1. Introduction2. Alphacool GPX-A2903. EK Supremacy VGA4. EK Thermosphere5. Ibercool 4-Ways GPU6. Koolance GPU-2207. Watercool GPU-X Core LT8. XSPC Raystorm GPU9. Test Setup10. Restriction Results11. Thermal Results12. Summary13. View All

Introduction

Introduction

Not content with testing full cover blocks on the R9-290X in our full cover roundup we carried on testing to include universal GPUs.  It should be noted that this was done on a different card and although the setup was the same the exact numbers are not to be compared between the two reviews.  For reference on core cooling the best performing full cover block was retested (Swiftech) and the best performing full cover block for VRMs (AquaComputer) was also retested.

Why Universal Blocks?

Universals blocks have many uses but have become less popular in recent times as full cover blocks have grown in popularity and availability.  They can be used as a lower price alternative to a full cover block, or they may be used when full cover blocks simply aren’t available, or aren’t available yet.

The costs savings of using a universal block extend beyond the initial purchase price.  Typically they can be reused as the end buyer upgrades hardware meaning that the potential savings can be much more than any difference in price

Of course there are downsides too – full cover blocks also cool VRAM and more importantly the VRM.  For these depending on your card (and your overclock) you may want or need to add extra cooling.  For our standard reference R9-290 that we used for testing, it was necessary to cool both VRMs and VRAM to achieve the overclock we wanted to use for testing.  After these were added the R9-290 ended up used for testing looked like this:

As always a big thank you to Sponsors – Alphacool, EK, Ibercool, Koolance, Watercool and XSPC!

Alphacool GPX-A290

Alphacool GPX-A290

Price – $96

This is an unusual block in that we had already reviewed it in the full cover roundup here.  However that review is the context of full cover blocks, while this review is in the context of universal blocks.  The test sample that was shipped to us included the backplate and frontplate and so this was not truly the universal version of this block, however it can be converted to one with the right parts (which are not available to buy separately).  The truly universal version is called the solo and can be found here.  However there is no reason to get the solo over the specific GPU version apart from price.  The backplate and front plate adds on about $35 and offers acceptable VRM and VRAM cooling.  Reusing the core and buying new front and backplates for future GPUs will lead to considerable cost savings over a full cover alternative.  However the long term savings may be less than other options. So let’s take a look at this “hybrid” “universal” cooling solution:

The block and backplate arrive in a typical alphacool style box:

Surprisingly there is no protection from damage at all:

Some accessories are included but not the ones needed to mount the block without the backplate:

The backplate doesn’t look bad, while the main block does look a bit cheap:

The aluminum plate has cutouts for the various taller components such as capacitors:

In addition unlike most full cover blocks that have two pairs of ports this only has one pair that is less friendly to use in most computer cases and will most likely require a 90 degree rotary adapter. Note that for multi GPU setups that bridges are available to buy to make connecting the cards much easier.

The backplate is seriously thick and ribbed for better surface area and hence cooling:

It is then combined with some seriously thick 3mm thermal pads that are put almost all over the card:

Alphacool claim the thickness is necessary for safety in order to avoid shorting the backplate to the solder joints on the back of the card. If this were the case other manufacturer’s would have similarly thick pads. On the other hand other manufacturers use pads between 0.5mm and 1.5mm thick. Using 3mm is in other words primarily a cost saving measure so that the backplate does not need to be machined.

Similarly the thermal pads on the front of the GPU are 1.5mm thick:

Again this is unnecessarily and will lead to unnecessarily worse thermal performance.

The end result is a really thick sandwich:

The result of such design is of course a compatibility issue. If you are using this on the first PCIE slot you should be extremely careful. My albeit tight Maximus VI Impact board had the backplate catch on the memory slots. Even though I suspected this would be an issue, the card looked like it was in the slot just fine, but powering on killed the card. Later wiggling showed that the card wasn’t in fact 100% of the way in the slot. After the card died, and I got another card, I tried the backplate with two other motherboards – the first the Rampage IV Extreme – possibly the most popular enthusiast X79 ATX motherboard also had compatibility issues with the first slot.  Similarly the Rampage IV Gene mATX board also had issues.  In talking with Alphacool they mentioned this is because they hadn’t realized that Asus would be willing to break the motherboard/pcie specifactions.  Alphacool claim to meet spec with this design.  They also mentioned that they are redesigning the backplate to remove the lower ribs and use countersunk screws so as to reduce compatability issues in future.  This is good – here is the proposed design style for future backplates that we expect to see for the GTX 980:

It is worth noting that the thermal performance of the VRM and VRAM cooling will be very subject to air flow in your case. High airflow will improve performance if desired.

