Question Is there really a wrong choice on AIO 360mm Coolers?

[zmihlrad]

Having trouble deciding to the point that I am narrowing it down just on amazon reviews.

My only real concern is a poor quality item that will leak.

Have these on the radar but they all seem entirely the same to me.

Enermax Liqmax III 360 A-RGB AIO - $99
ARCTIC Liquid Freezer II 360 RGB - Multi - $150
MSI MAG CoreLiquid 360R V2 - AIO ARGB CPU Liquid Cooler - $115
Deepcool Castle 360 a-RGB - $90
Vetroo V360 Liquid CPU Cooler, 3X 120mm Addressable RGB - $90

 

[Phaaze88]

The primary cause of leaks is user error; the devices are leak resistant. If you can't trust yourself to handle one with care, then consider not getting one?

Have these on the radar but they all seem entirely the same to me.

That's because they are - almost:
-aesthetics, which is subjective.
-performance, which is determined by the fans used with the cooler and your personal fan curves.


That said, the Arctic may be #1 overall performer, simply because they used a radiator presenting lower air resistance than what's typically used on others.
The cooler you want for looks is on you.

 

[Ralston18]

Amazon reviews are not particularly reliable source. And many people discount such reviews in general.

Look for product reviews by established sources and known objective reviewers. Ideally reviews that compare products side by side.

Another source of information is to find the applicable product User Installation Guides/Manuals. In your case the coolers you have listed above.

Read the User Guides/Manuals. Pay attention to all fine print and caveats. Details matter.

Go to the manufacturer's websites to read FAQs and Forum comments (if any) about the applicable cooler. Look for what is said as well as what is not said.

Check the warranty coverage. Be sure that you understand what is covered by warranty and what is not covered by warranty. Know what the RMA process is before ordering.

 

[drea.drechsler]

Having trouble deciding to the point that I am narrowing it down just on amazon reviews.

My only real concern is a poor quality item that will leak.

Have these on the radar but they all seem entirely the same to me.
....

Leaking is a problem mainly for custom closed loop coolers, the ones you have to fit-up the tubing yourself. AIO's have been very solid for some time now.

The most common quality problem with AIO's comes from contamination left in the radiator after soldering. This leads to build up of some gunk on the microfins in the water block greatly reducing cooling. It can happen fairly soon after set-up, a few weeks to a few months. Enermax and, most recently, MSI have been ones with the most problems of that sort.

Another problem is with center-of-radiator mounted pumps. It greatly reduces the surface area of the radiator for dissipating heat and if the radiator is mounted wrong air bubbles form in it and it can't pump the liquid. MSI, again, had a design like that.

 

[zmihlrad]

Leaking is a problem mainly for custom closed loop coolers, the ones you have to fit-up the tubing yourself. AIO's have been very solid for some time now.

The most common quality problem with AIO's comes from contamination left in the radiator after soldering. This leads to build up of some gunk on the microfins in the water block greatly reducing cooling. It can happen fairly soon after set-up, a few weeks to a few months. Enermax and, most recently, MSI have been ones with the most problems of that sort.

Another problem is with center-of-radiator mounted pumps. It greatly reduces the surface area of the radiator for dissipating heat and if the radiator is mounted wrong air bubbles form in it and it can't pump the liquid. MSI, again, had a design like that.

So at a minimum it sounds like avoid the MSI..

 

[Math Geek]

look for reviews on the models. they answer all these questions as they go.

quality, cooling capacity, pump quality, noise levels and so on and so on. do some homework and i'm sure you will quickly figure out what is right for you.

 

[drea.drechsler]

So at a minimum it sounds like avoid the MSI..

Certainly the MSI pump-in-radiator designs, which are easy to spot and avoid. Supposedly MSI's fixed the problems with contamination but I'm not sure how to be certain you're getting one that's not affected. If you happen to get one there are a lot of complaints right now about MSI's RMA process for it.

Definitely go looking for reviews. but keep in mind reviews frequently concentrate on two metrics: absolute cooling with fans at max (loudest) speed and cooling ability with fans noise normalized, usually at 40db. A cheaper AIO may not perform as well simply because it uses cheaper fans. If you already have some pressure-optimized super quiet fans you could just swap them out for an instant upgrade and save. RGB also makes them more expensive and those models tend to have the quieter fans.

FYI...I swapped the fans on my BeQuiet Pure Loop for some Arctic P12's and they are much quieter. P12's are a very cheap but also very quiet 120mm pressure fan.