Black Ice Steath GT Radiators

[coolmiester]

My first impressions were how thin and light in weight they are compared to the older BIX.

The GT Stealth weighs in at 645g and measures 29mm thick compared to the BIX at 1045g and 43mm.

The fin density has been openly debated but this is how it looks in comparison the BIX.

And as you would imagine, build quality is identical......very nice bit of kit that is going to make fitting rads into confined spaces a lot easier :cool:

Both have G1/4 thread so can take either Perfect seal or the new G1/4 Hi-Flow Barbs in either 3/8" or 1/2"



http://www.coolercases.co.uk/new/gt_stealth_1.jpg

http://www.coolercases.co.uk/new/gt_stealth_2.jpg

[Leeum]

They look very promising!

Would be good to have a direct comparison between the old and new generation of radiators :)

[TREE]

im thinking a new water cooling setup in my case is in order. How much cooling performance we talking on one of those dual 120mm rads?

[sunnyg]

ye, it would be good to get some stats.

[Madafwo]

Did a quick check on google and found a couple of people saying they were getting slightly higher temps (couple of degrees) on the Stealth GT240's compared to the BIX2's. But they look gorgeous and as soon as I can get the cash together I will be buying one as the PA's looked just too thick to me.

Roll on payday

[coolmiester]

Well i've made a start at doing a direct comparison between....

Stock Air Cooled >>> Single Black Ice Extreme >>> Single GT Stealth

Basically i've put a computer together consisting of the following parts which i've run stock air cooled and then fitted a single BIX which i'll follow up with a single GT Stealth in due coarse

System Spec:
DFI NF3 250GB Board
AMD 3000+ Socket 754
Gainward 6800Ultra GS
2x 512MB Corsair 3200
80GB Maxtor Hard Drive

TDX A64 Block
NV-68 Block
DDC-1 Plus
Plexi Res Top
BIX & GT Stealth with Papst 120mm Fan @ 7volt

As usual, this won't be the most scientific experiment but more something that anyone could duplicate at home using equipment readily available.

I've used Sisoft Sandra to measure CPU temperature and nVidia control panel for GPU temperature which granted not the most accurate when used on their own but should give a good and fair direct comparison.

For stock temperatures i started the PC and let it run idol for 30 minutes and for stress i ran 3dMark 06 twice back to back

First of all i ran the system with the stock air cooling (http://www.coolercases.co.uk/Stealth_GT/stock_air.jpg) in place with the following results...

http://www.coolercases.co.uk/Stealth_GT/air_graph.jpg

Followed by a single BIX (http://www.coolercases.co.uk/Stealth_GT/bix.jpg) which obviously gave some better temps but i will tress the Gainward 6800Ultra GS does run hot even with watercooling as i'm sure many can vouch.

http://www.coolercases.co.uk/Stealth_GT/bix_graph.jpg

I'll do my best to get the GT Stealth fitted tomorrow and follow up with the findings :cool:

[jellybeard999]

try the Xtreme with a quiet fan, then the GT with a quiet fan...

that is what theyre aiming for, ...

[coolmiester]

I will be using the same Papst fan @ 7volt on both ;)

[Madafwo]

Testing

I still say roll on pay day, but this will confirm it, absolute star.

Does the beer aid in the cooling, or is it your own personal coolant of choice?

[wakster]

you cant drink beer if its being pumped around your computer:exclaim:

[coolmiester]

Quick update!

Before fitting the GT Stealth i decided to strap the noisiest fan i could find which happened to be a 120mm YS-Tech fan to both the BIX (http://www.coolercases.co.uk/Stealth_GT/bix_ys-tech.jpg) and the GT Stealth (http://www.coolercases.co.uk/Stealth_GT/gt_ys-tech.jpg).

Guaranteed, this will be a major talking point around many a forum and that's before i actually get to compare the two radiators temperature wise.

I ran both radiators with the same YS-Tech fan at both 7volt and 12volt and the noise difference is incredible - just wish i had something to measure it by!

At 12volt on the BIX the noise was understandably fairly loud which decreased considerably at 7volt but still fairly loud.

However the GT Stealth at 12volt was nowhere near as loud as the BIX and at 7volt, i wouldn't say it was inaudible but a drastic decrease over the BIX

A clear winner in the noise department - time to get it fitted and see how it fairs in the heat stakes :)

[Leeum]

Sounds like the arrangement of fins definitely works favours in the airflow department. The performance should be very interesting :)

[coolmiester]

Drum Roll.............

Here's the concluding bit of information that brings this simple test into context.

I've put all the graphs together to make it easier compare.

http://www.coolercases.co.uk/Stealth_GT/gt_graph.jpg

http://www.coolercases.co.uk/Stealth_GT/bix_graph.jpg

http://www.coolercases.co.uk/Stealth_GT/air_graph.jpg


Had the GT Stealth give better performance in terms of temperature over the Black Ice Extreme i would honestly have been amazed but i did have a slight doubting feeling about the end result purely down to it's physical size.

