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"Blemish" blocks are A+ performance blocks with small cosmetic imperfections.
We're hyper about quality and we only ship perfect A+ grade product. Of course, this means we have numbers of blocks didn't make the cut. Anything from smudge on a cold plate to a tiny scuff on a bracket will make a product a "blemish".
Blemish blocks will typically look like A-grade in a final PC build. The blemishes are typically only visible when examining up close. In some cases, you may not even be able to find the blemish. Sometimes the blems are in the cold plate fins, so specs or marks are visible, but performance isn't affected.
NOTE: we cannot send pictures of each blemish block to pick and choose.
Collections: Blemish Block Sale, Products, Waterblocks
Type: CPU Block
Category: acrylic, blemish, Intel, Satin Nickel, spo-default, spo-disabled, spo-notify-me-disabled
FOUNDATION
INTEL CPU BLOCK
Extreme performance, ultra-durable acrylic, anti-corrosion nickel and killer looks.
FOUNDATION
INTEL CPU BLOCK
FOUNDATION
INTEL CPU BLOCK
Extreme performance, ultra-durable acrylic, anti-corrosion nickel and killer looks.
The Optimus Foundation block is designed for the latest Intel 115X and 20XX socket CPUs. In order to provide max cooling, the Foundation block's fin area is designed for maximum heat dissipation to handle the high thermals of the most recent Intel clips. The Foundation's cold plate fin design features the highest surface area in the industry with groundbreaking accuracy and reliability.
The Optimus Foundation block is designed for the latest Intel 115X and 20XX socket CPUs. In order to provide the best cooling, the Foundation block's fin area is designed for maximum heat dissipation to handle the high thermals of the most recent Intel chips. The Foundation's cold plate fin design features the highest surface area in the industry with groundbreaking accuracy and reliability.
The Foundation block is designed to cover more than 100% of the latest Intel CPU dies, like the 9900K seen right. Intel's dies have grown as core counts increase. And they've increased in heat output, requiring revised cooling designs to achieve the best performance.
The Foundation series is fully modular, meaning the top block and cold plate can be rotated in any direction all while keeping the logo upright. That way, you can adjust your inlet/outlet orientation to match your build. While we recommend orienting the flow to match the die layout, you'll still achieve excellent performance in a goofy layout.
A CPU block's performance is only as good as the contact with the CPU. This means mounting pressure and accuracy is paramount for best performance. To achieve this, the Foundation block uses a 1/4" (6.3mm) CNC aluminum mounting plate, rather than flat metal. This allows high pressure and accuracy when securing the block. Plus, it looks fantastic.
All Optimus products are assembled with metal screws into metal threads, never acrylic or acetal threads. Plastic screw threads can easily strip and cause cracks, rendering a block useless. Most acrylic-threaded blocks can only survive a few assemblies before stripping. By eliminating plastic threads entirely, Optimus blocks are able to be reassembled for years to come. Plus, securing the top block using steel screws into machined aluminum mounting plate means leak-proof pressure.
The Optimus Foundation block is designed for the latest Intel 115X and 20XX socket CPUs. In order to provide the best cooling, the Foundation block's fin area is designed for maximum heat dissipation to handle the high thermals of the most recent Intel chips. The Foundation's cold plate fin design features the highest surface area in the industry with groundbreaking accuracy and reliability.
The Optimus Foundation block is designed for the latest Intel 115X and 20XX socket CPUs. In order to provide max cooling, the Foundation block's fin area is designed for maximum heat dissipation to handle the high thermals of the most recent Intel clips. The Foundation's cold plate fin design features the highest surface area in the industry with groundbreaking accuracy and reliability.
The Foundation block is designed to cover more than 100% of the latest Intel CPU dies, like the 9900K seen right. Intel's dies have grown as core counts increase. And they've increased in heat output, requiring revised cooling designs to achieve the best performance.
The Foundation series is fully modular, meaning the top block and cold plate can be rotated in any direction all while keeping the logo upright. That way, you can adjust your inlet/outlet orientation to match your build. While we recommend orienting the flow to match the die layout, you'll still achieve excellent performance in a goofy layout.
