With last year’s success of the EK-Quantum Magnitude CPU water block, the EK-Quantum Line has received two new iF DESIGN AWARDS this year. In the Gaming Hardware product category, one was granted to the EK-Quantum Vector FE Special Edition GPU water block. It is the most complex GPU water block enclosure as a cooling solution that EK has developed to date. It was engineered for the latest NVIDIA® GeForce® RTX ™ 30 series Founders Edition graphics cards and comes with a backplate that makes sure the entire graphics card is enclosed and not visible at all.

Forming a halo product for the Vector family of GPU blocks, the FE Special Edition came with a distinctive set of challenges. Built as an aftermarket product for Founders Edition RTX 3080 and RTX 3090 graphics cards, the block had to negotiate the irregular PCB shapes and unorthodox assembly. However, as a result of these challenges, several design opportunities were leveraged to create a totally unique and unprecedented GPU water block. A solid aluminum exoskeleton forms a cradle in which the cooling and lighting are embedded, revealing only the most beautiful elements to the user.

A two-piece CNC machined aluminum exoskeleton encloses the entire water block and graphics card, tightly fitting around the grooved backplate and acrylic terminal. Exemplary quality of finish throughout combined with discretely integrated D-RGB edge lighting of the acrylic parts solidify its luxury halo status. A perfectly polished window reveals the high-performance cooling engine and nothing more, all screws and gaskets are concealed beneath the exoskeleton.

It operates significantly below the rated temperature of all electronic components to reduce fatigue from thermal cycles and increase the longevity of the graphics card, all while delivering higher performance and ensuring that it stays technologically relevant for as long as possible. The water block is fixed together mechanically with only screws and replaceable seals that allow it to be maintained throughout its useful lifespan and then separated and recycled.