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We tested the Asus GTX680 DirectCU II TOP firstly with the supplied triple slot cooler then installed the ARCTIC Accelero Xtreme III to rerun the tests.
The room environment was maintained at 22c throughout all of the tests.
Firstly we checked temperatures after booting the system and letting it idle at the desktop for 15 minutes.
The ARCTIC Accelero Xtreme III manages to improve on the Direct CU II cooler by 3c.
Next, we test with Furmark, using the intensive stress test for a solid 15 minutes, then taking a snapshot of the results.
For ‘real world' gaming results, we let the card idle for 15 minutes then play Max Payne 3 for an hour, recording the maximum temperature during the playing session.
These improvements are bigger than I thought they would be. Under synthetic Furmark load, the ARCTIC Accelero Xtreme III runs 16c cooler than the Direct CU II. When gaming, these results are mirrored, dropping from 61c to a staggering 46c! The VReg temperatures also drop by 22c. Very noticeable improvements.
Next we measure the time it takes for each cooling solution to return from full Furmark load to idle.
Even though the Asus Direct CU II cooler is a triple slot design, it takes 22 seconds to return to idle, from a full load Furmark result of 68c. The ARCTIC Accelero Xtreme III on the other hand takes only 12 seconds to return to idle, from 52c. Both are impressive results when compared to the standard reference cooling solution.
Both solutions are quiet under load, but the Accelero Xtreme III is always quieter, thanks to the use of three slow spinning 92mm fans.
that is quite incredible when you look at the temperature results, its running cooler than my 6750 in my media center. only downside is the cost, about the same price as my video card just for the cooler…….
Will there be per-installed cards released, do you know?
I don’t want to take chances by spoiling a 680 >.<
Unless a manufacturer works with arctic to release a model with the cooler installed, no.
Kfa2 did it before with another model however, maybe they will….
Wow that’s most impressive considering the DirectCU II is already a fairly quiet and cool cooler to begin with. I can’t see a lot of people paying the premium for the Top model just to remove that cooler but for review purposes it sure does show how awesome the Accelero Xtreme cooler is.
Awesome review!! Lov this beast Cooler!
Need Video on this one!
Thanks for COOL review kitguru!
Hey guys, i recently bougt this cooler. See my videon demonstration
http://youtu.be/EhuGXdEUX9g
In your review you didn’t explain why you removed the backplated and the support bracket. Couldn’t the Accelero Xtreme still be installed with them on?
I have a thing for gpu coolers. Currently have a gtx 570 with a zalman vf3000f, which maxes out at 47 degrees. Also have an inno3d ichill 660 ti with a very similar cooler and also 47 degrees max, maybe a bit lower.
So if your looking for a card with cooling similar to the arctic xtreme III but preinstalled, look at the inno3d ichill series, they have a 670 and 680 model also.
which means “only two slot” ?
with the Accelero it also occupies three slots
Wow thank you for this great tutorial 🙂 I changed the Asus Direct Cu II cooler whit Success trough this 🙂