Domino ALC Liquid Cooling

[Bulldog]

Domino ALC Liquid Cooling by CoolIT Systems.
http://www.techwarelabs.com/wp-content/gallery/coolit-domino/dominoalc-coolit.jpg
Here's a clip from the review:

Quote: There are a lot of choices on the market today to cool your CPU, which range from all-in-one kits to modular kits, but by far the Domino from CoolIT is one of the best we have seen.

LINK: http://www.techwarelabs.com/domino-alc/

[Wizard]

I always like seeing little "all-in-one" watercooling kits. Its an attempt to mainstream watercooling as an inexpensive option, and I applaud such efforts.
Yet the fact of the matter remains, air cooling is just fine unless you're overclocking. And if you're overclocking, you're going to want something more serious.

As we all know, watercooling is all about flow - and those thin little tubes look pretty small in diameter to me. It would also be nice to have seen the internal channelling of the waterblock, and know what kind of material it is (Cu/Al?), and what kind of thermal compound is already applied to it. I would also like to know what kind of coolant medium is being used. Why would I like to know these things, and what's wrong with this setup?

1. The larger the diameter of tubing, the more potential flow you'll have hitting your blocks. Generally speaking, better flow = better cooling.

2. The internal channelling of the block can make a big difference in it's performance. For instance, inlets/outlets that are located on (or near) the side of the block introduce water to a pre-heated surface, before it ever passes over the die. Superior waterblocks will have a center inlet, whereupon cool water is introduced directly over the hottest portion of the CPU die. Remember, the larger the increase in temperature differential, the greater the thermal transfer rate.
The Cascade/Whitewater series, Miro, and MC-TDX (http://forum.meetthegeeks.org/store/mc-tdx-for-intel-i7-nehalem-1366.html)from DangerDen are just a few examples of good design (as far as this is concerned).
Since this particular waterblock has side inlets/outlets, well... I think we can rest assured that its not a performance block.

3. Copper, copper, copper. A good waterblock will always be made of copper - having an aluminum waterblock is like having a Ferrari made out of cardboard. You could have a great design, but it isn't going to perform like the real deal. I don't know what kind of metal this waterblock is made from, but I really hope it would be copper. If it's aluminum, then it's short-changing itself as a cooling solution right from the start.
Let me rock-bottom it this way; we could find all-copper air solutions that would cool better than aluminum watercooling solutions.

4. The pre-applied thermal compound looks white - which would be a dead giveaway that it's a silica-base (which is the cheapest/worst compound you can get).

5. Apparently someone who bought this posted that they suffered a crack in one of the tubes, and a greenish, watery liquid spilled out. Sadly, this hints at glycol. Glycol=bad, for all of the reasons I've spelled out elsewhere. Just say "No" to glycol.

Now in it's favor, I do like the display piece. Self-monitoring is always cool, especially when it can be both attractive and functional.

Summarily, I'd venture that this is a cooling solution for a non-overclocker who wants to say that they watercool their PC, and has a decent (but not serious enough) budget.
A system like this will get them in the door, but once a serious clocker asks for more details (or photos), then they're gonna fall flat.
It's a cute, inexpensive and fun introduction into the realm of watercooling. Not for the performance-minded.