XSPC Memory WaterBlock & Side Plate Set Review

You are about to enter another dimension, a dimension not only of sight and sound but of mind. A journey into a wondrous land of imagination. Next stop, ram overclocking, and watercooling! There comes a point in every water coolers journey that they suddenly feel the need to put a waterblock on every surface that creates heat. You can literally slap a waterblock on anything from HDD’s to fan controllers if you feel the need. Certainly then, one thing that can be water cooled is the memory (ram). Until recently which ram you could easily water cool was pretty much limited to Corsair Dominators. Fortunately for those with the itch, XSPC is here to help! With their Memory WaterBlock + Side Plate Set, you can get almost any ram on the planet wet. Follow along as we install and test just what this set can do for you!

Special thanks to XSPC for supplying the Memory WaterBlock + Side Plate Set

Features
This set includes our memory waterblock and replacement side plates for two memory modules.

Memory WaterBlock
– High Performance Copper Base 127x40x3mm
– Acetal top with acrylic layer and aluminium insert.
– G1/4″ Threads
– Compatible with Most Compression Fittings
– Supplied with thermal pads and twin 3mm blue LED.
Universal Side Plates
– Dimensions: 125 x 36 x 7.1mm
– Grey Thermal Pads 0.5mm x4
– Acrylic Adapter for Short Memory x2
– M3x6 Screws x4
– Supplied with screws and allen key.

Packaging
This memory cooling set comes in a plain brown box with the XSPC logo stamped on the lid. Flipping the lid open you will find several small padded bags with many different components in them.

XSPC Memory WaterBlock & Side Plate Set XSPC Memory WaterBlock & Side Plate Set

Taking all the pieces out of the box you will find an assortment of thermal pads, two universal memory side plates, screws with an allen wrench, and LEDs. The LEDs are molex powered, so make sure you have one of those available. The final item included are two spacers that allow you to use memory of any height.

XSPC Memory WaterBlock & Side Plate Set XSPC Memory WaterBlock & Side Plate Set

Overview
Taking a closer look at the parts doing the actual cooling of the ram, first we have the memory side plates. These are made from aluminum and powder coated in flat black. Specifically these plates are what first transfer heat from the memory chips on the dimm’s to the heatsink. They grip the memory firmly from either side and hold everything in place.

One of the best features of these side plates is that they will work with dimms of varying height. This means that if you’re a hardcore ram guy, you won’t have to worry whether this kit will work with a low clearance set or standard height set, it will work with them all.

XSPC Memory WaterBlock & Side Plate Set

Next up we have the block itself. The block is a universal memory block, meaning that it will mount to most any memory on the market. Not only will it work with the side plates included, but it will also attach directly to those Corsair Dominators I mentioned earlier.

XSPC Memory WaterBlock & Side Plate Set XSPC Memory WaterBlock & Side Plate Set

The base of the block is of course copper. It has an acrylic top connected to it by screws. I would rate machining on the base is about a “B” grade. Its even and flat, but not the smoothest, and there are faint machine marks. The top like other current XSPC blocks has holes drilled for leds to be inserted to light it up.