PA Series - Optimised for Fans with an individual CFM Output of upto 130cfm
Bringing the "King of Cool" crown home... The PA120 radiator series features a dual-row dual-pass 120mm form factor, available in single, double and triple sizes, optimised for the fans of today and putting into practice everything learned about watercooling efficiency and performance over the past 3 years. The PA Series boasts from 10-40% better performance over the HE Series. 10% for the high / noisy airflow end of the fan market, and up to 40% for the low airflow / silence end of the market.
Awarded with the HardwareLuxx Award of Excellence - May 2006
**NEW** Beats all competition within same form factor for ultra-low pressure drop... see HERE
The PA120 series was concieved after the design-success of the PA160. During development of the PA160 it was discovered that radiators could be more finely tuned for the needs of today's watercooling community, where silence has started to become a major priority. Testing and comparison of the PA160 led to a starting point for PA120 series development. A large portion of the initial discussion and theoretical work leading to the first prototype was done publicly and can be viewed here at Overclockers.com.au (post #171 onwards - Membership Req'd). After the first prototype was produced, development went private for obvious reasons, but a number of further revised prototypes were then created and tested.
After many months of number crunching and testing the final spec for the PA120 series was decided upon. This final design showed a vast improvement over the HE Series... by a significant margin when it came to silent fans. Additional testing confirmed that this margin applied not only to silent fans but to regular and higher airflow fans, up to a 130cfm (approximately) point.
The final spec was slightly "outside-the-box" when it came to regular Radiator construction, thus weeks of tooling changes ensued before the new series could be commerically released to retail. Which brings us to the present day...
The PA120 radiator series features a dual-row dual-pass 120mm form factor, available in single, double and triple sizes, optimised for the fans of today and putting into practice everything learned about watercooling efficiency and performance over the past 3 years. The PA Series boasts from 10-40% better performance over the HE Series. 10% for the high / noisy airflow end of the fan market, and up to 40% for the low airflow / silence end of the market.
What does this mean to you as an end-user? You can retain the same performance for even less noise, or better performance for the same noise over your current radiator. If at the end of the day performance is all that matters to you and noise is of no concern, the new PA Series still offers significant improvements over the HE series. Alternately if silence is the goal, you can now have that too, but with more cooling performance than ever before!
"Biggest surprise to me was that a PA with the shroud was able to maintain a performance level at 600rpm that all other rads needed 1200rpm to get to. If it comes to low noise, nothing is even close to the PA at this time." - Radiical53 @ XtremeSystems
The PA120 Final Production models are currently undergoing testing to provide technical data for those who require it. As more results are available to us, we will add them to the list below.
Review by HardwareLuxx Magazine, May 2006 - (translated from German to English by the Author)
“The PA is a radiator of superlatives. It’s bigger, stronger and more powerful than all other contendants, but also more expensive, if you take the price for the (very useful) accessoires and the shipping from the UK into account. But what do you get for your money? As you take it out of the package, you can feel that this is something special in your hands. With much love to useful details, completely manufactured in England, comes a matte black, 2.1kg heavy radiator seeking for equivalents. It has mounting holes for fans on both sides, as all other contenders do, but comes with additional holes on the side to optionally mount the rad in the case or to mount the shroud which is sold separately. As a unique feature it also has a bleeding screw on the opposite side of the fittings, a detail formerly known only from car radiators. A useful detail that comes in handy when bleeding a fully mounted loop. It’s also the only model to come with large 3/8” BSP threads which eliminates another narrow point, resulting in the best score for flow restriction of the whole test. Matching fittings can be found directly at Thermochill or the widely available Eheim 1046/1048 inlet adapters can be used as they have the same threads. Looking further and more closely, the bad painting can be easily spotted. Looking at the net structure, this can be seen as a feature as another restrictive part, thick paint, is missing. The fine copper fins are quite far apart when being compared to what can be seen on the rest of the contendants. This is another optimization by the manufacturer, minimizing restriction for low rpm fans. The missing cooling surface is compensated by an enlarged thickness of the net where the PA shows one of the highest values of the comparison, 42mm to be exact. But where are the other 18mm adding up to the total dimension of 60mm? They’re divided into 2x9mm large chambers to move the fans a little further away from the net, reducing the dead spot below the fan’s motor hub and the sound coming from turbulent flow just below the fan. This is where the formerly mentioned shroud joins the game again. With it, the fans are raised another 30mm above the radiator, furtherly reducing the dead spot. With the neoprene gaskets that are also supplied, the air just has to go through the rad itself, leaving no leak for it to pass other than through the copper fins. Another effect of the gaskets is a decoupling of the fans, furtherly reducing noise production. Performance-wise the shroud does a really nice job, furtherly improving the already great performance of the PA. Like this, the PA can show the same performance with 600rpm fans as the best other rads get from 1200rpm fans. The optimization for low rpm fans is seen again when looking at the other values from our measurements. The difference between in- and outgoing fluid nearly doesn’t change, the outgoing air does only heat up very little when the fans are turned down. As a result, this setup does dramatically reduce noise without losing any performance compared to a competitor.
