Alienware Intros Ultra High Performance water cooled Computers

[leejsmith]

http://www.xbitlabs.com/news/other/d...603155959.html

ALX systems are engineered and precisely-crafted to deliver ultimate performance using overclocked and tuned-up hardware. Performance-enhanced hardware includes the option to have CPU, memory, and video card settings overclocked by Alienware to the highest levels while maintaining system stability.

In order to maximize stability and reliability of ALX desktops, Alienware said it would use specially-designed liquid cooling system. Alienware’s liquid cooling technology features a next-generation thermal management solution, using a specially-mixed coolant and gold-plated, pure copper coolers to keep the heat generated by system components in check.

In addition to performance, Alienware also offers special consulting services for ALX owners. ALX customers will receive one-on-one attention from Alienware’s team of dedicated PC enthusiasts, who will help them with everything from deciding what components will perform best to recommending what settings their software should run on. ALX owners will also receive the option of speaking directly with their system’s assembler and having up to three of their favorite games installed, updated, and optimized on their system, free of charge.

Prices Start at $4865 but nothing on what the water cooling parts are

(edit)

from the web site it looks like a koolance type system with the rads in the top and the temp readout.

http://www.alienware.com/ALX_pages/a...?popup=cooling

Uses built-in, three-speed fan control for the quietest operation possible
Reduces dust accumulation on internal components, resulting in a longer lifespan and cleaner overall system
Proprietary power control board constantly monitors liquid temperature, with emergency alarm and automatic shut down features
CPU retention clip places even pressure across the CPU for extra protection

[jaydee]

Well it will be interesting to see the setup. What caught my eye was the gold plated copper. I thought Gold was a very poor thermal conductor.

[jaydee]

Well not as bad as I thought but certainly worst than Copper. I wonder if the plated the bases on the blocks.

 conductivity                                     density 
Material                 W/m*K                 g/cm(3) 
Aluminum                 247                   2.71 
Aluminum      (6061)  171                 2.6-2.9 
Aluminum       (6063) 193                  2.6-2.9 
Aluminum (7075-T6)  130                 2.6-2.9 
Brass   (70Cu-30Zn)  115                n/a 
Copper                      398                 8.94 
Gold                          315                 19.32

[8-Ball]

It may be worse than copper, but it is very unreactive and a thin coating would have very little effect on the overall efficiency of the block.

And it sounds good.

8-ball

[jaydee]

Originally Posted by 8-Ball

It may be worse than copper, but it is very unreactive and a thin coating would have very little effect on the overall efficiency of the block.

And it sounds good.

8-ball

More than enough NOT to do it to the base IMO for a $5,000 system. That thing better give better blow jobs than my GF!

[HAL-9000]

Originally Posted by jaydee116

More than enough NOT to do it to the base IMO for a $5,000 system. That thing better give better blow jobs than my GF!

No really, I can see why they would put gold on the block. Gold is the best thermal conductor that is also virtually chemically inert. It does not oxidize, and it protects the copper from any galvanic effects. Given they are shipping these things out of a factory to users who expect a plug 'n play experience with no problems for at least some hundreds of hours of ops, I can see the motivation.

BTW, good rule of thumb is that the better an electrical conductor a metal is, the better thermal conductor it is as well. Hence from first to fourth it goes silver, copper, gold, and aluminum in that order in both those physical properties.

[AngryAlpaca]

It's probably like the Voodoo one. It uses a chiller that can go below zero, but they don't take the water below zero because that "causes problems." It also uses a water block that has state-of-the-art technology that channels the fluid (they won't say which fluid) around in the waterblock for enhanced performance (this says to me that they use a shitty maze design) It seems to all be bullshit to me, with performance about equivalent middle of the line air.

[jaydee]

Originally Posted by HAL-9000

No really, I can see why they would put gold on the block. Gold is the best thermal conductor that is also virtually chemically inert. It does not oxidize, and it protects the copper from any galvanic effects. Given they are shipping these things out of a factory to users who expect a plug 'n play experience with no problems for at least some hundreds of hours of ops, I can see the motivation.

BTW, good rule of thumb is that the better an electrical conductor a metal is, the better thermal conductor it is as well. Hence from first to fourth it goes silver, copper, gold, and aluminum in that order in both those physical properties.

Read my post again. I don't care if they put it on all sides EXCEPT the base where the die/IHS of the CPU is going to makie contact. There will be no oxidization because the thermal compound acts as a sealant. They can gold coat it and put diamonds all over it for all I care. But if it costs $5,000 it better offer the absolute best performance possible.

[leejsmith]

I am sure it's a koolance base system.

The Alienware® ALX Active Liquid Cooling System is based on a dual pump design, which increases reliability. If one pump should fail, the other will continue to operate, maintaining system operating temperatures and preventing potential system failure.

with a gold plated water block, temp monitor,rad in the top and auto shutdown all the features of a koolance exos or there own case.

how much would it cost to build a system with the same spec ? i could cost it for uk prices but what about in $ it's got to be about half the price and better cooled.

[killernoodle]

The internals come to $2,484 on newegg, without the socket 939 good motherboard, but with a socket 940. That does not include the case, peripherals, and monitor.

[pHaestus]

I wouldn't want to have to take on the extra warranty cost of providing people who won't build their own PCs with a water cooling system. That's a train wreck in sight for sure.

[HAL-9000]

Originally Posted by pHaestus

I wouldn't want to have to take on the extra warranty cost of providing people who won't build their own PCs with a water cooling system. That's a train wreck in sight for sure.

