Coolit Systems Coolers Review

Introduction

This Meta review will cover a batch of similar products from Coolit Systems. As will be my standard, when I have a set of similar products from the same company, I will combine them, as the keystone concepts of my review process are not given to requiring individual reviews for individual products, or getting bogged down in endless pages of hard to read charts, but is more about the integrity of the product and the company behind it. That said; as we go along, I will gauge reaction and adjust my level of testing detail to match demand. For now I feel that these brief results with the accompanying commentary and unique perspective are a very appropriate level of detail. Some reviews will have more or less.

 

This article will cover Coolit Systems, a Canadian manufacturer of CPU and GPU liquid cooling systems. These systems are all-in-one, closed-loop units, which makes them cleaner, more reliable, and easier to install.

This article covers the ECO 120, the ECO 240, and the OMNI.

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SPECIAL NOTE:

The following article will reference pictures that are not there ( or are taken with a consumer camera for now ). This is not an accidental omission on my part. I am in the process of buying a new camera, but I wanted to get started posting reviews and get the site going without having to wait. Please be patient, and check back often as I will post when I get the camera, and let you know that the images are going to start coming. Thank you for your patience.

The Unboxing

Coolit sent my products directly. They arrived over several shipments, and were either in plain cardboard boxes, or a classy, but simple white box with black writing.

The ECO’s come in such white boxes, seen here:

The OMNI’s come in plain cardboard boxes, seen here:

Unboxing itself was a very straightforward process. Unlike Apple, Sony, or someone like Aliph, which are given to fun, interesting unboxing’s here; security of the item inside was the most important aspect, and true to that, each item was packed flawlessly in very thick foam. The products removed easily, and everything was in perfect condition.

Inside

ECO 120 – The Cooling unit, mounts for each modern Intel and AMD platform, screws for the radiator, and a manual.

ECO 240 - The Cooling unit, mounts for each modern Intel and AMD platform, screws for the radiator, and a manual.

OMNI’s - The Cooling unit, Interposer plate for either 5970 or GTX480, screws for the radiator, and a manual.

Other contents

None, but what else do you need?

Overview of the Main Hardware itself

First impressions

I love matte black finishes, don’t you? Every bit of the surface of these things is a satisfying, smooth yet textured matte black metal or hard plastic. These don’t feel like cheap toys, the way many CPU/GPU coolers do, these feel like professional TOOLS.

These are CLASSY.

ECO 120

The first thing you will wonder to yourself is “Hey, where the hell is the pump? I don’t see a pump? Did they not send me one?”

The pump is so compact, so elegantly integrated into the overall unit that it’s easy to miss the fact that it’s even there. It’s actually built into the CPU block itself, which is surprisingly small and light, considering what we’re getting here.

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Starting from the bottom: The large copper plate is smooth and shining; at least the part not pre-covered in paste. Thanks Coolit!!

The plate is covered by a cleverly raised, clear plastic top. Next to them are four mounting arms, adjustable for 775, 1156, and 1366 brackets. How thoughtful!

Up one side of the unit, the sturdy metal-like coils of the water tubing are flush mounted, and tightly wrapped in a hard sealant. This thing is never going to leak.

EVER.

As we follow the tubing up to the radiator we contemplate the length of it. Now, we COULD try to complain that it seems short. One of the pitfalls of self-built liquid cooling systems is the temptation to make long, arcing tubes, with bright colors, because it looks “cool”. Unfortunately, “looks” is the only thing that these set ups do “cool”. Shorter tubing = less water + better water flow = better cooling. Simple.

The tubes are mounted to the radiator in an equally sturdy fashion. They are mounted to an outer metal plate that sits slightly extruded from the main housing, as seen here:

This can create a VERY SLIGHT issue when mounting in VERY tight quarters. Below we’ll see how this issue plays out in a secondary build I did, but for now, you need to know that you should measure for a bit more room than a standard 120mm fan.

