Question Digital Storm - Opinions on Vortex Liquid cooling

[goot]

i am debating between the Aventum X and the Velox - i am reluctant to get the Aventum X as i am not convinced how reliable the H20: Stage 3: Digital Storm Vortex Liquid CPU Cooler is. I know that the AIR: Stage 2: Noctua NH-D15 is super reliable and can last 5 yrs+ . What is the reliability of the Vortex liquid cooler ? does it ever require any maintenance ? what's it's typical lifespan assuming 24/7 use ?

Anyone have experience with either machine ?

 

[Eximo]

NH-D15 has no real expiration date. The heatsink should last a lifetime. The fans are warrantied for more than 5 years on their own as well, and are easily replaced.

Just appears to be an off the shelf AIO, they can last from 3-5 years before pump failure. They can last longer, but there is no guarantee that the CPU block won't clog up or the pump may fail.

What you need for cooling depends entirely on what CPU you are going with for these builds. Though I will say that the chances of an AIO cooled system being delivered to you intact is higher than with a very large air cooler.

These are just PCs made with off the shelf components. Any new build from them is going to be with components that are different from a few years ago. So while an existing user can judge assembly quality, delivery, support, etc. The hardware itself will always have a relatively short time it has been available on the market, so long term reviews aren't really a thing for anything you purchase today.

Without a complete parts list, hard to judge what you are getting as compared to doing it yourself. An inexperienced builder can assemble a computer in under one day, and there are plenty of complete video guides for what to do.

I know Digital Storm has a decent reputation, but they are still vastly more expensive than building yourself. All you really gain is a warranty and someone to call if things go wrong. Based on the parts selection they offer on their uncustomized bundles, they are offering relatively cheap components at premium prices, but that is to be expected with any boutique builder.

 

[goot]

NH-D15 has no real expiration date. The heatsink should last a lifetime. The fans are warrantied for more than 5 years on their own as well, and are easily replaced.

Just appears to be an off the shelf AIO, they can last from 3-5 years before pump failure. They can last longer, but there is no guarantee that the CPU block won't clog up or the pump may fail.

What you need for cooling depends entirely on what CPU you are going with for these builds. Though I will say that the chances of an AIO cooled system being delivered to you intact is higher than with a very large air cooler.

These are just PCs made with off the shelf components. Any new build from them is going to be with components that are different from a few years ago. So while an existing user can judge assembly quality, delivery, support, etc. The hardware itself will always have a relatively short time it has been available on the market, so long term reviews aren't really a thing for anything you purchase today.

Without a complete parts list, hard to judge what you are getting as compared to doing it yourself. An inexperienced builder can assemble a computer in under one day, and there are plenty of complete video guides for what to do.

I know Digital Storm has a decent reputation, but they are still vastly more expensive than building yourself. All you really gain is a warranty and someone to call if things go wrong. Based on the parts selection they offer on their uncustomized bundles, they are offering relatively cheap components at premium prices, but that is to be expected with any boutique builder.

Very helpful

Here are the full specs of what i am thinking :

Chassis Model: Digital Storm Velox
Exterior Finish: - Standard Factory Finish
Trim Accents: - Standard Factory Finish
Processor: Intel Core i9-14900KS (6.2 GHz Turbo) (32-Thread) (24-Core) 3.2 GHz (14th Gen) <br><strong></strong>
Motherboard: ASUS ROG Maximus Z790 Dark Hero (Wi-Fi) (Z790) (Up to 3x PCI-E) (No SLI) (DDR5) <br><strong></strong>
System Memory: 128GB DDR5 4800MHz Kingston FURY Beast <br><strong></strong>
Power Supply: 1500W Corsair HX1500i (Modular) (80 Plus Platinum) <br><strong></strong>

Storage Set 1: 1x SSD M.2 (4TB Kingston Fury Renegade) (NVM Express) <br><strong></strong>
Storage Set 2: 1x SSD M.2 (4TB Kingston Fury Renegade) (NVM Express) <br><strong></strong>

Internet Access: High Speed Network Port (Supports High-Speed Cable / DSL / Network Connections)
Graphics Card(s): 1x GeForce RTX 4090 24GB (VR Ready)
Sound Card: Creative Sound Blaster AE-9 (Hi-Res) (Ultimate Audio Playback) <br><strong></strong>
HPC Processor: - No Thanks
Extreme Cooling: AIR: Stage 2: Noctua NH-D15 chromax.black (Extreme Performance) <br><strong></strong>

Cable Management: Premium Cable Management (Strategically Routed & Organized for Airflow)
Chassis Fans: Cooler Master MasterFan Halo (RGB Fans) (Remote Control Only) <br><strong></strong>
Internal Lighting: Remote Controlled Advanced LED Lighting System (Multiple RGB Color Modes)