A CPU block's performance is only as good as the contact with the CPU. This means mounting pressure and accuracy is paramount for best performance. To achieve this, the Foundation block uses a 1/4" (6.3mm) CNC aluminum mounting plate, rather than flat metal. This allows high pressure and accuracy when securing the block. Plus, it looks fantastic.
All Optimus products are assembled with metal screws into metal threads, never acrylic or acetal threads. Plastic screw threads can easily strip and cause cracks, rendering a block useless. Most acrylic-threaded blocks can only survive a few assemblies before stripping. By eliminating plastic threads entirely, Optimus blocks are able to be reassembled for years to come. Plus, securing the top block using steel screws into machined aluminum mounting plate means leak-proof pressure.
FEATURING
Optimus uses only genuine Plexiglas® and Polycast™ brand cast acrylic. Unlike extruded, cast acrylics offers extreme crack resistance and incredible resistance to liquids, temperatures and chemicals. That's why cast acrylic is the only choice for everything from airplane windshields to the world's largest public aquariums.
FEATURING
Optimus uses only genuine Plexiglas® and Polycast™ brand cast acrylic. Unlike extruded, cast acrylics offers extreme crack resistance and incredible resistance to liquids, temperatures and chemicals. That's why cast acrylic is the only choice for everything from airplane windshields to the world's largest public aquariums.
Extruded acrylic with poor machining is the #1 culprit of of cracking in water cooling parts. Extruded acrylic is low cost and easy to make. That’s why extruded is used by nearly every water cooling company.
But extruded acrylic isn’t appropriate for liquid cooling parts. Extruded is prone to stress and spider web fractures from machining and expanding/contracting during temp fluctuations and exposure to liquids. Additionally, injection molded nylon blocks feature similar downsides, including a +/- 10% expansion variation and high fluid retention, all sources of stress. If you’ve ever wondered why ports, screw threads and reservoirs randomly fracture, this is why.
Cast acrylic is far harder with excellent machinability and resistance to cracking. Really, cast acrylic is the only real choice for everything from precision machined parts to giant aquariums. Optimus uses only cast acrylic for every single acrylic component.In fact, our cast acrylic is much stronger than acetal and nearly impossible to break. Feel free to allen wrench your fittings in place, our block won't blink.
Optimus uses only custom designed diamond CNC acrylic bits to achieve high optical quality rather than buffing or flame polishing.Flame polishing, combined with extruded acrylic, causes numerous problems. First, flaming (and vapor) polishing works by melting the outer layer of material to achieve a glass-like appearance. While the results look great, melting causes significant damage to the acrylic structure.With flaming, the acrylic becomes highly prone to stress cracking as well as spider webbing from fluids and temp fluctuations. And flaming has a tendency to turn acrylic yellow.
Moreover, by diamond polishing, we're able to achieve higher clarity in places flaming cannot, like the inside of ports and channels. While this is a far more time consuming and challenging process, we believe the results speak for themselves.
Additionally, we only CNC our G1/4” ports, never thread tap. Thread tapping is the industry standard because it’s easy and any budget drill press can do it. Thread tapping works by twisting a threaded drill bit into the material, causing burrs and extreme levels of stress. The resulting thread tapping micro fractures are nearly invisible, until the acrylic meets water, heat and pressure. Then micro turns into macro and cracks appear.
With CNCing (aka thread milling), specialized CNC bits are used to sculpt away the material and make the threads. CNC milling is vastly more accurate and causes far less pressure on the material, but takes much more time and requires high-speed CNC machines. For Optimus, CNC threads are a must.
Moreover, with over 50 years making aerospace fittings and parts, we're hyper focused on thread accuracy. All our G 1/4" ports and threads meet BSPP-G specification. This might seem like a small detail, but the accuracy of G 1/4"style fittings and ports on the market varies greatly and can lead to numerous problems like leaks, cracks and cross-threading.
Ultimately, all these steps combined make our acrylic products nearly indestructible. That's why we can offer the industry's only 10 year warranty.
Extruded acrylic with poor machining is the #1 culprit of of cracking in water cooling parts. Extruded acrylic is low cost and easy to make. That’s why extruded is used by nearly every water cooling company.
