Corsair H50 closed-loop CPU Water cooler for $29 @ Frys In-Store (low stock) and Frys.com (OOS)

Quote from LGCubana : I would disagree with your premise; as I have two similar setups: One with an H50 and the other with a conventional 2X 120mm cooler and the H50 definetly keeps the CPU at a a lower temp. What you may not be taking into consideration is that a conventional setup is passively transferring the heat away from the CPU, where as this platform (if setup properly: away from internal heat sources and with 2X fans, for push/pull air flow) is actively cooling off the contact plate.

My Xigmatek SD1283 and my ECO A.L.C. keep my overclocked i7-920 at approximately the same temps. The ECO was a few degrees cooler, but nothing major. They're both in the range of other 120mm tower coolers.

Where is the active heat transfer you describe? The heat passes from the CPU into the base of both coolers in exactly the same way. With the SD1283, the heat then transfers up the heatpipes to the fins, where it's cooled by atmospheric air. With the ECO/H50, the heat transfers into the water, the pump moves the water to the radiator, and the heat transfers from the water to the radiator fins, then to the atmosphere once again.

The tower and the radiator are fairly similar in size and construction, so they should both transfer heat to the atmosphere similarly. Everything else is passive heat transfer relying solely on temperature differentials between two materials, and since the last step (fins to air) is going to be similar, you simply can't have that much difference in the rest of the system. The volume of water in the liquid system can absorb some extra heat, but if you generate enough heat to saturate the water (i.e. regular computer use rather than quick OC test bursts or a huge reservoir), it becomes a moot point. The water can only absorb as much heat at the CPU as it can dump out at the radiator.

People forget that the water is just a carrier to move the heat elsewhere, and doesn't magically improve the cooling. The radiator/fins on one particular cooler may be better or worse than some other specific cooler and dissipating heat, but simply adding a loop of water in the middle doesn't inherently change anything.