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[nextpage title=”Introduction”]

The Zalman LQ310 is an entry-level liquid cooling system for processors. It has a 120 mm radiator with an 120 mm fan installed. Let’s test it.

As with any sealed liquid cooling system, the LQ310 comes with the coolant liquid prefilled inside the loop (block, radiator, pump, and hoses).

The LQ310 greatly resembles the Thermaltake WATER2.0 Performer, which we tested some time ago. They both are manufactured by Asetek, but they are not the same product (at least the fans are not the same).

Figure 1 shows the box of the Zalman LQ310.

Figure 1: Package

Figure 2 shows the contents of the box: the radiator-block set, fan, manual, and installation hardware.

Figure 2: Accessories

This water cooler is discussed in detail in the following pages.

[nextpage title=”The Zalman LQ310″]

The sealed radiator-block system is shown in Figure 3. At the left is the radiator; at the right you can see the block. There is a cable on the block with a three-pin connector, which brings power to the integrated pump and also allows you to monitor the speed of the pump.

Figure 3: Sealed system

Figures 4 and 5 reveal the radiator of the Zalman LQ310.

Figure 4: Radiator

Figure 5: Radiator

[nextpage title=”The Zalman LQ310 (Cont’d)”]

Figure 6 shows the top of the block, where the pump that makes the liquid flow is integrated. The block is very simple, with no buttons or LEDs.

Figure 6: Block

The base of the block, which is made of copper, is revealed in Figure 7. The thermal compound comes pre-applied.

Figure 7: Base

Figure 8 illustrates the 120 mm fan that comes with the Zalman LQ310. The fan has a four-pin connector, which means it is compatible with PWM speed control.

Figure 8: Fan

[nextpage title=”Installation”]

In Figure 9, you can see the mounting hardware of the Zalman LQ310 for Intel CPUs, mounted in the position for sockets LGA1155 and LGA1156. The cooler also comes with the parts for installation on AMD systems.

Figure 9: Mounting hardware

Figure 10 shows the frame installed on the block.

Figure 10: Frame installed

In Figure 11, you can see the LQ310 installed in our case. The product manual instructs the user to install the fan blowing air into the radiator, so we had to install it at the top panel of our case because the radiator didn’t fit the rear panel of our case.

Figure 11: Installation finished

[nextpage title=”How We Tested”]

We tested the cooler with a Core i5-2500K CPU (quad-core, 3.3 GHz), which is a socket LGA1155 processor with a 95 W TDP (Thermal Design Power). In order to get higher thermal dissipation, we overclocked it to 4.0 GHz (100 MHz base clock and x40 multiplier), with 1.3 V core voltage (Vcore). This CPU was able to reach 4.8 GHz with its default core voltage, but at this setting, the processor enters thermal throttling when using mainstream coolers, reducing the clock and thus the thermal dissipation. This could interfere with the temperature readings, so we chose to maintain a moderate overclocking.

We measured noise and temperature with the CPU under full load. In order to get 100% CPU usage in all cores, we ran Prime 95 25.11 with the “In-place Large FFTs” option. (In this version, the software uses all available threads.)

We compared the tested cooler to other coolers we already tested, and to the stock cooler that comes with the Core i5-2500K CPU. Note that the results cannot be compared to measures taken on a different hardware configuration, so we retested some “old” coolers with this new methodology. This means you can find different values in older reviews than the values you will read on the next page. Every cooler was tested with the thermal compound that comes with it.

Room temperature measurements were taken with a digital thermometer. The core temperature was read with the SpeedFan program (available from the CPU thermal sensors), using an arithmetic average of the core temperature readings.

During the tests, the panels of the computer case were closed. The front and rear case fans were spinning at minimum speed in order to simulate the “normal” cooler use on a well-ventilated case. We assume that is the common setup used by a cooling enthusiast or overclocker.

The sound pressure level (SPL) was measured with a digital noise meter, with its sensor placed near the top opening of the case. This measurement is only for comparison purposes, because a precise SPL measurement needs to be made inside an acoustically insulated room with no other noise sources, which is not the case here.

Hardware Configuration

• Processor: Core i5-2500K
• Motherboard: ASUS Maximus IV Extreme-Z< /li>
• Memory: 6 GB OCZ (DDR3-1600/PC3-12800), configured at 1,600 MHz and 8-8-8-18 timings
• Hard disk: Seagate Barracuda XT 2 TB
• Video card: Point of View GeForce GTX 460 1 GB
• Video resolution: 1920×1080
• Video monitor: Samsung SyncMaster P2470HN
• Power supply: Seventeam ST-550P-AM
• Case:  Cooler Master HAF 922

Operating System Configuration

• Windows 7 Home Premium 64 bit SP1

Software Used

• Prime95
• SpeedFan

Error Margin

We adopted a 2°C error margin, meaning temperature differences below 2°C are considered irrelevant.

[nextpage title=”Our Tests”]

The table below presents the results of our measurements. We repeated the same test on all coolers listed below. Each measurement was taken with the CPU at full load. In the models with a fan supporting PWM, the motherboard controlled the fan speed according to core load and temperature. On coolers with an integrated fan controller, the fan was set at the full speed.

