Cooler Master MasterLiquid PL360 FLUX AIO Review

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Introduction

Cooler Master has been helping gamers master their cooling for the past thirty years. They manufacture air coolers, liquid coolers, computer cases, power supplies, and other PC accessories that are sold across the world.

Cooler Master sent us one of their new Cooler Master MASTERLIQUID PL360 FLUX AIO coolers that is a part of the “PRO” line of MASTERLIQUID coolers (which also have “MAKER”, “LITE” designations). The other FLUX level AIO differs by having a 240mm radiator, compared to the PL360’s 360mm radiator. It currently retails for $189.99.

We will again be using our AIO test platform that is capable of putting out enough heat to make even the devil sweat. We do this to test AIO liquid cooling solutions that are likely to be used with some of today’s most demanding CPUs.

Cooler Master MasterLiquid PL360 FLUX Overview

The Cooler Master MasterLiquid PL360 FLUX is an all-in-one (AIO) CPU cooler that is designed to work on a wide variety of sockets. These include Intel’s LGA 115x/1200/1366/1700/2011/2066 and AMD’s AM2/AM3/AM4/FM1/FM2/TR4. This range covers most high-end desktop processors on the market today. Cooler Master offers a 5-year warranty on this AIO.

While we have the 360mm radiator version that we’re reviewing today, this AIO is also available with a 240mm radiator that sports a pair of 120mm fans. Due to the laws of thermodynamics, expect it to perform a little worse than the 360mm version we’re reviewing today, but should turn in some fairly comparable numbers (at least, until the overclocking starts).

Key Features

  • Premium Dual Chamber Pump
  • Fine Tuned Performance Ratio
  • Superior Heat Exchange
  • Low Profile Radiator
  • Redesigned Flux Series Fan
  • Dual Loop ARGB Pump

Water Block & Pump

The water block on the Cooler Master MasterLiquid PL360 FLUX measures 89x75x40mm which makes it one of the larger assemblies that we’ve looked at. Quite frankly, this is a good thing given the growing size of CPUs that we’ve seen recently with the launch of Alder Lake.

The pump is PWM controlled with an approximate 9000RPM (+/-) speed at a 100% duty cycle and a greater than 210,000 hours MTTF. We noted that Cooler Master did not publish the RPM specs for its pump, but the 9000 RPM is what we saw during testing. It pushes the water through 400mm of cooling hose to and from the radiator.

Cooler Master is using a dual-chamber pump that they say is more compact while delivering the perfect volume of flow to pressure for impressive cooling performance. It uses a ceramic bearing impeller and copper cold plate. We certainly noticed the enlarged copper base that they are utilizing to improve heat transfer.

Radiator

The liquid CPU cooler radiator dimensions are designed to hold three 120mm fans and measure 394x120x27mm. By our count, the aluminum radiator sports a density of 22 fins per inch and is attached to 400mm of tubing.

Fans

The included fans are three of Cooler Master’s new PL-FLUX fans that are said to provide more performance than their Sickleflow fans. The PL-FLUX fans sport loop dynamic bearings. These fans support a listed fan speed of 0 to 2300 RPM on their specs at a reported 32 dB(A). The stated maximum airflow is 72.37 CFM with a static pressure of 2.96 mm/H20.

Cooler Master MASTERLIQUID PL360 FLUX assembled

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David Schroth
David is a computer hardware enthusiast that has been tinkering with computer hardware for the past 25 years and writing reviews for more than ten years. He's the Founder and Editor in Chief of The FPS Review.

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