Page 3 - Test Results
Our test configuration is as follows:
CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 3700X @ 3.6GHz
Motherboard: ASUS Prime X470-Pro
RAM: Patriot Viper RGB DDR4-3600 2x16GB
Graphics: MSI GeForce GTX 1070Ti Titanium
Chassis: Fractal Design Define S2
Storage: Western Digital Blue SN500 NVMe SSD 500GB, OCZ ARC 100 240GB, Patriot P200 512GB
Power: Seasonic FOCUS Plus 850 Gold 850W
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Pro
Compared hardware:
- be quiet! Pure Loop 240mm
- Noctua NH-L9a-AM4 chromax.black
- Noctua NH-U9S chromax.black
- Noctua NH-U12S chromax.black
- Noctua NH-U12A (Dual NF-A12x25)
- Noctua NH-U12A (Single NF-A12x25)
All tests were run in our custom-built computer to best reflect real life performance. The computer remained in the same location in the same room throughout all tests. The room temperature in our testing lab was around 22c. Stock thermal paste respective to all coolers were used while testing the performance; all pastes were given a proper amount of time for them to fully settle. The fans on all heatsinks were directly connected to the motherboard's 4-pin connector. The test computer was turned on and idling for at least one hour for the idling tests. High CPU load results were obtained using the Prime95 in-place large FFTs test with a maximum number of worker threads for the tested CPU for a minimum of ten minutes or until the temperature was deemed stable. Temperature results were measured with HWiNFO, which reports the CPU's integrated digital thermal sensor for maximum accuracy. Each temperature result was calculated by taking the maximum value of the cores inside the CPU.
After letting my computer sit idle for a while, I shook my mouse to wake the computer to check the temperature. From the first graph, you can see the be quiet! Pure Loop 240mm idled at the lowest temperature of 36c. This is a degree cooler than the dual-fan wielding Noctua NH-U12A, which is a pretty good result considering both use 120mm fans. This was also cooler than other 120mm based solutions like the Noctua NH-U12S chromax.black. This being said, idle results do not give a full representation of what CPU coolers can do, so we started up the Prime95 tests to see the more pertinent results.
After turning on Prime95 and allowing sufficient time to load the processor on all cores and threads, you can see how each of the coolers performed with the peak temperatures. Since liquid coolers do require a bit more time for the temperatures to settle, I did ensure enough time was given to reach the maximum load temperatures. Once again, the be quiet! Pure Loop 240mm was the coolest cooler at 63c under full load. This is quite good considering it still is cooler than both the NH-U12S chromax.black and NH-U12A. All of these temperatures were with the same boost frequency throughout the test with 3.8GHz across all cores. Overall, this is still a solid result, especially considering how good the other two Noctua coolers are.
As for the sound analysis section of the be quiet! Pure Loop 240mm, on a scale of 0 to 10, where 0 is silence and 10 is the definition of loud, I would rate the Pure Loop 240mm at 3.0/10 during idle and around 4.5/10 under full load for the two fans. While I think the fans were quiet, they do spin a bit faster and thus are a bit more noticeable. I also found the pump emitted a higher pitched noise during its operation, especially on start up. Higher frequencies do get drowned out when you play music or have background audio going, but those with sensitive ears will notice it. On a day-to-day use, the whole cooling solution is still reasonable in its noise output and I think be quiet! can still be happy with the end result here.
Page Index
1. Introduction, Packaging, Specifications
2. Physical Look - Hardware; Installation
3. Test Results
4. Conclusion
