8-way AIO Showdown – KitGuru’s 2023 CPU Cooler Round-Up

There have been plenty of new AIO CPU cooler launches this year, for the most part we have covered them through individual reviews which you can find on the website and our YouTube channel. But we have been left with a stack of coolers to take a look at before the year is out, so today we have an AIO showdown where we will take a brief look at the specs and features of eight AIO coolers, test them on our Intel Core i9-13900K system and let you know which of these coolers are worth spending your hard-earned cash on before the year is up.

Timestamps:

00:00 Start
01:08 Lian Li Coolers
02:01 Lian Li GA II LCD 360 – Unifan SL-INF 120 Version
07:08 Installation and discussion
09:55 Lian Li GA II Trinity Performance
15:03 Installation and discussion
17:38 Sharkoon S90 White 360
22:10 Installation and discussion
22:57 Silverstone ICEMYST 360 + 420 + IMF70 70mm Fans
28:30 Installation and discussion
30:33 Be Quiet! Pure Loop 2 360 V2
35:31 Installation and discussion
37:00 Enermax LiqMaxFlo 360 AIO
40:55 Installation and discussion
42:06 Valkyrie SYN360
48:01 Installation and discussion
48:36 Cooler and testing details
49:37 Noise output
50:18 100% fans
51:16 40dBA noise normalised
51:52 1400rpm fans
52:39 James thoughts

We have two coolers from Lian Li, the Galahad II Trinity Performance and LCD, both 360mm and in white. Two more from Silverstone with 360mm and 420mm versions that feature a unique clip on VRM fan solution. Valkyrie is a new name in the cooling space to me but has an interesting 360mm LCD-clad AIO that’s worth a look. Enermax is back with some new LIQMAXFLO coolers featuring an active VRM cooling fan on the CPU block and we have a couple of more basic budget coolers from Sharkoon with the S90 RGB white and be quiet!’s revised Pure Loop 2 360.

We've rounded up all the specs, features, and the usual pro's and con’s, as well as the performance charts below for you to browse through. However, if you want to see the coolers in all their glory make sure you check out the video in the YouTube link at the top of this page. There's a lot to get through so let's get cracking.

Lian Li Galahad II LCD 360 – UNIFAN SL-INF 360

Price and availability:

• 280mm ARGB – $229.99 Black / White
• 360mm ARGB – $249,99 Black / White
• 360mm SL-INF 360 – $289.99 Black / White

All are available now in the UK from Overclockers UK for £269.99 for the SL-INF 360 version HERE

Features:

• Available in Black or white, 280mm and 360mm. A total of 3 versions with either 120mm / 140mm ARGB PWM fans or a 360mm version with SL-INF 120 fans and an L-Connet controller.
• Based on the Asetek Generation 8 pump design with a low-profile CPU block which is more suitable for an LCD display.
• 2.88” IPS LCD Screen with 480 x 480 resolution to display system info, images, gifs etc, controlled by Lian Li L-Connect 3 software (hub included).
• 45-degree rotary fittings on the tubing at the radiator side and 90-degree rotary fittings on the CPU block.
• 30mm thick aluminium radiator with single wave fin design.
• 6-Year warranty.

Specification:

• CPU Socket Compatibility: Intel LGA1700 / LGA1200 / LGA115X, AMD AM5 / AM4
• Radiator Dimensions (L x W x H) 360mm: 399.5 x 120 x 30mm
• Fan Dimensions (L x W x H): 120 x 120mm x 25mm
• Pump Speed: 3600 RPM
• Fan Speed: 2100 RPM
• Fan Airflow: 3 CFM Max
• Fan Pressure: 66 mmH2O Max
• Fan Noise Level: 29 dBA
• Fan Bearing Type: Fluid Dynamic Bearing
• Fan Power Connector: PWM
• LCD Screen type: IPS 480 x 480 resolution
• Warranty: 6 Years

Pros:

• Very impressive thermal performance.
• Low noise output.
• Fan RGB Effects are the best I have seen.
• Cooling hardware is easy to install.
• LCD/FAN control is easy using the L-CONNET software.
• Premium-looking product.

Cons:

• A lot of unnecessary wiring and connections.
• Two USB motherboard headers are required.

Lian Li Galahad II Trinity Performance 360

Price and availability:

• Available in black or white 360mm size only.
• $169.99 USD MSRP.

