A PC gamer has DIYed a passive Nvidia GeForce RTX 4060 graphics card system. Perhaps unhappy with the Palit GeForce RTX 3050 KalmX 6GB still being the pinnacle of commercial passive graphics cards in 2026, Bilibili user NexFrame (h/t Fanless Tech) has bolted a hulking finned aluminum heatsink onto an RTX 4060.

NexFrame appears to be a small or up-and-coming ‘brand’ with a penchant for passive PC systems, from what we can understand from their Bilibili bio (machine translation). Unfortunately, we don’t have a lot of information about this passive 5.5-pound (2.5kg) aluminum heatsink-wearing RTX 4060, like whether it is tuned to run cooler than a standard model for fanless operation.

Squinting at the Bilibili video source, a system monitor window seen towards the end of the video appears to show that the GPU is running in a gaming scenario at 58C, with a 71C hotspot. Meanwhile, the graphics fan is running at 0 RPM, which seems accurate. However, the modder doesn’t seem to be taking it easy on the GPU. Further down the system info screen, we see the GPU reportedly pulling 198W. A standard actively cooled RTX 4060 would consume far less than that under load, more like 115W to 120W, so some data must be mangled here, or being misreported.

Elsewhere in the images shared by NexFrame, we can see that the CPU is also being cooled passively. It looks like a hexacore Intel CPU has been combined with a Noctua NH-P1 Passive CPU cooler. This commercial passive cooler was capable of keeping a CPU consuming up to 75W cool and stable enough over extended periods during our review testing. The system monitor tool overlaid on NexFrame’s game testing session shows the CPU sipping between 35 and 50W.

Passively cooled PCs are of interest to a significant number of enthusiasts for eliminating what is typically the noisiest component of a modern PC – fans. In a standard gaming PC, there will be fans built into the CPU cooler, on the GPU shroud, in the PSU, and also arranged at strategic places around the case. Even so-called liquid cooling systems usually rely on their CPU or GPU contact heatsinks being attached to an array of fans cooling a radiator in the case. Just think how blissfully peaceful your computing experience could be if all these moving parts were eliminated.

TrashBench recently decided to test whether adding more and more fans to what used to be one of the best graphics cards would improve its performance. The result wasn’t significantly faster performance, sadly, even when the thermal headroom was used for overclocking (vs. stock OC). Nevertheless, lessons were learned, and the self-described “punk-rock GPU death lab” was still proud of the temperature reductions, plus the GPU contraption's “awesome” looks and sounds.

The experiment began with an overview of the Asus ROG GeForce RTX 3080, a nice example of the breed. But it was a choice that would perhaps end up making the 11-fan wonder look like less of an accomplishment. TrashBench stated the goal was to add more and more fans, plus duct tape and cable ties, then see whether the reduced temperatures from the boosted airflow result in more frames.

After cleaning and repasting the guinea pig GPU, a baseline was set with the stock cooler. Running 100% fan speed on the Asus ROG resulted in a stable temperature of 63°C (down from 70°C) during stress testing with the Unigine Heaven benchmark.

Replacing the Asus ROG cooling shroud with a trio of Arctic case fans dropped the reported GPU temperatures to a stable 52 degrees Celsius. That’s a decent result. Next, the trio of case fans was swapped for thicker server fans, shaving another 2 degrees Celsius off the GPU temperature, bringing it to 50 degrees Celsius precisely. Duct tape was added to prevent air venting from the sides of the server fans. Oops, the GPU temperature actually stabilized at a warmer 54 degrees Celsius.

So, that was the end of fans-at-the-front modifications. TrashBench next looked at adding a quintet of tiny Arctic server fans that run at up to 15,000 RPM along the top of the card. This jet-engine-soundalike configuration didn’t shift the needle, though. The RTX 3080 still wouldn’t hold below 50 degrees Celsius when tested for any length of time.

Trying backplate fans was the next idea. After another ineffective endeavor, though, TrashBench decided to upgrade the backplate fan to an AiO 360mm cooler. Wow - a new best was recorded with this setup, with the GPU reporting a top stable temperature of just 41 degrees Celsius in Heaven.

Momentarily happy with this low-temperature achievement, the tech tinkerer decided to check whether benchmark runs in Shadow of the Tomb Raider showed any benefit. There were some performance uplifts charted, but only very modest, as you can see from our results table, which even includes cases where the newfound overclocking headroom was taken advantage of.

TrashBench concluded with some positives. “It nearly cut the temperatures in half. It looks awesome. It sounds awesome,” underlined our hardware hacking hero. However, the tech tinkerer kept it real by adding “And it got me 2 FPS. So, not worth it.” In some ways, then, the good quality of the stock triple-fan Asus ROG RTX 3080 graphics card detracted from the 11 extra-fan hijinks.

ASRock is well known among PC enthusiasts for its graphics cards, motherboards, power supplies, and gaming monitors. Now, it has entered the market for liquid cooling solutions.

