Introduction
NZXT is a IT manufacturer founded in 2004 headquartered in Los Angeles, California, specialized in manufacturing computer cases, cooling systems and IT accessories, the company is often described as being innovative and unconventional.
Official product link:
http://www.nzxt.com/product/detail/147-kraken-x61-liquid-cooler.html
Packaging and accessories
The Kraken X61 model comes packaged in a multi-color box with a black & white background and red color accents. On the front side of the box we find a overall image of the product, on the upper part there is placed the name of the product while on the bottom part we find the name & logo of the manufacturer.
The back side of the box presents the product and the NZXT proprietary software using a image and a few characteristics of the product.
The sides of the box present the product’s features & specifications.
Accessories
The product comes with the following accessories:
– 1x Manual/brochure
– 1x Plastic back plate
– 4x Thumbscrews
– 4x Intel 115x/1366 standoffs
– 4x Intel 2011 standoffs
– 4x AMD standoffs
– 16x Long fan screws
– 8x Metallic screws
– 16x Metallic washers
Specifications
Model Number: RL-KRX61-01
Fan Air Flow: 42.4-106.1 CFM
Dimensions: 140 (W) x 280 (H) x 27mm (D)
Fan Air Pressure: 0.36-1.97mmH2O
Fan Bearing: Nano Bearing
Motor Speed: 2400-3600 ± 150 RPM
Fan Connector: 4 Pin PWM
Motor Voltage: 12V DC
Motor Connector: 3 Pin
Compatibility:
– Intel LGA 2011-3, 1366, 1156, 1155, 1150 CPUs
– AMD FM2, FM1, AM3+, AM3, AM2+, AM2 CPUs
Fan Dimensions: 140 x 140 x 25mm
Motor Current: 325mA
Fan Current: 12V DC
Fan Model: NZXT FX V2 140mm Performance PWM Fan
Materials:
– Copper
– Aluminum
– Rubber
– Plastic
Tube Length: 400mm
LED Color: Hue Controlled Color Changing Lights
Fan Speed: 800~2000 RPM ± 10%
Control Method: Kraken+ Software Module
Warranty: 6 Years
Visual inspection
The Kraken x61 model uses a 280mm radiator measuring: 280x140mm with a thickness of 27mm, the two tubes are 40cm long and are being connected to the pump using 90° fittings.
The pump is integrated into the CPU block, it features RGB LED illumination, the colour can be set to indicate the CPU temperature, red meaning a temperature above 60 °C. Below we have a few examples of the pump illumination.
The CPU block comes with the Intel mounting plate already installed, also the base of the CPU block is made out of copper and has a circle of thermal compound applied on it.
The cables connected to the pump-block assembly are covered by black sleeving. The pump power cable measures approximately 22cm in length, the fan cable & the SATA power cable measure 26.5cm and the USB 2.0 cable measures 60cm. In order to control the LED illumination on the pump and the connected fans, the USB 2.0 cable must be connected to the motherboard, controlling & setting the cooler is done via the proprietary NZXT CAM software.
The two included fans, model NZXT FX V2, have a good build quality, the cable is sleeved while the corners of the frame are covered by rubber, thus reducing vibrations.
Software
The CAM software must be downloaded from the official NZXT website, although it is not necessary to use it in order to use the cooler, this piece of software offers numerous options & info about the system and the cooler.
The CAM software is divided into sections, the Base section and the section corresponding to the NZXT product used (Grid, Kraken, etc.) In the Base mode the software offers detailed informations about the system, also this mode can be used without a NZXT product. Each mode is color-coded (Kraken/green, Grid/yellow, Base/blue, etc).
The Kraken mode offers in-depth info about the speed of the fans & pump, the LED illumination and the liquid temperature. Here we can customize different aspects of the cooling system, the fan & pump profiles or the way the LED illumination reacts to the CPU temperature.
Testing
The following system was used to test the cooler:
– Processor: Intel i5 4690K @ 3.9 GHz and overclocked to 4.5 GHz
– Motherboard: ASUS Z97 Maximus VII Hero
– RAM: 8GB Crucial Ballistix Tactical @ 2133MHz
– GPU: MSI GeForce GTX 660 OC Gaming
– SSD: Samsung 840 EVO 120GB
– HDD: Samsung SpinPoint F3 500GB
– PSU: Seasonic M12II-520 EVO Edition Bronze 520W
– Case: Phanteks Enthoo Luxe White
– Thermal compound: Arctic Cooling MX-4
Software used for testing the cooler:
– AIDA64 Extreme Version: 5.00.3300 (12/8/2014)
– Intel Burn Test v2.54
– Prime95 28.5
The cooler was tested with the CPU at the default turbo frequency of 3.9 GHz and overclocked to 4.5 GHz with a core voltage of 1.187 V.
Also the included fans have been used at maximum speed.
The room temperature was approximately 21°C (69°F), with 2°C margin of error.
The idle test consists of the CPU sitting idle at the desktop for 30 minutes, the temperature was measured at the end of the test.
The settings of the software used are the following:
Intel Burn Test v2.54 – Stress level: Maximum
Prime95 28.5 – small FFT
AIDA64 Extreme Version – Temperature monitoring.
Each test was conducted for 40 minutes.
The test results are as follows:
The noise level was measured at three different distances from the fans (10cm, 20cm, 30cm.) the noise was measured with a margin of error of ± 5 db.
Final thoughts
The Kraken x61 model is among the best AIO cooling systems on the market, due to the 280mm radiator, the included 140mm FX140 V2 fans and the silent pump. The build quality and materials used, both of the cooling system and the fans included is good. The mounting system is among the simplest on the market. Unfortunately, the product is accompanied by a simple & small manual, the in-depth manual (with animations) can be viewed on the official NZXT website, this is an inconvenient if at the time of installing the unit there is no internet access.
In conclusion, the Kraken x61 cooler is among the first choices when it comes to choosing an AIO cooling system, due to its performance, the included fans and the proprietary CAM software.
