All-in-one CPU coolers
GROUP TEST
This means you still get the nickel-plated base to the
water block, a solid metal block itself and the
coil-wrapped flexible tubing.
You miss out on having software control of the
whole system. The Silent Loop 240mm relies on
your motherboard having three fan headers – one
for the pump, and one each for the fans.
One of the nicest things about this cooler is the
flexibility of the water hoses. It’s a cinch to slot it all
into place and the metal coils surrounding the tubes
help to ensure they don’t get bent.
As for performance, this cooler delivers some of
the best temperatures both in silent and standard
modes, and it’s among the quietest, too. In silent
mode it claims top spot, outputting just 31.5dB,
while in standard mode it sits a little more mid-table,
but with a still decent 41dB.
As such, the be quiet! Silent Loop 240 is a
great option if you’re after a premium
240mm cooler and aren’t particularly
fussed about software control.12
BE QUIET! SILENT LOOP 240
This one has a CPU block with a polished base. The
theory goes that the flatter and more polished the
surface of your cooler and the top of your CPU, the
greater the contact and the less reliance on less
thermally-efficient thermal paste to fill the gap.
This is also the only 120mm model to come with
two fans. This is great for performance, though it
does make the radiator section rather bulky. This
cooler is also refillable, something that be quiet!
recommends you do every two years.
With the fans set to the motherboard’s silent
mode, this cooler was one of the hottest. However,
with the fans cranked up, it improved considerably,
coming in comfortably mid-table and ahead of the
other two 120mm models. However, this generated
a fair amount of noise.
All told, there’s a lot about this cooler that
justifies its high price but its performance means it
sits in an awkward position between
single-fan 120mm options and two-fan
240mm options.BE QUIET! SILENT LOOP 120
75 % 70 %
132While the inclusion of a second fan in the 120mm
version of be quiet!’s cooler means it is priced a little
high, the 240mm Silent Loop is more competitively
positioned. This is still a premium option, though.The be quiet! Silent Loop 120mm is, by some distance,
the most expensive 120mm liquid cooler that’s featured
in our group test, but it immediately justifies much of this
cost in several ways.