Available in the UK from Overclockers UK priced at £169.99 HERE.

 Features:

• Available in black or white colour schemes.
• Apaltek OEM.
• Interchangeable pump top covers are included with three different looks.
• Daisy chainable fans with integrated cable covers help to tidy up the wiring.
• Switchable performance mode of the fans via an in-line switch for high-speed mode or reduced noise mode (lower maximum RPM).
• 45-degree rotary tube fittings on the radiator side and 90-degree rotary fittings on the CPU block end.
• Fan / Pump speed and RGB lighting are controlled by Lian Li L-Connet 3 software, but also standard type cables which can be connected to motherboard headers.
• 5-year warranty

Specification:

• CPU Socket Compatibility: Intel LGA1700 / LGA1200 / LGA1151, AMD AM5 / AM4
• Radiator Dimensions (L x W x H): 396 x 130 x 32mm
• Tubing Length: 385mm
• Fan Dimensions (L x W x H): 120 x 120 x 28mm
• Pump Speed: 4200 RPM
• Fan Speed: L: 200~2300 RPM (Max.) H: 200~3000 RPM (Max.)
• Fan Airflow: L: 81.9 CFM (Max.) H: 109.6 CFM (Max.)
• Fan Pressure: L: 4.15 mmH2O (Max.) H: 6.99 mmH2O (Max.)
• Fan Noise Level : L: 29 dB(A) H: 38.1 dB(A)
• Fan Bearing Type: Fluid Dynamic Bearing
• Fan Power Connector: 4-Pin (PWM)
• Warranty: 5 Years

Pros:

• Installation is quite simple.
• No additional RGB fan / hub is required.
• PWM fans / Pump.
• High-speed fan mode gives great performance.

Cons:

• Fans are very loud at max RPM in High-speed mode.
• Lots of wiring is permanently attached / needs to be connected to the pump.
• Lots of cable management needed to look neat.

Silverstone ICEMYST 360mm and 420mm + IMF70 70mm fans

Price and availability:

• Available in 360mm and 420mm versions.
• MSRP – $170 USD – 420 and $140 USD – 360

UK buyers can pick up the Silverstone IceMyst from Amazon UK, the 360mm version is available for £127.28 HERE and the 420mm is £146.38 HERE.

Features:

• Seamless 360-degree rotatable pump top cover.
• Daisy chained fans feature a modular cabling design to simplify connections.
• A slightly convex copper cold plate ensures firm contact with the CPU.
• High static pressure fans optimised for use with radiators.
• IMF70 70mm fans can be attached to the CPU block to cool other motherboard components.
• The IceMyst is equipped with dual-zone ARGB lighting on the fans and the pump top cover.

Specification:

• CPU Socket Compatibility: Intel LGA 115X/1200/1700/2011/2066, AMD socket AM5/AM4
• Radiator Dimensions (L x W x H): 120mm (W) x 28mm (H) x 396mm (D)
• Tubing Length: 460mm
• Fan Dimensions (L x W x H): 120 x 120 x25
• Pump Speed: 3,100 ±10% RPM
• Fan Speed: 500 ~ 2,200 RPM
• Fan Airflow: 74 CFM
• Fan Pressure: 4mmH2O
• Fan Noise Level: 1 dBA max
• Fan Power Connector: 4 pin PWM & 4-1 pin ARGB (5V LED)
• Warranty: 1 year in North America/Australia, 3 years in the UK.

Pros:

• Daisy-chained fans keep cables somewhat tidy.
• Adding IMF70 Fans could keep other components cooler.
• Installation isn’t too complicated.
• Decent thermal performance in all configurations that we tested.
• The price seems reasonable.

Cons:

• Short warranty – 1 Year in North America/Australia.
• Adding IMF70 fans makes the CPU block very tall.
• RGB lighting is quite dim and there is a lot of light bleed from LEDs around the fan hubs.

Sharkoon S90 RGB White 360

Price and availability:

• Available in Black or white.
• MSRP – €129  / £133.

The Sharkoon S90 White is available from Amazon UK for £157.47 currently HERE.