EK Supremacy VGA

EK Supremacy VGA

Price – $53-80

This is the older, but still recent, EK universal gpu block which was replaced by the later Thermosphere design. It comes with the standard EK packaging:

It comes with all the mounting screws, TIM and instructions you need:

The block is quite compact and attractive:

There are only two ports, which may make it harder to connect to than some of the competition. However a replacement top that can be used with a terminal bridge instead is available for purchase – however at this price I would consider the Thermosphere instead if that is desired.

The good news is that the ports are angled away from the PCB slightly to improve compatibility with passive VRAM heatsinks. Like the EK CPU blocks, the base is cleanly machined and it is sealed with 4 screws:

The mount was easy to use consisting of some standoff posts which were screwed into the PCB. Then the block could be easily mounted to these stand off posts. The thumbscrews were very small and fiddly but had a hex bolt head so that they could be tightened with an allen key. This system was by far the best implementation of the “true universal” single block mounts.

Note that the mount was not fully completed in this photo.

EK Thermosphere

EK Thermosphere

Price – $74-77 + Mounting brackets ($8 each)

The EK Thermosphere replaced the EK Supremacy VGA and got rid of the more basic cooling style of the base in favor of a jetplate. Jetplates increase local flow rates while also conveniently centering the fresh cooler liquid on the die. They do however have side effects like increasing the overall block restriction. Packaging was good as usual from EK:

Accessories, TIM and instructions:

It should be noted that at this point we found out that the Thermosphere has a replaceable mounting bracket that makes mounting the block extremely easy and worry free:

The downside is that there is only on plate included and that only supports recent Nvidia cards. For our R9-290 we had to replace the mounting plate with the R600 one which is sold for $8. This is not the end of the world, but if you forget to buy it and then need to pay for a second round of shipping then the extra cost goes up considerably for a block that is not that cheap anyway.

The block however is attractive in the nickel version (both plexi/acetal/copper/nickel versions are available). The plexi/copper version doesn’t look as good because there is a stainless steel plate used in the construction that blends in with nickel, but not with copper.

The other part to consider is the bridge. This is designed to stick out from the card in the way that a full cover block would:

However this means that it will not be compatible with cards that are taller, such as some of the extreme versions of GPUs designed for sub-zero benching such as Asus’s Matrix, MSI’s Lightning or EVGA’s Classified. EK mentioned that an extended bridge may be launched to increase compatability, but this has not yet happened.

So this is truly less universal than the old Supremacy VGA block and ~$20 more costly, however despite that the mounting system makes the block a joy to mount. It truly is the easiest block to mount because there are only four screws, and the block is stable due to the use of standoffs and can be held in position easily during the mounting procedure. Nor is there any concern of over tightening and breaking the GPU as the bracket is designed to be the correct offset for the GPU. The bridge also makes attaching fittings easier or even allows the use multi GPU bridges.

Ibercool 4-Ways GPU

Ibercool 4-Ways GPU

Price – 47 – 52 Euro

Ibercool is a small Spanish watercooling company that is not well known in the US market. Indeed you may need to buy from a European store to source one. The “4 way block” is so named because it has four optional ports, two for input and two for output. The block is designed to compete as a value proposition. Despite this the packaging is attractive:

Instructions, TIM and accessories included:

The block itself is machined cleanly and has a good finish to it:

We were also sent some of the VRAM heatsinks which were required to overclock the memory from 1250MHz to 1375MHz:

The VRAM was easy to attach to the GPU as they had pre-fitted sticky thermal pads. After concluding the test though the thermal pads could not be reapplied after being removed once. The pads could have their stickiness improved therefore.

The mount for the block used a traditional style thumbscrew + spring. The thumbscrew screwed on to a screw that was secured to the PCB with a nut and a huge amount of washers. Springs are used to balance the mounting pressure. This system was easy to use and despite the number of washers was still quite quick to install. Presumably using standard parts led to costs savings for the end users – and an ability to easily replace a missing part! While not as quick to mount as some other blocks it was easy and foolproof. (Mount is not completed in this photo)

The block itself had a decently wide spacing for fittings, and the ability to mount one fitting on the side of the block and one on the top further increases it’s capability.

