Swiftech Apogee Drive II

[wevsspot]

Looking for a water cooling loop that is somewhere between a custom loop or fully self contained unit?  If so you might check out the Swiftech Apogee Drive II.  Somehow I've missed this little gem over the last couple of months.  It is getting very good reviews.  The block itself is high quality and the MCP35X pump is a dandy.

 

I'm not plugging this particular seller, but wanted to give you an idea on pricing, size, availability etc.

 

http://www.jab-tech.com/Swiftech-Apogee-Drive-II-1155-1366-pr-4976.html#

[ir_cow]

Yep , the close are you are goin to get without doing a full custom system . It sits right between like corsair (closed loop / prebuilt ) and a full blown custom kit .

 

 

Would have used if it it wa out when I built my rig but at he time the h100 was the only thing out and now they have like 15 things to choose from

Edited February 26, 2013 by hornybluecow

[wevsspot]

Sweet.  Nice to get some positive feedback from an actual user.  I read a few trusted reviews before I posted up the info, but it is getting overwhelming positive pub.  Really surprised that I missed this.  I've used a lot of Swiftech w/c gear through the years and have always been a satisfied customer.  And I usually try and keep up with their new products.

[wevsspot]

Olok - please re-post.  As you were busy writing "double" "triple" post I was busy deleting the multiple posts  

 

Now I've whacked them all.  Lets try again, because you pic of the unit in action was great.  Thanks.

[olokul]

 

 

Well now i have to remember what i typed.....

 

So i've had the Swiftech Apogee Drive II now for about 4 months and rig #4 in my sig.   I use the rig as my lan party rig and has made the loop install very easy since you dont need a cpu block and a pump mounted separately. 

 

 

Its now in a  SilverStone Temjin Series TJ08B-E MicroATX case with a DD 360 extreme Rad mounted to the top of the case.   

 

EDIT:   if i remember ill try and get a picture of it tonight.

Edited February 26, 2013 by olokul

[wevsspot]

Thanks  

[El_Capitan]

Seems pricey to me, and no different space-wise if you were getting a pump that mounts to a reservoir since you'd still need/want a reservoir with this unit. Still, I like that they're thinking of different ideas to implement in the world of computer watercooling.

[wevsspot]

True, but some folks hate the bay style reservoirs.  I'm not one of them  

 

But I think this is a great alternative for those that want a "tweener" water cooling system.  And you can't beat the performance.  Did you read any of the performance reviews?

[El_Capitan]

Well, there's also reservoir top-mounts instead of drive-bay ones.

 

I'm sure the performance will be comparable to a Apogee HD with a MCP35X pump. Much better than any all-in-one unit. Especially since you get to use your own tubing (1/2" ID) and radiator of choice. I'm not saying it's bad, just not as space-efficient as possible.

 

The exception is that Swiftech does have radiators with built-in reservoirs, the con of that is that they need to be mounted a certain way. That would actually save space with this unit.

[wevsspot]

1C warmer than EK Supreme custom kit under load with 2600K @ 4.5Ghz

 

2C cooler than Swiftech Edge H20 320 HD

 

Assuming his review is reliable............................

[El_Capitan]

Yeah, it's going to be as good as any custom-cooled unit. What they should have focused on was selling this unit for $80 or bundling it with a 2x120mm radiator with a built-in reservoir for $100 if they could manage the lower manufacturing costs. People would still need tubing, barbs or clamps / fittings, and cooling liquid (distilled water and silver coil is my preferred choice). At the current price, it's no less expensive than going full custom-watercooling. If this is intended to bring AIO watercooling people into this market, they need to price things better.

[wevsspot]

Right on.