Features:

• A small pump / CPU block design for a compact look.
• The Sharkoon S690 is equipped with two ARGB lighting zones on the fans and the pump top cover.
• Daisy-chained fans provide easy and tidy-looking cable management out of the box.
• Full control over fan and pump speed with PWM.
• A rotatable Sharkoon logo on the pump top means the logo will always be in the correct position no matter of the cooler orientation.
• Micro-skived copper cold plate.

Specification:

• CPU Socket Compatibility: Intel® Socket LGA 115X / 1366 / 1200 / 1700 / 2011 / 2011-3 / 2066, AMD® TR4 / TRX4 / AM5 / AM4 / AM2 / FM2 / FM1 / AM3+ / AM2+ / AM2
• Radiator Dimensions (L x W x H): 392 x 121 x 27.5 mm
• Tubing Length: 400mm
• Fan Dimensions (L x W x H): 120 x 120 x 25 mm
• Pump Speed: 1,600 ~ 3,200 rpm ± 6 %
• Fan Speed: 600 ~ 2,000 rpm ± 10 %
• Fan Airflow: 65 CFM
• Fan Pressure: 90 mmH₂O
• Fan Noise Level: 35 dB(A)
• Fan Power Connector: 4-Pin PWM
• Warranty: 2 Years

Pros:

• Quick installation process.
• Looks good.
• All standard motherboard header connections.
• PWM speed control.

Cons:

• Poor performance compared with some rivals at high fan RPM and 40dBA.
• Noisy at high RPM.
• Noticeable light bleed from fan LEDs
• Short warranty.

Be quiet! Pure Loop 2 360 V2

Price and availability:

The original Pure Loop 2 launched in October 2020 and the FX version with be quiet! Light Wings ARGB fans launched in August 2022.

• Available in 120 / 240 / 280 and 360mm sizes.
• MSRP – 120mm $99.90, 240mm $114.90, 280mm $124.90, 360mm $139.90.
• UK buyers can pick up the Pure Loop 2 360 for £124.99 from Overclockers UK HERE.

Features:

• The latest version of the Pure Loop 2 is equipped with a double decoupled pump mounted in line on the radiator tubing with PWM speed control.
• The LED ring around the pump top cover is now illuminated with ARGB lighting rather than single-colour white LED lighting.
• New Pure Wings 3 fans replace the Light Wings fans previously found on the FX version and the Pure Wings 2 fans that were included with the original Pure Loop 2.
• This new version of the Pure Loop 2 is a muted version of the Pure Loop 2 FX which is reflected in the lower price.
• A fill port is integrated into the radiator and a top-up fluid bottle is included with the cooler, so users can top up the system when necessary.
• Pure Wings 3 is be quiet’s first fan to feature closed-loop motor control which feeds back fan speed information to the control circuit and adjusts the target fan speed – almost like a cruise control on your car.

Specification:

• CPU Socket Compatibility: Intel 1700 / 1200 / 1150 / 1151 / 1155, AMD AM5 / AM4
• Radiator Dimensions (L x W x H): 120 x 397 x 27
• Tubing Length: 400mm
• Fan Dimensions (L x W x H): 120 x 120 x 25
• Pump Speed: 4000 – 5500 RPM PWM Control
• Fan Speed: 2100 RPM WPM Control
• Fan Airflow: 9 CFM
• Fan Pressure: 41 mmH2O
• Fan Noise Level: 9 dBA (Max)
• Fan Bearing Type: Rifle Bearing
• Fan Power Connector: 4-pin PWM
• Warranty: 3 Years

Pros:

• Very quick and simple installation.
• No additional fan or RGB controllers are required for the cooler to operate.
• The new RGB lighting on the pump housing looks good.
• Reasonable price.

Cons:

• Performance lagging behind rivals at high fan speed and at 40 dBA noise normalised.
• Individual cables connected to a splitter for fans feel quite dated now.

Enermax LIQFLOMAX 360

Price and availability:

• Available in 240mm, 360mm and 420mm sizes as well as a non-RGB fan version in 120, 240 and 360mm sizes.
• MSRP: 360mm – €129, 420mm – €159, 240mm – €109.
• Available on Amazon US and Amazon EU, the 360mm is currently €150 on Amazon.de, but at the time of writing this article, it is out of stock.