I do agree though thats its probably a Koolance system. They seem to make their living on overpriced "turnkey" watercooling though. If anyone has experience in selling that kind of a setup, I'd guess its Koolance. Judging from the premium markup on the 'puters though, it looks like Alienware has already factored in what they believe to be future costs of support into the price though. Five grand is expensive for a computer.

I don't remember where the link in the forums are, but someone posted a link to this company that takes Vapochills and tweaks them with 7" LCD's and such with a full tested and OC'ed computer inside. They also do tweaks like RAM drives and such out of the box. A better computer than the Alienware really, and sells for around four grand. Go fig.

[8-Ball]

Doesn't seemed that badly priced to me, but then in the UK it would be £5000 instead of the ~£3000 you'd have to pay at current exchange rate, so don't complain too much.

8-ball

[pHaestus]

edit// nm that discussion turned retarded

[leejsmith]

Originally Posted by 8-Ball

Doesn't seemed that badly priced to me, but then in the UK it would be £5000 instead of the ~£3000 you'd have to pay at current exchange rate, so don't complain too much.

8-ball

i aint complaining just wonderd how it compares.

my internal spec stock coolers no case or screen ect

Antec TruePower 550W PSU £79.00
AMD Athlon FX53 (Socket 940) - Retail £472.50
Asus SK8V (Socket 940) Motherboard £125.00
Corsair 1GB DDR XMS4400PT TwinX (2x512MB) £225.00
2 x Western Digital Raptor 74GB Serial ATA 10000RPM - OEM £253.90
Sapphire ATI Radeon X800 XT 256MB DDR3 TV-Out/DVI - Full Retail £299.95
Sony DRU-700A Dual Layer 8x DVD±RW ReWriter - Retail £122.10
Creative Sound Blaster Audigy ZS Platinum Pro 7.1 - Retail £139.95
Microsoft Windows XP Professional - £86.00
Subtotal £1,803.40
shipping £9.75
VAT £317.32
Total £2,130.47

or $3,909.99

so not that far off once you include water cooling , nice case and flat screen.

[jaydee]

I don't care how it compares. Paying 5 grand for something that will be worth half that much in less than 6 months isn't a favorable purchase IMO. At least the DIY systems don't loose as much value as quickly and probably perform just aswell if not better.

[HAL-9000]

Originally Posted by jaydee116

I don't care how it compares. Paying 5 grand for something that will be worth half that much in less than 6 months isn't a favorable purchase IMO. At least the DIY systems don't loose as much value as quickly and probably perform just aswell if not better.

Wasn't you who posted that link to that company that built custom computers out of Vapochill cases? I think it was you. If so, you should re-post it here on this thread so folks can compare the difference and see which system is the most bang for the buck out of the box!

[jaydee]

Originally Posted by HAL-9000

Wasn't you who posted that link to that company that built custom computers out of Vapochill cases? I think it was you. If so, you should re-post it here on this thread so folks can compare the difference and see which system is the most bang for the buck out of the box!

Not that I can recall. :shrug:

[pHaestus]

I thought that company turned out to be a scam anyway?

[HAL-9000]

Originally Posted by pHaestus

I thought that company turned out to be a scam anyway?

I remember their website, they looked serious enough about it. And they also had a teaser about an upcoming product that would use a proprietary case they developed.

Of course that doesn't mean much in today's age of slick scammers. I wish I still had the link though...dang it!

[HAL-9000]

Originally Posted by pHaestus

I thought that company turned out to be a scam anyway?

I remember their website, they looked serious enough about it. And they also had a teaser about an upcoming product that would use a proprietary case they developed.

Of course that doesn't mean much in today's age of slick scammers. I wish I still had the link though...dang it! Its buried somewhere in these forums, just don't know which thread.

[BalefireX]

I've heard conflicting reports about L (the company that does the vapochill OCed computers)
Some people have suggested that they are a scam, and having read their specs and claims, there is certainly some serious marketing-speak and exaggeration going on, but I have heard from other people that they do make good stuff - particularly in reference to their desktop-replacement laptops.
www.go-l.com is their website if you want to check it out.

[leejsmith]

Falloutboytonto posted some info in one of my threads about the fastest pc if money was not limited.



http://www.go-l.com/desktops/machl38/features/index.htm

That is one hell of a PC! Here is a glance at the specs:

- Intel P4 Extreme Edition @ 3.8 GHz with 950 FSB
- 180W Sub-zero Vapor Compression Cooling
- Up to 4 GB of Dual-Channel DDR RAM @ 533 MHz
- O/Ced ATi Radeon 9800 Pro with High-Definition Component Video Output
- 1 TERABYTE of storage (Optional RAM Drives)
- Up to 74 full-length 32-bit or 64-bit PCI slots

- 92" LCD Displays with resolutions of 6400x1200 pixels

I did some searching before and found it was the display manufactors that did not exist.

From this link

http://radio.weblogs.com/0105910/2003/09/25.html

[Incoherent]

Regarding gold plating the base.

I could imagine that doing this would actually improve the performance. Two reasons:
1. Less (no) oxidation.
2. The gold is softer than copper, it would conform to the irregularities in the chip surface giving a better contact. The bonding of the Gold to copper I guess would yield an almost perfect thermal interface.
Much I don't know.
Just a thought.

[8-Ball]

By definition, interfaces are not perfect, so there will be an added thermal resistance associated with the interface between the gold and the copper, though this probably won't be much

8-ball