The radiator itself is a thin metal housing with rows and rows of tiny fins and ducts, culminating in another metal cap on the opposite side. Together, this makes the unit slightly wider in one dimension, as seen here:

Mounted to the outer side of the radiator is a matching matte black 120mm fan unit. This fan draws air away from the radiator. It’s worth noting here that you can mount a second fan to the other side of the radiator, taking care that it flows the correct direction, and significantly increase your cooling ability. If you have room to do this and enough fan headers, go for it.

The ECO 240

The ECO 240 shares the same Pump and CPU block as its little brother, and the tubing is the same type. The radiator and fan set up looks identical, there’s just a lot MORE of it. As you can see, the radiator itself is twice the width, and has not one but FOUR fans mounted to it, in what they call a “Push/Pull” configuration. This means that two fans are drawing air in from the case, pushing it through the radiator, and the two outer fans are pulling the air through and out the case. This is a huge and heavy unit, best suited to full towers with two 1200mm fan mounts on the top panel. My Corsair Obsidian 800D is such as unit. Here are some images of the install. Notice how integrated and matching everything is.

Coolit thoughtfully tied all four fan headers together into one for us. Again, thank you!

The OMNI

The OMNI is a slightly different animal from the CPU coolers. The main thing we notice right away is that the pump is mounted to the Fan/Radiator unit, creating an all-in-one solution. This is fine, but you should measure as it makes fitting into tight spaces tricky.

This time, the tubing goes out to a special water block that couples with a custom “interposer” plate. This replaceable plate allows you to upgrade to a different video card without having to buy a whole new unit. It’s tightly integrated, and extremely thin once installed.

The Autopsy

In certain cases of hardware, such as the Axelo PC Game Controller, or the Alienware M17X, I will tear the thing down and tell you all about what is inside.

Not this time.

DO NOT attempt to dismantle your unit. Just don’t do it. This is NOT a “user upgradable” unit.

Overview of USING the Hardware

Installation

Installing the ECO 120 or 240 is of course exciting, and it IS simple, but it does come with it one gotcha. The two units: Radiator with Fan(s), and Pump/CPU block, can be an unwieldy and awkward bunch. You need to hold both and not scratch anything with one while you’re screwing in the other.

Now that I have installed these units several times, in several configurations, both in and out of cases, I can give you my perspective:

While you CAN install the units inside a case, I recommend that you do not. Don’t be lazy; take the motherboard out, even if it’s on a tray. You will need to install the back plate for the unit, and even if you have a “compatible” one from a different cooler, I find that the ones that Coolit sent are VERY sturdy, and are made for the task. Use them.

Now a word of advice: If you are a stickler for damage, and want a perfect looking build, before you do anything, take a few sheets of paper towels, and wrap the radiator in them, and put a little tape on there to hold it. You’re going to be working around your motherboard with that thing flopping around loose for a while. Protect your stuff!

Install the back plate to the CPU after you have removed the old cooler. It will stick to the back plate. This is desirable.

Remove the plastic cover from the CPU block, and fit it to the back plate on one side then the other. As per usual wisdom, screw in each corner a little bit until each is tight. It takes a while, but once that pump is on there, it will fit so tight it will feel like it’s welded to the motherboard. Now THAT’S build quality!

Next: unwrap the radiator, taking care that no paper is left, and screw it in place. Locate the two fan headers, and then plug in the two cords. You’re done. This was just as easy as an air cooler . . . and easier than some.

If you have the ECO 240 with the four fans, the wrapping issue is even more critical. That thing weighs a TON. Protect your stuff!

Installing the OMNI GPU coolers is a bit more involved. The same rules apply here though. Go slow, and protect your stuff. Since individual cards and set ups will vary a lot, all I can tell you is to follow the manual TO THE TEE, and you’ll be fine. If you have bought the OMNI AND an ECO, be sure your case can support the two mountings. It’s not as simple as it sounds. My Corsair 800D could mount a T-Rex skeleton, but not all cases, even full towers, are as easy to work with.

Issues?

None. Zip . . .

