Cooler Master Masterliquid ML240L V2 RGB Review

The demand for AIO cooling is just as strong as ever, as gamers and PC enthusiasts seek to push their hardware to the limits, or even just tame of some of the currently demanding temperatures of high-end CPUs. I'm looking at you Intel! Of course, the liquid cooling market has become something of a style choice too, it looks cool, therefore it is. Cooler Master looks set to tackle the heat and the style with their Masterliquid ML240L V2 RGB, even in the name of the product is a bit clunky. ML240L V2 RGB So what's new in this version that makes it so great? Well, the V2 now features the 3rd Generation Dual Chamber Pump, allowing for improved cooling efficiency, and hopefully less noise, as I've found CM pumps to be a little more audible in the past. The improved surface area in the radiator, their new SickleFlow120 RGB fans, and the new sealing should also all help with the overall performance. Of course, they've crammed a bunch of RGB into the pump and the fans too, so it should look great! Features 3rd Generation Dual Chamber Pump - Newly designed dual chamber pump for improved overall cooling efficiency and performance.Enlarged Cooling Surface Area - Increased surface area on the radiator for better heat dissipation and enhanced cooling performance.New SickleFlow120 RGB Fan - Improved lighting and performance using Air Balance fan blades, with new refreshed exterior design.Reinforced Sealing - Using unique formula from high Industrial Grade EPDM material to increase the lifespan and reinforce the sealing to prevent leakage.RGB Lighting Solution - Fully customizable RGB lighting that is certified compatible with all major motherboard manufacturers (Wired Controller also included). Specifications Exterior Packaging The box is very nicely presented, with a good photo on the front, as well as mention for all the supported motherboard RGB suites. Around the back and sides, all the technical stuff, but nothing we haven't already covered. On the interior, you'll find the box is a good thick carboard, with a foam layer ensuring extra protection. Below that, there's good gapping between all components, and it's all sitting snugly in there. Plus, there's thick plastic protective bags on every component. A Closer Look In the box, you'll find two of their lovely new fans. They feature a 7 blade design, with built-in RGB lighting around the motor. The fan blades are frosted, so the light will propagate from the middle outwards. I love attention to detail, and the fact that both fans come with tightly braided cables is a huge win. You get one for the RGB, one for the 4-pin PWM header. Disco-Stu Likes Disco-Stickers? I dunno, it's funky, but if I bought these fans I'd take this sticker off almost immediately, it's a bit glitzy. Around the back, we can see each fan can operate at 650 RPM up to 1800 RPM. However, I suspect it'll spend much more of its time at the former rather than the latter. You'll find a swathe of component bags too, each containing bits of brackets or screws for the usual array of sockets. All major AMD and Intel consumer sockets are supported, but of course, double check the specifications table first before you make a purchase. One of the coolest parts is this little dongle. It comes with a Molex cable to power it, and it basically lets you take manual control of the RGB. That means you can dial in colours and effects without having the need of RGB on your motherboard. Honestly, I prefer this, the less software I have to boot, the better. Radiator The new radiator is really nicely designed. That being said, they've not reinvented the wheel here, it's a radiator, it's 240mm, and it looks how you would expect. Of course, you have to look a little closer to see the changes. They've increased the surface area of the radiator, thanks to more heatpipe and more fins running throughout the unit. There's a nice tight rectangle design to it, with no lumps and bumps spoiling those clean lines. The weave on the braiding is nice and tight, with a slightly glossy finish to it, which looks great. Plus, the heat shrink wrap is done really well, very neat and tidy. The Pump The pump is really nice and compact, and you'll remember some of the earlier Cooler Master designs were pretty bulky. This is pretty sleek for an AIO pump and I like that. The tubing mounts are on pivoting joints too, allowing for much easier placement. A large contact plate, which should cover anything from AM4 to X299 easily enough. There's no pre-applied thermal paste, but you do get a small tube in the box, which is perfect. Installation The fans can be mounted with these lovely thumb screws. You can use a screw driver too, but honestly, I got them plenty snug with my fingers. Once mounted, you can see they look pretty great. Plus, those anti-vibration rubber corners stop the harder surfaces of the fans vibrating on the metal of the radiator. Still not sold on the kaleidoscope/holographic stickers though. Now let's get it all plumbed in and tested! Performance Installing the pump on our i9-9900K wasn't too difficult. There are four small screws in the box to mount the two retention arms to the pump its self. They're not pre-installed, as you may want the AMD ones, of course. There are four stand-off screws the affix to the motherboard and the included backplate, and then just four small screws hold the pump down over those. It's pretty standard stuff, but I had no real issues with it. However, I do love that pump light, as it's just a shape, it doesn't overly matter which was you orientate it; a smart move from Cooler Master. As for the fans, well, they look fantastic! The RGB lighting is pretty bright and vivid considering it's all located around the motor. It appears there are 7 lights, one for each blade, although it may actually be 14 with one towards the front and rear of the blades to give them those slick two tone effects and transitions. Overall though, the colours are lovely, and the included controller is really easy to use. Of course, if you want to hook up your motherboard for RGB sync, you can do that too. Temperatures It's no surprise that the temperatures are pretty great, a 240mm AIO is going to make light work of a stock CPU. That being said though, at gaming loads, it was beating out the Noctua D15's easily enough, which is superb! Our i9-9900K is no lightweight when it comes to putting out heat, but the ML240L V2 has no issues, and still, the gaming temperatures are really good. They're very similar to the drastically more expensive NZXT Kraken X53! Plus, at full load, the max of 82c is really respectable and up there with the best of the best. I've noted that Cooler Master has had issues with loud pumps in the past, but this time around, it's virtually silent. I just couldn't hear it unless things were really pushed, and even then it was pretty modest. The fans were happy to bumble away at fairly low RPM throughout the testing. While AIO's do tend to be a little louder than say, a Noctua cooler, this is still one of the quietest 240mm setups I've used. It seems then that Cooler Master really have made some serious improvements! How Much Does it Cost? The Cooler Master MasterLiquid ML240L V2 RGB is available from today from most major retailers. Of course, with all this COVID-19 stuff going on, don't go raging if stock is little a little slower than usual. However, you can keep an eye out for up to date prices and stock on Amazon UK here and Amazon US here. Overview Cooler Master has had its ups and its downs in the world of liquid cooling. I do think their older pumps could be a bit bulky, and they've had some noise issues in the past. Plus, there were some quality issues with a run of leaky radiators. I don't mean to pick on CM though, look through the market and you'll find all the big names have had their fair share to problems. What I do love though is that you can physically see the improvements from Cooler Master, and they work. I've been running the pump for a few days now, and couldn't be happier with it. There's a level of quality to the pump and radiator that makes it look, feel, and perform more like a premium product than any of their previous models. New and Improved The noise levels of the pump are some of the lowest I've heard from an AIO, which is amazing. Plus, I rarely heard the water rushing back and forth as you often do with any AIO as it shifts air bubbles and pressure around. The fans gave a bit of turbulence as expected, but they're pushing through a fairly tight radiator. The overall performance is really solid though, no big surprises, but no real issues either. When it comes to gaming, it kept the i9-9900K pretty well sorted out and kept the noise down to a minimum, I really couldn't ask for much more. Of course, there is a bit more thanks to the fantastic RGB lighting. It's not too over the top on the pump, just a small logo. Plus, the fans aren't overly complex when it comes to their lighting design, but it's all more than enough for me. The inclusion of the on-cable RGB controller is just the cherry on top. Cooler Master Masterliquid ML240L V2 RGB Review