But extruded acrylic isn’t appropriate for liquid cooling parts. Extruded is prone to stress and spider web fractures from machining and expanding/contracting during temp fluctuations and exposure to liquids. Additionally, injection molded nylon blocks feature similar downsides, including a +/- 10% expansion variation and high fluid retention, all sources of stress. If you’ve ever wondered why ports, screw threads and reservoirs randomly fracture, this is why.
Cast acrylic is far harder with excellent machinability and resistance to cracking. Really, cast acrylic is the only real choice for everything from precision machined parts to giant aquariums. Optimus uses only cast acrylic for every single acrylic component.In fact, our cast acrylic is much stronger than acetal and nearly impossible to break. Feel free to allen wrench your fittings in place, our block won't blink.
Optimus uses only custom designed diamond CNC acrylic bits to achieve high optical quality rather than buffing or flame polishing.Flame polishing, combined with extruded acrylic, causes numerous problems. First, flaming (and vapor) polishing works by melting the outer layer of material to achieve a glass-like appearance. While the results look great, melting causes significant damage to the acrylic structure.With flaming, the acrylic becomes highly prone to stress cracking as well as spider webbing from fluids and temp fluctuations. And flaming has a tendency to turn acrylic yellow.
Moreover, by diamond polishing, we're able to achieve higher clarity in places flaming cannot, like the inside of ports and channels. While this is a far more time consuming and challenging process, we believe the results speak for themselves.
Additionally, we only CNC our G1/4” ports, never thread tap. Thread tapping is the industry standard because it’s easy and any budget drill press can do it. Thread tapping works by twisting a threaded drill bit into the material, causing burrs and extreme levels of stress. The resulting thread tapping micro fractures are nearly invisible, until the acrylic meets water, heat and pressure. Then micro turns into macro and cracks appear.
With CNCing (aka thread milling), specialized CNC bits are used to sculpt away the material and make the threads. CNC milling is vastly more accurate and causes far less pressure on the material, but takes much more time and requires high-speed CNC machines. For Optimus, CNC threads are a must.
Moreover, with over 50 years making aerospace fittings and parts, we're hyper focused on thread accuracy. All our G 1/4" ports and threads meet BSPP-G specification. This might seem like a small detail, but the accuracy of G 1/4"style fittings and ports on the market varies greatly and can lead to numerous problems like leaks, cracks and cross-threading.
Ultimately, all these steps combined make our acrylic products nearly indestructible. That's why we can offer the industry's only 10 year warranty.
Pro·XE
NICKEL PLATING
Extreme corrosion resistance, excellent thermal properties and a lifespan measured in decades. Optimus Pro-XE Nickel is a true professional finish for ultra performance PCs.
Pro·XE
NICKEL PLATING
Extreme corrosion resistance, excellent thermal properties and a lifespan measured in decades. Optimus Pro-XE Nickel is a true professional finish for ultra performance PCs.
Flaking, disintegrating nickel is a widespread problem in liquid cooling. After all, nickel PC fittings and blocks prohibit use with plain water, or you void the warranty. Instead, you must use anti-corrosive fluids to protect nickel components. Why? Because the industry standard electroplated (aka electrolytic) nickel is a cosmetic nickel finish that isn't meant to be used in liquid applications. Often called chrome or shiny nickel, electroplated nickel is cost effective and looks good.
Unfortunately, water, anti-fungals and fancy fluids will rapidly strip electroplated nickel. The gunk that will appear in block fins isn't just broken down fluid, it's often disintegrated nickel, paint and cheap plastics. If this seems crazy, it is. After all, the cheapest home faucet can handle tap water, so why can’t expensive PC parts?
Optimus Pro-XEis our proprietary electroless nickel process for liquid cooling parts. Electroless nickel, unlike electroplated, is an aerospace industrial finish with extreme chemical resistance, hardness and superior fluid lubricity. Our Pro-XE nickel is specifically tailored for liquid cooling, providing maximum corrosion protection, even in places normal nickels can't reach, like inside our cold plate's 202 micron channels.
Optimus Pro-XE nickel is able to withstand saltwater, corrosive chemicals and, yes, even plain water. With Optimus parts, you can use distilled water without fear of flaking. Distilled, aside from being cheap, is also the highest performance coolant readily available. Anti-corrosive additives lower the thermal conductivity of the liquid. That's why we can offer a 10 year warranty, even with regular H2O. It has been a herculean task to create Optimus's Pro-XE nickel, but the results look great and are nearly indestructible.
