Thermaltake Pacific SW1 Plus
Thermaltake sent us their new Pacific SW1 Plus CPU block for testing. When unpacking it, you might think that a USB hub has accidentally ended up in the packaging, but it’s actually an included RGB controller (gray box) with a tangle of cables. This can also be used to control the lighting of the actual water block and network other Thermaltake RGB-capable components, such as fans. The brand’s RGB controller starter package is included with the block – nice! But you also pay for it, because the block costs 145 euros.
Another nice touch is the addition of liquid metal, which is to be used as a heat-conducting agent on the IHS. Yes, this works and performs much better than paste – I’ve done it myself in the past – but unfortunately the liquid metal reacts with the IHS of the CPU and permanently discolors it. Unfortunately, there is no warning about this in the various instruction leaflets, nor about possible short circuits if the liquid metal makes it past the IHS and into the socket. Especially for rather inexperienced PC builders, the first handling of the easily flowing heat-conducting agent could end in annoyance. A tube of normal thermal paste would be the safer alternative and, if you still want to include liquid metal, then please include appropriate warnings in the instructions and on the sachet.
Mounting with plastic backplate and the corresponding screws that hook into it will be fine at first glance, even if it will of course bend under the LGA1700. When dry-fitting, however, some of the spring-loaded knurled nuts refuse to turn, presumably due to a dirty or overpainted thread. If you keep turning here, it is not the nut on the screw that turns, but the screw in the backplate on the spot. The square screw head actually engages in the plastic recess, but in practice metal eventually wins out over plastic.
“Recutting” the thread with a standoff for the other sockets and a pair of pliers didn’t really help either. Other M3 nuts and screws could be screwed to the Thermaltake hardware acceptably, but Thermaltake threads unfortunately don’t work evenly or at all. Even when mounting on the board, 3 out of 4 nuts refused to work with the supplied hexagon socket. Somehow I manged to get them on with a screwdriver, but it felt like every screw had a different torque and didn’t go the same distance.
At some point, the screw in the plastic backplate turns at every corner. There is no real stop for the threads. For my German understanding of quality, this design and quality is not acceptable. In addition, there are potential metal shavings due to the poorly fitting threads, which you definitely don’t want anywhere in your PC. The instructions only contain pictures, no text description or torque specifications. No wonder when every thread is unique and the metal parts turn in circles in the plastic after the second assembly. This also breaks the performance neck of the block on the second run, as a nut can no longer be tightened more than halfway. And, of course, the block can no longer be dismantled voluntarily either. It took me just under an hour to forcibly remove one of the plastic standoffs with a dirty brass threaded insert from its screw, which of course spun in circles in the plastic backplate. Many beads of sweat and even more metal and plastic shavings later, the Z790 Apex was free again.
Provided that the mounting hardware was sensible, the block would probably perform a few degrees better. It’s a pity that the manufacturer includes masses of RGB stuff and liquid metal, but doesn’t want to afford a metal backplate. You could be forgiven for thinking that the Thermaltake Pacific is an RGB lamp that can somehow also be used as a CPU cooler.
Mounting on AM5
For mounting on AM5, only the base plates need to be replaced, which are held in position from below with Phillips screws. These are therefore loosened, then the plates are replaced and finally the screws are reinserted. Fortunately, the block is fixed to the mainboard using the standard AM5 backplate, which works much better than the plastic construction on the LGA 1700. Corresponding standoffs with UNC 6/32 threads at the bottom and M3 threads at the top are included and the nuts can be screwed on and off without any problems.
Pacific_SW1_Plus_manual
Thermaltake Pacific SW1 Plus (CL-W379-CU00SW-A)
 | Versandlager: Lieferzeit 1-2 TageSuperstore Siegburg: nicht lagerndStand: 20.05.24 21:22 | 144,00 €*Stand: 20.05.24 22:59 |
 | Auf Lager | 145,90 €*Stand: 21.05.24 00:16 |
 | Versandlager: ca. 2-3 Werktagen versandbereit, Lieferzeit 3-4 WerktageLinz, Salzburg, Wels: 2-3 WerktageZentrale Timelkam: ca. 2 WerktageDornbirn, Graz Nord, Graz Süd, Innsbruck, Klagenfurt, St. Pölten, Villach, Wien 15, Wien 20, Wr. Neustadt, Wörgl: 1 WocheStand: 20.05.24 23:12 | 147,15 €*Stand: 21.05.24 00:16 |
- 1 - Introduction and test methodology
- 2 - Test hardware and systems
- 3 - EK-Quantum Velocity 2 D-RGB 1700
- 4 - Watercool Heatkiller IV Pro
- 5 - Alphacool Core 1 Aurora
- 6 - Aqua Computer cuplex kryos NEXT
- 7 - Thermaltake Pacific SW1 Plus
- 8 - Liquid Extasy No. Uno
- 9 - EK-Quantum Magnitude
- 10 - Corsair Hydro X XC7 RGB Pro
- 11 - Alphacool Eisblock XPX Aurora und XPX Pro 1U
- 12 - Results for Intel LGA 1700 – Core i9 13900KF
- 13 - Results for AMD AM5 – Ryzen 9 7950X
- 14 - Lessons learned, summary and conclusion
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