Aqua PCs XSPC Thor

Watercooling kit

Let's take a look at the WC kit that populates the pre-loaded Thor. It's all by XSPC, which is a little cheaper than the trademark Aqua-Computer stuff that Aqua PCs also sells.

You get the DC1000/X20 pump, which operates on 12V, connecting up to a 3 pin fan connector. There is also a second molex attached to the pump which powers a blue LED embedded into the plastic, which lights up the water inside pretty nicely.

You get the R120-D radiator, which is a pretty standard dual 120mm radiator. The fans are wired with three pin plugs, which you can plug into the motherboard or user converters / rewire to go straight into your PSU.

The X20 Extreme CPU cooler has a mounting plate and accompanying screw kit that is designed to support pretty much every mounting system in existence. We connected ours up to a LGA775 Intel board, but it also supports AMD sockets A, 754, 939, 940 and AM2, as well as Intel socket 478.

The tubing is all 1/2", which is pretty mightily chunky. The requisite connectors and hose clamps are included, and the system comes pre-mounted in the case if that is your preference. The choice of half-inch tubing means you'll find plenty of compatible add-ons, not just from the XSPC range, and it also means there will be plenty of flow capacity to accommodate them.

If you want some extra components, you can spec up your 343 with them - Aqua PCs has XSPC VGA, chipset, HDD blocks and more.

Here you can see the pump, which is velco-mounted to the bottom of the case, and the radiator, which is housed in the modular top panel, above the 'dividing section' down the middle of the case. The reservoir has a sealed-but-removable cap for pouring extra water into, to help bleed the system of air.

The drive bay reservoir is housed on the right hand side of the case, above the pump. Pouring water into the res is simply a case of loosening the screws that hold it in the bay, sliding it out the front a little then removing the sealed cap on the top.

The tubing runs from the right hand side of the case to the left, attaching to the CPU block. The metal dividing section has the edge lined with soft plastic, which prevents the hosing rubbing against the metal - a good precaution.

The block itself is copper, and you can see more detail of it here.