Block Mounting
One of the weaknesses of the HK III was that it’s mount required tightening screws with an allen key. The screws were skinny and tall and the inability to tighten with your hands meant if you ever lost the correct sized allen key, you’d need to buy another. For socket 2011 the mount is very simple. The thumbscrews combine with a spring and a washer and screw directly into the socket. The thumbscrews are a good size – not so small to be fiddly, but not so large that they distract from a clean and simple look:
For reference this is the better performing “goofy” orientation that we reference later.
On socket 1150/1155/1156 there is no backplate supplied, but there is an optional one for a few bucks more. Instead screws and washers on the underside of the board are used to secure standoffs:
The standoffs then have different thumbscrews that can be attached to them along with a spring:
The overall look is the same for both – however the lack of backplate means that you’re unlikely to get the same amount of mount pressure safely on socket 1150/1155/1156 unless you pay for the optional one.
Overall we were very pleased with the mount system for socket 2011 – it’s vastly improved over the old one. Now let’s take a look at performance!
Greetings from Germany!
Awesome review, thorough as usual and very much appreciated.
While it may be impractical to add another block to the restriction graph, a graph with select blocks would be nice.
i remember a tweaked/moded HK3 on skinnees (http://skinneelabs.com/heatkiller-3-0-lt-lc/2/) for those with a HK3 it might be interesting to see how it compares. Vapor had an improvement of 1.3 deg C which would in theory even beat the HK4. 😮
all the best
DX2
p.s. i had a question about your testing, i sent an email.
greetings from Germany!
Awesome review, thorough as usual.
A restriction graph of the HK4 as a link or compared to a select few would be nice.
i remember on skinnees, Vapor reviewed the HK3 LT. He tweaked/modded it getting 1.3 DegC improvement. It would be really interesting to see if the tweak delivers, assuming it does, it would even beat the HK4 :-O
all the best keep the reviews coming!
i had a question about your testing. i sent a email. ^_^
greetings from Germany!
Awesome review, thorough as usual. Keep up the good work!
A restriction graph ith a select set of blocks would still be nice tbh.
The HK3 LT review from skinnee included a modded HK3. It was 1.8 Deg better than unmodded if those result hold true the modded hzk3 might best the HK4. It would be awesome if you tried the mod!!
many kind regards
DX2
p.s. i sent a question via email.
I’m curios about the price differences in these blocks. Was the universal back plate necessary at all? It adds ~12USD more to the overall price. Currently, this will make it ~100USD simply for the cpu waterblock. Just curios to know if they’re any help, or if they’re required.
Honestly I haven’t tried it, and of course its only needed for socket 115x, but I would be reluctant to not use it. CPU blocks can mount with a fair bit of pressure, and I’d want to avoid bending the board.
One thing I can add after learning from experience. The HK3 water block works real well. Then the plasticizer from the flexible tubing clogs it. This happens anywhere from 6 to 9 month intervals with a OC’d AMD FX 9590 and 2 OC’d R9 285s. After the 2nd cleaning you notice the fine cuts in base are filled with crud. I found the best cleaner is tooth paste mixed with vinegar. The real problem is finding a brush with bristles fine enough go in between the ridges and stiff enough to remove it without scratching or bending them. So if you are not using rigid tubing, the HK basic maybe be better when it comes to cleaning. It is best not reuse the old tubing (leaks). Have not done a ridged reinstall, yet,,, but I believe careful disassembly and attention to orientation can be done without heating and bending new tubes. It is possible that the heat from the 9590 is more concentrated than the heat from the 285s because I did not notice as much crud in them?
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