SilverStone Tundra TD02 Review

Performance Analysis

The TD02's LGA1155 performance is a bit of a mixed bag. With its fans limited by our motherboard's PWM setting, its performance is on par with Corsair's H100i and H80i set to their Balanced and Maximum fan profiles respectively. This isn't brilliant given that both of these coolers are smaller and cheaper, but on the plus side its noise output is noticeably lower than both. It's also much quieter in this PWM state than all of the coolers that beat it here, with the only exception being the more expensive NZXT Kraken X60, which tops its delta T by 2°C with its software controlled Silent profile. Both the Noctua NH-D14 and the Thermalright SB-E X2 are also able to match its PWM result, but only with their fans set to full speed.


Disappointingly, ramping the TD02's fans to maximum speed only sheds 1°C from its PWM result for a best case delta T of 39°C. It was evident with our hands above the radiator that a great deal more air was being shifted at this setting, which strongly suggests that something other than airflow is limiting the TD02's performance. With this in mind, we remounted and rested the cooler, double checking that everything was nice and tight, but achieved the same results. This is a shame, as it consequently loses out to numerous other AIO coolers while being just as noisy at its full speed.

After a somewhat shaky start, everything comes together much more nicely for the TD02 on the LGA2011 socket, as the cooler tops the charts with its result of 42°C, the lowest delta T we've seen so far. It even manages to best the £120 Kraken X60, which is a great outcome. Our guess is that the huge copper baseplate is more efficient on the larger LGA2011 chips, but whatever it is, the Tundra TD02 clearly does something right here.

Conclusion

The SilverStone Tundra TD02 may not be the new AIO water-cooler that has it all, but it does have a lot. First and foremost is the build quality. Other than the slight niggle with the tubing, there's no part of the cooler we can fault in this regard, and the solid aluminium makes the TD02 stand head and shoulders above the competition both aesthetically and in the actual quality of its construction. It's really refreshing to see a manufacturer do something different, even just visually, in the largely copycat closed loop market.


The cooler doesn't assert itself as a leader or a game changer for LGA1155 CPUs, but it wouldn't be a wholly bad choice either, as with its fans dampened to lower noise levels it's still very effective compared to the competition. That said, the cheaper H100i remains our liquid cooler of choice here, as even now it still hits the best balance of price, performance and features. It's also mostly well built and has greater case compatibility.

The LGA2011 socket is where the Tundra TD02 really shines though, and provided you've the space and cash for it, you'll struggle to find a better option when it comes to cooling a toasty Sandy Bridge-E chip.