To test the performance of the Reserator 2 we will first run our test with the processor sit at its factory default speed
(2.2Ghz), we will then increase the Front Sided Bus of the motherboard
until we have raised the processor speed to 2.5GHz and run the test once
again at that speed. Temperatures will be recorded using AeroCools PowerWatch and the small temperature probe we forgot place
under the water block first assembled the water block, so we got good
practice taking it off and putting it back on.
The program we use to run our stress test is a
French program titled
OCCT,
which is very similar to Prime and can put a very heavy load on your
system. One
cycle of OCCT lasts for 30-minutes and that is exactly what we let
it run for. and at the end of that time we recorded the temperature
of the same two points prior to installing the Reserator 2.
The results were just about what I had expected,
since the Reserator 2 is not designed to be a true overclockers
piece of equipment I was not looking for it to have stellar numbers
when we had the 2.5 GHz. Yet when you consider how well it performed
using the default setting, if is safe to say that the Reserator 2 is
an absolute kick butt King of H2O. This is what I have been
looking for in other water cooling kits and have never been able to
find and that is silence. There is a slight whirl when the pump
starts as power is applied but other than that is dead silent.
We noted during our testing that it took roughly over an one hour
for the temperature to finally top out on our default setting, so
the Reserator 2 does have a large enough capacity both in the lines
which we left a full length and in the unit itself to keep these
remarkably cool.
You can check some of the other photographs we
took during our review process by following this
link.
After using the Zalman Reserator 2 for a little over
a week I can now look back and make some observations that I think
might help someone that is considering converting to water cooling.
I have owned and installed five water cooling kits prior to the
Reserator 2, they were the Asetek WaterChill, Vantec Stingray, Gigabyte 3D Galaxy, Swiftec 120, and the Innovatek SET XxS
and I can say without a doubt that the Zalman Reserator 2 is easiest
to install of any of them, it also happens to be the quietest with
barely any noise emanating from the unit.
Now let's talk about performance, it's a know
fact that the best you can ever hope for from water cooling kit is
to have the water temperature to remain at the ambient temperature
of the air in the room and not have it go much higher than that.
I have always found a good way to test the water cooling system is
to set your system at the speed you intend to operate (2.4GHz) it at
and restart it and go into the BIOS screen and go directly to the PC
Health screen or whatever it maybe called on your system and let it
set there for about 30 minutes and see where the temperature goes.
With a room temperature of 70 degrees F you can
see in the picture below that after 30-minutes we ended up with a
system temperature of 32F and a CPU temperature of 31F. Now as
a side-noted when I ran this same test using the Arctic Cooling
Freezer 64 Pro I ended up with temperatures of 32 system 38 CPU, so
as you can see the Reserator 2 makes a huge difference.
For those of
you that are curious what the inside of the Reserator 2 looks like
we have included
blown-apart view of it for
you to examine.
Once again Zalman has given us a device that will
many will try to clone and fail simply because Zalman has the skill,
dedication and experience to make products like this work. Yes you
will pay a bit for this than the 200.00 dollar water cooling
kit from someone else, but take my word on this when it comes to
water cooling you get what you pay for. Zalman provides you with a
kit that is not only gorgeous to look at but each and every
component fits exactly like it should with no need to jury-rig
anything.
In a sense the Reserator 2 is a true "Build and Play Kit",
if I took out the time for taking pictures I could have easily
assembled the entire system in under an hour.
If you want a water cooling kit that does a
remarkable job without the noise of whirling fans and chugging
pumps, then check out the Zalman Reserator 2 Water Cooling Kit - I
promise you that it will be the best decision you ever make!
We would like to take this time to thanks Richard for his help
in coordinating this review
and
to personally thanks
Sharka Computer who graciously
provided us with this sample.
