Design & Features

The Eliminator brings many improvements in design when compared to the Freezone.  In this section, I'll cover both units and provide pictures of each for comparison.

First, let's have a detailed look at the new Eliminator...

Personally, I think the Eliminator is more aesthetically pleasing than the Freezone.  It consists of the CPU heat exchanger, chiller and pump module heatsink, three solid-state TECs, pump and reservoir, built-in control module and a large 90mm fan.  Also, the Eliminator now sports a radial heatsink vs. the boxy, more unappealing design of the Freezone.

Freezone vs. Eliminator

I know many of you will be curious as to the differences between each, based on the fact that the Eliminator is more affordable.  Let's compare the two units and note the changes in both design and performance.

There were quite a few things that were notable in terms of design.  First is its overall weight.  The Eliminator is much lighter than the Freezone in comparison.  Second thing to note is its overall size.  Based on all the pictures I've seen prior to receiving the sample, I was under the impression that the Eliminator was longer than the Freezone based on its aluminum cover plate.  The pics on their site will definitely fool you as its overall form factor is indeed much smaller in comparison.

**click to enlarge**

One other major difference is the fan itself.  While the Eliminator still features a 90mm fan, it is much thicker than the one found on the Freezone to compensate for the lack of TECs.  The fan on the Freezone measures in at 92x92x25mm while the fan on the new Eliminator measures in at 92x92x38mm.  What about noise levels?  Well, the fan on the Freezone will run between 26dBA and 37dBA.  The fan on the Eliminator, according to the specs, runs at a respectable 34dBA.  Is it louder?  More on this in the performance section of this review.

So what about the main difference in performance?  Well, that's simple actually.  For those of you who do not know, the Freezone actually features a whopping six TECs mounted along each side of the heatsink with a total maximum power draw of 56W.  That's the pic to your left above. Their new Eliminator features a total of three TECs mounted evenly around its new radial heatsink with a maximum power draw of 40W.  How does this impact performance?  More on that in the performance section of this article.

Quite possibly, the most welcomed change is its integrated control module.  With the Freezone, the control module was not built-in and you not only had to find a suitable place to mount it on your case, but caused a lot of cable clutter, as you had to connect a number of cables to the circuit board.  The Eliminator, well, "eliminates" this as the control module is now on the unit itself.  The only cable you need to connect is the 4-pin Molex power from your PSU!  On top of that, it is now easier to adjust its performance as well.  With the Freezone, you had a potentiometer on the circuit board that needed to be adjusted with the included tool.  With the new Eliminator, there's a simple switch from high, medium or low.  Certainly a nice change that will eliminate cable clutter and make it easier for many to control its performance based on their needs and how quiet they want to run the unit.

I still wanted more information as to the differences between the two in order to help clarify which product is suitable for many.  CoolIT did quickly respond with some additional information that will be posted on their website shortly...

First off, The Eliminator is targeted for overclocking nearly any dual core CPU while the Freezone is more than capable of cooling the new quad core Kentsfield from Intel.  Basically, the level of performance will depend on not only the processor you will be running with it, but how far you want to take your system in terms of overclocking.

Cooling Capabilities

The Freezone is recommended for CPUs with total heat output of up to 175W.  Higher loads can be accommodated, but the result will be comparable to standard water cooling. The Eliminator is recommended for CPUs with a total heat output of up to 125W.

Thermal Control Module

The Freezone TCM senses temperature of the coolant and regulates the cooling power like a thermostat to avoid risk of condensation. That said, if the temperature is set too low, the coolant will go well below ambient and condensation can occur.
 

TCM Settings

The TCM on the Eliminator has 3 settings - low, medium and high. "Low" is intended for very low power CPU's in a multimedia setting where there is a desire for very low noise output. "Medium" will be more than adequate cooling for day to day activities as well as gaming for stock processor speeds. "High" is maximum cooling power for the overclocking enthusiasts.

Most who purchase this product are looking for a higher level of performance and most likely, they will be overclocking.  With that said, setting both the Freezone and Eliminator to their maximum setting is essential to achieve some impressive results.

Next: Installation & Performance