So, is there a downside? Well, there is. One is the really high price for a fully setup PA (~170€ including shroud, fan grill and shipping), also the paint job does not hold up to the expectation of such a high quality, high price product[this has been resolved as of June 2006 - Marci, Technical Manager]. Also, the huge size is a problem here and there if someone has to fit a PA into a rather small case. The amount of space needed to make it work efficiently is significantly larger than of many other radiators, as there should be some clearance left to other components to provide proper function.
For those how want to run the PA with higher rpm fans, the shroud isn’t really needed and might be a point to save some bucks: We could see a nice performance increase with 600rpm and 900rpm, but at 1200rpm the PA with shroud looses some performance compared to what it was able to without one, maybe as there’s less pressure from the fans due to the bigger distance to the rad. When comparing the measurements with and without the shroud, a difference in outgoing air temps of up to 2.2K can be seen when using the shroud. This is another advantage of the big package, as the PA can really help to cool the inside of the case when set up like this, as the air is not heated up very much and there’s still quite some air flow due to the low restriction design.
With this, the PA gets our total recommendation for all who are seeking for maximum performance with minimum noise, also having a big case to put it into and a well filled wallet. A very well done package that can be used for many different needs, perfectly doing the job, with the only downside being a relatively high price”
PA Series - Optimised for Fans with an individual CFM Output of upto 130cfm
Bringing the "King of Cool" crown home... The PA120 radiator series features a dual-row dual-pass 120mm form factor, available in single, double and triple sizes, optimised for the fans of today and putting into practice everything learned about watercooling efficiency and performance over the past 3 years. The PA Series boasts from 10-40% better performance over the HE Series. 10% for the high / noisy airflow end of the fan market, and up to 40% for the low airflow / silence end of the market.
Awarded with the HardwareLuxx Award of Excellence - May 2006
**NEW** Beats all competition within same form factor for ultra-low pressure drop... see HERE
The PA120 series was concieved after the design-success of the PA160. During development of the PA160 it was discovered that radiators could be more finely tuned for the needs of today's watercooling community, where silence has started to become a major priority. Testing and comparison of the PA160 led to a starting point for PA120 series development. A large portion of the initial discussion and theoretical work leading to the first prototype was done publicly and can be viewed here at Overclockers.com.au (post #171 onwards - Membership Req'd). After the first prototype was produced, development went private for obvious reasons, but a number of further revised prototypes were then created and tested.
After many months of number crunching and testing the final spec for the PA120 series was decided upon. This final design showed a vast improvement over the HE Series... by a significant margin when it came to silent fans. Additional testing confirmed that this margin applied not only to silent fans but to regular and higher airflow fans, up to a 130cfm (approximately) point.
The final spec was slightly "outside-the-box" when it came to regular Radiator construction, thus weeks of tooling changes ensued before the new series could be commerically released to retail. Which brings us to the present day...
The PA120 radiator series features a dual-row dual-pass 120mm form factor, available in single, double and triple sizes, optimised for the fans of today and putting into practice everything learned about watercooling efficiency and performance over the past 3 years. The PA Series boasts from 10-40% better performance over the HE Series. 10% for the high / noisy airflow end of the fan market, and up to 40% for the low airflow / silence end of the market.
What does this mean to you as an end-user? You can retain the same performance for even less noise, or better performance for the same noise over your current radiator. If at the end of the day performance is all that matters to you and noise is of no concern, the new PA Series still offers significant improvements over the HE series. Alternately if silence is the goal, you can now have that too, but with more cooling performance than ever before!
