Installation:
As with installing any part in a previously installed water cooling system you must either securely clamp off your hoses or drain the system entirely before installing. I decided to drain my system entirely because it was time for a cleaning anyway.
When the system is empty, you simply remove your old pump and slide the hose over the fittings on the Danger Den DD12V-D4. In our setup we are going Pump>Radiator>CPU>Reservoir.
Danger Den includes a small foam pad to set under the steel base of the pump to dampen the noise and vibrations a bit. After putting that under the pump there are two screw holes which must be used to secure the pump to the bottom of your case. After securing the pump you simply plug it into a spare molex connector and start bleeding the air out of the system. One thing to make a note of when connecting it to the power supply is that it is not on a straight through connector, it requires a dedicated lead from your power supply to obtain its power.

(A few specs are on the sticker, click to enlarge)

Testing:
When looking for a pump it's a good idea to look at:
A) heat produced
B) flow rate/head pressure
C) noise

I was surprised at the small amount of heat produced by the DD12V-D4 pump. After running my previous Via Aqua pump for a few hours it was warm to the touch, but I seem to recall that all the leaking water kept it a little bit cooler :)  Maybe I should have bought shares in Dow Corning Silicone also  :)
When touching the DD12V-D4 there is a slight bit of heat but not allot. When pumps run colder that results in an overall lower water temperature because when a pump runs very hot then some of that heat will be transferred into the water.

(Yet another angle, click to enlarge)

Like I mentioned earlier, the pump is VERY quiet during operation. There is only a faint whine of the water flowing through it. When put on a rheobus it is possible to dim the noise a bit, but be careful how slow you run it!

Here is the chart of flow data from Danger Den's website:

(Click to enlarge)

Here is the power data from Danger Den's website as well:

For my testing I am going to compare my temperature results with that of the Via Aqua 1300 pump. I will take 4 readings:  Load and Idle with the Delta 120mm fan at 7V and at 12V. This shows the results for those who want a quiet system (7V) and for those who want a system with superior cooling and don't mind the wind tunnel sound generated by the Delta fan at 12 volts.

(Voila, click to enlarge)

Testing System:
CPU: AMD 1900+
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-7VRXP Rev 1.1
Graphics: GeForce FX 5600 (Air Cooled)
Water Block: Asetek Antarctica
Radiator: HWLabs Black Ice Pro
Reservoir: Criticool Waterplant 6"
Additives: Swiftech HydrX

(Test Results, click to enlarge)

Conclusion:
Overall I was blown away by the Danger Den DD12V-D4 pump. This may be the king of pumps; silent, great performance, small, no EMR interference, no joints for potential leaks, what more can you ask for!
If you are looking for a pump I would highly recommend this one. It may be a bit more expensive, but this a case where you certainly get what you pay for!

Pros:
Silent
Great performance
Small
12V Molex connection
Front is all one molded piece which means no leaky joints
No EMR interference

Cons:
May be a bit expensive
No mounting screws included

Rating: 9/10

Discuss this review in our forums!

Big thanks to Danger Den for providing the pump for review. Check out the rest of their great products at www.dangerden.com !

<<Previous Page<<