Benchmarking the Best - Comprehensive Test Results for 120Mm All-in-One Coolers by Be Quiet, Corsair, Etc

With most of the reviews I do for Tom’s Hardware, I’m looking to test thebest CPU coolers on the market, capable of taming heat-intensive CPUs like Intel’s i9-14900K. However, not everyone needs a large dual-tower air cooler or a 360mm AIO.

While I would normally recommend using a standard air or liquid cooler, there can be situations where a 120mm AIO will be the best option for certain niche configurations. So below, I’ll be looking at the smallest AIO models from Be Quiet,Cooler Master , Corsair, and Enermax to see which are worthy of your consideration – and which ones you should avoid.

Spec Comparison Table

Swipe to scroll horizontally

Model	Enermax LiqMaxFlo	BeQuiet! Pure Loop 2 120mm	Corsair H60x Elite	CoolerMaster MasterLiquid ML120L V2 RGB	CoolerMaster MasterLiquid 120L Core
Radiator Material	Aluminum	Aluminum	Aluminum	Aluminum	Aluminum
Radiator Dimensions	154 x 120 x 27	152 x 120 x 27	156 x 120 x 27	157 x 119.6 x 27.2	157 x 119.6 x 27.2
Pump Speed	1200-3200 RPM	4000-5000 RPM	Unlisted	Unlisted	Unlisted
Pump MTBF	>50,000 hours	Unlisted	Unlisted	70,000 hours	>70,000 hours
Fan Model	Unlisted	Pure Wings 3 120 PWM	SP120 RGB Elite PWM	SickleFlow 120 RGB	Unlisted
Fan Speed	1800 RPM	2100 RPM	1500 RPM	1800 RPM	1750 RPM
Fan Air Flow	58.03 CFM	59.6 CFM	47.73 CFM	62 CFM	71.93 CFM
Fan Static Pressure	2.4mmH20	2.41 mmH20	1.46 mmH20	2.5 mmH20	1.86 mmH20
Price	$79.99	$89.90	$79.99	$79.99	$69.99
Warranty	5 years	3 years	5 years	2 years	3 years

120mm AIO Roundup

be quiet! Pure Loop 2 120mm |… ](https://target.georiot.com/Proxy.ashx?tsid=45723&GR%5FURL=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.com%2Fdp%2FB0CK777SM8%3Ftag%3Dhawk-future-20%26linkCode%3Dogi%26th%3D1%26psc%3D1%26ascsubtag%3Dtomshardware-us-1002688763847978568-20 )

BeQuiet Pure Loop 2

Amazon ](https://target.georiot.com/Proxy.ashx?tsid=45723&GR%5FURL=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.com%2Fdp%2FB0CK777SM8%3Ftag%3Dhawk-future-20%26linkCode%3Dogi%26th%3D1%26psc%3D1%26ascsubtag%3Dtomshardware-us-1002688763847978568-20 )

$99.90

$79.90

View

See all prices

Corsair H60x RGB Elite Liquid… ](https://target.georiot.com/Proxy.ashx?tsid=45723&GR%5FURL=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.com%2Fdp%2FB0C149K816%2Fref%3Dasc%5Fdf%5FB0C149K8161723078800000%3Ftag%3Dhawk-future-20%26creative%3D395261%26creativeASIN%3DB0C149K816%26linkCode%3Dasn%26ascsubtag%3Dtomshardware-us-1672757760839990228-20 )

Corsair H60x RGB

Amazon ](https://target.georiot.com/Proxy.ashx?tsid=45723&GR%5FURL=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.com%2Fdp%2FB0C149K816%2Fref%3Dasc%5Fdf%5FB0C149K8161723078800000%3Ftag%3Dhawk-future-20%26creative%3D395261%26creativeASIN%3DB0C149K816%26linkCode%3Dasn%26ascsubtag%3Dtomshardware-us-1672757760839990228-20 )

$79.99

View

See all prices

CoolerMaster ML120L ](https://target.georiot.com/Proxy.ashx?tsid=45723&GR%5FURL=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.com%2FCoolerMaster-MasterLiquid-Close-Loop-Cooler-SickleFlow%2Fdp%2FB086C1PK2Y%3Ftag%3Dhawk-future-20%26ascsubtag%3Dtomshardware-us-1224429117141917977-20 )

CoolerMaster ML120L

Amazon ](https://target.georiot.com/Proxy.ashx?tsid=45723&GR%5FURL=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.com%2FCoolerMaster-MasterLiquid-Close-Loop-Cooler-SickleFlow%2Fdp%2FB086C1PK2Y%3Ftag%3Dhawk-future-20%26ascsubtag%3Dtomshardware-us-1224429117141917977-20 )

