14 DAY TRIAL // Micro Star International's RadeoN R9 290X Lightning graphics card already has a custom-made cooler, one with three fans and dual-color design, but EK Water Blocks decided to launch a new cooler for it anyway.
EK Water Blocks, the Ljubljana-based premium water cooling gear manufacturer, is of the opinion that all video boards, at least those of the mid-range and higher variety, should be water-cooled.
That is why it launches one or a group of water blocks every other week or so, sometimes for AMD's and NVIDIA's reference boards, other times for OEM-made adapters.
It also makes water cooling equipment for central processing units (CPUs), but that's neither here nor there.
The latest product is called EK-FC R9-290X Lightning, from the name of MSI's own board, Radeon R9 290X Lightning.
It's EK's standard modus operandi, to make sure that the product name is as close to that of the intended recipient. A different tactic from those of other cooling product makers, which slap words like “vortex” and “vapor” to their inventions.
The water block, as is EK's habit, comes into direct contact with the graphics processing unit (GPU), the RAM (random access memory) and VRM (voltage regulation module).
A 0.6 mm wide micro channel structure maximizes heat transfer, and the Very High Flow Design promises good coolant movement even in water cooling systems with weak pumps.
With water flowing directly over the areas, heat will be kept low and stability will be maximized, allowing owners to tweak the clock of the video board beyond what would be possible (and safe) on air cooling alone.
You can even connect more than one EK-FC R9-290X Lightning blocks together, forming a circuit of up to four of them at once.
EK-FC Terminal, EK-HD Tube & Adapter System or EK-FC Bridge CSQ are some of the ways this link can be established.
That said, there is a single variant of the cooler this time, despite the fact that EK often has four (multiple material combos). The base is made of nickel-plated electrolytic copper, while the top is made of POM Acetal material.
The EK-FC R9-290X Lightning Acetal+Nickel has a price of $140 / €140 and you can buy a backplate for it, separately, at $30 / €30.
If you buy one of these products, you will have to set up the actual water cooling system in your desktop PC yourself. It's not as easy as fastening it in place, because that only works with air coolers and all-in-one, closed-loop liquid ones.