Not really an “issue” but something you need to keep in mind: Coolit Systems are closed loop, meaning you will not be able to “route” the tubing through holes in your case. This is usually not going to be an issue, but do think about where you want to mount it and have a clear picture in your mind where everything will go.

Eco’s require two fan headers. Make sure that you have easy access before screwing anything in. Make sure you plug BOTH in before you power on.

Another “gotcha” we caught in the lab. I was installing an ECO 120 into one of my partners’ systems, in a Cooler Master CM 80 Stacker, and we ran into some issues. These are not any “fault” of either company, but if you are going to mount the ECO radiator to the back panel in this case, you will be unable to fit the quad fan enclosure back into the case. You will either have to modify the side panel to mount a fan, mount the radiator to another spot, or get a different case.

I would recommend trying to mount it to the very top fan mount, if you can work around your PSU mount and get it in there. Your mileage will vary. Hit me up if you need advice for your case.

Some Brief Test Results

You’re going to learn as we go along, that I don’t like to get bogged down in endless pie charts. There are plenty of very fine sites where you can delve into the numbers, but honestly, I don’t really see a great need for it. Either a product is worth what it costs, and the company behind worth supporting, or they are not. That said: I WILL usually post some basic results. Here, I have some results of Prime95, running stock, and running at 4.2Ghz.

CPU COOLING

This test is broken up into two sets: ECO 120 numbers, and ECO 240 numbers.

1366 ECO 120

FAN Speed – 1847 rpm

CPU pump Speed – 4170 rpm

PRIME95 Torture Test – Stock Clocks and ECO 120

IDLE – 51

PRIME95 Torture Test

TIME – 8 mins

TEMP at Crash – no crash, 71 degrees, aborted.

PRIME95 Torture Test – 4.2 Clocks and ECO 120

IDLE – 51

PRIME95 Torture Test

TIME – 8.5 mins

TEMP at Crash – crash, 76 degrees, aborted.

Since I think it’s silly to run at stock clocks with the ECO 240, here are the OC results:

PRIME95 Torture Test – 4.2 Clocks and ECO 240

IDLE – 40

PRIME95 Torture Test

TIME – 8.5 mins

TEMP at Crash – no crash, 85 degrees, aborted.

GPU Cooling with The OMNI 5970

With the 5970, mine being an XFX Radeon 5970 Black Edition, it’s really not about temperatures so much as it is about how much OCing liquid enables. Stock coolers have little headroom. In fact, on another build, we have a different brand 5970 that will not take an OC on air at all.

Stock clocks on a 5970 are 725Mhz/1000mhz.

My new OC on a 5970 is 900mhz/1200mhz. See picture below:

What difference does this make? Let’s tally up the cumulative upgrades and see what is possible in Vantage:

Nuff said.

1.21 Gigawatts?

Not here. I am told by Coolit that these units only take 8 watts of power to run. Considering the pump and fan, you’d figure it would be much more than that, and would be concerned about PSU capacity and power bills, but not with these. I thought this was so impressive it deserved a mention here!

Conclusion

The Coolit Systems coolers are each a classy, sturdy, stealthy and TANK reliable piece of hardware. My 4.2Ghz six core beast purrs along without a trace of noise. In a way, I miss the V8 roar of “Big Fan”, but I don’t miss the toy-like feeling. Silent and Deadly. THIS is the future of CPU cooling, one way or another.

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Integrity Check

As this is a brand new paradigm in product reviews, I will take a moment to explain the logic behind it in each of my early reviews.

This is how it works:

For my site, my keystone paradigm is “Integrity”. It governs everything that I do. I do not “scoop”, I do not “spy”, nor will I purchase stolen hardware, or less serious but still crappy behavior such as copying content; posting something on my site as if it was my content, with a “via-“ link. There is no via ANYthing on my site. 100% of all of my content is generated by me. Period.

On that same token, I have certain standards for vendors. It has been my long experience that vendors will treat their reviewers equal to how they treat their customers. The only difference between a professional reviewer and an end user is that reviewers don’t pay for the product. However, we still, or at least, I still expect a certain degree of support, communication, acceptance of feedback, and level of behavioral conduct.