Features:

• LIQMAXFLO is equipped with a chunky 38mm thick radiator for optimal cooling.
• Dual chamber pump featuring patented shunt-channel technology with enlarged coolant inlet and optimal flow design increases pressure by 30% and flow by 20% which enhances cooling efficiency.
• A refillable radiator design with an integrated fill port and maintenance kit supplied which includes top-up coolant.
• The pump, VRM fan and radiator fans are all PWM controlled.
• CPU block top cover is removable and can be rotated to ensure the Enermax logo is in the correct orientation no matter which way the cooler is installed.
• The cooler comes with a thermal compound pre-applied to the copper cold plate.

Specification:

• CPU Socket Compatibility: Intel LGA 1700 /1200 /115X / 2066 / 2011, AMD AM4 / AM5
• Radiator Dimensions (L x W x H): 400 x 120 x 38mm
• Tubing Length: 400mm
• Fan Dimensions (L x W x H):120 x 120 x 26.8mm
• Pump Speed: 1200 – 3000 RPM PWM control
• Fan Speed: 500 – 1800 RPM PWM Control
• Fan Airflow: 03 CFM
• Fan Pressure: 4 mmH2O
• Fan Noise Level: 46 dBA
• Fan Bearing Type: N/A
• Fan Power Connector: PWM and 3-pin 5v ARGB
• Warranty: 5 Year

Pros:

• Easy installation.
• NO RGB controller is required to work.
• Quiet operation even at max fan speed.

Cons:

• Fan RGB lighting is quite dim and there's a significant LED light bleed.
• The VRM fan can be quite loud at high speed.
• Amazon's price is higher than MSRP so not such good value.
• Performance isn’t as good as expected.

Valkyrie SYN360

Price and availability:

• Available in black or white and 360mm or 240mm versions.
• SYN240 starts from €169 MSRP.
• SYN360 is €201 for the black version and a few Euros more for the white version, However, availability is absent in the UK at least.

Features:

• 4-inch LCD screen with 320 x 240 resolution can display animation, photos and essential PC performance parameters. The screen is controlled by the Valkyrie software.
• Micro-skived copper cold plate base and high RPM pump for optimal cooling performance on modern Intel and AMD desktop processors.
• Low evaporation tubing with braided sleeving reduces coolant loss over time.
• Addressable RGB fans with PWM speed control.

Specification:

• CPU Socket Compatibility: Intel 1700 / 1200 / 115X / 2066 / 2011, AMD AM4 / AM5
• Radiator Dimensions (L x W x H): 397 x 120 x 27mm
• Tubing Length: 425mm
• Fan Dimensions (L x W x H): 120 x 120 x 25mm
• Pump Speed: 2900 RPM
• Fan Speed: 800-2150 RPM (± 10%)
• Fan Airflow: 80 CFM
• Fan Pressure: 800-2150 RPM (± 10%)
• Fan Noise Level: 800-2150 RPM (± 10%)
• Fan Power Connector: 4-pin PWM and 3-pin 5V ARGB
• Warranty: 5 Years

Pros:

• Decent thermal performance at high fan speed.
• Nice bright looking LCD display
• RGB Effects on the fans look good
• Thermal performance is okay.

Cons:

• Red accents are not suitable for all systems with different colour schemes.
• Using an SDCard for displaying images and gifs on the LCD screen is an odd choice.
• The implementation of on-screen info looks crude.
• The 5-year warranty is good.

Test System Specifications:

• CPU: Intel Core i9-13900K
• Motherboard: Gigabyte Z790 Aorus Master
• Memory: 32GB (2 X 16GB Modules) Kingston Fury  DDR5-6000
• Graphics card: Gigabyte RX 7900 XT Gaming OC
• Storage: 500GB Corsair MP600 PCIe Gen4 NVME M.2 SSD
• Power Supply: Seasonic Prime TX-1000
• Chassis: Open Test Bench
• Thermal Compound: Arctic MX-6
• Operating System: Windows 11 Version 22H2

Testing Methodology:

We are primarily focussing on the performance of each cooler at 100% fan speed and also when locked to 40dBA noise output but for this showdown, we have added in a fixed 1400RPM fan test. We will focus on cooling performance using a manual overclock with all-core frequency and VCORE locked to 5.5GHz/4.3Ghz (P/E Cores) 1.3v with level 5 LLC in the BIOS.

