Hardcore overclockers will go to any extreme, from hacking apart refrigerators to building five-foot-tall PVC cooling towers, to get their PCs a few degrees cooler under the collar. Up until now, one of the most absurd measures – total immersion in non-conductive oil – has remained the sole domain of the most impractical overclockers. Hardcore Computers, though, takes this concept a step away from the dicy cutting edge with its new Reactor, a commercial way to take your computer along on a Polar Bear Plunge.
Unlike traditional watercooling solutions that need hot and cold tubing run out to every piece of a computer that needs cooling, the Reactor submerges the entire PC, motherboard and all, in mineral oil, which acts like a coolant. Pumps in the case move 2.5 gallons of it through a high-performance radiator every minute, ensuring the heat from the processor and GPUs gets dissipated quickly, meaning it can be pushed to even further performance extremes.
Images Courtesy of HardcoreComputer.com
Then there is, of course, the visual appeal. A full half of the computer case has been cut away and replaced with a wrap-around window, and the inside is lit up in vibrant blue. Computer, or cyborg incubation chamber? You decide.
Since Hardcore Computer handles building the entire system and will even add components for you later, there’s no need to get your hands oily to use this rig, but the convenience will cost you. The company’ least expensive model runs for $4,489, and a fully decked out version can reach $11,169. More information can be found at Hardcore Computer.