Corsair’s come a great distance since its 1994 debut promoting L2 cache modules for OEMs. At present the corporate sells all kinds of parts and peripherals, just like the Corsair 5000X case and CX750M Energy Provide. Cooling has additionally been a staple of the corporate’s lineup for a very long time, with its flagship iCUE H170i Elite LCD XT proving to be the strongest cooler we’ve examined to this point with Intel’s i9-13900K.
Together with that cooler, Corsair additionally despatched us a extra ‘finances’ choice, the 240mm H100i Elite Capellix XT. The H170i earned a spot on our finest AIO coolers checklist, however does the H100i Elite even have what it takes? We’ll must put it via testing to search out out. However first, listed below are the specs from Corsair.
Cooler Specs
| Cooler | Corsair iCUE H100i Elite Capellix XT |
| MSRP | $179.99 USD |
| Radiator Dimensions | 277mm x 120mm x 27mm |
| Radiator Materials | Aluminum |
| Pump Pace | As much as 2700RPM |
| Socket Compatibility | Intel: LGA 1700, 1200, 1150, 1151, 1155, 1156, 1366, 2011, 2066 |
| AMD: AM5, AM4, AM3, sTRX4, sTR4 | |
| Base | Copper |
| Max TDP (Examined) | ~270W |
| Guarantee | 5 years |
Packing and Included Contents
Corsair’ iCUE H100i arrives in a medium-sized field, not dissimilar in measurement or form from what anticipate a shoe buy to come back in.
Included with the bundle are the next:
- 240 mm Radiator and CPU block
- Mounting {hardware} and different CPU block plates
- Two 120 mm followers
- Mounts for all trendy CPU sockets (together with AM5 & LGA1700)
- Security and guarantee data
- Lighting and PWM hub
- Pre-applied thermal paste
Set up
The set up of Corsair’s AIO is pretty easy, very similar to many different coolers available on the market.
1. Safe the backplate.
2. Safe the standoffs.
3. Safe the radiator and followers to the highest of the case.
4. Safe the CPU block to the standoffs.
5. Safe the fan management hub. Join the CPU block and followers to it.
Options of Corsair iCUE H170i ELITE LCD XT
CPU Block with interchangeable plates
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Included with the cooler are three CPU plates with totally different designs, permitting for restricted customization. This cooler can be upgraded with a 2.1” IPS LCD by buying Corsair’s improve equipment (opens in new tab) – however you’d be higher off buying the iCUE H100i Elite LCD XT as a substitute if that pursuits you, because the improve equipment is $100 whereas the Elite LCD model of this cooler is simply $80 costlier than the bottom model.
Full Copper CPU plate
The CPU contact plate on Corsair’s iCUE H100i Elite Capellix XT is product of copper and comes with thermal paste pre-installed within the triangle sample you’ll discover on lots of its present instances.
{Hardware} RGB and PWM Hub
Corsair’s cooler features a {hardware} RGB & PWM fan hub, able to supporting as much as 4 extra followers along with these that include the cooler (six units supported in complete).
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27mm thick 240 mm radiator
The radiator included is 240 mm with 27 mm thickness. This isn’t the thickest (or thinnest) radiator we’ve seen, however it must be appropriate with nearly any case that helps a 240mm AIO.
2x AF RGB ELITE PWM 120mm followers
There’s extra to a cooler than simply the heatsink or radiator, because the followers affect each cooling capability and noise ranges. Corsair features a pair of 120mm AF RGB ELITE followers with the H100i Elite. The corporate advertises as much as 65.57 CFM of airflow at peak 2,100 RPM and quiet, long-lasting operation due to a fluid dynamic bearing. There’s additionally eight individually addressable RGB LEDs per fan, with the lighting customizable by the corporate’s complete iCUE software program.
| Mannequin | AF RGB ELITE PWM |
| Dimensions | 120 x 120 x 25 mm |
| Fan Pace | 550 – 2100 RPM ±10% |
| Air Movement | As much as 65.57 CFM |
| Air Stress | As much as 2.68 mm H2O |
| Rated Noise | As much as 34.1 dBA |
| Bearing Kind | Fluid Dynamic Bearing |
| Lighting | RGB |
By default, the pump and fan curves of Corsair’s iCUE H100i Elite Capellix XT are primarily based on the temperature of the CPU coolant as a substitute of the CPU’s temperature. This technique has benefits and disadvantages. Most will admire the way it reduces noise ranges in frequent hundreds and eliminates bursty fan habits. In the event you’d quite have the fan curve tied to the CPU temperature – or one other sensor – this habits might be modified utilizing Corsair’s iCUE software program.
To reveal how the out-of-the-box settings trigger the followers to slowly ramp up in pace over time. I’ve included a screenshot under from the iCUE software program whereas operating a gentle, sustained load.
The benefit to this technique is that frequent hundreds is not going to trigger the cooler’s followers to succeed in louder ranges. Even after I opened 50 tabs in a row in Mozilla Firefox, the cooler ran as silently as an idle load.
The drawback to this technique is that semi-intensive, sustained, workloads (like these we use for testing) will trigger the cooler to run as loudly as in a totally unrestricted workload. The followers may even spin at greater speeds for a couple of minutes as soon as a long-term workload has accomplished, quite than immediately returning to low speeds. This occurs as a result of it takes a short while to deliver the AIO’s coolant temperatures down after a sustained workload. The screenshot under demonstrates the fan habits after an intensive workload has been accomplished.
