INTRODUCTION

   CPU air coolers versus AIO Liquid CPU coolers is a subject many of us have seen discussed in various forums around the internet and although it's a valid "question" it's really not very hard to answer since each solution fits specific circumstances. For example if you own a tower with very good airflow levels, plenty of space and you care not about any possible clearance issues then a large CPU air cooler should do the trick for you a lot better than a single 120/140mm AIO model would. On the other hand if you don't own a large PC case and thus you have limited airflow levels and space an AIO liquid CPU cooler regardless of size will outperform any CPU air cooler that fits. A few months back we had the 360mm CAPTAIN model by DeepCool on our test rig but since its size is not something the majority of towers in the market can accommodate today we're taking a closer look at the 120mm variant.

   Deepcool was founded with the mission of providing the best performance & humanized thermal solutions for worldwide customers. Deepcool design and manufacture a comprehensive range of high quality products, covering desktop cooling solutions, laptop cooling solutions, server cooling solutions, embedded cooling solutions, and other thermal components. Our goal is to maintain customer satisfaction by serving our customer’s ever-changing thermal needs and providing the quickest and most comprehensive service available. As our slogan goes, we wish you all “Enjoy your cool life”!

   Just like every single AIO Liquid CPU Cooler in the market (at least to date) the Captain 120 by DeepCool is actually four parts combined and of course those parts are no other than a radiator, tubes, pump and a CPU water block. The aluminum radiator used in the Captain 120 (as the name states) is rather small and more specifically a 120mm one which is cooled via a single high-speed 120mm fluid-dynamic bearing PWM fan (obviously you can add a 2nd fan in push and pull for even better performance levels). For the pump DeepCool has used a high-speed yet virtually noiseless ceramic bearing one that has a MTBF (Meantime Between Failures) of 120.000 hours. Well this is not the first time we've seen these specifications (the 360mm model shares many) so let's see what kind of cooling performance the Captain 120 can dish out.

SPECIFICATIONS AND FEATURES

PACKAGING AND CONTENTS

You can take a look at a picture of the Captain 120 which is placed at the front of the box.

The main product features are placed on both sides.

At the rear there’s several drawings right next to the compatible CPUs.

All of the product features are also printed at the base of the box right next to the specifications list.

Everything is nicely packed inside a formed piece of cardboard and several plastic bags.

The bundle is once again quite rich so along with the Captain 120 you are also getting a 120mm fan, 8 fan radiator mounting screws, case badge, installation instructions and all the required bits and pieces to mount the cooler onto Intel LGA 1150/1155/1156/1366/2011/2011-v3 and AMD AM2/AM2+/AM3/AM3+/FM1/FM2/FM2+ mainboards.

THE CAPTAIN 120

Remember the Maelstrom 120 again by DeepCool or the Kuhler 620 by Antec ? Well the Captain 120 is very similar to those two solutions as you can see from the above pictures.

The aluminum radiator used with the Captain 120 is just 27mm thick, 154mm long and 120mm wide.

Fin quality is actually better than what we encountered with the 360mm model but that could have been a factory issue.

Again just like the 360mm model you can access the cooling liquid used by DeepCool to fill the loop (again whether or not that's a good thing i don't know).

The tubes are 326mm in length but as mentioned many times in the past fluorinated ethylene propylene tubes are not as flexible as the rubber ones we see with most AIO models.

The transparent section of the pump allows the end user to see the liquid circulating thanks to a red LED placed beneath. Specs-wise the ceramic bearing pump can reach speeds of up to 2800RPM (+_10%) and has a MTBF of 120.000 hours (on the box the speed indicated is 3400RPM but since there are other errors there as well we're sticking to the online number).

Both tubes can rotate up to 90 degrees but since that would mean hitting the mainboard the headroom is closer to around 60 degrees.

Once again at the end of the pump we find an all-copper base ready with a thin layer of thermal conductive material on it.

DeepCool bundles their GF120 rubber covered fluid dynamic bearing 120mm PWM fan with the Captain 120. This model has a removable impeller for easier cleaning and can spin up to 2200RPM (+_10%) to produce airflow up to 91.12CFM with just 39.3dBA of noise.

Black and red is one of my favorite color combinations so no objections from me here (with the fan mounted the radiator becomes roughly 53mm thick).

