Photos and Features
While the MasterLiquid 240 is an All in One kit like a lot of the others. By not working with the standard OEM their design is different right from the start and it's clear even just glancing at it. We can see that the pump is considerably different but there also seem to be a few things different over on the radiator. Really the only thing that is consistent are the standard plastic AIO lines that most kits have and I always hate. They are durable and they don’t take up much room, but they are also exactly why custom water cooling looks so much better.
So starting with the radiator I love that Cooler Master printed the full product name and their logo on the side. This is a small touch but it looks really good when everything is put together. The radiator itself has an interesting boxed shape down at the ends but it’s the fin layout that really caught my eye. Normal radiators have a fin design that is wavy but Cooler Master with a very squared off design. It's easy to see that this radiator should flow more air but I am curious how that same design effects the internal water flow. Down at the end, we have the two small tubing connections as well as a third capped off connection that they used to fill the system. The radiator is just a hair over an inch thick, this is a little thicker than a few of the lower end AIO kits that I have seen but it is in line with most other AIO kits.
So like I said it’s the pump design of the MasterLiquid that is the most unique. Cooler Master is using a dual chamber design and you can see it even from the external photos of the pump. It pulls in coolant up in the top half and this picks up some of the heat then it is pumped down into the middle of the water block to get the coolest coolant right onto the hottest part of the waterblock. Most pumps pump from side to side so the pump from the middle out design is a little different. The pump housing has a transparent window up on top with the Cooler Master logo etched in it and they have blue backlighting to light up this area. The dual chamber design does end up being considerably thicker than the normal AIO designs. The pump is actually 2 ¼ inches tall. This shouldn’t affect fitment in any cases, but it does stick up a lot more than you would expect. For power, there is a very short fan header lead that comes off the back of the pump.
The bottom of the pump is all copper and has a solid CPU shaped square for the contact patch. It does not come with thermal paste applied so keep that in mind when you are installing the kit. The pumps contact surface is flat and machined but has a flat finish, not the glossy perfect contact area that I would prefer to see. You can still polish it out, but typically people buying an AIO kit aren’t looking to put in that time, nor do I blame them.
For fans, Cooler Master went with their MasterFan Pro 120 AB’s, the AB stands for Air Balance. These are 120mm fans but a little different than normal fans. The chassis for the fans is completely round and then each of the four mounting points are actually bolted to the fans. The mounts are all rubber and help absorb the vibration right from the start to keep the noise down. The fan has 9 blades, all with a twisted design to help cut into the air and give the fans their 66.7 CFM airflow. I love that the fan doesn’t have a sticker or any branding out on the outside. They do have a sticker on the back of the fan with the Cooler Master logo, all of its certifications, and the model name. What is really interesting, though, Cooler Master actually slipped in a tiny switch here at the motor. The switch lets us switch between three fan speeds and the fan comes set on the middle setting.