Thermaltake Water2.0 Pro CPU Cooler Review

TT Water2.0 Pro Final Thoughts

The ThermaltakeWater2.0 Pro and Performer are two very nice coolers. They are easy to install, compatible with all the current sockets and either one can hold its own and tame the heat from our Intel Core i7 3960X CPU overclocked to 4.5GHz.

The nicest feature of the Asetek built kits is the flexible tubing. This allows the cooler to be installed into just about any case with a 120mm fan mount.

The Thermaltake Water2.0 Pro was able to keep up with the Noctua NH-D14 air cooler in all the testing. When overclocked the Water2.0 Pro was only a few degrees behind the Corsair H80. The one feature the H80 has over the Water2.0 Pro is the High/Low speed switching ability. With the Water2.0 Pro being built by Asetek I was surprised it did not have the same speed controls like the also Asetek built Antec Kuhler 920 had. The Water2.0 Pro is not overly loud, but ability control the speed would have been nice.

When it comes to price the Water2.0 Pro is a little on the high side. Coming in at $98.99, it is $7 more than the Corsair H80. This price difference will have to be weighed out by the end user. The Thermaltake water cooler was easier to install thanks to the flexible lines, but the Corsair water cooler has better fan speed controls and performed better.

In the introduction we mentioned that the Thermaltake Water2.0 Pro was 57% more expensive than the Water2.0 Performer that costs just $62.99 shipped. We saw a 7% decrease in load temperatures with the Water2.0 Pro, which is significant, but if it is worth the price difference is up to you.

At the end of the day the Thermaltake Water2.0 Pro is a nice sealed loop water cooler where you get performance and installation flexibility that you’d expect from such a kit. There are some budget air coolers that will perform on par with the TT Water2.0 series, but with them comes clearance issues when it comes to DRAM heatspreader height. With a water cooler you don’t have to worry about memory clearance issues and that is always a plus. You also don’t have to worry about a heavy heatsink coming off when moving your case around as the bulk of the weight is in the radiator that is hanging off the metal case and not on the motherboard.

Legit Bottom Line: The Thermaltake Water2.0 series has a water cooler that will fit the needs of most users. For all out performance look at the Water2.0 Pro, for the budget minded put the Water2.0 Performer at the top of the short list.