TEST BED

TESTING METHODOLOGY

   We always take things quite seriously when it comes to work so just like with the previous LGA1366 database we will not be testing each CPU Cooler on its own and with different ambient temperature levels and thus we can actually have yet another valid CPU Cooler database. Testing a CPU Cooler automatically means that you need to know where it stands against the immediate competition and to accomplish that we have spent both money and time through the years, something that we plan to continue to do so in order to get the most accurate results for the end consumers who read these lines. Every CPU cooler in this database is tested with the bundled 140mm/120mm/92mm/80mm fans while working at both idle speed and 100% of their speeds for all the temperature tests. CPU Coolers that do not come bundled with a fan/s are measured using a Noctua fan (size dependent on the model) to test for the temperature tests but due to the lack of a stock fan dBA level tests are obviously skipped. Single (120/140mm) watercooling solutions are tested with the radiator mounted at the rear of our test rig while dual/triple/quad (240/260/280/360/420/480/560mm) solutions with the radiator mounted at the top. For the dBA tests every cooler in the database was measured both while on idle mode or with the fan controller in the minimum setting and while on extreme load or with the fan controller all the way to the highest possible setting (PWM fans do that on their own without our intervention). Every single test takes place in a temperature controlled room of 23 degrees Celsius Ambient Temp with the help of two AC units placed diagonally inside the room. The Arctic Silver 5 thermal paste is used with every CPU Cooler in our latest LGA2011 database (although initially this was not the plan we had to change things to get the most accurate results). Finally it's very important to point out that just because a CPU Cooler is better than another when tested with our test rig that does not necessarily mean that the same performance differences will apply 100% for other CPU models and in other situations (such as different ambient temps and system configurations).

     To successfully record the load temperatures we use the latest OCCT application for around 6-10 minutes to push the processor to its limits and after that is done and the temperatures are recorded we wait for about 10-20 minutes for the CPU to cool down and record the idle temperatures. This is done to allow time for the thermal conductive material to achieve the optimal performance level. Same procedure is then repeated with the Passmark BurnIn Test as a failsafe just in case the OCCT results are wrong. This procedure takes a lot more time than the usual peltier/thermometer tests but this way not only can we deliver real world results to our readers based on real CPUs but we can also triple check the results using a variety of programs. Last but not least the temperatures were recorded using both the latest versions of AIDA64 and RealTemp while the noise level tests are performed using a high precision ExTech HD600 Decibel Meter placed about 10-15cm above the CPU Cooler. Still although the same testing procedure applies to all units do take into consideration that unlike the official numbers which are measured in special noise isolated labs with just the fans here we also have both the rest of the cooler and the rest of the system (although all system fans are turned off when recording noise levels).

TEST RESULTS

INTRODUCTION

   It's been quite a few years since i had the opportunity to test/review the very first 120mm AIO liquid CPU coolers so when DeepCool announced the Captain 120 i was hoping for something new and quite improved. Well i can't say that this is what we got in terms of cooling efficiency but this is probably due to the fact that the 900D by Corsair which we use with our primary test rig has massive levels of airflow (10 case fans installed) CPU air coolers tend to perform better than what they would in a smaller case. Still we've been recording our results for over 3 years in this tower so that's not really an excuse more like an observation. Overall the Captain 120 performed well and if we also take into account that its cooling efficiency can improve just by having the fan suck air from the outside, the nice lighting effect coming from the pump and also the zero clearance issues with it I’d say that it works as advertised.

   Single 120mm AIO liquid CPU coolers are considered "entry-level" models so they are usually priced just right for the majority of consumers. Unfortunately as we speak the Captain 120 by DeepCool has a rather high retail value and more specifically it costs USD99 inside the USA (Amazon.com) and 97Euros inside the EU (Amazon.co.uk). All things considered this is the sole drawback the Captain 120 has and a huge drawback it is. Performance is good, size is even better and it does look good especially if you happen to own a tower with a side window but with a price tag that matches the one we see with many 240mm models we don't think that there's much room for consumers to pick this instead (at least until DeepCool resolves this). Of course if money is not something that bothers you then we do recommend taking a look at the Captain 120 since we do feel it has to offer more than similar solutions. However if money is an issue and you want the best bang for your buck there are better solutions currently available.

PROS

- Build Quality
- Good Performance
- Easy Installation
- Transparent Pump

CONS

- No Control Software
- Price (For Some)