The BEST AIO Liquid Cooler - A Guide to the RIGHT Size

Choosing the best AIO cooler for your gaming PC can be challenging since all in one liquid coolers come in so many sizes and prices. In this video we talk about 120mm vs 240mm and 280mm vs 360mm for best CPU cooling performance using identical pumps & fans with noise normalized results. Thermal loads range from a typical Ryzen 5000 series to overclocked CPUs for cooling. There will also be some necessary points about pump noise and fan noise all using the new Phanteks Glacier One AIO coolers!

Timestamps:
0:00 – The Best AIO Size Intro
1:00 – Phanteks Glacier ONE Series Specs & Pricing
3:07 – Infinity Mirror Pump
4:02 – Phanteks AIO Fans
4:22 – AIO Installation Considerations
4:52 – Test System & Methodology
6:09 – AIO Pump Noise Testing
6:23 – AIO Pump Performance (Asetek Gen7)
7:13 – 120W Load: Noise Normalized Performance
8:39 – 165W Load: Noise Normalized Performance
9:39 – 260W Load: Noise Normalized Performance
10:37 – The Best AIO Size vs Price Is....

Buy items in this video from Amazon at the links below:

Review unit provided free of charge by Phanteks. This video is sponsored by Steelseries. As per Hardware Canucks guidelines, no review direction was received from manufacturer. As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.

Gear list (Available on Amazon):
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[billycollins]

I literally started researching this 2 hours ago. wow, what convenience lol.

[hitmangk]

You should read the graphs differently:
A bigger radiator allows you to run significantly quieter to reach the same temperature as a smaller radiator, as you can slow down the fans to reach the same cooling effect.
Additionally the fans can speed up, if you really need the oomph (especially during summertime).

[AYAYEET]

I have been looking at this exact topic all day today. No way you just happened to upload this exact video. Nice timing!

[JosephKinney]

My wife told me my AIO was “a good size”. She also told me that a guy friend of hers had a 360 though, but I totally didn’t need to worry about him...

[yongukjung]

Phanteks did well to support you guys. This cooler is a monster and I want one lol

[StefanEtienneTheVerrgeRep]

The best size AIO is at least 15GB's.

[houserspeed]

To me, the takeaways from the graphs is that while yes, a 120mm cooler can cool decently well, it'll be struggling a lot more than a bigger cooler.

For example, in the 260W Load graph at 10:14, the 120mm will be maxed out at 90 degrees and producing 44dBA while the larger coolers can achieve that same temperature at a much quieter operation of around 36 dBA, and can ramp up and produce more noise for lower temperatures.

Similarly, we can compare the 240 and 280 against the 360. The 240 achieves a temperature of around 76 degrees at maximum load, producing 48 dBA of noise.

The 280 can hit that same 76 degrees producing 45 dBA of noise and the 360 would put out 41 dBA (significantly less than 48 dBA, noise is a non-linear, logarithmic scale after all!).

The cooling from the 280 maxes out around 74 degrees for a loud 50 dBA of noise while the 360 achieves 74 degrees while putting out 44 dBA, then can further cool the system to around 73 degrees for 48 dBA.

Basically, the larger the cooler, the quieter you can run it to achieve the same cooling performance of a smaller cooler. Or to put another way, the larger coolers have extra cooling capacity in the tank beyond their smaller counterparts while achieving the same performance at a quieter noise level.

I wonder if it would be more intuitive to plot temperature on the x-axis and Decibels on the y-axis...

[brianswille]

Wow you guys are amazing.
I work in computer sales and I have referenced your videos a lot with my customers. Simple yet comprehensive. Your videos have helped me become more accurate and educated as well as my customers.

I reference the Logitech MX Master 3 and MX Keys videos to a lot of business customers for a streamlined KVM setup. Best reviews of those I have seen hands down.

You guys killed it this year. Thanks for all the hard work. Happy New Year from Alberta.

Me: *finally buys kraken x53 *

Hardware Canucks: *releases Best Aio Size video *
*Aw f*ck.*

[ayush]

Man, you guys just nail the video scene setting every time! Crisp, simple and beautiful!

[Jumper]

My thought would be to use the 240 and use the 3rd empty fan slot for a vent fan for the whole case benefitting all the other components with more overall cooling not forced through a radiator.

[SirDaffyD]

I'm running a Coolermaster 240L Master Light 240mm AIO on my R5 3600 overclocked too 4.2MHz in a mid tower with 3 120mm unrestricted fans in the front and the AIO at the top, with all settings set to auto on the AIO. Rarely do i see higher that 65c, and that's in our Aussie summer where it's not uncommon to get 40c+ temps.
Another great informative video guys. Keep them coming.

[arturasp]

This would be useful if my gpu didnt sound like MiG-29 when gaming

[tarfeef_]

Glad to see testing improvements continuing, really changing my opinion of your more technical content for the better! Keep it up!

[Jujubeans]

bought a 240mm AIO for my 2700x with Christmas money a couple of days ago, was eyeing a 280 so glad I didn't go for it! great video!

[Pyromancer]

Just bought the White 240mm because of this video. Replacing my old Celsius S36

[ajaxon]

THANK YOU. Ive wanted this cooler since it came out for a sliger sff system and no reputable channels would cover it. you are a homie, Dimitri.

[CarthagoMike]

A great limiting factor is your case. Don't get an AIO that doesn't fit in your case, like my nephew did.

[butterbean_]

Hey Dmitri, I just wanted to tell you this type of content is AMAZING. well done!

[clarkkent]

Great Vid, This knowledge is "something nobody thought to ask, but needed to learn"