Danger Den NVIDIA GeForce GTX480 All Copper Water Block Review

Final Thoughts

Danger Dens GTX480 is one very nice addition to my EVGA GeForce GTX480 video card. Not only did it help cool the card better, but it also managed to eliminate the noise from the horridly loud stock fan. That in and of itself warrants the $135 price tag the all copper version we tested today carries. When it came to performance by water cooling the GeForce GTX 480 we were able to drop stock load temps from 92C to 49C, which is a drop of 47%. Reducing your temperatures by nearly half is amazing and anyone that is thinking about getting a GeForce GTX 480 should consider water cooling as an option as it really is nice. You get lower noise levels, possibly improve the longevity of the video card and are able to overclock it farther than you could on air for even better performance. Danger Den has done a great job on these blocks and you can tell from the second you pick the water block up that it you made a solid investment. Heck, with copper prices going up you can always cash it in down the road!

Only couple things you need to worry about with the DD-GTX480 water block. First is as with any watercooling part leak test, leak test, leak test, nothing like losing good hardware to water. This all copper water block is also very heavy. It weighs in at just shy of 1.2 Kg, which is much heavier than the NVIDIA reference design heat-pipe cooler for the GeForce GTX 480 as it weighs 337g. Now coolers this size is not rare for CPUs, take the Cooler Master V10 for instance, its well over 1 Kg. So with this mounted to a card on should take care to support the card when transporting or moving your PC. Some case manufactures like the Lian Li have cases with expansion card supports to help relieve the stress on both the card and the motherboard.

I tested the Danger Den DD-GTX480 with separate water cooling loop from the CPU to isolate it and remove the heat from the CPU as a variable. You could run both on a Single triple or quad radiator, but your temps could go up a little. Even if it went up 10*C it would still be quieter and cooler then stock.

Danger Den currently has 4 versions of the DD-GTX480 water block. An all copper version for $134.95, satin all copper version for $134.95, nickel plated top and copper base for $146.85, and all nickel plated $159.95. So based on your style and budget Danger Den should have you covered for you GTX480 cooling needs. You really can’t go wrong with any of the finishes and the performance should be the same on all of them according to Danger Den. The non-nickel versions will just tarnish and age over time.

Legit Bottom Line: The Danger Den DD-GTX480 water block for GeForce GTX 480 video cards is worth every bit of its asking price and is a must have for enthusiasts and gamers.