Introduction

Depending on when this review goes live, you might well have already seen our coverage of Alphacool's new NexXxos HPE-45 360 mm radiator. It's an impressive update from Alphacool that competes favorably with thicker radiators to make the High Performance Edition (HPE) moniker more than just marketing, and offers multiple ports in a fairly novel manner, but a 45 mm thick radiator is still too thick for some cases, especially if you are aiming for a custom loop in an SFF build, or a CLC cooler replacement in a like-for-like configuration. Clearly, Alphacool thought as much about the market for new radiators, having launched an HPE-30 series alongside the HPE-45.


Today, we are taking a look at the triple 120 mm (360 mm) NexXxos HPE-30, and this is the latest generation of Alphacool's popular NexXxos radiator lineup. The HPE-30 series comes in 120, 140, 240, 280, 360, 420 and 480 mm sizes, and this is the thinner analogue to the HPE-45 series we have seen before, where 30 and 45 refer to the thickness in millimeters. The NexXxos HPE-30 is a direct replacement for the NexXxos ST30 v1 and v2, and my colleague inadvertently already covered this radiator in the Alphacool Eisbaer Aurora 360 HPE AIO CPU cooler review, which supports my basis for these thinner radiators suiting upgraded AIO cooling solutions, as well as custom loops when tight on space. The cooler might not have been too impressive, but how does the radiator fare on its own? Thanks to Alphacool for providing TechPowerUp a review sample as we aim to find out for ourselves!

Specifications

Packaging and Accessories

The Alphacool NexXxos HPE-30 radiator lineup was so new at the time that the sample shipped before retail packaging seems to have been ready. Indeed, we have the product box for the NexXxos ST30 v2, which differentiates itself from the original by adopting a white and blue color scheme as opposed to the predominantly black and blue boxes used as recently as last year with the Alphacool NexXxos ST25. Alphacool having recently adapted a fresher look for its branding, the logo also isn't up to date. Regardless, the box for the retail HPE-30 360 will look similar and be functionally identical with the company logo and product name on the front, and a label on the side confirms the exact SKU—the HPE-30 360 inside. Perhaps there will be white color options down the line, too. A double flap on the side keeps the contents in place.


Opening the thin box, we see the radiator, two separate pieces of paperwork on top, and a plastic zip-lock bag that contains a useful accessory. Alphacool includes a contact card should you need to get in touch with customer support, and the more useful note is a general guide describing the installation of these radiators. Off to the side and sandwiched between two foam sheets comes an accessory box, and the packaging means the radiator isn't damaged by any of the accessories.


I like that the accessory box comes with a sticker clearly identifying it as such. There are nine individually labeled plastic zip-lock bags—eight inside the box and the ninth the one we saw on top of the radiator. In total, we get a set of twelve 30 mm M3-threaded screws for three standard 25 mm thick 120 mm fans and a case/radiator mount. Two 35 mm M3-threaded screws for when you have a thicker radiator mount or thicker fans to deal with have also been included. These are paired with an additional set of twelve 5 mm screws to directly mount the radiator to the case or mount. These screws have a hex head, so we also get a matching L-shaped Allen key, and a set of spare screws; two each of the three sizes. This is more than anyone else provides for radiators, and the only thing I can think of to make it better would be to move from M3 threading to M4 threading in the future. The last bag contains a branded plastic tool handy for installing and removing stop plugs on the radiator, but more about that on the next page. The radiator itself comes safely packed inside bubble wrap, so this is good packaging from Alphacool overall.