We’re looking at two of the company’s first AIOs here, the Phantom Gaming 360 LCD and Steel Legend 360 LCD. Both of these liquid coolers feature 3.4-inch 480 x 480 displays for showing off animations and monitoring performance metrics. Aside from aesthetics, the main differences between the two are the included fans and radiator size. The Steel Legend 360 incorporates a standard 27 mm thick radiator, whereas the Phantom Gaming 360 uses a thicker-than-normal 32 mm radiator.

Let's take a look at the specifications and features of the coolers, then we’ll go over thermal and noise benchmarks and decide whether ASRock’s Phantom Gaming and Steel Legend AIOs deserve to make our list of the best CPU coolers.

Cooler specifications

Features of ASRock Phantom Gaming & Steel Legend 360 LCD

▶️ 60hz 3.4-inch LCD display

Both the Phantom Gaming 360 LCD and the Steel Legend 360 LCD include a 3.4-inch square IPS screen with a 480 x 480 resolution and 60 Hz refresh rate, with brightness rated at 250 nits.

To control and customize the screen, you’ll need to download ASRock’s Polychrome Display software. You have the option of selecting six preset themes, or you can build your own theme, and/or customize the individual elements shown on the display.

While I certainly wish there were more presets available, my biggest complaint using this software is the extreme file compatibility limits. If you’d like to upload a custom background, the image or video file needs to be less than 20 megabytes and 1080p or lower in resolution.

▶️ RAM Clearance

As with most liquid coolers, the design of both the Steel Legend and Phantom Gaming 360 has the CPU block set so it doesn’t overhang or interfere with the DIMM slots – ensuring that all sizes of RAM, no matter how tall, are compatible.

▶️ VRM fan

Included on top of the CPU block is a 70 mm, 3,000 RPM fan designed to help keep your RAM and motherboard’s VRM modules cool. As you’ll see in our Karhu benchmarks, it does an excellent job of cooling these parts of your computer.

▶️ Thick CPU cold plate

The copper contact plate is unusually thick, like you’d more typically see in an AIO supporting AMD Threadripper or Intel Xeon server CPUs.

Differences between the ASRock Phantom Gaming 360 LCD and Steel Legend 360 LCD

▶️ Color schemes and aesthetic

While they are similar in many ways, each of these AIOs has a different aesthetic, similar to what you’d see in the company’s motherboard lines. The Steel Legend might appeal to those who prefer simpler designs, with a white body and gray fan blades.

If you want flashy lighting, the Phantom Gaming 360 might be your thing. In addition to ARGB lighting on the fan blades, it also includes a lighting strip across the side of the radiator.

▶️ Radiator sizes: 32 mm and 27 mm

There are two primary technical differences between the Phantom Gaming 360 LCD and the Steel Legend 360 LCD; one of those is the radiator size. The Steel Legend 360 LCD has a standard 27 mm radiator, whereas the Phantom Gaming 360 features a thicker 32 mm radiator.

▶️ 120 mm fans

There’s more to a liquid cooler than just the radiator and liquid pump. The included fans directly impact noise levels and cooling performance. This constitutes the second primary technical difference between the AIOs we’re reviewing today.

Both units include fans that are 28 mm thick and pre-installed for user convenience. The Steel Legend 360 features three individual 120 mm fans, with a white shell and gray blades.

The Phantom Gaming includes a fancier fan block instead of individual fans, and features ARGB lighting on the fan blades and a strip across the radiator. These fans aren’t as powerful – or as noisy – as the fans included with the Steel Legend, but this is balanced by the thicker 32 mm radiator included on the Phantom Gaming 360 LCD.

Packaging

The outer packaging is a bit flashy – at least, in comparison to your normal AIO box. It features a rendering of the cooler against a black background with streaks of purple hues.

The inner packaging is just as fresh as the outside, with each component of the cooling system well protected from the chaos that shipping can bring by using a combination of soft covers and individual cardboard walls for each component.

Included with the package are:

• Mounting hardware for AMD and Intel platforms
• Tubing clips
• A small tube of thermal paste
• 360 mm radiator and 120 mm fans
• 3.4-inch LCD display

AM5 Installation

This section assumes you’ve already mounted the 360 mm radiator. Installation of AIOs is typically much easier when you have already secured the radiator to your computer case.

To begin putting things together, you’ll first need to remove the default AM4/5 retention from the motherboard.

The next step is to place the mounting bars on top of the studs, securing them with the included screws. The middle of the mounting bars includes a helpful image indicating the direction the bars should be installed, with an arrow pointing towards where the CPU should be.

Now you’ll want to apply the included thermal paste. If you’re not sure how to do that, we have a handy thermal paste application guide that covers the different methods you can use.

Afterwards, place the pump block against the CPU and mounting bars, and use a screwdriver to secure it. You should have the liquid tubing in the south position for best thermal performance.

The next step is to slide the LCD display on top of the VRM fan. To complete the AIO’s installation, you’ll want to connect the USB, PWM, and ARGB headers as appropriate – then you can power on your system.

Real-world testing configuration – AMD AM5 platform

We’ve tested coolers with both the Ryzen 9950X3D and its non-V-Cache sibling, the 9950X. There are some differences in how the 9950X and 9950X3D CPUs are impacted by thermal events. While the heat output of the CCDs of AMD’s 9950X3D is relatively balanced, the 9950X I used has one CCD that runs much hotter than the other, with a difference of over 10 degrees Celsius in some scenarios, shown below.