Corsair’s iCUE software program offers complete customization for its coolers, parts and peripherals. I used to be pleasantly shocked to see my motherboard’s RGB choices detected by the software program, permitting simple management over all system RGB features. That is due cooperation between Asus and Corsair that was first introduced in 2020 (opens in new tab). Different motherboard manufacturers usually are not at present supported by iCue.
The software program permits for in-depth controls of the LEDs; you possibly can change the settings for every particular person LED on the included AF RGB ELITE followers.
Testing Methodology
Whereas it was pretty simple with earlier generations of CPUs for coolers to maintain the flagship i9 processor effectively underneath TJ max (the utmost temperature a CPU can maintain with out throttling) in robust workloads, that is not realistically doable on present era CPUs (and the 13900K particularly) with out excessive cooling (or enabling energy limits).
Whereas prior to now a CPU hitting its peak temperature was trigger for concern, fans are going to must study to simply accept excessive temperatures as “regular” whereas operating demanding workloads with Raptor Lake and Ryzen 7000 CPUs. Fashionable AMD and Intel CPUs are designed to run pretty scorching with none issues – as much as 95 levels Celsius for AMD Ryzen 7000 CPUs, and as much as 100 C for Intel’s Core i9-13900K. Comparable habits has been normal in laptops for years because of cooling limitations in tight areas.
Moreover, Intel’s Core i9-13900K helps Adaptive Increase Expertise (ABT) which permits Core i9 processors to dynamically enhance to greater all-core frequencies primarily based on accessible thermal headroom and electrical situations. This permits multi-core hundreds to function at as much as 5.5ghz if the required quantity of thermal dissipation is there. This characteristic works in a approach that actively seeks excessive temperatures: If the chip sees that it’s operating beneath the 100-degree C threshold, it should enhance its efficiency and energy consumption till it reaches the secure 100 C restrict, thus sustaining greater clocks (and offering higher efficiency) for longer intervals.
The elevated cooling challenges posed by Raptor Lake imply that we’ve needed to change a few of the methods we check coolers. Some coolers have been in a position to cross Cinebench R23 multicore testing with Intel’s twelfth Gen i9-12900K when energy limits have been eliminated (though solely the strongest fashions have been in a position to cross that check). Most liquid coolers and all air coolers I’ve examined “failed” that check as a result of the CPU reached TJ max on this situation.
With Raptor Lake’s 13900K, not a single cooler examined has been in a position to hold the CPU underneath TJ max on this check – as a result of as we identified, the chip is designed to dial up efficiency and energy till it richest that thermal end result. We’ll examine efficiency as a substitute by taking a look at complete benchmark scores and clock speeds maintained.
I’ll be testing Intel’s i9-13900K CPU utilizing Asus’ TUF Gaming Z690 Gaming Plus WIFI motherboard and Cooler Grasp’s HAF 700 Berserker pc case, with case followers restricted to 35% speeds. The motherboard’s default fan curve is used for the CPU Cooler’s followers.
Along with testing Cinebench with out energy limits enforced, we’ll even be exhibiting outcomes when the CPU’s energy consumption is restricted to a extra affordable 200W. We’ll additionally present outcomes at 125W for individuals who want whisper-quiet cooling, at the price of some efficiency. For each of those outcomes, we’ll present conventional delta over ambient temperature outcomes.
We’ll present noise stage measurements recorded utilizing a PSPL25 Sound Meter for all three energy ranges examined to match how a lot noise every cooler makes in several situations. We anticipate most coolers to run successfully silently at 125W.
LGA1700 Socket Bending
Word there are lots of components aside from the CPU cooler that may affect your cooling efficiency, together with the case you utilize and the followers put in in it. A system’s motherboard may affect this, particularly if it suffers from bending, which ends up in poor cooler contact with the CPU.
With a view to stop bending from impacting our cooling outcomes, we’ve put in Thermalright’s LGA 1700 contact body into our testing rig. In case your motherboard is affected by bending, your thermal outcomes will probably be worse than these proven under. Not all motherboards are affected equally by this concern. I examined Raptor Lake CPUs in two motherboards. And whereas certainly one of them confirmed vital thermal enhancements after putting in Thermalright’s LGA1700 contact body, the opposite motherboard confirmed no distinction in temperatures by any means! Take a look at our overview of the contact body for extra data.
Testing Configuration
| CPU | Intel Core i9-13900K |
| Comparability Air Coolers Examined | Cougar Forza 50 |
| DeepCool AG400 | |
| DeepCool AG620 | |
| Iceberg Thermal IceSLEET G6 Stealth | |
| SilverStone Hydrogon D120 ARGB | |
| Thermalright Murderer X 120 R SE | |
| Thermalright AXP120-X67 | |
| Comparability AIO Coolers Examined | Arctic Liquid Freezer II 360 |
| Corsair iCUE H170i Elite LCD XT | |
| Corsair iCUE H100i Elite Cappelix XT | |
| DeepCool LT720 | |
| Enermax AquaFusion ADV 360 | |
| Fractal Celsius+ S36 Prisma | |
| MSI MAG CoreLiquid P360 | |
| SilverStone VIDA 240 Slim | |
| Motherboard | Asus TUF Gaming Z690 Plus Wifi DDR5 |
| RAM | Kingston Fury DDR5-6000 |
| GPU | Intel ARC A770 LE |
| Case | Cooler Grasp HAF 700 Berserker |
| Monitor | LG 45GR95QE |
| PSU | Cooler Grasp XG Plus 850 Platinum PSU |
MORE: Easy methods to Purchase the Proper CPU Cooler