So why isn't everyone using electroless? Cost and appearance. Electroless is far more difficult to manufacture, especially when achieving perfect finishes needed for premium PC builds. And electrolytic can achieve that bright chrome look, even though it's highly susceptible to disintegration.
Flaking, disintegrating nickel is a widespread problem in liquid cooling. After all, nickel PC fittings and blocks prohibit use with plain water, or you void the warranty. Instead, you must use anti-corrosive fluids to protect nickel components. Why? Because the industry standard electroplated (aka electrolytic) nickel is a cosmetic nickel finish that isn't meant to be used in liquid applications. Often called chrome or shiny nickel, electroplated nickel is cost effective and looks good.
Unfortunately, water, anti-fungals and fancy fluids will rapidly strip electroplated nickel. The gunk that will appear in block fins isn't just broken down fluid, it's often disintegrated nickel, paint and cheap plastics. If this seems crazy, it is. After all, the cheapest home faucet can handle tap water, so why can’t expensive PC parts?
Optimus Pro-XEis our proprietary electroless nickel process for liquid cooling parts. Electroless nickel, unlike electroplated, is an aerospace industrial finish with extreme chemical resistance, hardness and superior fluid lubricity. Our Pro-XE nickel is specifically tailored for liquid cooling, providing maximum corrosion protection, even in places normal nickels can't reach, like inside our cold plate's 202 micron channels.
Optimus Pro-XE nickel is able to withstand saltwater, corrosive chemicals and, yes, even plain water. With Optimus parts, you can use distilled water without fear of flaking. Distilled, aside from being cheap, is also the highest performance coolant readily available. Anti-corrosive additives lower the thermal conductivity of the liquid. That's why we can offer a 10 year warranty, even with regular H2O. It has been a herculean task to create Optimus's Pro-XE nickel, but the results look great and are nearly indestructible.
So why isn't everyone using electroless? Cost and appearance. Electroless is far more difficult to manufacture, especially when achieving perfect finishes needed for premium PC builds. And electrolytic can achieve that bright chrome look, even though it's highly susceptible to disintegration.
GEN2
MICROFIN COLD PLATE
THE FINEST FINS EVER CREATED
Over three years of development went into creating our truly next-level patent-pending fin technology. Using a fully CNC machining process, Optimus is able to achieve 0.1016mm (0.004”) fins with 0.2032mm (0.008”) micro channels. This isn't just superior craftsmanship, it's generations beyond other fin designs.
Optimus fins and channels are perfect from first to last. It has taken years to create the tools needed for this level of accuracy, but the thermal benefits are worth it. This makes Optimus the world’s first and only truly micro CNC fin cold plate on the market. By achieving thinner fins, the Optimus cold plate has the most surface area of any CPU block available. And surface area = cooling performance.
In water cooling, there are two ways to manufacture fins: CNCing and skiving. Unlike the CNC process Optimus uses, skived fins are created by scraping a blade across a metal block, then flipping that shaving up to create a fin. While skived fins are the most common type and found in all-in-one units and water blocks, the shaving-style fins are never straight andfin collapse happens with nearly every skived plate. Open an AIO and see what has happened to the fins, upwards of a quarter of the fins will have deformed on the edges from the pressure of the o-rings and block tops, blocking flow channels, even breaking off.
CNC fins are typically much thicker than skived fins. Look at most open loop water blocks, the fins are quite large. The downside is the surface area is much lower compared to thin-fin designs.That's why the Optimus ultra thin CNC fins are the best of both worlds -- the highest surface area with CNC precision to ensure long lasting performance.
The Optimus Foundation V2 features an integrated jet design to force fluid through the fins to maximize contact. Other designs on the market use a cut steel jet plate to create pressure. While cheaper to manufacture, the steel jet plates often rust and cause galvanic corrosion when in contact with the fins, causing problems in the loop. By integrating the jet design into the unibody block, the Foundation eliminates steel from the loop, reducing potential for rust and corrosion. Moreover, we're able to tailor the cold plate bow to match the CPU IHS perfectly.
