Antec Kuhler H20 920 CPU Water Cooler Review

Final Thoughts and Conclusion

Antec and Asetek have come to the table with a nice solid built self-contained water cooling kit. The Antec Kuhler H2O 920 CPU liquid cooler is the quietest of all the kits we have tested in ‘silent’ mode and the loudest we have heard when run in’ extreme’ mode. Either way, quiet or loud, the performance was very nice. With an MSRP of $119.95 and 3 year warranty the 920 is currently available for pre-order at Antec’s online shop and through major retailers and e-tailers. It will be ready to actually purchase at the end of April.

Of the self contained kits we have tested the Corsair Hydro H70 is what we would consider the Antec Kuhler H2O 920 water coolers closest competition. The Corsair Hydro H70 is the second generation self-contained water cooling kit that was designed in part by Asetek. The Antec Kuhler H2O 920 is the third generation self-contained water cooling kit that was also just happens to designed by Asetek. Due to the fact that Asetek helped design both CPU coolers it makes sense that their newer product cools better than the previous model. The Antec Kuhler H2O 920 on the extreme setting out performed the Corsair Hydro H70 at every clock frequency that we ran the Intel Core i7 LGA1366 processor at. In the silent mode the Antec Kuhler H2O 920 ran slightly warmer than the Corsair Hydro H70, but it was significantly quieter. We found that either fan mode the Antec Kuhler H2O 920 was at minimum 16 degrees Celcius better than the retail box Intel CPU HSF. Even at 4GHz the Antec Kuhler H2O 920 in silent mode was still 2 degrees Celcius cooler than the stock Intel HSF at the stock 2.8Ghz! Swapping the fans around from exhaust to intake to match the way Corsair Hydro H70 had its fans installed and I would bet the gap would close up slightly between the Corsair Hydro H70 and the Antec Kuhler H2O 920 in silent mode.

The only issue I can find with the Kuhler H2O 920 is that in the Extreme mode the noise from the fans is ear splitting loud to me. The upside to this is the Chill Control V software allows you to find that sweet spot for performance/noise that fits your taste.

Currently the Kuhler H2O 920 can be picked up from Antec’s web shop for $119.95 plus shipping on pre-order. With the current Japan relief effort that Antec is doing that price drops to $107.99 with free shipping. For that price you get a solid all-around performer that comes with a 3 year warranty.

Legit Bottom Line: The Antec Kuhler H2O 920 is a solid performing water cooler that out does all the coolers we have tested so far at 4GHz, but can get noisy doing so. Even in it’s silent mode it performs with minimal noise. It also has a 3 year warranty, the most of all the currently available water kits.