14 DAY TRIAL // Micro-Star International takes great pride in its coolers, especially the Twin Frozr Line, but it is well aware of the fact that air cooling can only do so much. That's where water cooling comes in.
MSI isn't about to start a new business of water cooling equipment, but that doesn't mean it can't collaborate with people who are already into such things.
Ljubljana-based premium computer liquid cooling gear manufacturer EK is one of the companies that has been showing up in the news more than the others lately.
Having noticed this, MSI has formed a partnership with it. Nothing too binding or deep, but one that will split the credit for the new cooler than can be applied to the MSI GeForce GTX 970.
And no, we don't mean the GeForce GTX 970 Golden Edition OC. We mean the normal one, insofar as an OEM-based board can be considered normal.
Behold the EK-FC970 GTX TF5
MSI likes to lump all its highest-end coolers in the Twin Frozr series. The name may not fit well with a water block, since no two fans are involved. No fans at all really, beyond what the water cooling system of your PC has.
Still, MSI didn't want to break tradition, so it decided that its half of the contribution to the name and brand would consist of that tried and true moniker.
So yes, the TF5 in the name stands for Twin Frozs V / 5. Not too shocking as far as abbreviations go, but fitting all the same.
The water block comes into direct contact with not just the GM204 graphics processing units (GPU), but also the memory and voltage regulation module (VRM).
Since water flows directly over those areas, you can play with overclocking a lot more freely than any air cooler would allow you to.
The inlet split-flow cooling engine helps performance, and even ensures a high enough hydraulic performance that it doesn't matter how weak your water cooling system's pumps are.
As for materials, the base is made of nickel-plated electrolytic copper while the top can be acrylic or made of quality POM Acetal. EK does love to offer its customers a choice.
Availability and pricing
The EK-FC970 GTX TF5 will start shipping in early December 2014, for an unspecified price, with an aesthetic retention backplate that will cool the memory chips on the back. If you don't want to wait for that though, the water block itself will ship starting today, November 17. The price is of $107.95 / €107.95 and the backplate will need an extra 30 or so.