We’ve since returned to using a 9950X3D for cooler testing, as it has a more balanced heat profile, and is almost certainly a more widely adopted CPU. The benchmark results shared in these reviews may differ from others because I emphasize results that are comparable to real-world use. This means I generally test CPU coolers inside of a closed desktop case, which increases cooling difficulty compared to other testing methods.

Many reviewers test coolers on open test benches, which have a combination of lesser airflow needs and lowered ambient temperatures. This results in making weak coolers appear stronger than they really are. Some also use generic thermal plates to test cooling solutions. I reject both of these methods because they don’t accurately reflect real-world cooler conditions.

Our latest testing setup uses the Flova F50 computer case from Tryx.

This case features a unique “crossflow” fan that pulls air from the side, which the company claims is more effective than traditional intake fans. For air cooling tests, we’ve added a single Noctua NF-A12 G2 intake fan.

We’re going to start this review’s benchmark section by focusing on a traditional maximum performance test, with the CPU cooler’s fans allowed to reach their fastest speeds for the best cooling possible.

Turning on PBO allows AMD’s Ryzen 9 9950X3D to stretch its legs to an extent, and all air coolers I have tested with PBO enabled using MSI’s X870E Carbon Wifi motherboard reach the maximum CPU temperature of 95 degrees C (203 F) and thermally throttle to some extent.

The thermals of both ASRock AIOs are excellent, able to keep AMD’s Ryzen 9 9950X3D under its peak temperature (TJ Max) in Cinebench R23 with PBO enabled – allowing for the best possible benchmark performance. Of particular note is the performance of ASRock’s Steel Legend 360; it maintained an average of 61.5C over ambient (83.5C), the best result we’ve seen on this test bench.

Some coolers perform well in maximum strength tests, but require running loudly to maintain said performance. The ASRock AIOs we tested reach 46.9 and 47.8 dBA, which is about average for most liquid coolers on the market.

200W thermal benchmarks

For the next thermal test, I leave the motherboard settings at their defaults, which results in a power limit of 200W when running Cinebench R23.

When a standard power limit is imposed, the thermal differences between the two ASRock coolers close, with both coolers performing about the same. I measured 47.3 and 47.9 degrees over ambient, giving them the third- and fourth-best performing results from this test bench.

150W + GPU thermal results, noise levels

Our next test runs Cinebench on the CPU with a 150W power limit, while also running Furmark on MSI’s RTX 4070 Ti Super Ventus 3x OC. This causes the GPU to consume ~295W of power. This test is designed to emulate the thermals of games, which primarily stress the CPU and GPU.

ASRock’s Steel Legend stood out in this test, outperforming all other competitors, with an average temperature of 57.4 C (35.4 C above ambient). The Phantom Gaming AIO also performed well, taking the fourth-place spot.

But thermals are only part of the story. Noise levels, especially when you’re gaming, are far more important here. When tied to my motherboard’s default fan curve, ASRock’s Steel Legend 360 had a noise level measured at 39.2 dBA. The Phantom Gaming 360 LCD was just a hair louder, measuring 39.6 dBA.

Noise-normalized testing

Most testing is performed with the cooler tied to the default fan curve of our MSI X870E Carbon motherboard, but some prefer to see tests when the noise levels of coolers are equalized. This is especially important to those of you who prefer silent computers. This next test has the CPU cooler noise-normalized to 38.9 dBA, with PBO enabled for the Ryzen 9 9950X3D CPU.

With recordings of 258.8 and 258.2W average CPU power consumption, ASRock’s AIOs perform essentially on par with each other while noise-normalized.

Karhu DDR5 RAM thermals testing

Your CPU cooler does not operate in isolation. It has an impact on not just your CPU’s temperatures, but also the other components in your build, like your RAM and GPU. To that end, I’ve run the Karhu RAM stress test. This places a load of ~153W on the CPU and ensures system RAM (DDR5 in my case) is fully stable. In this type of scenario, most AIOs tend to produce worse results than air coolers.

DDR5 temperatures were excellent in this test, with averages of 20.9 C (Steel Legend) and 21.5 C (Phantom Gaming) recorded. Of the AIOs I’ve tested on this configuration, only Silverstone’s IceMyst Pro with its unique stackable fans performs better.

We’ve also included a chart showing the CPU temperatures in this test, and thermal performance was strong – outperforming air coolers by ~5 degrees C. But I haven’t recorded this data for other AIOs yet.

Conclusion

ASRock’s Steel Legend 360 LCD and Phantom Gaming 360 LCD are both strong coolers, well suited to heat-intensive CPUs like AMD’s Ryzen 9950X3D or Intel’s Core i9-14900K.

Of the two ASRock AIOs, I would recommend the Steel Legend 360 LCD for users who want the best thermal performance possible (and a lower price tag). It might lack the thicker 32 mm radiator included with the Phantom Gaming 360 LCD, but its included fans are stronger, and as a result provide lower CPU temperatures and quieter noise levels in common scenarios. Still, at around $160, the Steel Legend is far from the most affordable AIO with a display, and it’s only available in white.

