It must have been someone in the CORSAIR designer camp that stated: never change a winning formula. Hence why we see no surprises in the cardboard box design. The H105 pump, radiator, Fans and mounting mechanism are well protected on the inside.

The Hydro H105 features a 240mm radiator to allow maximum heat dissipation, yet at a comfortable noise level versus the 120 models. The H105 pump unit resembles many similarities with the H75. However there are a few more refinements,  differentiating the H105 from just being a look alike. For instance, the CORSAIR logo will light up once powered. Since this H105 is build by Asetek, no support for the CORSAIR LINK software is provided (CoolIT technology), thus no changing the LED RGB colors sadly.

The pre-applied thermal paste is protected by a clear plastic cover. Swivelling tubes are of course a must for an easier installation.

In the package we find two additional color accent plastic rings, which allow you to customize the looks of your Hydro H105. These rings are easily removable with the tip of a screwdriver, just make sure you don't damage the plastic of the pump unit.

The package contains:

• Hydro Series H105 Liquid CPU cooler
• Two SP120L High performance fans
• Mounting bracket and hardware
• Color accent rings
• Quick Start Quide
• Y cable for fan connection

The Hydro H105 is compatible with all current processor sockets:

• INTEL: LGA 1150/1155/1156/1366 and socket 2011 (no LGA775 support)
• AMD: FM1/FM2/FM2+/AM2 and AM3

The biggest difference with all 240 versions from CORSAIR is due to the increased thickness of the radiator, now measuring in at 38mm. The radiator dimensions are 272.5mm x 120mm x 38mm.

Below are some pictures to highlight the comparison between the radiator and tubing of the Hydro H100i  (left side) and the new Hydro H105 (right side).

If you do the math, the radiator cooling surface thus has been drastically increased. More optimizations were also carried out on the radiator fin design, all to achieve better airflow, resulting in superior cooling.

The low evaporation tubing length remains unchanged at around 330mm. The tubing diameter is measured at approx. 11mm for the H105, significantly less than the H100i's  14mm thick tubing.

Since the release of the Air series Fans, Corsair always includes light versions of their high static pressure Fans with the Hydro series. Pretty awesome stuff as these shift some serious air and are optimized for maximum cooling performance. While remaining far less noisy as previous utilized versions, take note that the boxed SP120L Fans are slightly trimmed down versions of the Air series. To reduce costs, no rubber anti-vibration pads and no interchangeable color rings are included.

The two Fans are PWM controllable and are hooked up via a Y splitter to one of the PWM compatible Fan headers on your motherboard. The SP120L Fan specs are;

• Dimensions; 120 x 120 x 25mm
• Speed: 800- 2700 RPM (+/-10%)
• Airflow: 73 CFM
• Static Pressure: 3.9mm/H2O
• Noise level: 37.7 dBA

The mounting mechanism also evolved over the years, becoming more simple in design, utilizing less and less parts, making them easier to install. Since CORSAIR removed LGA 775 from the support list, the Intel bracket only requires two different formats to be fully compatible with legacy and modern sockets.

For Intel LGA 1150/1155/1156 and 1366 the end user is required to install the back plate; no more tiny aluminum inserts to mess around with. Instead slide able socket adaptable mounting positions, making everybody's life far easier.

Install the back plate first, then screw in the four standoffs, mount the pump unit and secure it with four oversized thumbscrews and you are done.

Different standoffs have to be used for LGA2011. On the left picture we still have two black ones installed from the H100i kit. The new version look far more professional don't they ?

The Hydro 105 is Intel ready out of the box. To install the pump unit on an AMD setup, one needs to remove the Intel mounting bracket. Again an easy job, just pop the retaining ring, position the AMD bracket and secure it again with the retaining ring. No screwing nor multi part swap job, this is as simple as it can get.

The black standoffs are required for AMD setups. Just screw them into the original backplate, mount the pump unit and secure with the four thumbscrews.

Since the H105 is PWM controlled, we opted to test the four Bios presets our ASUS X79 Sabertooth offers. An other option would be to test via the included motherboard AI software suite.

The pump was hooked up to a PWM disabled Fan header, continuously running at 1850rpm. For the Fan speed we read out the rpm via the AIDA64 software sensor tab. This resulted in the following Fan speeds:

• Silent BIOS PWM profile: Fan speed ranging from 820-1600rpm
• Normal BIOS PWM profile: Fan speed ranging from 900-1860rpm
• Turbo BIOS PWM profile: Fan speed ranging from 1150-2350rpm
• PWM disabled: Fan speed full time at 2600rpm

Keep in consideration that your motherboard PWM presets or the bundled motherboard software can result in slightly different Fan speeds.

