EK-Quantum Velocity² D-RGB Water block Review Discussion

[ENTERPRISE]

 

Quote

EKWB, also known as EK have been making water cooling components for the PC enthusiast for a good while now, 20 years as of the writing of this review. Their products have become well known and trusted among many globally. Today we are looking at their EK-Quantum Velocity² D-RGB Water block. It comes in both Intel and AMD flavours, but today we will be reviewing AMD SKU on an the AM5 platform. Read on to see what we find.

Read the full review HERE

[ENTERPRISE]

Released

[Avacado]

Well done boss!

[Mr. Fox]

Excellent review. It was an enjoyable read and a good representation of the product. I had an EK Velocity2 block and it was very good, and looked great, so your review resonated with my experience.

[Sir Beregond]

Bad nickel plating huh? No shockers there.

 

Good read though, solid review. Looks like a good block.

 

I always forget that Thermal Grizzly has other pastes. Feels like you only hear about the liquid metal or the Kryonaut. What's supposed to be the main difference between Hydronaut and Kryonaut Extreme?

[The Pook]

On 13/08/2023 at 07:14, ENTERPRISE said:

 

Read the full review HERE

 

think you forgot the link on "HERE"

 

Was this a self-purchase or do you/we have an EK contact? 

 

really would like to see a review on the DDC version of the Velocity² if possible. Have been thinking of making a cheap DIY "AIO" but hard to find anyone comparing it against a "real" loop with a dedicated pump.  

[Mr. Fox]

Hydronaut has never been very good when I have tried to use it. I am not sure why Thermal Grizzly still sells it. I am surprised they do not ship the Kryonaut or Kryonaut Extreme with the waterblock.

 

Kryonaut is a decent paste for desktops. It's not ideal for laptops. I have never tried Kryonaut Extreme, but here is what the manufacturer says about it (copy/paste from Amazon product info).

"Thermal Grizzly's Kryonaut Extreme is an improved version of their Kryonaut paste, with the highest thermal conductivity achieved through the use of smaller particles, a thinner minimum layer height, and improved low-temperature application."

[Sir Beregond]

4 minutes ago, Mr. Fox said:

Hydronaut has never been very good when I have tried to use it. I am not sure why Thermal Grizzly still sells it. I am surprised they do not ship the Kryonaut or Kryonaut Extreme with the waterblock.

 

Kryonaut is a decent paste for desktops. It's not ideal for laptops. I have never tried Kryonaut Extreme, but here is what the manufacturer says about it (copy/paste from Amazon product info).

"Thermal Grizzly's Kryonaut Extreme is an improved version of their Kryonaut paste, with the highest thermal conductivity achieved through the use of smaller particles, a thinner minimum layer height, and improved low-temperature application."

Thanks for that. Given the "hydro" in the name, was wondering if it was supposed to be better for watercooling or something. 

 

I tried the old Kryonaut a few times and while I was impressed with the performance, I was less than impressed with the longevity of the paste. Usually needed to be redone annually. Anyway, sorry for my digression of the topic. The included accessories (the TIM) got me wondering. 

[Mr. Fox]

3 hours ago, Sir Beregond said:

Thanks for that. Given the "hydro" in the name, was wondering if it was supposed to be better for watercooling or something. 

 

I tried the old Kryonaut a few times and while I was impressed with the performance, I was less than impressed with the longevity of the paste. Usually needed to be redone annually. Anyway, sorry for my digression of the topic. The included accessories (the TIM) got me wondering. 

Same experience here. Worked fantastic at first, but not that durable long term. I think the question was relevant given the kit included Hydronaut. I also think @ENTERPRISEwas smart for using the Kryonaut Extreme rather than the included Hydronaut. Hydronaut is not silicon-based. Fans of it say it spreads easier that Kryonaut, which make no sense to me at all because I never thought it was difficult to spread. If anything, I think it was too soft and very easy to spread and, therefore,  was more conducive to pump-out than some of the competing products that were thicker.

 

I think Kryonaut was better suited to sub-zero cooling (LN2, DICE, etc.) because it was not subject to freezing or hardening at the extreme low temperature and Hydronaut was not good for sub-zero. 

 

Edited August 17, 2023 by Mr. Fox

[Sir Beregond]

59 minutes ago, Mr. Fox said:

Same experience here. Worked fantastic at first, but not that durable long term. I think the question was relevant given the kit included Hydronaut. I also think @ENTERPRISEwas smart for using the Kryonaut Extreme rather than the included Hydronaut. Hydronaut is not silicon-based. Fans of it say it spreads easier that Kryonaut, which make no sense to me at all because I never thought it was difficult to spread. If anything, I think it was too soft and very easy to spread and, therefore,  was more conducive to pump-out than some of the competing products that where thicker.

 

I think Kryonaut was better suited to sub-zero cooling (LN2, DICE, etc.) because it was not subject to freezing or hardening at the extreme low temperature and Hydronaut was not good for sub-zero. 

 

I don't know. MX-5 was extremely thick and that was the worst paste I have used for pump out. I see why Arctic EOL'd it.

 

I've been using MX-6 for a bit, and just ordered some KPx to try it.

 

As for the bolded, I think you are correct, hence the "kryo".

[Mr. Fox]

2 hours ago, Sir Beregond said:

I don't know. MX-5 was extremely thick and that was the worst paste I have used for pump out. I see why Arctic EOL'd it.

 

I've been using MX-6 for a bit, and just ordered some KPx to try it.

 

As for the bolded, I think you are correct, hence the "kryo".

Oh that's too funny. I just ordered some MX-6 to test to compare against the KPx I've been using for so long. KPx is better than MX-4 by a couple of degrees, but I'm curious how it will compare to the MX-6. If MX-6 at least matches KPx that will be good because it is a lot cheaper.

 

I have not yet delidded the 13900K that I purchased as a replacement for the one that mysteriously stopped working and I want to test them against one another on a virgin CPU before I delid.

 

The Velocity2 block is really good. Mine was impressive. It matched the performance of my Optimus block, and I love how it looks. The Velocity2 bare die block was terrible, however. My bare die temps were the same as using the IHS.

Edited August 17, 2023 by Mr. Fox

[ENTERPRISE]

8 hours ago, The Pook said:

 

think you forgot the link on "HERE"

 

Was this a self-purchase or do you/we have an EK contact? 

 

really would like to see a review on the DDC version of the Velocity² if possible. Have been thinking of making a cheap DIY "AIO" but hard to find anyone comparing it against a "real" loop with a dedicated pump.  

Lol good catch. Will sort that! 

 

Glad to see people enjoyed the review

 

As for EK, we have a contact with them and have channel for samples. I did note the DDC version of the block and it looked intriguing. 

 

Maybe we should see if we can get one for review, as you say, it would be interesting to see how it stacks up to a "real" loop.