We're enduring a particularly hot summer in the northern hemisphere, so it is understandable if powerful, pint-sized PCs are getting relatively toasty during long gaming sessions. However, Valve has confirmed that the Steam Machine's red light bar warning is bugged and being triggered prematurely. Redditor Pure-Outcome-5977 shared a Steam Support message that appears to confirm that a BIOS fix is on the way to raise the temperature and throttling red light warning threshold for the CPU/GPU from 95/90 to 100/100 degrees Celsius.

Update Regarding Red Light During Gameplay from r/steammachine

There appears to be a little miscommunication going on between the Redditor and Steam Support. Pure-Outcome-5977’s red warning light was coming on with system monitor tools showing the CPU was at 81°C and the GPU at 71°C. So the red light bar warning trigger temperatures of 95/90°C seem to be bugged. Thus, they got an answer to a slightly different issue than the one they raised.

“After discussing with our engineers, there is a known issue with the current BIOS that results in the red LED lights displaying much earlier than they should,” admits the Steam Support person in the message screenshot. “The issue is just with when the lights are set to come on. The Steam Machine itself is within normal operating temperature for the CPU/GPU, which they confirmed from your screenshots. For your awareness, the Steam machine will start throttling performance at 100C for CPU/GPU and will shut down to protect itself if temperatures rise past that.”

Importantly, this premature red warning light is just a temporary wrinkle that will be fixed soon via a BIOS update, adds Steam / Valve. After the update, red light warnings will only be seen after hitting a threshold of “100/100C for CPU/GPU instead of 95/90 for CPU/GPU that is currently happening,” concluded the official support message.

The nearest desktop alternative to the Steam Machine’s CPU, something like the Ryzen 5 7500F, has a TDP of 65W and a max operating temperature of 95°C. However, Valve uses a custom mobile-tuned 30W CPU, which is configured to throttle at 100°C and self-protect shutdown if temperatures continue to rise, hitting 105°C.

We don’t have a set date for the arrival of the new Steam Machine BIOS, but “soon” should be good enough for most users.

The Steam Machine’s light bar has previously been in media focus, being central to stories about the device suffering from a ‘Red Line of Death’ (RLOD). Happily, the pronouncement of death in that case was also premature. RLOD Steam Machines can be reanimated Lazarus-like by following a simple and officially described CMOS reset procedure (read more via the above link).

What makes Cooler Master’s new V4 Alpha and V8 Ace 3DHP air coolers stand out against their competitors? Well, it’s in the name of the product – the company’s new 3DHP (3D heatpipe) technology represents a serious advancement in cooling.

Traditional copper heatpipes are typically formed in a “U” shape, and work well enough in most scenarios. But Cooler Master’s 3DHP heatpipes look more like a trident, with three ends instead of two. There’s more to the tech, which we will cover in more detail below.

Additionally, the V8 Ace 3DHP features two of the strongest fans we’ve ever tested from a Cooler Master product, with liquid crystal polymer blades and backed by a six-year warranty.

Let's take a look at the specifications and features of these coolers. Then we’ll go over thermal and noise benchmarks to decide if the V4 Alpha and V8 Ace 3DHP air coolers are good enough to make our list of the best CPU coolers we’ve tested.

Cooler specifications

Features of Cooler Master’s V4 Alpha and V8 Ace

▶️ Innovative 3DHP Heatpipes

Both the V4 Alpha and V8 Ace are powered by Cooler Master’s innovative 3DHP heatpipe technology. To simplify things somewhat, while most heatpipes are “U” shaped, with one prong of each heatpipe on the left and right sides of a heatsink, 3D heatpipes add a prong in the middle to give it more of a trident shape, enhancing the efficiency of thermal transfer.

Traditional heatpipe setups don’t usually fully saturate the fins of a heatsink, only providing 70% fin utilization, according to Cooler Master. This makes sense, as you’ll often see that temperatures continue to rise in extended-length cooler testing as the fins become more fully saturated. Cooler Master claims that with its 3D heatpipes, fin utilization is increased to 95% or more. We’ll see how that plays out in our benchmark testing shortly.

▶️ RAM Clearance

RAM compatibility is excellent with both of these coolers. The V4 Alpha doesn’t overhang or interfere with RAM DIMMs at all, allowing for compatibility with all sizes of DDR4 or DDR5 DIMMs.

The V8 also has wide RAM compatibility. Its intake fan does overhang the DIMM slots, but if your RAM is particularly tall – like our T-Force Xtreem DDR5-7200 featured below – the sliding rail system allows you to easily adjust fan position, so things fit properly. We had to raise the fan by a few millimeters for proper clearance, but I think the sticks I’m using are about the tallest on the market, at 48.8mm height. Officially, RAM up to 45mm in height is supported.

▶️ 30mm thick Liquid Crystal Polymer fans

There’s more to a cooler than just the heatsink. The included fans have a direct impact on aesthetics, noise levels, and overall thermal performance. The fans on the V8 Ace 3DHP are made for longevity, built with liquid crystal polymer (LCP) blades and loop dynamic fan bearings.

