Alphacool Watercooling Starter Kit

Author: Fred Hunt
Published: 29th March 2006

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The Waterblock

Arguably the heart of any watercooling system is the CPU waterblock; in this case the Alphacool CPU NexXxoS XP Light is supplied. The standard tubing and fittings included in the kit allow for this to be changed for something better at a later date if it were to fall short of your requirements.

Alphacool Watercooling Starter Kit The Waterblock

The block is part metal and part plastic - it feels quite solid and is finished well and comes with a protective plastic sheet to prevent damage or oxidisation in transit. As you can see from the second image the supplied Heat Transfer Compound reflects well in the face of the block. I doubt lapping will really improve contact with the CPU that much as the surface seems to be well finished.

Alphacool Watercooling Starter Kit The Waterblock

The Alphacool CPU NexXxoS XP Light is a three layer waterblock: the flow of water is forced through the inlet and squirted directly onto the copper grid shown on the right hand picture. The warmer water is then taken directly out of the base of the block, ensuring the heat is removed as quickly as possible. The block is easily disassembled for cleaning at a future date if you should want to.

Let's see how easy the kit is to build...