Having said that, the GT is not far behind the BIX to warrant any sort of concern and if you take into consideration the huge noise reduction and the benefits of its size it certainly makes it a creditable contender...............and it looks good as well :cool:

http://www.coolercases.co.uk/Stealth_GT/gt_back.jpg

Watercooled Stealth GT:
CPU Stock @ 28° (http://www.coolercases.co.uk/Stealth_GT/stealth_gt/cpu_stock_gt.jpg)
CPU Stressed @ 31° (http://www.coolercases.co.uk/Stealth_GT/stealth_gt/cpu_stress_gt.jpg)
GPU Stock @ 54° (http://www.coolercases.co.uk/Stealth_GT/stealth_gt/gpu_stock_gt.jpg)
GPU Stressed @ 57° (http://www.coolercases.co.uk/Stealth_GT/stealth_gt/gpu_stress_gt.jpg)

Watercooled Black Ice Extreme:
CPU Stock @ 26° (http://www.coolercases.co.uk/Stealth_GT/bix/cpu_stock_bix.jpg)
CPU Stressed @ 28° (http://www.coolercases.co.uk/Stealth_GT/bix/cpu_stress_bix.jpg)
GPU Stock @ 51° (http://www.coolercases.co.uk/Stealth_GT/bix/gpu_stock_bix.jpg)
GPU Stressed @ 53° (http://www.coolercases.co.uk/Stealth_GT/bix/gpu_stress_bix.jpg)

Stock Air Cooled:
CPU Stock @ 36° (http://www.coolercases.co.uk/Stealth_GT/air/cpu_stock.jpg)
CPU Stressed @ 39° (http://www.coolercases.co.uk/Stealth_GT/air/cpu_stress.jpg)
GPU Stock @ 60° (http://www.coolercases.co.uk/Stealth_GT/air/gpu_stock.jpg)
GPU Stressed @ 71° (http://www.coolercases.co.uk/Stealth_GT/air/gpu_stress.jpg)

[TREE]

wow not bad at all only a tiny increase but for a tiny size... id take tiny thank you very much :P

now im going to get to the drawing board and see where i can stick me one ot two these bad boys.... if i can get some cheap ddr2 am set.

[Brodel]

nice results, I may have to get a 120.2 stealth version. thanks for all the testing :)

[cool_dude]

Im confused as to how you can get 31c load on you're amd 64 cpu with a bix, and I get 38c load... :sad: ????? (and yes im on stock volts, and only cpu in loop)

[coolmiester]

As i said both Sisoft Sandra and the nVidia control panel aren't the most accurate of measurements but when put side by side in this type of situation they give a good yard stick.

This is the same board and chip (well not the very same ones) i used in this What to expect from Water Cooling (http://coolercasesuk.co.uk/showthread.php?t=32) where i was getting higher temps than this time and that was with a BIX II - having said that it is a completely different loop using a DDC1-Plus this time.

Also, depending on how tight you tighten down your blocks can have a pretty big impact on your final temperatures.

Unless you have some kind of good thermometer fitted to your loop or you have a decent laser thermometer these type of readings most certainly have to be taken with a pinch of salt unless your using them as a comparison situation like this.

[TREE]

also some motherboards differ in their phase power design which also effects temps...

ie Asus tend to use 8 Phase with Intel CPU's whilst other companies tend to use 4 or 5.

Although how much change they make is in question, but from what iv experienced it made for a decrease in temps on my water temps. :rolleyes:

[f.sardis]

actually the temp sensors are not identical on two different mobos even if they are the same model. two same mobos can give two different temps with exactly same cooling components.
the only way to get some accurate readings is to use a proper thermometer or the very same mobo in every test.

anyways, now the latest cpus are consuming much less power thus releasing much less heat. doesnt matter if you watercool it anymore and which rad you are using cause the heat coming out from the whole system will be less than the heat a 120.1 rad can handle.

[eUphoria]

Have you got the dimensions of the stealth rad to hand - it looks just like the sort of thing that could work its way into my new chasis.

[coolmiester]

The sizes for all three and a link to Hardware Labs site (http://www.hwlabs.com/index2.php)

GT Stealth 120 (http://www.hwlabs.com/gen2/dimensions/d_gts120.htm)

GT Stealth 240 (http://www.hwlabs.com/gen2/dimensions/d_gts240.htm)

GT Stealth 360 (http://www.hwlabs.com/gen2/dimensions/d_gts360.htm)

[Ichabod Crane]

only one question does it come in blue?

[coolmiester]

They come in black, blue and red - i only got black

[eUphoria]

They come in black, blue and red - i only got black

they look pretty nice - may be having to order one of these little beauties! Are you likely to get them in blue or red??

[coolmiester]

I could only get what was available and lucky to get what i got tbh as demand was pretty high though i would imagine Blue and Red should be coming next time - 3 or 4 weeks time

[enderox]

belated thankyou for the detailed info posted about the radiator comparisons.

Anyone got any comparisions with these two and the HE & PA 120.2/3 Thermochills ?

[Rig]

I noticed that you compared the BIX and the GT, but is there a comparison between single, double and triple fan variants?

[slaw]

tasty!

[wftpl]

@coolmiester

Whats your opinion on the noise/pitch level of the Stealth over the PA160

?

[coolmiester]

Can't help you there mate - never heard a PA160

[wftpl]

Ok Thanks Paul

I just wonderd as the stealth has tighter packed fins than the PA160
so i'm not sure what changes that would make to the pitch level.

Not that i'm gona fork out £60 for a PA160.