They come pre-installed with a sliding rail system, allowing for simple installation and height adjustment.

▶️ Aesthetics

You might notice the top of the V8 Ace 3DHP looks like it has eight gigantic heatpipes – but note they’re not actually real heatpipes. Does that mean it’s only decorative, and serves no real purpose? I wouldn’t say that. The “fake” heatpipes here seem to be made from metal and are cold to the touch, indicating that they do have the ability to absorb heat.

I decided to take the cooler apart for a better look at this piece, and it appears the primary function is actually to prevent air leakage. If you look closely at the picture below, you’ll see the fans are slightly taller than the heatsink. If that’s not a concern for you and you prefer an “old-fashioned” look that shows the ends of the copper heatpipes, the cooler works just fine without the top, though you’ll lose a small amount of thermal efficiency.

▶️ Packaging

The outer packaging highlights the design of the product in a colorful but subtle way, incorporating a purple background on the top and black on the bottom.

Pulling on the purple tab in the front reveals the fanciest inner packaging I’ve ever seen for an air cooler, seemingly designed for store displays.

Intel and AMD-specific models

Cooler Master sells versions of these coolers labeled specifically for Intel or AMD CPUs. We tested the AMD model with our 9950X3D. Both versions do come with mounting hardware for platforms from both companies, so you could install, say, an Intel-specific version of this cooler on an AM4 or AM5 CPU / motherboard.

But a Cooler Master rep told us that the AMD version has a flatter IHS, while the Intel version is more convex, to make the best contact with CPUs from each platform. The V8 Ace reportedly also has different internal liquid volumes to best target heat on each platform. We're told both versions target the same performance metrics, but you should use the correct cooler for your platform for the best results – as we did when running our benchmarks, shown below.

Included with the package are:

• Mounting hardware for AMD and Intel platforms
• 120mm fans
• Cryofuze thermal paste
• Installation manual

▶️ V8 Ace 3DHP AM5 Installation

To begin putting things together, you’ll first need to remove the default AM4/5 retention bracket. Next, place the studs over the exposed holes.

Afterwards, take the mounting bars and secure them with the included screws.

It’s time to apply the thermal compound. If you’re not sure how to do that, we have a handy thermal paste application guide that covers the different methods you can use.

After thermal paste is applied, take the CPU block and press it against the mounting bars, using the built-in screws to secure it in place.

Finally, you’ll want to attach both fans by sliding them into the rail system built into the cooler, then connect their cables to the motherboard’s PWM header.

Real-world testing configuration – AMD AM5 platform

We’ve tested coolers with both the Ryzen 9950X3D and its non-V-Cache sibling, the 9950X in the past year. There are some differences in how the 9950X and 9950X3D CPUs are impacted by thermal events. While the heat output of the CCDs of AMD’s 9950X3D is relatively balanced, the 9950X I used has one CCD that runs much hotter than the other, with a difference of over 10 degrees Celsius in some scenarios, shown below.

For now we’ve returned to using a 9950X3D for cooler testing, as it has a more balanced heat profile, and is almost certainly a more widely adopted CPU. The benchmark results shared in these reviews may differ from others because I emphasize results that are comparable to real-world use. This means I generally test CPU coolers inside of a closed desktop case, which increases cooling difficulty compared to other testing methods.

Many reviewers test coolers on open test benches, which have a combination of lesser airflow needs and lowered ambient temperatures. This results in making weak coolers appear stronger than they really are. Some publications have also used generic thermal plates to test cooling solutions. I reject both of these methods because they don’t accurately reflect real-world cooler conditions.

Our latest testing setup uses the FLOVA F50 computer case from Tryx.

This case features a unique “crossflow” fan that pulls air from the side, which the company claims is more effective than traditional intake fans. For air cooling tests, we’ve added a single Noctua NF-A12 G2 intake fan.

PBO Performance and maximum noise levels

We’re going to start by focusing on a traditional maximum performance test, with the CPU cooler’s fans allowed to reach their fastest speeds, for the best cooling possible.

Turning on PBO allows AMD’s Ryzen 9 9950X3D to stretch its legs to an extent and consume over 260W. Enabling PBO enables high power consumption and heat output, when using MSI’s X870E Carbon Wifi motherboard the CPU will reach its TJ Max (peak temperature) of 95 degrees Celsius (203 Fahrenheit) and thermally throttle to some extent with most coolers. When this throttling occurs, I’ve measured the average power consumption to determine performance.

You’ll notice there are two results for Cooler Master’s V8 Ace 3DHP, one marked with an asterisk. I wanted to include a test to see if there’s any point to using stronger or more powerful fans. When we tested the first iteration of Cooler Master’s 3DHP technology in the Hyper 212 3DHP, replacing the default fans with Montech’s flagship E28 fans resulted in ~5% better thermal performance.

Fortunately, the fans included with the V8 are strong enough to extract the maximum thermal potential of the 3DHP technology – the results are basically on par with the best coolers on the market.