IDLE RESULTS:

With the Intel i7-3960X idling at 4500MHz we already spot a trend developing. The new Hydro H105 is a tad better, even in the silent profile, then the H100i. The more fan speed we generate, the better the unit starts to cool down our idling hexacore setup. In comparison to the previous 240 model flagship, the Hydro H100i, the new H105 is slightly better performing at a slower Fan rpm.

LOAD RESULTS:

Time to crank things up, with all 12 cores fully occupied with a Mersenne Prime calculation the same trend is visible. The Hydro H105 bests its predecessor up to 1.5 degrees at a similar, slightly audible, noise level. Take note that the Fans spin a bit faster with the H105 in silent mode versus the quiet profile from the H100i ( 1600rpm versus 1300rpm ) The Normal fan speed mode of the H105 is comparable with the balanced mode of the H100i ( 1850rpm versus 1950 rpm ), yet again we spot a 1.5°C temperature gain for the new kid on the block. It even enters H110 territory with the normal and Turbo preset. More than proof enough that the thicker and redesigned radiator is capable of dissipating the heat better with identical hardware. Adding more Fan speed results in lower operating temperatures, though the increase in cooling performance is far less impressive versus the added noise level.

NOISE:

For the acoustic tests we measured the SP120L Fan running at full blast (+/- 2600rpm) and measured 36.8dBA at one meter distance. So yes they are audible, however the end user has it all in his own hands. Use the PWM force wisely, either via the motherboard's BIOS or bundled software and customize the performance versus noise ratio at your own discretion.

Corsair has raised the bar for the 240 AIO units once more. It's fascinating how engineers keep on finding them small gains, time after time; Okay the cooling performance is still far away from a high end watercooling set! Nevertheless we are dealing with a pre-filled and closed loop system, that requires zero maintenance and is straightforward to install. Especially the improved mounting mechanism, similar to the H75, is a big step forward from previous Asetek derived models and must be certified as über Noob friendly.

Cooling wise the H105 name tells the tale, a bit better then the H100i and closing in on the 280mm H110 version. If we compare it with the H100i, the H105 cools around 1 to 1.5°C better at similar Fan speeds.Take note we used the ASUS X79 Sabertooth Bios PWM steering presets, so results could vary from your setup. The H110 outperforms the Hydro H105 and this at a lower noise level. However the 280 Hydro H110 version is not as case compatible as the smaller 240 models.

Is the H105 a reason to upgrade ? It all depends what your current cooler setup looks like. If your case can house a 240 model this is the CORSAIR Hydro version to go for. If you already own a Hydro of the previous generations and are running out of steam to keep everything at safe operating temperatures, then I can heartly recommend the Hydro H105. Upgrading from a high specced model as e.g. the H100(i) will yield better temperatures, though will not be worth the extra investment. Also take into consideration the sometimes crappy heat transfer from the cores to the heatspreader with some Intel processors (Ivy Bridge and Haswell CPUs) In some cases it might be better to delid the processor than to invest in a new cooling solution. But hey that's just my two cents...

The Hydro H105 is the new flagship of the Corsair 240 AIO lineup. Only being bested by the bigger H110, though the latter has some incompatibility issues with some enclosures. Before buying the Hydro 105 please check the clearance between the case's top and the motherboard. Modern cases feature an off centered radiator position, though for the older ones you can run into trouble. A warned man is worth two ain't it?

The Hydro H105 is a high performance All In One unit, without hesitation it can take over from the previous flagship, the H100i. This time no software customization of looks and adding other peripherals. Just some simple, yet effective aesthetic changes make this Hydro H105 a stunning looking performer. How you want it to perform lies entirely in your hands. The assembly is as straightforward as it can be, room for error has been minimized to the max. This all makes the Hydro H105 another great addition to the ever growing Hydro series lineup. Therefore Madshrimps happily awards the CORSAIR Hydro H105 the Performance Award !

PROS:

• High end performing AIO 240 unit
• Simple, effective mounting mechanism
• Included 120 Static Pressure Fans
• 5 year warranty

CONS:

• Compatibility with some older enclosures
• Pump is noisier then the H100 series

I wish to thank Harry and Rick from CORSAIR for the Hydro H105 sample and the Dominator RAM kit

Sven from ASUS for the X79 Sabertooth motherboard

The nutty crew from Tones.be PC shop for the years of support