Testing Results, Maximum Fan Speed (12 Volts)
We'll start off our testing with our fans running at their maximum fan speed and normal operating voltage (12V).
| Core Temperature, Constant Thermal Load (Max Fan Speed) |
The Corsair H100i GTX is having a field day when the fans and the pump are running at their maximum rated speeds. It displayed the best low load performance of every AIO cooler we have ever tested and heavy load performance comparable to that of the best 280 mm radiator coolers available. Meanwhile the average thermal resistance is just 0.0732 °C/W, which is also the best that we have recorded to this date and outpacing even Cooler Master's super loud 280 mm offering, the Nepton 280L. It can be noticed that the performance difference over the H100i is relatively small, but it is distinctive and enough to place the H100i GTX at the top of our performance charts.
On the other hand, the H80i GT did not fare as well as it displayed middling low power thermal performance. The performance slightly improves as the load increases and eventually it outpaces most of the similarly sized coolers. However, it falls significantly behind the 140 mm Nepton 140 XL and all of the 240/280 mm radiator coolers. For having two powerful 120 mm fans, the H80i GT could fare a little better.
The high performance of the H100i GTX has a significant downside however: noise. That noise does not only come from the two very powerful fans, but from the pump as well, which is making a clearly perceptible whining noise while operating at its maximum speed. It is not the loudest AIO cooler that we have ever tested but 48.7 dB(A) are way above what we consider a comfortable limit.
As the H80i GT is using the same fans and pump, the noise figures were expected to be similar. The H80i GT is actually slightly quieter, but the difference is imperceptible to the human ear. Otherwise it's worth noting that despite the use of two fans, the H80i GT actually is not louder than most other high performance 120 mm radiator fans. But the 140 mm models seem capable of significantly greater thermal performance or similar thermal performance at much lower noise levels.
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