"Biggest surprise to me was that a PA with the shroud was able to maintain a performance level at 600rpm that all other rads needed 1200rpm to get to. If it comes to low noise, nothing is even close to the PA at this time." - Radiical53 @ XtremeSystems
The PA120 Final Production models are currently undergoing testing to provide technical data for those who require it. As more results are available to us, we will add them to the list below.
Review by HardwareLuxx Magazine, May 2006 - (translated from German to English by the Author)
“The PA is a radiator of superlatives. It’s bigger, stronger and more powerful than all other contendants, but also more expensive, if you take the price for the (very useful) accessoires and the shipping from the UK into account. But what do you get for your money? As you take it out of the package, you can feel that this is something special in your hands. With much love to useful details, completely manufactured in England, comes a matte black, 2.1kg heavy radiator seeking for equivalents. It has mounting holes for fans on both sides, as all other contenders do, but comes with additional holes on the side to optionally mount the rad in the case or to mount the shroud which is sold separately. As a unique feature it also has a bleeding screw on the opposite side of the fittings, a detail formerly known only from car radiators. A useful detail that comes in handy when bleeding a fully mounted loop. It’s also the only model to come with large 3/8” BSP threads which eliminates another narrow point, resulting in the best score for flow restriction of the whole test. Matching fittings can be found directly at Thermochill or the widely available Eheim 1046/1048 inlet adapters can be used as they have the same threads. Looking further and more closely, the bad painting can be easily spotted. Looking at the net structure, this can be seen as a feature as another restrictive part, thick paint, is missing. The fine copper fins are quite far apart when being compared to what can be seen on the rest of the contendants. This is another optimization by the manufacturer, minimizing restriction for low rpm fans. The missing cooling surface is compensated by an enlarged thickness of the net where the PA shows one of the highest values of the comparison, 42mm to be exact. But where are the other 18mm adding up to the total dimension of 60mm? They’re divided into 2x9mm large chambers to move the fans a little further away from the net, reducing the dead spot below the fan’s motor hub and the sound coming from turbulent flow just below the fan. This is where the formerly mentioned shroud joins the game again. With it, the fans are raised another 30mm above the radiator, furtherly reducing the dead spot. With the neoprene gaskets that are also supplied, the air just has to go through the rad itself, leaving no leak for it to pass other than through the copper fins. Another effect of the gaskets is a decoupling of the fans, furtherly reducing noise production. Performance-wise the shroud does a really nice job, furtherly improving the already great performance of the PA. Like this, the PA can show the same performance with 600rpm fans as the best other rads get from 1200rpm fans. The optimization for low rpm fans is seen again when looking at the other values from our measurements. The difference between in- and outgoing fluid nearly doesn’t change, the outgoing air does only heat up very little when the fans are turned down. As a result, this setup does dramatically reduce noise without losing any performance compared to a competitor.
So, is there a downside? Well, there is. One is the really high price for a fully setup PA (~170€ including shroud, fan grill and shipping), also the paint job does not hold up to the expectation of such a high quality, high price product[this has been resolved as of June 2006 - Marci, Technical Manager]. Also, the huge size is a problem here and there if someone has to fit a PA into a rather small case. The amount of space needed to make it work efficiently is significantly larger than of many other radiators, as there should be some clearance left to other components to provide proper function.
For those how want to run the PA with higher rpm fans, the shroud isn’t really needed and might be a point to save some bucks: We could see a nice performance increase with 600rpm and 900rpm, but at 1200rpm the PA with shroud looses some performance compared to what it was able to without one, maybe as there’s less pressure from the fans due to the bigger distance to the rad. When comparing the measurements with and without the shroud, a difference in outgoing air temps of up to 2.2K can be seen when using the shroud. This is another advantage of the big package, as the PA can really help to cool the inside of the case when set up like this, as the air is not heated up very much and there’s still quite some air flow due to the low restriction design.
With this, the PA gets our total recommendation for all who are seeking for maximum performance with minimum noise, also having a big case to put it into and a well filled wallet. A very well done package that can be used for many different needs, perfectly doing the job, with the only downside being a relatively high price”
I have nothing to say this item i like it so much that I might buy another one. Its a good price and good quality
(Read More)
Dead Things 11/24/09
Verified Owner
With the price now almost 50% lower than it used to be, and with Thermochill now going with the unofficial 15mm fan spacing standard, there basically is no reason to buy any other rad outside of availability issues.
