Thermal Performance

Everything needed (monitor, peripherals, motherboard w/CPU and GPU, radiator, PSU, and so forth) is placed in a sealed, climate-controlled box at 25°C +/- 0.05 °C. Each radiator is connected by Koolance QD3 quick disconnects for easier changing of fans and radiator. The flow rate is held at 1 GPM constant flow rate. The CPU, an Intel Core-i7 4770K at 4.6 GHz running at 1.3 V, is held at a constant load using a custom Intel XTU profile, and the GPU, an EVGA GTX 780 Ti Classified under load from Unigine Heaven 4.0 at 1080p with extreme HD settings, is overclocked and overvolted in such a way that the total system power draw is 550 W as measured by a power meter.

A near-constant heat load into the liquid loop by the addition of the CPU and GPU helps achieve stable liquid-loop temperatures pretty quickly (as measured by three separate in-line temperature sensors hooked up to an Aquacomputer Aquaero 6 XT). The tubing and fittings are insulated by a sleeve heater, but its heat function is not utilized. Every single measurement is done twice as a means of verification. Any possibility of running a fan outside of its static maximum RPM is minimized by as much as possible by using a comprehensive series of separate fans (Noiseblocker eLoop, B12-1 through B12-4) to cover a broad RPM range while minimizing fan speed variance and, thus, airflow. The results below are the ∆T (coolant temperature - ambient temperature) in °C.


Once again, keep in mind that the current test database does not include many other thin radiators. Despite that, I came out impressed with the Leviathan SF 360. As expected, it does not beat the Black Ice Nemesis GTS but definitely comes close. The Leviathan SF 360 outperforms multiple thicker radiators across the fan RPM range, which is a result of low airflow optimization in the core coupled with good scaling with airflow. In fact, it is stronger at the low and higher RPM ranges than it is in the mid-range, where it is weakest relatively because most radiators only focus on one range and either scale poorly or need high airflow for optimal performance.