No more struggling with slippery o-rings and shallow grooves. We take the extra step of creating o-ring grooves to hold our EPDM o-rings to make assembly fast and accurate.
In water cooling, there are two ways to manufacture fins: CNCing and skiving. Unlike the CNC process Optimus uses, skived fins are created by scraping a blade across a metal block, then flipping that shaving up to create a fin. While skived fins are the most common type and found in all-in-one units and water blocks, the shaving-style fins are never straight and fin collapse happens with nearly every skived plate. Open an AIO and see what has happened to the fins, upwards of a quarter of the fins will have deformed on the edges from the pressure of the o-rings and block tops, blocking flow channels, even breaking off.
CNC fins are typically much thicker than skived fins. Look at most open loop water blocks, the fins are quite large. The downside is the surface area is much lower compared to thin-fin designs. That's why the Optimus ultra thin CNC fins are the best of both worlds -- the highest surface area with CNC precision to ensure long lasting performance.
The Optimus Foundation V2 features an integrated jet design to force fluid through the fins to maximize contact. Other designs on the market use a cut steel jet plate to create pressure. While cheaper to manufacture, the steel jet plates often rust and cause galvanic corrosion when in contact with the fins, causing problems in the loop. By integrating the jet design into the unibody block, the Foundation eliminates steel from the loop, reducing potential for rust and corrosion. Moreover, we're able to tailor the cold plate bow to match the CPU IHS perfectly.
No more struggling with slippery o-rings and shallow grooves. We take the extra step of creating o-ring grooves to hold our EPDM o-rings to make assembly fast and accurate.
Optimus sets another record for flattest cold plate on the market. Optimus machines blocks less than 1 micro-inch (µin) in flatness. This is 0.000025mm of roughness (measuring the peaks and valleys of the surface).Other companies are over 400% rougher than Optimus coldplates.
The only way to truly guarantee 0.000025mm level of accuracy is to CNC the cold plate perfectly with diamond bits. Optimus created proprietary diamond tooling that allows the cold plates to come off the CNC with a perfect mirror finish.
Additionally, because we control the fins and cold plate to such a precise level, we can make the distance between CPU IHS and the fins extremely small. Thin cold plates are able to transfer heat from the CPU faster than thicker cold plates.
Optimus sets another record for flattest cold plate on the market. Optimus machines blocks less than 1 micro-inch (µin) in flatness. This is 0.000025mm of roughness (measuring the peaks and valleys of the surface).Other companies are over 400% rougher than Optimus coldplates.
The only way to truly guarantee 0.000025mm level of accuracy is to CNC the cold plate perfectly with diamond bits. Optimus created proprietary diamond tooling that allows the cold plates to come off the CNC with a perfect mirror finish.
Additionally, because we control the fins and cold plate to such a precise level, we can make the distance between CPU IHS and the fins extremely small. Thin cold plates are able to transfer heat from the CPU faster than thicker cold plates.
We pride ourselves on using only the purest US-sourced materials in our blocks, like guaranteed C110-grade copper, 360-grade brass, 6061-T6511 aluminum and cast acrylics. Many cheap (and even not cheap) blocks use alloys or impure copper and brass to save a few dollars. While the final product may look attractive, the block will offer less performance and reliability over time. Read more about our materials here >
Wonder where that goo in your loop comes from? It’s disintegrated nickel plating, painted fittings, impure metals and cheap o-rings. Moreover, the latest fancy opaque fluids have particles that look cool but are slightly abrasive and act like a stripping agent in your system. Opaque fluids will quickly strip plugs and fittings of their finishes and certain anti-fungal additives will strip electrolytic nickel and mix with the fluids, causing massive gunk issues common in liquid builds.
Most think plasticizer in older tubing is the only cause, but inferior materials are the major source of problems. Optimus EPDM O-Rings are free from plasticizer, an issue that can be found in cheaper o-rings used in other blocks.
Many blocks are advertised as featuring “low restriction for weaker pumps” which is good for builds with weaker pumps. But if aspiring for ultimate performance, low restriction designs with thick fins simply can’t offer the heat dissipation of high micro-fin designs like Optimus. Optimus blocks are engineered for the latest and most popular D5 and DDC pumps models.
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