Best rad on the market! Dropped my load temps around 5c compared to my previous Swiftech rad. Works great paired with some Noctua NF-P12 fans.
(Read More)
Please note that NCIX.com Forums
is not a sales or product support board. For
sales or specific product related questions, please send message
to receive the fastest response.
Messages about Thermochill PA120.3 Triple 120MM Fan Water Cooling Radiator With 15MM Spacing *No Barbs*
Forum messages are not reviewed and may not contain accurate information about a product.
Message contents are opinions from customers based on their own experience with a product.
We do not recommend you make puchasing decisions based on Forum messages.
Customer Reviews of (Thermochill 5060207430029)
Product reviews on NCIX.com are screened for relevance and inappropriate
content. Reviews may contain inaccurate information about the product.
If there is a discrepancy, please use the Flag this Review link
located beside each review. Reviews are not an endorsement expressed by
NCIX.com, but opinions from customers based on their own experience with
a product. We do not recommend you make purchasing decisions based on facts or opinions expressed in these reviews.
Cons G3/8" barbs seem largely obsolete these days but you'll need a pair of them to connect your coolant tubing to this radiator.
Summary I'm happy with the performance of this radiator. My only regret was not reading the product specs closer, otherwise my build wouldn't have stalled for 3 days while I waited for the proper sized barbs to arrive. .
Pros Cools very well Looks good in its black paint job
Cons No barbs included No shroud or gasket included Watch very carefully the size screws you use with this. Even the included fan mount screws look too long. Remember; you puncture it with screws and your SOL.
Summary This is an excellent unit that will keep your chip very cool. The reason it doesn't get five stars is that it doesn't come with anything. Come on guys, you want over a hundred bucks for a glorified car heater core and you can't include a shroud? Yes folks, the penny pinching folks at Thermochill can't chuck you a 59 cent, plastic shroud with gasket! Give me a break. I can understand the barbs going missing (kind of, anyway) as some will fit for 3/8 and others 1/2 and they cost all of what? 87 cents a piece? How about include 2 sets? Nooooooo! That would cost far too much! Anyway, enough ranting. It is a very good rad and will help drop your temp significantly...just don't forget to budget for barbs and a shroud... if you figure you'll need one.
This review was modfied by poster j 03-08-10 04:23 PM
This review was modfied by poster @ 03-08-10 04:08 PM
Pros Don't let the revised lower pricing fool you - this is still the king of rads
Cons G3/8 - ugh
Summary With the price now almost 50% lower than it used to be, and with Thermochill now going with the unofficial 15mm fan spacing standard, there basically is no reason to buy any other rad outside of availability issues.
The PA120.3 goes toe-to-toe with the Feser rads for half the price. It performs better than any other rad on the market with low-RPM fans for those seeking a silent water cooling solution. It also is among the best rads with high-RPM fans for those looking for optimal performance.
It still uses G3/8 threads - and while this choice does help to minimize restriction compared to G1/4, it is nonetheless non-standard and reduces the selection of compatible barbs. I cannot, for example, think of any compression fittings on the market that use G3/8 any more. This is not to say it's hard to find G3/8 barbs - just that the selection is much smaller than G1/4 barbs. For compatible barbs, check for availability from SKUs 31009, 25389 and 28323.
These are wide rads, too - about twice as wide as a MCR320, so make sure you take measurements before purchasing to ensure you do, in fact, have enough space to house the PA120.3.
I honestly can't believe the new pricing. For the performance, it's really just an amazing deal.
Cons Non-standard G1/2 thread (not G1/4). I think it may be BSPT and not BSPP like all the other fitting are too.
Summary I now have 3 of these, and while I wish they would standardize the threading, I can't complain about the perfomance! Best rad you will find for the money, hands down.
Summary This radiator is one of the best radiator in the market. The low fin density gives great results even with low rpm fans if you need a low noise system. The bleeder valve is nice. This is a top quality rad, but quality isn't cheap!