Koolance GPU-220

Koolance GPU-220

Price – $65

Koolance is a name very familiar with many and no stranger to winning block roundups. The GPU-220 is the largest of Koolance’s universal blocks or coldplates. The GPU-200, 210 and 220 are designed to cool anything, not just GPUs despite the naming. Packaging was Koolance standard black:

Block, accessories, TIM but yet no instructions!

The block itself is not unattractive – using a mix of “black-nickel” plating on the main body, while the mounting arms were a lighter chrome color:

The base, after removing the protective plastic showed some amount of staining:

Not a problem really. Like the Ibercool it has two inlet ports and two outlet ports:

This increased compatibility is a theme with this block. The mounting arms can be loosened by undoing a screw on top of the block and rotated to the desired angle to be compatible with the device requiring cooling.

The block used a screw/standoff post that is attached to the PCB. Then the block is mounted and secured with a thumbscrew:

Note that the thumb screw does not use a spring and so over tightening may lead to cracking the GPU die on the PCB. Because of this we were not particularly aggressive in how much we tightened the block which may explain it’s weaker thermal results. It should be noted too that the mount arms are hard to tighten down as tightening the lock screw also rotates the mounting arm. This meant it was hard to perfectly center the block and align it with the die which may again affect performance. The mounting mechanism was therefore disappointing to use.

Onwards

Watercool GPU-X Core LT

Watercool GPU-X Core LT and Micro SW-X DIY Kit

Price – $78 + $38

The Watercool GPU-X LT block is a universal block in a similar style as the Thermosphere. However it has a distinct advantage because it has a “Micro SW-X” addon kit that enables water cooling of the VRM easily. There is also a $13 cheaper version of the block that does not have these ports. It is designated LC instead of LT.

Watercool packaging is good as usual:

Many accessories, instructions but no TIM:

The core unit:

The G1/4 ports at the top are for inlet/outlet. The smaller ports in the center are for connecting the micro sw-x:

The base shows that the mounting screws are held in with nuts that can be used to also secure the screw by virtue of being “held” by the recessed slot:

Note also that the main inlet/outlet ports are on both sides of the block. This increases ease of use, however like the Thermosphere this block will suffer compatibility issues with some high end cards.

The Micro SW-X comes in two sizes which refer to the size of the copper plate- we asked for the larger size and it is plenty large:

We used a jigsaw to cut it down to size and a drill for the mounting holes. The tubing was provided and simply pushes in to the small provided fittings:

No thermal pads were provided which is a shame, but I used 1.0mm EK thermal pad succesfully, although the height of surface mount components on the PCB caused the block to lean:

It is worth noting that the width of the SW-X may possibly prevent it from being used on some PCB designs.

The block is easy to fit, once the mounting screws are positioned, then thumb nuts are used on the back of the board to secure the block to the board. The downside of the thumb nuts are that they are quite fat and protude unnecessarily far (mount is not completed here) – (Edit – Watercool mentioned that they are this large in order to be compatible with some older GPU designs /edit):

This minor detail is our only real complaint about this design, however we would love it if Watercool released pre cut copper plates for popular GPU designs for those without access to power tools.

XSPC Raystorm GPU

XSPC Raystorm GPU

Price – $60

We’ve seen quite a few blocks from XSPC now, be they CPU or GPU and the style and packaging is consistent:

The block comes with mounting accessories, TIM, instructions and a sleeved LED:

This block is no exception to the style, using an acrylic mount covered with a “brushed” black aluminum top, while the block core is acetal with a copper base:

There are two ports with no alternative options:

The copper base is secured with 4 countersunk hex head screws:

So far so good, but here is where it goes downhill.