$59.99

View

See all prices

Cooler Master MasterLiquid… ](https://target.georiot.com/Proxy.ashx?tsid=45723&GR%5FURL=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.com%2Fdp%2FB0CDF9343N%3Ftag%3Dhawk-future-20%26linkCode%3Dogi%26th%3D1%26psc%3D1%26ascsubtag%3Dtomshardware-us-5986299307859314040-20 )

CoolerMaster 120L

Amazon ](https://target.georiot.com/Proxy.ashx?tsid=45723&GR%5FURL=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.com%2Fdp%2FB0CDF9343N%3Ftag%3Dhawk-future-20%26linkCode%3Dogi%26th%3D1%26psc%3D1%26ascsubtag%3Dtomshardware-us-5986299307859314040-20 )

$64.99

$54.99

View

See all prices

ENERMAX LIQMAXFLO SR 120mm… ](https://target.georiot.com/Proxy.ashx?tsid=45723&GR%5FURL=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.com%2Fdp%2FB0CJT1WHWL%3Ftag%3Dhawk-future-20%26linkCode%3Dogi%26th%3D1%26psc%3D1%26ascsubtag%3Dtomshardware-us-1051015343410427984-20 )

Enermax LiqMaxFlo SR 120mm

Amazon ](https://target.georiot.com/Proxy.ashx?tsid=45723&GR%5FURL=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.com%2Fdp%2FB0CJT1WHWL%3Ftag%3Dhawk-future-20%26linkCode%3Dogi%26th%3D1%26psc%3D1%26ascsubtag%3Dtomshardware-us-1051015343410427984-20 )

$74.99

View

See all prices

We check over 250 million products every day for the best prices

A summary of each cooler’s features

▶ Enermax LiqMaxFlo 120

(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)

Enermax’ LiqMaxFlo stands out from the competition with an fan included atop the CPU block, which can help lower VRM and RAM temperatures. I feel this could be especially useful in a space-constrained SFF system. It features low noise levels and has a user-accessible refill port.

(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)

▶ Be Quiet! Pure Loop 120

(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)

True to its brand name, Be Quiet’s Pure Loop 120 features moderately low noise levels, and its design features an external liquid pump. Not only is there a user-accessible refill port, Be Quiet goes the extra mile by including 100 ml of additional coolant for those who might wish to refill their coolers in the future.

(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)

▶ Corsair H60x Elite

Stay On the Cutting Edge: Get the Tom’s Hardware Newsletter

Get Tom’s Hardware’s best news and in-depth reviews, straight to your inbox.

Contact me with news and offers from other Future brands Receive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsors

By submitting your information you agree to theTerms & Conditions andPrivacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)

The best feature of Corsair’s H60x Eliteis its extremely low maximum noise levels of only 38.2 dBA, the quietest of all units tested in this review. It also features RGB on the CPU block and the fan.

(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)

▶ Cooler Master MasterLiquid ML120L V2 and 120L Core

(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)

The main difference between the ML120L V2 and the 120L Core are the fans included. The fan on the 120L Core is solid black, with mid-range noise levels. The fan included with the ML120L V2 runs quieter and features RGB illumination.

Easy GIF Animator is a powerful animated GIF editor and the top tool for creating animated pictures, banners, buttons and GIF videos. You get extensive animation editing features, animation effects, unmatched image quality and optimization for the web. No other GIF animation software matches our features and ease of use, that’s why Easy GIF Animator is so popular.

(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)

Testing methodology

Today’s highest-end CPUs, whether Intel or AMD, are difficult to cool in intensive workloads. In the past. reaching 95 degrees Celsius or more on a desktop CPU might have been a cause for concern. But with today’s top-end CPUs, this is considered normal operation. Similar behavior has been present in laptops for years due to cooling limitations in tight spaces.

All testing is performed with a 23 degrees C ambient room temperature. Multiple thermal tests are run on each CPU to test the cooler to verify the accuracy of results. These tests include:

1. Noise-normalized testing at low noise levels

2. “Out of the box”/default configuration thermal & acoustics testing

a. No power limits enforced

b. Because CPUs hit Tjmax in this scenario, the best way to compare cooling strength is by recording the total CPU package power consumption.

3. Testing in Power Limited Scenarios

a. Power limited to 95W to emulate a medium-intensity workload

b. Power limited to 75W to emulate a low-intensity workload

Testing configuration – AMD AM5 Platform

Swipe to scroll horizontally

CPU	AMD Ryzen 7 7700X	Row 0 - Cell 2
Motherboard	Gigabyte A620I AX	Row 1 - Cell 2
Case	Silverstone SUGO14	Row 2 - Cell 2
GPU	MSI Ventus 3X RTX 4070	Row 3 - Cell 2

Also read: