ENERMAX LIQTECH TR4 AIO Liquid CPU Coolers Review

According to the Enermax USA rep in this very thread, all first gen units are affected.
Haven't some of the 2nd gen units also suffered similar problems? Seems I remember some members here having their replacements go bad too.
 
Haven't some of the 2nd gen units also suffered similar problems? Seems I remember some members here having their replacements go bad too.

Yes that's right. My fairly new stock liqtech 2 from December Amazon failed. I'm done with this this shit. Going custom loop.
 
Yes that's right. My fairly new stock liqtech 2 from December Amazon failed. I'm done with this this shit. Going custom loop.
It's too bad they can't get their shit together. But it's a common problem with CLCs all being pretty much junk. There are a few AIOs that are much better like Swiftech H series, Alphacool Eisbaer, be quiet! Silent Loop (made by Alphacool), but they are still only marginally as good as a entry level custom loop .. but still not as good as custom loop components picked by a buyer with basic knowledge about which custom loop component makes are good and which are not.
 
I'm not looking for break neck performance .All I needed was a full coverage 240 cooling solution that is similar to a u14s without the clearance issues. It literally just had to not leak and pump fail.


Enermax couldn't even deliver that. My raystorn neo TR4 is in the mail.
 
It's too bad they can't get their shit together. But it's a common problem with CLCs all being pretty much junk. There are a few AIOs that are much better like Swiftech H series, Alphacool Eisbaer, be quiet! Silent Loop (made by Alphacool), but they are still only marginally as good as a entry level custom loop .. but still not as good as custom loop components picked by a buyer with basic knowledge about which custom loop component makes are good and which are not.
My Corsair H50 is going on 6-7 years now with 2500K and it still works.
 
My Corsair H50 is going on 6-7 years now with 2500K and it still works.
Yeah, the H50 is one that seems to have a much longer life than most others. There is also a direct correlation between life and how much heat the CLC has to dissipate .. the more heat / higher the temps are the shorter the CLC life with many users pushing high overclocks meaning making lots of heat only getting 1-2 year life expectancy.
 
Yeah, the H50 is one that seems to have a much longer life than most others. There is also a direct correlation between life and how much heat the CLC has to dissipate .. the more heat / higher the temps are the shorter the CLC life with many users pushing high overclocks meaning making lots of heat only getting 1-2 year life expectancy.
4.3ghz 24/7 since day one
 
My Corsair H50 is going on 6-7 years now with 2500K and it still works.

My H70 has been cooling my 2600K @ 4.4GHz-4.8GHz since 2011 with no issues. Same for my H60Gen1 on my PII 975 BE @ 4.0GHz, which is at 100% CPU usage 80% of the time.

Guess we are outside the norm???? Gotta bunch in the field as well and never seen a failure...yet.
 
It's too bad they can't get their shit together. But it's a common problem with CLCs all being pretty much junk. There are a few AIOs that are much better like Swiftech H series, Alphacool Eisbaer, be quiet! Silent Loop (made by Alphacool), but they are still only marginally as good as a entry level custom loop .. but still not as good as custom loop components picked by a buyer with basic knowledge about which custom loop component makes are good and which are not.
I have the Enermax 360 on the 1950x. It cools pretty well, I'm just not so keen on waiting for the failure.
 
4.3ghz 24/7 since day one
What are yoru typical CPU temps?

My H70 has been cooling my 2600K @ 4.4GHz-4.8GHz since 2011 with no issues. Same for my H60Gen1 on my PII 975 BE @ 4.0GHz, which is at 100% CPU usage 80% of the time.

Guess we are outside the norm???? Gotta bunch in the field as well and never seen a failure...yet.
What are your temps?
Yeah, not the norm, but if all failed nobody would be buying them anymore.

I have the Enermax 360 on the 1950x. It cools pretty well, I'm just not so keen on waiting for the failure.
Yeah. I know what you mean. I'm running a Silent Loop 280mm and have been for almost 2 years now. But I did service it with a flush and coolant replacement at about a year and am about to do it again. Seems most failures with CLCs are the result of low coolant or junk in pump. Same with these Enermax failures.
 
What are your temps?
Yeah, not the norm, but if all failed nobody would be buying them anymore.

On the 2600K @ 4.4-4.5, 72F ambient I see 24c idle (heat soaked) and low to mid 60's in games. P95 (26.6) is around 75c for my hottest core.
4.8GHz I see 33c idle and around low to mid 70's in games. P95 is around low 90's. All in a HAF-932.

On the PII 975 @ 4.0GHz, idle is 34c and 55c encoding with Handbrake for at least 10-12hrs a day. All in a Black Hawk Ultra.
 
What are yoru typical CPU temps?


What are your temps?
Yeah, not the norm, but if all failed nobody would be buying them anymore.


Yeah. I know what you mean. I'm running a Silent Loop 280mm and have been for almost 2 years now. But I did service it with a flush and coolant replacement at about a year and am about to do it again. Seems most failures with CLCs are the result of low coolant or junk in pump. Same with these Enermax failures.
I actually think I'm going to flush and replace mine with some decent coolant.
 
On the 2600K @ 4.4-4.5, 72F ambient I see 24c idle (heat soaked) and low to mid 60's in games. P95 (26.6) is around 75c for my hottest core.
4.8GHz I see 33c idle and around low to mid 70's in games. P95 is around low 90's. All in a HAF-932.

On the PII 975 @ 4.0GHz, idle is 34c and 55c encoding with Handbrake for at least 10-12hrs a day. All in a Black Hawk Ultra.
So kinda warm but not extreme 60s-75c max, 90s are getting hot, and just nice and warm at 55c.
Is it safe to assume radiator is mounted in top of case above CPU waterblock/pump? That means as coolant levels go down all the air stays in radiator so less chance of damaging pump. Probably the most common reason for pumps failing is low coolant level with air getting into pump, pump overheating and failing.
 
So kinda warm but not extreme 60s-75c max, 90s are getting hot, and just nice and warm at 55c.
Is it safe to assume radiator is mounted in top of case above CPU waterblock/pump? That means as coolant levels go down all the air stays in radiator so less chance of damaging pump. Probably the most common reason for pumps failing is low coolant level with air getting into pump, pump overheating and failing.

Both rads are mounted at the rear exhaust and are configured for intake. Both rads are level with the pump head.
 
So air in system is trapped at top of radiator and does not create bubbles that could get into pump and cause problems. At least that's the theory. ;)

Theory or not, they both fit my needs well and I will continue running them until they don't, than I will just replace them with a newer model. But I think I've gotten my money's worth out of them and then some. :)
 
Anyone know which side is intake on the cooler? I'm going to flush the coolant, refill, and add a reservoir - since I cannot mount this ideally. Also - anyone have a source for matching tubing? Or know what the ID of the tubing is?
 
I have the Enermax 360 on the 1950x. It cools pretty well, I'm just not so keen on waiting for the failure.

Same here.... What direction are you inclined to take?

EDIT - Nevermind...I kept reading through after posting.
 
I'm furious!
I've got a replacement LiqTech TR4 II - and it's failing again!!
03JLrFg.png


This is what happens after 2min of P95. Fans on 100%, case is defo ventilated sufficiently.
What the hell, Enermax?
 
I'm furious!
I've got a replacement LiqTech TR4 II - and it's failing again!!
View attachment 135658

This is what happens after 2min of P95. Fans on 100%, case is defo ventilated sufficiently.
What the hell, Enermax?





Is p95 FFT supposed to not reach thermal throttling on TR? I think a sure sign of failure would be if your idling temps are 10C or more above ambient.
 
Is p95 FFT supposed to not reach thermal throttling on TR? I think a sure sign of failure would be if your idling temps are 10C or more above ambient.
The LiqTech TR4 claims to support a TDP of 500W+, so I expect the CPU to NOT throttle to 140W...

When I got the unit, it worked like a charm and kept the TR at ~60° at 180W.
Idling temps are...
o0w1Esz.png

Ambient temp in my room is around 24°C

Fans are at 1200-1400RPM...
 
Just wanted to post another follow-up. I've installed a Noctua NH-U14S TR4-SP3 air-cooler and it works great. For 60% the cost I am getting 59C @ 3.9GHz full load. Also in the long run it will be nice not to worry about maintenance or possible failure. I would suggest for anyone else wanting to streamline their build with a sense of long term dependability to go with this low cost option.

The caveats are make sure your case is large enough, this particular model is very big and I managed to fit it in with less then 1 mm clearance on the side panel. Their is also the strong possibility it will block some of your ram slots. Not and issue in my immediate case as I am only using 4 slots, but if you need all 8 make sure you do the research.
 
Just wanted to post another follow-up. I've installed a Noctua NH-U14S TR4-SP3 air-cooler and it works great. For 60% the cost I am getting 59C @ 3.9GHz full load. Also in the long run it will be nice not to worry about maintenance or possible failure. I would suggest for anyone else wanting to streamline their build with a sense of long term dependability to go with this low cost option.

The caveats are make sure your case is large enough, this particular model is very big and I managed to fit it in with less then 1 mm clearance on the side panel. Their is also the strong possibility it will block some of your ram slots. Not and issue in my immediate case as I am only using 4 slots, but if you need all 8 make sure you do the research.
Our results...

Noctua AMD Threadripper Air Cooler Roundup
We take all three Noctua air coolers built for AMD Threadripper CPUs and put these to the test on both the 2950X and 2990WX. We run the NH-U14S, NH-U12S, and NH-U9 through the paces with both Precision Boost 2 and Precision Boost Overdrive using multiple fan configurations and compare these to the Silver Arrow and Wraith Ripper too.
 
Noctua a12x15 x3 on silver arrow might be the ultimate solution
You know what, I'm still within a couple weeks of the return period on the Noctua. Just ordered the silver arrow and going to give it a try.

Thinking about fans, I imagine the only real consideration in terms of performance is how much air gets moved (CFM). In terms of stacking fans I've actually seen tests where there is only a marginal performance increase when adding identical fans. When I think about it, if a fan is running say 1500rpm and moving 83 CFM, adding another fan running the same speed won't add any speed to the air, it will only add static pressure. When I think of 2 cars driving the same speed, they don't move any faster, but if they hit a wall there will be more force.

Essentially the performance increase in stacking fans is that the air will maintain speed when meeting resistance (cooler fins) but will not make the air go any faster than the rated CFM.


How about this for comparison:
https://www.amazon.com/Noctua-NF-A14-iPPC-3000-PWM-Cooling/dp/B00KFCRF1A
https://noctua.at/en/nf-a14-industrialppc-3000-pwm

3000rpm, 159 CFM, 41.3db



the specs on the Thermalright fan that ships with the Silver Arrow:
http://www.thermalright.de/en/fans/13/ty-143

2500rpm, 130 CFM, 45db


I'm not a quiet pc nut, so I'm actually not too concerned about getting the quietest fan. Though it seems a lot of Noctua's claim to quiet fans is just to cripple the speed/CFM by adding their LNA wire which I think just reduces the voltage or something going to the fan. In that case I feel like you can just profile you fans manually by adjusting the fan curve. I'd rather get the most performance possible and if it's too loud with minimal performance gains, I'll dial the fan curve down.
 
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You know what, I'm still within a couple weeks of the return period on the Noctua. Just ordered the silver arrow and going to give it a try.

Thinking about fans, I imagine the only real consideration in terms of performance is how much air gets moved (CFM). In terms of stacking fans I've actually seen tests where there is only a marginal performance increase when adding identical fans. When I think about it, if a fan is running say 1500rpm and moving 83 CFM, adding another fan running the same speed won't add any speed to the air, it will only add static pressure. When I think of 2 cars driving the same speed, they don't move any faster, but if they hit a wall there will be more force.

Essentially the performance increase in stacking fans is that the air will maintain speed when meeting resistance (cooler fins) but will not make the air go any faster than the rated CFM.


How about this for comparison:
https://www.amazon.com/Noctua-NF-A14-iPPC-3000-PWM-Cooling/dp/B00KFCRF1A
https://noctua.at/en/nf-a14-industrialppc-3000-pwm

3000rpm, 159 CFM, 41.3db



the specs on the Thermalright fan that ships with the Silver Arrow:
http://www.thermalright.de/en/fans/13/ty-143

2500rpm, 130 CFM, 45db


I'm not a quiet pc nut, so I'm actually not too concerned about getting the quietest fan. Though it seems a lot of Noctua's claim to quiet fans is just to cripple the speed/CFM by adding their LNA wire which I think just reduces the voltage or something going to the fan. In that case I feel like you can just profile you fans manually by adjusting the fan curve. I'd rather get the most performance possible and if it's too loud with minimal performance gains, I'll dial the fan curve down.
The specs for the noctua fan that ships with their coolers is a bit different than the retail fans, iirc. I'd have to go check again.
 
As an Amazon Associate, HardForum may earn from qualifying purchases.
Anyone know which side is the intake to the pump on the Enermax? I'm going to cut it and put in a reservoir.
 
Ended up buying a Silver Arrow TR4, and idle temp wise it is about the same as the Enermax 360 lol. At load the Silver Arrow is actually better than the Enermax 360 I was using that is 7 months old. It was getting hotter faster at load than usual the past couple of weeks so I was thinking it was on it's way to failure.

The fan on the Silver Arrow isn't that great silence wise. It isn't loud, but it's a higher pitched whine sound when running full throttle and is very noticeable. It fits even with my GPU in the closest slot, but I moved my GPU to the next slot because it is very difficult to remove the video card (the little tab you have to press to release it from the slot needs a long thin screwdriver) and access to 2 fan headers is right next to the heat sink on my MB and can't be reached with the GPU in the closest slot.

Using small fft prime95 I still hit 85c @ 3.7ghz on my 1950x. I stopped it there, but for most of my other tests like 3d Rendering and Video compression the load was less and stayed in the 75c-78c range. That's with an ambient of around 21c. Overall a sideways move, but at least it should remain consistent.
 
I was right, top is outlet, bottom inlet. BTW hose I.D. is 1/4, O.D. 1/2.
 
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Whelp, so I did it. I did a teardown of the Liqtech TR4 that I replaced after failed cooling performance on my threadripper:
IMG_20190302_132118~1.jpg IMG_20190302_132418~1.jpg

I figure I would do my best to clean it to see if it's salvageable at all. I used an old watercolor brush & alcohol on the copper fins they were so narrow:
IMG_20190302_140018~1.jpg

The main housing was horribly corroded, I used a bamboo skewer to scrape off some kind of encrusted residue. Whatever the issue, it had actually eaten into the metal block. I don't have any kind of material knowledge with this stuff, if anybody has an idea what the issue might be I'd be interested to hear it. Also wondering if it's worth salvaging this unit at all. I have another Liqtech II that was failing, and a third unopened Liqtech II that I received recently. I plan on opening all of them and taking a look. Is this a coolant issue? Could replacing the fluid in an unused unit prevent build-up and corrosion?
IMG_20190302_141318~1.jpg IMG_20190302_142948~1.jpg
 

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Any jelly like substance in the cooler? If there was it would suggest a lack of a biocide to kill bacteria build up.

Not sure if anyone has swapped out the fluid - may something to try out, see if temps drop back with the new fluid and report back to everyone
 
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