Page 3 - Test Results
Our test configuration is as follows:
CPU: Intel Core i5-6400 @ 2.7GHz (Stock settings)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-H170-D3HP
RAM: Kingston HyperX Fury HX426C15FBK4/32 4x8GB
Chassis: Cooler Master MasterBox 540
Power: NZXT C650 650W
Storage: Western Digital Black SN750 NVMe SSD 500GB
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Pro
Compared hardware:
- XPG Levante 360
- Reeven Justice RC-1204
All tests were run in our custom-built computer to best reflect real life performance. The computer remained in the same place and room for all tests. The ambient temperature of the room was roughly 22 degrees Celsius. The thermal paste applied to each cooler was stock respective to their manufacturers to rate its performance. Sufficient time between testing was applied for the paste to settle. The fans on all heatsinks were connected to the same motherboard 4-pin connector. The test computer was turned on and idling for at least 1 hour for the idling tests. High CPU load results were obtained using the Prime95 in place large FFTs test with four worker threads for a minimum of 15 minutes and recorded when the temperature was deemed stable. The XPG Levante 360 was tested using the stock fans from the factory. The temperature results for each cooler were measured with CoreTemp, 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.
The purpose of these comparison tests is not for a direct performance competition, since the Reeven Justice RC-1204 and XPG Levante 360 are fundamentally different in terms of design. It is only for relative performance comparison.
In the idle test, the Levante 360 had already shown its advantage of being a massive AIO liquid cooler. The Levante 360 stabilized at 23 degrees Celsius. It was a pretty good result, considering the ambient room temperature was around 22 degrees Celsius. The temperature at idle state of the Reeven Justice RC-1204 was measured 3 degrees Celsius higher than Levante 360. At idle state, the Levante 360 outperformed the Justice RC-1204 with a single 120mm fan, which is to be expected. The results suggest at idle state, the Levante 360 had great performance relative to the ambient room temperature. However, idle tests do not show the true performance of a cooler, so let us take a look at the load tests.
The real challenge happened when the CPU was under load. Along with the increased processing speed of the CPU, the fans spun up to match the extra heat generated. After about half an hour, the XPG Levante 360 kept the temperature constant at 29 degrees Celsius. Today’s review unit outperformed both the RC-1204 with a noticeable advantage. The RC-1204 only utilize one cooling fan on the heatsink compared to the triple 120mm fans for the Levante 360, so this is expected. Meanwhile, the use of radiator also increased the cooling efficiency of those fans. The Reeven Justice was a solid cooler in of itself, and we know the Levante 240 has performed well in the past, giving the bigger Levante 360 great street credibility.
I am the kind of person who really cares about the noise level of my computer. In this case, I had one water pump, three 120mm fans on the radiator, and one exhaust fan running inside the case. On a scale of 0 to 10, where 0 is totally silent and 10 is a jet taking off, I would rate the XPG Levante 360 at 1.0/10 and 2.0/10 regarding noise emissions at idle and load, respectively. In fact, I hardly noticed any difference in terms of noise during the two CPU tests. The low overall noise level is mainly due to the use of those included 120 mm fans that have fluid dynamic bearing, rubber padding, and the ribbed edge on the blades. We had pump noise issues in the past with the Levante 240, but it looks like this is not an issue with the Levante 360. After all the tests were done, I can say the XPG Levante 360 is a well-designed and well-built water cooler with strong CPU cooling performance.
Page Index
1. Introduction, Packaging, Specifications
2. Physical Look - Hardware; Installation
3. Test Results
4. Conclusion