CPU Boost: Turbo Boost Technology
Boost Graphics Card(s): - No Thanks, Please do not overclock my video card(s)
Boost OS: - No Thanks, Please do not tweak the services on the operating system
Windows OS: Microsoft Windows 11 Home (64-Bit)
Recovery Tools: USB Drive - Windows Installation (Format and Clean Install)
Virus Protection: Windows Defender Antivirus (Built-in to Windows)

 

[Paperdoc]

Some GENERAL thoughts. A good air-cooller system such as the Noctua NH-D15 with its two fans does a VERY good job for most CPU"s, excepting maybe the ones with the very highest processing power and power consumption. For Noctua in particular, their fans are warrantied for 5 years, and most users find they last longer than that. As Eximo says above, even then it is easy to replace the fans only, and not the entire cooler system..

While a really good AIO system can do a better job of cooling high-performance CPU's, they are not necessary for lesser chips. Most AIO systems have a lifetime of about 5 years, limited by any of several causes. When that happens the usual story is that the entire AIO system needs to be replaced. In SOME cases the failure MAY be in one or more rad fans and the fans only might be replaced.

 

[Eximo]

Processor: Intel Core i9-14900KS (6.2 GHz Turbo) (32-Thread) (24-Core) 3.2 GHz (14th Gen)
Motherboard: ASUS ROG Maximus Z790 Dark Hero (Wi-Fi) (Z790) (Up to 3x PCI-E) (No SLI) (DDR5)
System Memory: 128GB DDR5 4800MHz Kingston FURY Beast
Power Supply: 1500W Corsair HX1500i (Modular) (80 Plus Platinum)

Storage Set 1: 1x SSD M.2 (4TB Kingston Fury Renegade) (NVM Express)
Storage Set 2: 1x SSD M.2 (4TB Kingston Fury Renegade) (NVM Express)

Graphics Card(s): 1x GeForce RTX 4090 24GB
Sound Card: Creative Sound Blaster AE-9 (Hi-Res) (Ultimate Audio Playback)

Extreme Cooling: AIR: Stage 2: Noctua NH-D15 chromax.black

Cable Management: Premium Cable Management (Strategically Routed & Organized for Airflow)
Chassis Fans: Cooler Master MasterFan Halo (RGB Fans) (Remote Control Only)
Internal Lighting: Remote Controlled Advanced LED Lighting System (Multiple RGB Color Modes)

Well, I can't ever recommend the KS processor unless you are fond of tweaking things, and about the only time I will say the NH-D15 is inadequate. Out of the box that is a 320W max boost CPU, which is just a silly figure. 253W of the other K chips is also silly, but less so.

My main recommendation for an Intel build would be to stick with the 14700k.

That motherboard is also very overpriced.

128GB of memory is extreme overkill for a gaming system, 64GB unless you have a use case for that much memory. They are also giving you quite slow memory. For such a high end build, 6000 would be the minimum, but more like DDR5 6400 would be appropriate. Diminishing returns after 5600/6000, but the bandwidth is there.

Not the storage choice I would make, but 8TB of SSD is pretty decent if you have a need for that much storage. Better to start off small and expand storage later.

Don't really see the need for a sound card these days. If you want high end audio, a USB DAC is generally considered the way to go. Motherboard onboard audio should be quite decent on its own.

I don't like that they are saying you can have RGB fans, but that they won't be hooking them up to the system. Never really like the remote controlled RGB, but then I don't care much for RGB. So minimum you would be having the motherboard RGB software, likely the GPU depending on what model they carry, and then a remote to try and get your RGB to all match at any given time. Let alone syncing together.

Here is what I might do in your position:

Digital Storm Configuration as you listed is $6700, this would be about 95% the same performance.

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: Intel Core i7-14700K 3.4 GHz 20-Core Processor ($381.98 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-D15 chromax.black 82.52 CFM CPU Cooler ($119.95 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Asus ROG STRIX Z790-H GAMING WIFI ATX LGA1700 Motherboard ($259.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: G.Skill Trident Z5 RGB 64 GB (2 x 32 GB) DDR5-6400 CL32 Memory ($217.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital Black SN850X 4 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive ($309.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital Black SN850X 4 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive ($309.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Asus TUF GAMING OC GeForce RTX 4090 24 GB Video Card ($1719.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Corsair iCUE 4000X RGB ATX Mid Tower Case ($119.96 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: Corsair RM1200x SHIFT 1200 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular Side Interface ATX Power Supply ($196.69 @ Amazon)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 11 Home Retail - USB 64-bit ($138.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $3775.52
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2024-06-17 13:00 EDT-0400