The mounting system is a bit fiddly to use – instead of a thumb nut on the top of the block that attaches to a screw secured to the PCB, the XSPC uses a thumb screw on the block side and a thumb nut on the back of the PCB. This means that you have to hold a thin thumb nut in position while you stick the screw, spring and washer through the block, and then wrestle the block and screw combo into place through the hole while trying to tighten the thumb nut. It’s awkward and frankly disappointing. It’s kind of like a socket 2011 CPU mount, except that there is no fixed backplate. (Mount is not completed in this photo):

The only good thing to say here is that springs are used to equalize the mounting force. The other negative is that the G1/4 ports have very little clearance to the edge of the block. A flat surface around the port is necessary for the fitting o-ring to seal to. The O-Ring on our VL3N fittings did not seal and leaking ensued. This is very disappointing. In addition the port threads were not angled and so the fittings interfered with fitting passive heatsinks on to the VRAM. (Mount is not completed in this next photo)

Test Setup

Test Setup

We used a similar bench setup as in our full cover roundup:
i7-4930K + Rampage IV Gene + 4x4GB Corsair Dominator GT 2133CL9 1.5V
Corsair AX1200, Spotwood Tech Bench
MCP35x2, EX560, 8x YateLoon 140mm low speed fans on radiator, EK XRes3 400mm
Aquaero 6, King Instruments Flow Meter, CrystalFontz CF-635

Each block was mounted once.  This introduces more error than using multiple mounts, but GPUs are more sensitive to mounting pressures than CPUs.  For reference this was the fourth R9-290 we had to test on during the course of this review.  To reduce error the blocks go through a 3 hour burn in to combat any TIM curing.  Then 7 data points are taken at various flows.  10 minutes of settling is allowed after the burn in and between each data points.  Each data point is logged over 20 minutes and the average of core, VRMs and coolant is recorded.  This reduces the error as you will see in the thermal plots.  Each plot contains data only from the same GPU card sample.  The previous full cover roundup used a different GPU sample, so while the heatloads are very close, the numbers can not be directly compared.

We then plot the delta between the average component temperature and the average coolant temperature. Using an average reduces error.  Using coolant temperature is more accurate than air temperatures because it isolates the performance of the block from any system level performance e.g. radiator performance, but it is also less prone to error as air temperature sensors can be quite sensitive to localized air flow.  As testing is done in a garage, air flow currents can be somewhat unpredictable.  Having said all of this – deltas to air do not normally show any real different in relative performance vs deltas to coolant.  For the seven flow rates a fixed pump power is used for each and a curve of best fit is added to the plot.  Reading the plots at a particular flow rate value e.g. 1GPM will give you a good indication of the flow of that block at that flow rate.  However bear in mind that less restrictive blocks will perform better in the same loop due to having a higher average flow rate than a high restriction block.  This is why we label better performing blocks as having better temperatures *and* higher flow rates.

Restriction Results

Restriction Results

If you’ve don’t understand what this plot means – we have a handy guide to help read the plot here.

Essentially the Alphacool block is extremely restrictive and is perhaps the one block here that I’d say is too restrictive. The Watercool and EK Thermosphere are both moderately restrictive – less than desirable, but not enough to over rule other factors.  The Koolance and the EK Supremacy VGA on the other hand do very well and are very low in restriction.

Thermal Results

Thermal Results

The primary consideration of course for a universal gpu waterblock is of course how well it cools the GPU core. Here we compare the core cooling ability of each universal block vs the Swiftech full cover waterblock which was the best of the Full cover blocks:

As can be seen the Alphacool block does extremely well. This should be hoped for given how restrictive it is.  In the “middle” we see the Watercool GPU-X, EK Thermosphere and XSPC Raystorm with similar performance.  The EK Supremacy VGA performs similar with the exception of low flow.  This behavior we have seen before in the Titan full cover block roundup.  The two blocks bringing up the rear are the Koolance GPU-220 and the Ibercool 4-way.  Ibercool markets their block as a low cost alternative, so being a few degrees behind is not a surprise.  On the other hand Koolance have done very well in our previous tests – particularly with their CPU-380 block so we expected more from them.  The performance however is likely because the block was not tightened as much as possible and therefore due to a poor mount than necessarily the block’s ability to cool.  It was not tightened because there were no springs in the mount mechanism and over tightening GPU blocks can cause a cracked die.

Now some of the universal blocks also have the ability to cool more than simply the core.  Both Alphacool and Heatkiller offer the ability to cool VRMs.  For this test we compared the data vs the AquaComputer full cover block with active backplate – which was very clearly the best in our full cover block roundup.  We also included the Swiftech full cover block which tested the worst in the full cover VRM results. We also tried Arctic’s passive VRM heatsink that requires a lot of airflow to be at all competitive with a water block:

As can be seen all of these options fit in between the best and worst of the full cover blocks. If you want good VRM and VRAM cooling then a good full cover water block is still the best solution.  Having said the Watercool Micro SW-X put out a very good performance and if we compare to the full cover block data then it is likely as good as any other waterblock without a backplate.  This is to be praised.