Summary HI,the Thermochill pa120.3 is one of the best radiator in the market if not the best,it big,before you buy this radiator look the spec maybe it too big for your case,it expensive but it a top Qualite radiator with a good heat dispersion,trust me this product is a 100% kick ass.
Pros Amazing cooling even with relatively low CFM fans Bleeder valve
Cons Would be nice if they included the barbs with it, but other than that this is an amazing product, worth the price tag
Summary It doesn't get much better than this as far as radiators are concerned. Great cooling even with lower rated fans, as the fin density is fairly loose. I'm very happy to see that they put a bleeder valve on the end of the radiator (opposite the barbs) as from what I hear they are the only brand to do this. Great for bleeding the air from your system.
Summary This is by far the king of radiators, least amount of restriction. One big thing for me was that it can mount in a MM case without any cutting or hastle.
Pros One of the best radiators in the work, excellent craftmanship and great cooling power with low CFM fans
Cons Paint finish is a bit weak
Summary I bough this directly from Thermochill because NCIX didn't have any in stock at the time of order. They are very helpful with the whole order.
I won't comment about the performances since others said this already. Suffice to say it will surely outlast everything else for the next 5-10 years, making it a great investment for any watercooling enthusiasts :)
Summary great rad, great improvement over my 120.2. I am coolng a Q6700at3.2 Ghz(33c),8800gtx(35c)while folding at 85% load. These temps are with 21c ambient temp. In my old case my temps where about the same with the 120.2 but didnt have gpu in loop.
I am using Scythe S-FLEX SFF21E fans in push-pull in a Mountain Mods U2-UFO,D-Tek Fusion Cpu and Fusion GFX Gpu blocks, Swiftech MCP655 and a Swiftech Micro res with Tygon 7/16" tubing.
This review was modfied by poster @ 10-07-07 09:06 PM
Pros -Twice the performance of my GTX Rad -G3/8 Fittings, better flow
Cons -It's Really, Really Thick -It's about 1cm taller then my GTX, Which made for whole lot of difficulties installing it in my Armour Case, I could only use 1 front slot in my case out of 11.
Summary This is such a great rad! It is totally worth the money. Right now I am cooling a Q6600 (30idle), Crossfire 1900 series(32idle), RD600 Northbridge(37idle).....I'll be posting pics later in the week on the watercooling forum
This review was modfied by poster @ 08-22-07 02:48 AM
All pricing subject to change. For all prices,
products and offers, NCIX.com reserves the right to make adjustments
due to changing market conditions, product discontinuation, manufacturer
price changes, errors in advertisements and other extenuating
circumstances. Promotional offers from NCIX.com are subject to
availability and are available only while supplies last. No rain
checks will be issued on promotional items and offers.
While NCIX.com uses all reasonable efforts
to include accurate and up-to-date information on the Site, NCIX.com
makes no warranties or representations as to the Site's accuracy.
NCIX.com assumes no liability or responsibility for any errors
or omissions in the content on the Site.
NCIX.com warrants product(s) to be in good
working condition and free from defects in material and workmanship
for a period of one (1) year for OEM packages, and for thirty
(30) days for RETAIL packages, from the original Invoice date
unless otherwise restricted below or by the manufacturer's own
warranty policy. Defective returns and warranty service will be
replaced, exchanged or repaired at NCIX.com's sole discretion,
and based on vendor's policy.
NON-DEFECTIVE merchandise returns may be
accepted on some items ONLY within 15 days of the Invoice date,
at NCIX.com's discretion. All NON-DEFECTIVE returns are subject
to a 15% restocking fee. No refunds will be issued for blank media,
digital cameras (and accessories), opened software, printers,
printer supplies, paper, projectors (and accessories), appliances,
handhelds, PDAs, notebook computers, special order computers and
special order items.
Defective software, video games or DVDs
will be replaced by the SAME title and format ONLY (and subject
to current availability) within 30 days of the Invoice date. Software,
video games and DVDs may be returned within 30 days only if the
item is UNOPENED (with shrink wrap still intact) at the sole discretion
of NCIX.com.
NCIX.com does NOT apply a surcharge
to credit card orders. Please read our RMA
& warranty policy and terms
& conditions for more information. If you have
any questions regarding our sales and warranty policies, please
send us a message -- we'll be glad to answer any of your questions.
Product Warranty
NCIX provides limited warranty for this product for 30 days after purchase.