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It seems like more and more companies are adding
water cooling solutions to their portfolio of products. Some of these
new products have been good performers, while others have fallen far short of
the enthusiast community's expectations. On a sadder and more disturbing note,
some new comers have entered the water cooling arena with offerings that are
shoddy at best; all the time making what is tantamount to fraudulent claims
concerning their product's capabilities.
Thankfully their remains a core of companies that offer innovative and high
quality products that deliver value and results to their customers. Here,
Swiftech is the leader of the pack. Today, we will be reviewing their latest
water block design, the MCW5000.
The MCW5000 series is available with optional retention mechanisms that will
accommodate both, AMD and Intel motherboards. Additionally they can be used
with Swiftech's own thermoelectric assemblies for those of us willing to take
the next step in cooling effectiveness (refer to our review of the MCW478-UHT
for further information on thermoelectric cooling). This review will focus on
the MCW5000-A for AMD motherboards.
Packaging
The package we purchased contained both the AMD
and Intel retention mechanisms. The picture below shows the contents of the
package we received. In addition to the water block and the retention
mechanisms, it contains 4 tube inserts, a tube of arctic silver, a hexagonal
key, a tube removal tool, and detailed instructions.
**click to enlarge**
Product Specifications
The housing for the MCW5000 is made of CNC
machined aluminum and is blue anodized. As evident by the following picture,
it is an open chamber design. Swiftech did not incorporate its "focus jet
cooling" design used in some of their previous water blocks which directed the
incoming jet stream to the center of the water block's chamber. Instead they
opted for 45 degree angled inlet and outlets at opposite corners of the water
block.
**click to enlarge**
The copper base plate is also CNC machined and
comes in at a thickness of 0.50".
**click to enlarge**
The submersed side of the base plate is CNC
machined to form a "Diamond Pin Matrix". This feature induces turbulence in
the water within the open chamber. Presumably, this design aids in the rapid
heat transfer from the water block.
**click to enlarge**
The tube inserts accommodate 3/8" ID (1/2" OD)
tubing. Optional stems are available in a variety of sizes.
The MCW5000's relatively small footprint (2.5" X
2.5" X 1.5") makes it compatible with most motherboards.
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