• The test data is logged using HWINFO and the final 10 minutes of the data is calculated to find the average CPU Delta temperature and then plotted in the charts.
• For testing, we use a 30-minute looped run of Cinebench R23 and record the steady-state CPU temperature at the end of the test. This ensures that the CPU has had ample time to warm up and reach a steady state under all of the coolers.
• The ambient is maintained at 19-21 degrees Celsius. Where there is variation beyond this temperature range, we add extra repeated tests to ensure consistency. However, this is well controlled now with A/C.
• We also test each cooler with at least two fresh installs (typically three) to mitigate the likelihood of poor mounting spoiling results.
• Ambient temperature and humidity are controlled via a mini split air conditioning system inside the test room. Ambient temperature is maintained between 19-21C, Temperature delta figures are shown in the charts (ambient temperature is deducted from the measured component temperature).

Test Scenarios

• 100% Fan/PUMP Speed.
• 40dBA Noise Normalised.
• Fixed 1400 RPM Fan speed with max pump speed.

Test Results:

Acoustics

We will start by looking at noise output which gives us a good indication of thermal performance based on noise.

The Lian Li Galahad II and Enermax LIQMAXFLO are the quietest of all the coolers by a noticeable margin. be quiet! lives up to its name being next in the chart but I expected less noise from the Pure Wings 3 fans, however they are high-speed versions running up to 2300 RPM so they are running faster than both the Galahad II LCD and the LIQMAXFLOW fans.

All the other coolers run at +50dBA so the noise output of the rest is quite noticeable at maximum RPM and could be a little distracting for some users.

Thermal Performance – 100% Fan Duty Cycle

With all coolers fans maxed out at 100% duty cycle results are quite interesting because both Lian Li Galahad II coolers top the charts here even though they are two completely different coolers from separate OEM suppliers.

Even though the Trinity Performance tops the charts, the performance of the LCD version seems more impressive due to its lower fan speed and noise output but it's still only a couple of degrees hotter on performance compared with the Trinity Performance.

Both Silverstone and Valkyrie coolers are quite evenly matched in terms of performance at max fan speed just a couple of degrees behind the Lian Li coolers, which is a good outcome considering the price of the Silverstone coolers is significantly lower.

However, the final three coolers from Sharkoon, Enermax and be quite! Are a fair way off the performance of the others with average temperatures at max RPM 5 or 6°C higher, which is a little disappointing considering they all use 360mm radiators.

Thermal Performance – 40dBA Noise Normalised

At 40dBA noise normalised again the Li Lian coolers both top the charts with very similar performance. Like the previous test, at 40dBA the Silverstone IceMyst 420 is close behind, the IceMyst 360 is a couple of degrees hotter and the Valkyrie SYN360 is holding its thermal performance too.

The be quiet! Pure loop 2 shows an improvement in thermal performance at 40dBA and is very closely matched by the Enermax LIQMAXFLO but the Sharkoon S90 white suffers when the fans are limited to 40dBA noise output.

Thermal Performance – Fixed 1400 RPM Fan Speed

For an additional test, we fixed all the cooler's fan speeds to 1400 RPM. This resulted in a change at the top of the chart with the Silverstone IceMyst 420 having the advantage of larger fans. Still, the Lian Li Galahad II Trinity Performance was very close to the IceMyst 420mm performance, and the Galahad II LCD again wasn’t far behind at all.

The performance of the Valkyrie SYN360 dropped off a little at 1400 RPM relative to its performance in the other tests, the Enermax, Sharkoon and be quiet! coolers are not far behind, however, there's almost 10 10-degree delta between the top and bottom coolers which is significant when you take into account that the Silverstone IceMyst and be quiet! coolers are similarly priced, which means that the Silverstone AIO looks like better value for money.

Overall, the Lian Li Galahad II coolers are a little more expensive but their performance is excellent in any scenario which makes them my all-around favourite while the Silverstone IceMyst offer the best value in terms of performance.

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KitGuru says: Both of the Lian Li Galahad II coolers topped the charts in almost all of our tests showing outstanding thermal performance on the Intel Core-i9 13900K. For us, the best all-round package is the Galahad II LCD if you have the budget for it. If you are looking to be a little more savvy with your money, you can't go wrong with the Silverstone IceMyst coolers which offer good thermal performance and decent RGB lighting effects at an affordable price. If it is all out raw performance that you need then the Lian Li Galahad II Trinity Performance is your best bet.

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