Interviu

La GamesCom-ul din acest an, organizat in Köln, Germania, am avut ocazia sa stau din nou de vorba cu Andreas Rudnicki, CEO si fondator al Alphacool International GmbH. Ca de obicei, am intalnit un om foarte pasionat de ceea ce face, pe care am avut ocazia sa-l intreb mai multe lucruri de care, poate, erati si voi curiosi. Mai jos puteti vedea discutia noastra cu el, concentrata atat pe noile produse prezentate la Computex, cat si pe produsele actuale, printre care se numara si ventilatorul Apex Stealth, care a fost implicat acum ceva timp intr-un scandal.

1 – Hi Andreas, you’re becoming a regular in our interviews. I hope you enjoy them as much as we enjoy having you here. Last year marked your 20th anniversary in the industry. How was it to reach this significant milestone, and how has this year been for you so far?

Hi Matei, it’s always a pleasure to meet you and your wife in person. We are doing fine, but we believe 2024, with fewer innovations for the consumer market, will be tough for everyone. Most new items will come towards the end of the year and early next year.

2 – Computex 2024 and GamesCom 2024 are now over, and both events were more crowded than they have been since before the pandemic. It seems the IT industry is slowly recovering, with people returning to face-to-face meetings. AI was the main theme this year. Do you think AI will become increasingly integrated into our daily lives? How do you use AI in your activities?

We are using ChatGPT and exploring more AI tools for video and graphics production, but we’re still in the testing phase. As for how much it will change daily life, I can’t say right now. However, we will likely see significant changes in the next 5–10 years.

3 – I know it’s not a pleasant topic, but I have to address the elephant in the room: the Apex Stealth Metal Fan situation. How was it possible for the results from Igor’s Lab to differ so significantly compared to subsequent testing done by other reviewers? Didn’t you have a set of preliminary results from Powerlogic, the company that produced the fan insert?

Regarding the fan, yes, this is our mistake. We let Igor’s Lab (Pascal) test the fan more than three times to verify the results he sent us. We also sent him more samples to confirm the results. At that moment, we thought it was great because the results were better than the Powerlogic ones, but we were blindsided. That was stupid of us.

4 – What are your next steps regarding fans? I saw some ARGB models at Computex. Can you tell us more about them? Will we see a new and improved version of the Apex Stealth Metal Fan in the future, perhaps an Apex 2?

If you listen to and test the fan, it’s still a top performer—it ranks in the top 5. We are finalizing the ARGB version, a 140mm version, and cheaper ones. When you hold it and listen to it, it produces a totally different noise, as you also mentioned in your test and confirmed with your spectral analysis. We still trust in this technology. When you mount it, you don’t feel any vibration.

5 – The Core DDCzero PWM Pump is fascinating and can be integrated into many projects, from AIOs and custom cooling systems to server units. I know it took a lot of effort and time to design it. Can you tell us the story behind this product?

We now have the DC-LT pump in its 3rd generation. It’s one of the top sellers because many applications require smaller pumps. I can’t reveal too much due to an NDA, but for small cases, you also need a small pump. Our goal for years has been to create a small, reliable pump. That’s why we decided 7 years ago to design a pump from scratch. Xylem, with Laing technology, is the best partner for this. We’re close to bringing it to market—you’ll see it in the next 6–12 months.

6 – With the Core 1, you managed to create the best CPU water block on the market. What’s next in line for you? Will we see an Apex water block launched this year?

We’ve introduced the Core 1 Light version, and the top of our CPU cooler series will be the Apex Water Blocks, which we plan to launch in October or November this year. Performance-wise, they will be slightly better, but making significant improvements is difficult at this point. We are working on a completely different type of cooling design, but it will take 1–2 years to finish.

7 – As CPUs and GPUs become hotter and more power-hungry, do you see more customers opting for custom cooling solutions? If not, what do you think the barriers are? Complexity, knowledge, cost?

That’s a hard question to answer. If you buy a €2000 GPU and now want to switch to water cooling, you might hesitate because you’re dealing with a €2k GPU card. In my opinion, system integrators and pre-assembled GPUs are the future. The rest of the components are easy to install. Hard tubes are a bit more difficult to use. As a beginner, you should have a bit more patience and take your time. However, the results usually look very good

8 – At Computex, we also saw some solutions tailored for servers and workstations. Can you tell us a bit more about those? Do you think the growing AI segment will boost the demand for server water cooling?

Since 2018, we’ve been working in this field, and we’ve showcased 1U, 2U, and 4U applications as well as the CDU Water-to-Air unit. It’s not just the AI market; server parts, in general, are getting hotter. Data centers in Germany and Europe will have to lower their power consumption costs over the next few years due to regulations. So, they’ll need to switch to water cooling or other more efficient cooling solutions. We are working successfully on closed-loop systems, like AIOs for servers, because we have all types of radiators in-house. We also have open-loop systems for high-pressure applications and external water-to-water coolers. The CDU will also be a big option in the future if you don’t have a way to cool water outside the building but need to save energy. The future will be fascinating.

9 – Which Alphacool product are you most excited about and why? This can be a product that has already been launched or an upcoming product.

There are two standout products: the Apex fans, due to their design, weight, feel, and noise, and on the other hand, the Apex CPU cooler. Both have great design and performance.

10 – Thank you very much for your time, Andreas. It’s always a pleasure speaking with you. We look forward to seeing the exciting developments from Alphacool in the future.

Thanks again. Hope to see you soon!