Cooler	Room Temp.	Noise	Speed	Core Temp.	Temp. Diff.
Cooler Master Hyper TX3	18 °C	50 dBA	2850 rpm	69 °C	51 °C
Corsair A70	23 °C	51 dBA	2000 rpm	66 °C	43 °C
Corsair H100	26 °C	62 dBA	2000 rpm	64 °C	38 °C
EVGA Superclock	26 °C	57 dBA	2550 rpm	67 °C	41 °C
NZXT HAVIK 140	20 °C	46 dBA	1250 rpm	65 °C	45 °C
Thermalright True Spirit 120	26 °C	42 dBA	1500 rpm	82 °C	56 °C
Zalman CNPS12X	26 °C	43 dBA	1200 rpm	71 °C	45 °C
Zalman CNPS9900 Max	20 °C	51 dBA	1700 rpm	62 °C	42 °C
Titan Fenrir Siberia Edition	22 °C	50 dBA	2400 rpm	65 °C	43 °C
SilenX EFZ-120HA5	18 °C	44 dBA	1500 rpm	70 °C	52 °C
Noctua NH-L12	20 °C	44 dBA	1450 rpm	70 °C	50 °C
Zalman CNPS8900 Extreme	21 °C	53 dBA	2550 rpm	71 °C	50 °C
Gamer Storm Assassin	15 °C	48 dBA	1450 rpm	58 °C	43 °C
Deepcool Gammaxx 400	15 °C	44 dBA	1500 rpm	60 °C	45 °C
Cooler Master TPC 812	23 °C	51 dBA	2350 rpm	66 °C	43 °C
Deepcool Gammaxx 300	18 °C	43 dBA	1650 rpm	74 °C	56 °C
Intel stock cooler	18 °C	41 dBA	2000 rpm	97 °C	79 °C
Xigmatek Praeton	19 °C	52 dBA	2900 rpm	83 °C	64 °C
Noctua NH-U12P SE2	18 °C	42 dBA	1300 rpm	69 °C	51 °C
Deepcool Frostwin	24 °C	46 dBA	1650 rpm	78 °C	54 °C
Thermaltake Frio Advanced	13 °C	56 dBA	2000 rpm	62 °C	49 °C
Xigmatek Dark Knight Night Hawk Edition	9 °C	48 dBA	2100 rpm	53 °C	44 °C
Thermaltake Frio Extreme	21 °C	53 dBA	1750 rpm	59 °C	38 °C
Noctua NH-U9B SE2	12 °C	44 dBA	1700 rpm	64 °C	52 °C
Thermaltake WATER2.0 Pro	15 °C	54 dBA	2000 rpm	52 °C	37 °C
Deepcool Fiend Shark	18 °C	45 dBA	1500 rpm	74 °C	56 °C
Arctic Freezer i30	13 °C	42 dBA	1350 rpm	63 °C	50 °C
Spire TME III	8 °C	46 dBA	1700 rpm	70 °C	62 °C
Thermaltake WATER2.0 Performer	11 °C	54 dBA	2000 rpm	49 °C	38 °C
Arctic Alpine 11 PLUS	11 °C	45 dBA	2000 rpm	82 °C	71 °C
be quiet! Dark Rock 2	10 °C	41 dBA	1300 rpm	58 °C	48 °C
Phanteks PH-TC14CS	16 °C	47 dBA	1300 rpm	58 °C	42 °C
Phanteks PH-TC14PE	16 °C	48 dBA	1300 rpm	57 °C	41 °C
SilverStone HE01 (Q)	19 °C	44 dBA	1150 rpm	63 °C	44 °C
SilverStone HE01 (P)	20 °C	57 dBA	2050 rpm	62 °C	42 °C
Thermaltake WATER2.0 Extreme (S)	17 °C	44 dBA	1250 rpm	52 °C	35 °C
Thermaltake WATER2.0 Extreme (E)	17 °C	53 dBA	1900 rpm	50 °C	33 °C
Deepcool Neptwin	11 °C	46 dBA	1500 rpm	56 °C	45 °C
SilverStone HE02	19 °C	49 dBA	2000 rpm	64 °C	45 °C
Zalman CNPS9900DF	23 °C	45 dBA	1400 rpm	68 °C	45 °C
Deepcool ICE BLADE PRO V2.0	22 °C	43 dBA	1500 rpm	67 °C	45 °C
Phanteks PH-TC90LS	24 °C	47 dBA	2600 rpm	95 °C	71 °C
Rosewill AIOLOS	20 °C	40 dBA	1600 rpm	94 °C	74 °C
Corsair H60	20 °C	49 dBA	2000 rpm	64 °C	44 °C
Zalman LQ310	27 °C	51 dBA	2050 rpm	65 °C	38 °C

In the graph below, you can see how many degrees Celsius hotter the CPU core is than the air outside the case. The lower this difference, the better is the performance of the cooler.

In the graph below, you can see how many decibels of noise each cooler makes.

[nextpage title=”Main Specifications”]

The main specifications for the Zalman LQ310 CPU cooler include:

• Application: Sockets LGA1155, LGA1156, LGA1366, LGA2011, AM2, AM2+, AM3, AM3+, and FM1
• Radiator dimensions: 6.0 x 4.7 x 1.1 inches (153 x 120 x 28 mm) (W x L x H)
• Block height: 1.1 inch (28 mm)
• Fins: Aluminum
• Base: Copper
• Heat-pipes: None
• Fan: 120 mm
• Nominal fan speed: 2,000 rpm
• Fan air flow: NA
• Power consumption: NA
• Nominal noise level: NA
• Weight: 1.4 Lbs (515 g)
• More information: https://www.zalman.com
• Average Price in the U.S.*: USD 70.00

* Researched at Newegg.com on the day we published this review.

[nextpage title=”Conclusions”]

The Zalman LQ310 is an excellent entry-level/mainstream liquid cooling system. It has a lower price tag and higher cooling performance than most of its competitors. It is also very simple to install and relatively quiet.

A good thing about the LQ310 is that it, unlike most of the sealed liquid cooling systems, has a better cost/benefit ratio than most high-end air coolers.

If you are looking for a simple, easy-to-install, high-performance and good value water cooler, the Zalman LQ310 is a good choice. It deserves our Golden Award.