Cooling

Antec Mercury RGB 240 AIO CPU Cooler Review

Final Thoughts

Pricing

At the time of review, we were unable to ascertain a price for this cooler. Based on the price of the non-RGB model though we would anticipate a retail price in the region of £80-£90. This allows the cooler to just sneak into the level of what could be considered the entry-level of 240mm AIO coolers. At least, those of a quality build. This is particularly notable when you consider the plethora of RGB functions this cooler has.

Overview

Like it or not, but RGB lighting appears to be the major current trend not just with coolers, but with practically any PC component these days. Antec does, however, do something that many major manufacturers do not. They offer alternatives. Yes, the standard Mercury cooler does still have lighting, but it is a lot more low-key.

If you are therefore looking for something with that little something special, the RGB version certainly gives you that. The effects are nice and solid and while they might be a little garish to some, personally I found that there was an option to suit most. In terms of the product as a whole, it’s difficult to find any outright criticisms that could not be perceived as preferential or petty.

Build Quality

For a product in this price range, particularly for RGB coolers, it’s not unusual for a manufacturer to try and go cheap where they can. In terms of the Antec Mercury RGB 240 though, that definitely isn’t the case.

The decision particularly to swap the prior plastic protective sheathing for a kevlar based coating was a good one and made the installation a lot easier. The mounting bracket is not the easiest I have used and the instruction manual provided for the product isn’t very good. This does mean that installation will be a lot easier for those experienced with coolers. I wouldn’t like to have attempted this as my first ever cooler installation.

In terms of the actual components to this cooler though, I have no complaints. Everything both looks and feels solid and as per the marketing, definite improvements have been made in the design.

Fans

The cooler comes packaged with 2 Antec fans with RGB lighting effects which as the acoustics tests show, perform really well. There does appear to be an apparent trade-off in terms of temperature control, that, of course, could be modified to give a more overall balanced result if you wished.

In addition, the design is very pleasing to the eye, even without the RGB lighting effects.

Performance

In terms of performance, I can give my opinion, but the short answer is that it will depend on what you consider to be your greater priority. In terms of temperature performance, without doubt, the Antec Mercury RGB 240 did operate towards in the higher end of the scale (in comparative testing). That shouldn’t, however, deter people from this cooler. Admittedly, for a cooler that might sound contradictory. I do, however, feel that there is a case to be made here.

When we consider the noise levels, things change completely. Put simply, they are excellent. The pump block itself ran quietly without any gurgling and the fan noise levels were definitely up there with the best.

As above, I suspect that a balanced performance can be found with this cooler if you take the time to adjust fan speeds accordingly to suit what you want.

Should I Buy One?

In terms of looks and noise levels, this cooler is definitely worth considering. Particularly if you are looking for that something special in terms of lighting effects. I can not stress how much I like the Antec Mercury designs in an aesthetic level. At the risk of repeating myself again, I really do like the look even when it is turned off.

When running, temperatures are a little higher than we would have expected under testing. As above, though, this would appear to run consistently with the excellently low noise levels this produced.

It is difficult to make an outright recommendation based on the lack of a solid pricing figure. If this cooler does retail within our estimated price range though, the Antec Mercury RGB 240 could be one of the best value AIO coolers out there at the moment. This, when taking into consideration the quality, looks, acoustics and RGB lighting effects.

Pros

With the RGB on or off, this is one of the best looking AIO coolers in my opinion.
Noise levels were excellent.
Build quality is to an excellent standard.
Components are all individually bagged with labels making assembly significantly less daunting.
A manual controller is provided for the lighting effects if your motherboard doesn’t support synchronization.
The cooler has seen definite improvements including pre-applied thermal paste and Kevlar coating to the radiator hose.