Specifications, Availability and Pricing

As I mentioned, this design comes in three variations, and here we are looking at solely the standalone version of the Maelstrom that does not accept any pumps. The reservoir is made of clear Acetal, but has a black anodized aluminum cover on the front that gives you a large window into the reservoir, a graduated fill level on the side, and even better is the LCD coolant temperature display you get at the bottom. On the back of this face plate, there are steel brackets that are screwed to it to mount the Maelstrom into your PC. Since water is close, Swiftech also Nickel plates these brackets, so if any coolant does get out of control, it won't rust the brackets.

Dimensionally you get a 3.3"� by 5.3"� Acetal box that can hold up to 7.9 fluid ounces of liquid internally. To fill the reservoir with this fluid, there is a large brass cap that has been plated in chrome, and is designed to come off by hand. Internally there is an anti-vortex design in a small cylinder. This design has notches at the bottom to allow the water in, and then it has to travel to the top of another inner cylinder before it is passed through a plastic sponge material and a metal filter. On the way out of the reservoir there is a black POM piece protruding out the back as it gets connected under the reservoir, and to make connections easier, the POM brings it to an accessible location. The Maelstrom also has three inlets to allow for parallel tubing to return to the res, or your choice of three options for one tube. Since we have an LCD to power, and the added feature of an included UV LED, you will need an available Molex 4-pin for the LCD screen and a 3-pin fan header to run the LED bulb.

For the version of the Maelstrom we are going to be seeing up close here in another couple of pages, I found it listed not only at Swiftech, but I also noticed both FrozenCPU and Performance PCs are also stocking this and all of the Maelstrom line. What I really like about what I see is that the pricing is exactly the same no matter which of the three you are to choose. For the basic model as you are about to see it, you are going to have to spend $89.95. These prices will continue to go up as you add a pump or two, and for the dual pump variant, expect to shell out quite a bit more, to the tune of $279.95. If the single pump version is more your speed, it lies right in the middle at $179.95, again this pricing translates to all three locations. You can also buy these with the appropriate pump mounting options for your needs, and add the pump yourself.

I do feel at this point that there is quite a bit being offered in the standalone unit, and is worth what Swiftech is asking its potential customers to spend. If you want to go big and get the pumps in the Maelstrom as well, considering the going rate of an MCP35X, the pricing does scale well.