
Lite-On LH-20A1S DVDRW
Temperatures were monitored using a Ray-Tek temperature gun, while sound levels were all measured at one foot distance to simulate real-world conditions.
| Cooling performance | Page:: ( 4 / 6 ) |
Thermal performance on our overclocked Athlon was pretty impressive. While idle temperatures were even across the board, once the system was put under load, you begin to see how well the Domino cools. On the quiet setting, temperatures never went above 40 degrees Celsius, even with additional voltage on the CPU. The Domino was able to cool the CPU between an average of 11 to 18 degrees cooler than what we saw from the stock heatsink! We will see, however, that full fan mode has its own disadvantages in the level of sound produced.
Here we can see similar results with our much hotter Core i7 965. Once again, there wasn’t much improvement over idle temperatures, but once the system was stressed, you can see just how efficient the Domino is. We see a 15 degree gap between the stock cooler and the Domino. We also noticed how quickly the system responded to temperature changes. Once load was applied, the Domino was quick to react by increasing fan and pump speeds as necessary to keep all temperatures within a tight tolerance. It never had to increase speeds by much, however, as temperatures hovered between 44 and 52 degrees depending on fan speed.
At almost 60dBA, you can clearly see the trade-off one makes when running at full mode. The Domino literally screams at high speed, moving vast amounts of air over the heat exchanger. Full mode is so loud, it borders on the impractical. Having the case closed made little difference, as the fan noise just came straight out the back. Full operation seems only to be useful to showcase just how cold the Domino can get a CPU, instead of being a truly useful mode due to the high level of noise.
| Ballistics Report | Page:: ( 5 / 6 ) |
Pros
LCD: The LCD on the Domino not only looks pretty cool, but it’s also incredibly functional, giving the user all kinds of information that is updated in real-time with no noticeable delay. The one-touch button easily allows the user to change fan speeds and to customize the Domino for their particular performance needs.
Radiator Grommets: CoolIT thought of everything they could to cut down noise levels, including how to mount the radiator without adding vibration noises. The grommets are easy to install and uninstall, and work pretty well to cut down on excess case chatter.
Full Socket Support: The Domino supports all major platforms currently available, from AM2/AM2+ to LGA 775, as well as the latest from Intel , LGA 1366. The makes the Domino incredibly versatile, supporting 2 different generations while also remaining somewhat future proof.
Price: The Domino will sell for $79 when it goes to retail, making it a good deal for any hardcore overclocker. Radiators alone start at $40, and you will still need to buy a water block, tubing, coolant, a reservoir, and a pump. This is liquid cooling performance at air cooling pricing.
Low Maintenance: No reservoir means no topping off the tank or checking tubing for leaks. The most you will have to do is clean the dust bunnies off the radiator, otherwise, the Domino pretty much takes care of itself.
Cons
Tricky Installation: Attempting to install the Domino on your own can be a bit tricky, so we would recommend an extra set of hands to alleviate any frustration. Otherwise, you may find yourself balancing the radiator on your chin while securing the CPU block with a screwdriver between your teeth.
Noisy High Fan Setting: On high, the Domino is obnoxiously loud, although it does cool incredibly well. Unless you are wearing headphones or crank your speakers to 11, it would be extremely difficult to not find the wind tunnel-like sound level annoying.
| Verdict | Page:: ( 6 / 6 ) |
Firingsquad Says:
From how it’s mounted, to how it operates, it appears that CoolIT has expertly designed a liquid cooler that should meet any enthusiast’s needs, from the mild overclocker to the sound level obsessed gamer. Installation can be a pain unless you have an extra set of hands, and the highest setting is so loud it’s obnoxious, but those are two caveats offset by the cooling numbers the Domino puts down on paper.
CoolIT has a history of designing fairly specific liquid cooling devices, each one aimed at a very small target market. It looks like they’ve kept everything that has worked with previous products and combined them to produce the Domino A.L.C. The Domino is liquid cooling performance at traditional cooling costs, making it an incredibly value when compared to a custom water setup.
The Domino removes one of the major sources of internal case heat as well, since CPU heat is now transferred directly outside the case. Furthermore, the lack of any parts requiring maintenance allows anyone with the least bit of technical knowledge to install and maintain the Domino for as long it remains useful. The Domino A.L.C has earned our Editor’s Choice Award for being an innovative, well engineered product that is priced and designed to compete amongst high-end copper heatsinks and custom CPU liquid coolers.