The included fans are also a bit different than your average 120x25mm PC fan, measuring 30mm thick. At 45.6 dBA, their maximum noise level is audible, but those who prefer silence will be satisfied with our noise-normalized results.

The V4 Alpha’s thermal performance might not seem impressive at first glance, until you consider its noise level. Measuring at a maximum of 38.9 dBA, it is the quietest cooler we’ve tested in over a year.

200W thermal benchmarks

For the next thermal test, I leave the motherboard settings at their defaults, which results in a power limit of 200W when running Cinebench R23.

Thermal results in this scenario were similar to our first test, with Cooler Master’s V8 Ace taking second place. The V4 Alpha’s results were on the low end of our charts, but that’s more or less to be expected with its quiet, low-power fans.

150W + GPU thermal results

Our next test runs Cinebench on the CPU with a 150W power limit, while also running Furmark on MSI’s RTX 4070 Ti Super Ventus 3x OC. This causes the GPU to consume ~295W of power. This test is designed to emulate the thermals of games, which primarily stress the CPU and GPU.

You’ll see there are two results for Cooler Master’s V8 Ace: the result in blue was obtained after pairing the heatsink with Montech’s flagship E28 fans, which are extremely strong. The result in red was testing performed with the default fans included.

This test highlights the one “weakness” of Cooler Master’s 3DHP lineup – the reduced fin area results in worse thermal results when the internal temperature of the computer case is higher, such as you’d see in warmer environments or when your GPU is being fully utilized (like in gaming.)

Noise-normalized testing

Most testing is performed with the cooler tied to the default fan curve of our MSI X870E Carbon motherboard, but some of y’all prefer to see tests when the noise levels of coolers are equalized. This is especially important to those of you who prefer silent computers. This next test has the CPU cooler noise-normalized to 38.9 dBA, with PBO enabled for the Ryzen 9 9950X3D CPU.

This test is especially difficult because in addition to the reduced noise from the CPU cooler, our current test bench’s system fans are configured to run extremely silently, below the floor of the noise meter I use to measure dBA.

Most coolers can’t keep the CPU from reaching its peak temperature (TJ Max) in this stress test. Cooler Master’s V8 Ace did especially well here, with the second-best result we’ve ever recorded. The V4 Alpha’s results aren’t as impressive at first glance, until you remember that it is powered by only two heatpipes – it outperforms other coolers with four to six heatpipes!

Karhu DDR5 RAM thermals testing!

Your CPU cooler does not operate in isolation. It has an impact on not just your CPU’s temperatures, but also the other components in your build, like your RAM and GPU. To that end, I’ve run the Karhu RAM stress test. This places a load of ~153W on the CPU and ensures system RAM (DDR5 in my case) is fully stable. In this type of scenario, most AIOs tend to produce worse results than air coolers.

Both of Cooler Master’s 3DHP coolers performed exceptionally well in this RAM thermal test. The V8 Ace outperformed all competing dual-tower air coolers, and the V4 Alpha tied with Arctic’s Freezer 36-S for the best results we’ve seen that don’t include a dedicated RAM fan!

Conclusion

Cooler Master’s V8 Ace is an engineering masterpiece, using two 3D heatpipes and four standard copper heatpipes, combined with a single-tower heatsink to deliver thermal performance that beats most dual-tower heatsinks with eight heatpipes. Installation is simple, and noise levels are reasonable.

There’s not much more you could want in a cooler – except for a lower price. But as with all new cutting-edge technology, there’s an early adopter tax with a price tag of $119.99 for the V8 Ace. If you’re looking for a similarly powerful cooler with a lower price tag, I’d recommend Thermalright’s Royal Pretor 130. Alternatively, if you want a less-powerful, more-affordable option that incorporates Cooler Master’s three-pronged heatpipe tech, the Hyper 212 3DHP also impressed us in testing, and costs around $25. And of course there's the middle-ground V4 Alpha, which we also tested here and found to be one of the quietest air coolers you can buy. That model has a list price of $49, but was selling for $44 at Amazon when this was published.

I look forward to testing future products as Cooler Master continues to refine and improve its 3DHP manufacturing processes. I can imagine a future iteration of this technology will empower an air cooler stronger than anything previously possible.

Windows development guru Dave W. Plummer has shared a brief video demonstrating a novel cooling solution for his AMD Threadripper chipset. While not a real solution to an overheating chipset, the physics behind the Stirling Engine suggest that it does something, as it clearly converts waste heat energy to power a piston propelling a flywheel. We found what looks like the same Stirling Engine on Amazon for $39.99, and there’s currently a $10 off coupon if you feel like giving this chipset cooling tech a spin for yourself.

Patented in 1816 by Robert Stirling, the eponymous engine was positioned as a safer alternative to the steam engines of the day. It found some niche applications in water pumping and domestic tasks. Nowadays, the technology is useful in the fields of solar power, CHP, cryocooling, and submarine applications.

Briefly, a Stirling Engine converts heat energy to mechanical work. A heat source causes its gas piston (attached to a heatsink here) to expand, and that turns the flywheel, cooling the gas (reducing pressure). Momentum continues the flywheel cycle, and we get quite an efficient energy conversion going on. “The Stirling engine is characterized by its closed-cycle process involving a fixed amount of gas. The basic components include a heat source, a heat sink, a power piston, and a displacer piston,” explains Modern Physics, somewhat more scientifically. “The engine operates in four main phases: isothermal expansion, cooling at constant volume, isothermal compression, and heating at constant volume.”

You can see Plummer get the flywheel started right at the beginning of the video to help the process begin. In the Amazon listing for the Sunnytech Low Temperature Stirling Engine Motor Steam Heat Education Model Toy Kit For mechanical skills (LT001), you can see what looks like an identical item perched atop a hot beverage, as its power source. The listing suggests that the flywheel will spin up to about 200 RPM in a 20C/68F environment when placed on top of a hot cup of coffee. One Amazon user reports that the engine is sensitive enough to spin up from just the heat of your hand. In that case, a Threadripper motherboard chipset should definitely be enough.

We’d like to see Plummer share some chipset temperature details from before and after the Stirling Engine ‘installation.’ Also, we can see him running Cinebench on his 32-core, 64-thread AMD Threadripper 3970X right at the beginning of the video clip. Did it improve his benchmark scores? I guess we will probably find out in a longer-form video on the legendary dev Dave’s Garage YouTube channel.

The latest CPU cooler air cooler from Taiwanese manufacturer Montech PC is the NX600, a budget air cooler that incorporates six copper heatpipes to transfer heat from the CPU to the fin plates.

What sets the NX600 apart from the competition is the inclusion of two high-performance, thick E28 fans. And the price is right, at less than $30, which makes the purchase arguably worth it even if you’re only interested in the fans (and not the heatsink).

Let's take a look at the specifications and features of the cooler, then we’ll go over thermal and noise benchmarks so you can decide if the NX-600 deserves to make our list of the best CPU coolers.

Cooler specifications

Features of Montech’s NX600 air cooler

● Dual-tower heatsink with six heatpipes

Six copper heatpipes transfer heat from the CPU contact plate to the fins of the heatsink. The heatsink features serrated edges – an engineering choice which generally results in lower noise from turbulence as air enters and exits the fin stack. There are interlocking “zipper” tabs on the sides of the fins, which improve structural rigidity and prevent the plates from squishing together to ensure proper airflow.

● Dual 120mm E28 performance fans

There’s more to a cooler than just the heatsink. The included fans directly impact on noise levels and cooling performance. The E28 fans are especially powerful, as we discovered in our review of Cooler Master’s Hyper 212 3DHP – dropping temperatures by over 3 degrees C compared to the default fan included with the 3DHP air cooler!

● Color scheme options

The color scheme of the NX600 model included in this review is black, grey, and silver, which might appeal to users who prefer old-school designs. There’s also a white option, shown below. ARGB and non-ARGB fan options are available with both heatsink designs, for about $5 more.

The top covers of the heatsink are mainly decorative, and can be removed if you so desire – as shown in the picture below.

● RAM Clearance

Standard-height DDR5 sticks 40mm tall fit well under the NX600 with the E28 fans installed, but taller sticks won’t fit perfectly underneath. Our current CPU cooler test bench incorporates TeamGroup’s Sakura Rose T-Force Xtreem DDR5-7200 sticks, 48.8mm (1.92 inches) tall.

If you also use taller RAM DIMMs, you’ll have to raise the intake fan’s placement by a few millimeters for things to fit properly. This might result in slightly lower cooling performance in certain scenarios, particularly those where the fans’ speeds are limited to ensure lower noise levels.

● Packaging

The heatsink towers are protected by soft coverings and foam inserts, with the fans and accessories packaged in cardboard. Included in the package are the dual-tower heatsink, two high-performance E28 fans, mounting hardware for Intel and AMD platforms, fan clips, and a small tube of thermal paste.

● AM5 Installation

You’ll need to first remove the default AM4/5 retention mechanism and then place the mounting studs around the exposed screw holes.

The next step is to place the mounting bars on top of the studs, securing them with the included screws.

Then, apply Montech’s thermal paste. If you’re not sure how to do that, we have a hadny thermal paste application guide that covers the different methods you can use. Afterwards, place the heatsink tower against the CPU and mounting bars, and use a screwdriver to secure it.

Once the heatsink is secured, attach the high-performance E28 fans to the cooling tower with the included clips. Lastly, connect the PWM and (optional) ARGB cables of the fans to the corresponding headers of your motherboard.

Real-world testing configuration – AMD AM5 platform:

We’ve tested coolers with both the Ryzen 9950X3D and its non-V-Cache sibling, the 9950X. There are some differences in how the 9950X and 9950X3D CPUs are impacted by thermal events. While the heat output of the CCDs of AMD’s 9950X3D is relatively balanced, the 9950X I used has one CCD that runs much hotter than the other, with a difference of over 10 degrees Celsius in some scenarios, shown below.

We’ve since returned to using a 9950X3D for cooler testing, as it has a more balanced heat profile, and is almost certainly a more widely adopted CPU.