As part of this process, I will detail my dealings with each company from first contact, product acquisition, support, and follow up. Exceptional companies will gain a lot of credit here, and the poorly run, greedy, or otherwise “less-thans” will be outed.

Coolit Systems

First Contact:

As part of the initial research and due diligence for my upcoming MMO Guide and support site, I contacted a number of hardware vendors. Some responded with product, others declined, some promised product but never shipped ( and they too will be outed here as well ) and still others simply wasted my time with a lot of questions and attitude. This is a story about one who not only shipped product, but deserves your money without hesitation.

Coolit immediately expressed an interest in my project and after some requisite shuffling and clarification, sent out a couple of ECO’s, a couple of OMNI’s, and promised some follow up products.

The first batch arrived in the boxes seen above. I immediately installed an ECO 120 into my test platform, which is detailed here. ( LINK coming soon after camera comes )

Support

My Intel i7 970 is a six core BEAST. Stock clocks are 3.2Ghz, but no one buying a thousand dollar processer is going to leave it that, are they? I sure didn’t. The details of that build we’ve already discussed. I sent some screen shots showing my overclocking results to Coolit, and received some very positive feedback.

Now, my results were very positive, but we knew I could do better. They sent me a new ECO 240, with not one but FOUR fans surrounding a massive 240mm radiator. Pictures do not do justice to what a MONSTER this thing is. The fact that I could easily mount it in my case is nothing short of sheer luck on my part. I hadn’t prepared for this.

I sent feedback, which I will not discuss here yet, and more feedback is going to be sent. Coolit has listened, and I am supremely confident that they will implement any rational feedback. As it stands, I trust this company absolutely. If you have seen the holes I’ve ripped or will be ripping into certain other companies, you will learn that I absolutely do NOT mince words. When I think a company is scum, you will hear it from me.

When it Goes Wrong

I will be maintaining a “Rogue’s Gallery” of companies who have done wrong. This can be anything from minor infractions such as promising product several times and never shipping it to the big stuff, such as outright consumer fraud. I will give each company a chance to redeem themselves, but if they do not, they will continue to receive bad press here. Since I have NO advertisers I don’t have to be afraid of them. Eventually, as my site grows in readership and influence, it is I they will have to fear, as bad press will ultimately cost sales.

This is not the case here.

Whatever your application, buy something from Coolit Systems. They will support you, and you can trust this company and its products. I know that from now on, no build that I do will NOT have a Coolit cooler mounted on the CPU. At above 4Ghz with 6+ cores, you HAVE to be able to trust your cooler, and if it fails, that’s a thousand dollar mistake. Would you trust your cooler to anyone else?

Conclusion

I am extremely excited about the next batch of review product from Coolit, and I am sure that they are hard at work on more amazing systems for us.

Conclusion

The entire line of Coolit products is a classy and sturdy testament to their commitment to pushing PC cooling out of the hobbyist, toy-looking monstrosities into a more civilized age. In that, they have succeeded in all ways.

I am personally very excited to see the evolution of these product lines, and how they will be compatible with Sandy Bridge, and whatever other innovations we see from them.

It is my prediction that when we see the first native 8 core consumer CPUs, liquid cooling will have to move from hobbyist/professional Overclocker status, to practically mandatory, at least for any amount of overclocking.

If you are looking for something better than the best air coolers, and want a clean, classy and rock solid reliable liquid cooler, look no further.

If a Coolit ECO 240 can tame a six core i7 at more than 4.2Ghz, it should be able handle whatever you throw at it.

If you’ve got an AMD 5670 GPU, you absolutely must get the OMNI for it. Check out the gallery ( coming soon ) for images of the flat, matte, clean look of the OMNI inside my Corsair Obsidian 800D. This is the cleanest looking build I’ve ever seen.

Stay tuned for follow up reports on Coolit Products, and for more images as my site grows. Thanks for reading!

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