Summary

Summary

Alphacool GPX-A290 – $96

We found the thermal performance of this block to be very very good, but let down by it’s high restriction. As tested the supplied backplate caused numerous compatability issues, however this should be fixed on future versions and it’s ability to cool VRM and VRAM makes it very useful as a “universal plus” or “hybrid” block where restriction isn’t a concern. Because of the issues with this test sample, we can not recommend it for the R9-290(x). Hopefully that will change on the GTX980.

EK Supremacy VGA – Value Award – $53-88

The EK Supremacy VGA is a small cute block that is a true universal block with an easy mount and good performance as long as flow is kept high enough. It’s exceptionally low restriction and would be my go to block when compatability is an issue. While we preferred the Watercool GPU-X because of it’s ability to cool the VRMs, we felt that the Supremacy VGA was the best choice out of the “true” universal blocks and it’s affordable too! It therefore wins the “Value” award.

EK Thermosphere – $74-77 + Mounting brackets ($8 each)

The Thermosphere corrects the low flow weakness of the Supremacy VGA and brings the ability to use multi link bridges but has other trade offs. It’s not as compatible as the Supremacy VGA and it does give up the exceptionally high flow to get some thermal cooling back. This was the easiest block to mount by far, but not including the required mounting plates and the higher price makes it less competitive. In comparison to the GPU-X without the Micro SW-X we would take the Thermosphere, however the Micro SW-X makes a very compelling case to go with the Watercool GPU-X instead.

Ibercool 4-Way – 47 Euros

Ibercool’s 4-way is a solid performer, despite being bringing up the rear of the group. The performance isn’t bad, nor is the restriction or mount. It tries to compete on price – and it does coming in at 47 euros (or 50 euros including vram heatsinks from some resellers), however this isn’t far enough away from the better performing Supremacy at 49 euros. We think it needs to be cheaper still to scoop the gold award.

Koolance GPU-220 – $65

This is by far one of the most compatible blocks not only because of the multiple ports but because of the swinging mount arms that means it will be more future proof. We didn’t like the mounting system though and ended up with poor performance possibly because of it. We would only choose this if we knew we needed to cool something with an unusual mount.

Watercool GPU-X – Gold Award – $78 + $38

While suffering from similar compatability concerns as the Thermosphere, this block was not quite as easy to mount. However the great performance and ability to customize a small mini block for VRM cooling makes this our favorite block. Replacement copper pieces for the Micro SW-X VRM cooler can be bought cheaply and so as universal block that can be used day in and day out as a genuine replacement for a full cover block this would be our choice by far. Our suggestion however would be to stock pre-cut copper plates for the Micro SW-X for popular graphics cards for those who don’t have access to the required tools. This innovative design therefore wins the “Gold” award.

XSPC Raystorm GPU – $60

The Raystorm block has good thermal performance and exceptionally low flow but it’s let down by the port design. The ports are too close to the edge of block leading to leaks with some fittings. In addition the fittings interfered with VRAM heatsinks meaning that we struggled with stability through out the test. The mount is also a bit lack luster and could use improving. Because of these issues we can not recommend the XSPC Raystorm GPU at this time, particularly when EK’s offering is cheaper and is so much easier to use.

Conclusion

Gold Award – For a universal block that can beat out full cover blocks we would choose the Watercool Heatkiller GPU-X LT with the Micro SW-X kit. The ability to water cool VRMs is a big plus to an already impressive package. Our only complaint were the the large nuts on the mount of the GPU-X (Edit – Watercool mentioned that they are this large in order to be compatible with some older GPU designs /edit), and compatibility concerns with some taller GPU cards such as the Classified or Matrix.

Value Award – For a true universal block at a great price the EK Supremacy VGA does the job very well. It’s low restriction means that it’s weakness at low flow should never be a concern.

Where to buy:

Heatkiller GPU-X LT – $77.95 @ PPCS
Heatkiller Micro SW-X – $32.95 for small, $38.95 for large, 15eu for a copper plate from watercool
EK Supremacy VGA – $52.99-77.99 @ PPCS

As always a big thank you to sponsors – Alphacool, EK, Ibercool, Koolance, Watercool, XSPC