The benchmark results shared in these reviews may differ from others because I emphasize results that are comparable to real-world use. This means I generally test CPU coolers inside of a closed desktop case, which increases cooling difficulty compared to other testing methods.

Many reviewers test coolers on an open test benches, which have a combination of lesser airflow needs and lowered ambient temperatures. This results in making weak coolers appear stronger than they really are. Some publications have also used generic thermal plates to test cooling solutions. I reject both of these methods because they don’t accurately reflect real-world cooler conditions.

Our latest testing setup uses the FLOVA F50 computer case from Tryx.

This case features a unique “crossflow” fan that pulls air from the side, which the company claims is more effective than traditional intake fans. For air cooling tests, we’ve added a single Noctua NF-A12 G2 intake fan.

PBO Performance and maximum noise levels

We’re going to start this review’s benchmark section by focusing on a traditional maximum performance test, with the CPU cooler’s fans allowed to reach their fastest speeds, for the best cooling possible.

Turning on PBO allows AMD’s Ryzen 9 9950X3D to stretch its legs to an extent, and all air coolers I have tested with PBO enabled using MSI’s X870E Carbon Wifi motherboard reach the maximum CPU temperature of 95 degrees C (203 F) and thermally throttle to some extent.

Results from the liquid coolers we’ve recently tested aren’t shown above because they are able to keep AMD’s Ryzen 9 9950X3D under TJ Max – and as such, power consumption figures aren’t quite comparable.

Montech’s NX600 does fairly well in this test. While it is technically beaten by Sudokoo’s SK700V & DeepCool’s AK620 G2, it only falls behind by a few watts. This means benchmarks will basically be the same, as any scaling gained from raising power consumption to 251W (compared to 248W) would be so small as to be irrelevant.

To give a wider variety of comparison examples, I’ve included a chart of the same tests from our last AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D cooling test bench. But keep in mind these results aren’t 100% comparable, due to a different case and fans being used. Our newest test bench used for this and other recent reviews incorporates a Tryx crossblade intake fan as well as a single Noctua NF-A12 G2 intake fan, which results in better air cooling performance.

Montech’s NX600 performs well, but a large part of that comes from the inclusion of its flagship E28 fans, which are a bit overpowered compared to the included dual-tower heatsink. As such, at full fan speeds, this cooler does not run at all quietly – with a measurement of 50dBA, it is the loudest air cooler I’ve ever tested.

200W thermal benchmarks

For the next thermal test, I leave the motherboard settings at their defaults, which results in a power limit of 200W when running Cinebench R23.

The result here was curious, as with a “stock” power profile, its thermal performance was not as strong as our previous test.

150W + GPU thermal results, noise levels

Our next test runs Cinebench on the CPU with a 150W power limit, while also running Furmark on MSI’s RTX 4070 Ti Super Ventus 3x OC. This causes the GPU to consume ~295W of power. This test is designed to emulate the thermals of games, which primarily stress the CPU and GPU.

Montech’s NX600 did particularly well with this combined CPU and GPU thermal test; the included E28 fans seemed especially effective in helping to push the GPU’s heat outside of the case.

But again, the cooling potential provided by the E28 fans comes at the cost of noise – with the NX600 averaging 44.6 dBA. Between our current (shown above) and former (shown below) testing setup, this result is the third-loudest we’ve seen from any air cooler on this test.

Noise-normalized testing

Most testing is performed with the cooler tied to the default fan curve of our MSI X870E Carbon motherboard, but some of y’all prefer to see tests when the noise levels of coolers are equalized. This is especially important to those of you who prefer silent computers. This next test has the CPU cooler noise-normalized to 38.9 dBA, with PBO enabled for the Ryzen 9 9950X3D CPU.

The results here were not impressive for the Montech. Perhaps the thermal transfer from the NX600’s CPU coldplate and copper heatpipes is not ideal, as performance should be better with these flagship E28 fans.

Another factor to consider when evaluating this benchmark is that my test bench utilizes DDR5 DIMMs that are 49mm tall – which requires lifting the front intake fan a few millimeters to fit. The particularly poor noise-normalized performance may be the result of reduced performance when the fans are set to lower noise levels and rotation speeds.

Karhu DDR5 RAM thermals testing!

Your CPU cooler does not operate in isolation. It has an impact on not just your CPU’s temperatures, but also the other components in your build, like your RAM and GPU. To that end, I’ve run the Karhu RAM stress test. This places a load of ~153W on the CPU and ensures system RAM (DDR5 in my case) is fully stable. In this type of scenario, most AIOs tend to produce worse results than air coolers.

The DDR5 temperature recordings from this test seem to be within expectations compared to other dual-tower air coolers, with Montech’s NX600 performing only 1.2 degrees C behind the best dual-tower air cooler in our setup.

Conclusion

Montech’s NX600 generally performs well, and has a very reasonable price of only $29.90, which makes purchasing this cooler worth it even if you’re “only” interested in the fans.

On the flipside, the included E28 fans seem overpowered compared to the heatsink, resulting in high noise levels during moderate to intensive workloads. If you’re looking for a quietly running system, you should consider alternatives like SAMA’s E360 air cooler instead.