Must Have Award at Kitguru

V1000 by Kitguru : 05-12-2013 Cooler Master certainly made the right decision when they partnered up with Seasonic for their new high end power supplies. The V Series 1000W unit is an exceptionally good power supply, based around the class leading Seasonic KM3 high end design. First impressions are very positive. Cooler Master protect the power supply in a soft, high grade felt bag and they are using high grade 18AWG flat cables, perfect for cable management and maximising air flow. We think the modular backplate is well laid out and all the peripheral cables are vertically mounted into the V Series to ease installation. The chassis paintwork is deep and very resistant to damage which can often occur to a lesser finish after installing into a system case. Technically the V Series 1000W power supply is rock solid and exhibits no weaknesses. Ripple suppression is class leading and well within the industry tolerance guidelines. Our sample peaked at just under 93 percent efficiency at 50 percent load, a fantastic result. Cooler Master have adopted a very high grade fan inside the V Series 1000W supply which spins very slowly until the last 15% of load. It emits very low levels of noise across the load range and ensures that the components inside have adequate airflow. The fan profile has clearly been optimised for low noise levels, which will please many enthusiast users. Under our stress test, the unit also delivered almost 1,200watts of power before shutting off safely, so there is clearly some additional headroom above the rated 1,000watts. A good indication of the quality components used by Seasonic. At time of press we have no indication of UK cost, but we would expect it to be competitively priced in the high end sector. Pros: excellent build quality. delivered almost 1,200Watts before shutting off. high grade components inside. efficient. low noise. high grade cabling. 100% Haswell compatible. 5 year warranty. Cons: a few more SATA and Molex cables would be useful. stiff competition in this sector. Kitguru says: As good as its gets in the high end. » Details

Gamers Choice Award at Overclock3D

CM Storm Scout 2 (Gunmetal Grey) & CM Storm Scout 2 Advanced & Scout 2 Ghost White by Overclock3D : 05-07-2013 When reviewing, one of the first things we look at, or rather get a feel for is the quality of a product.  There are certain manufacturers who stand that little bit taller than the others in this field and Cooler Master is one of them.  From the top of their range, right down to the very bottom there is an inherent feeling of pride of workmanship.  OK, so pride of workmanship is perhaps over romanticising an item that is mass produced in a factory, but then "Pride of adherence to Quality standards" doesn't have quite the same ring to it does it. The aesthetics of the case have an unquestionable lean towards the balls out gamer who has a desire to cart both his arse and his beloved (no not the GF) off to a mates house or a full blown LAN party.  The large and reassuringly secure rubber coated carry handle at the top of the case of course makes this all the more easier and a darn sight safer than risking it slip from your grasp.  What it doesn't do however is make it any lighter.  With the case weighing in at 8.3 kg you can expect to add at least another 4kg once you've filled with kit.  which ever way you look at it, you're going to arrive safe, but with one arm significantly longer than the other. With the addition of 2x120mm red LED fans included in the front of the Advanced edition CM have mitigated any lacking in cooling ability that may have previously been levelled at the Scout 2.  Should you wish to add more then there's certainly scope to do so with the Advanced edition able to provide accommodation for no less than 9 fans in total.  What you're not going to be doing is fitting water cooling in here, other than single AIO 120mm rads in the rear extract position.  It's fair to say that the single 120mm rad/fan combo in the rear extract position isn't exactly our favourite cooling solution here at OC3D towers, but given the reduction in stresses and strains the comparatively lightweight contact plate paces on the CPU area of the motherboard when compared to a conventional tower cooler there is perhaps something to be said for this option given that the case and therefor its internals are going to be subjected to forces that could potentially cause a heavy tower cooler to damage to the motherboard. Building into the Scout is easy enough, with 30mm of space behind the motherboard and plenty of well distributed cable tie points to work with.  A small criticism though is the placement of the vertical motherboard edge cable management holes.  We'd rather of had 3 smaller holes or the two that are provided being better distributed.  this is however but a niggle. Hardware wise with the Scout 2 Advanced you're going to be able to cram in GPUs up to 287mm in length.  If you're willing and able to sacrifice 4 of the 7 HDD bays then whip out part of the rack and you can happily wedge in GPUs up to 399mm.  Even though you're not going to be able to plant a monster air cooler atop that hot CPU you're still going to be able to paste in place anything up to  162mm in height, which if you look back at our air cooler charts, both present and past, should provide you with plenty of high performance air cooler delight, and as we mentioned above, if it's likely that you're going to be lugging, then there's always the AIO solution. Even if the Scout 2 is destined never to be toted across a rainy car park somewhere on the outskirts of Telford it still makes for a pretty decent desk top case in its own right.  Ample cooling, good looks, high quality and decent feature count mean this is a case to be reckoned with. So what of the competition, well there are plenty of cases in the £80 region, but few if any that offer the portability that the Scout 2 advanced offers.  In fact if you really want portability and have to have Mid tower and ATX then the only other real contenders are the other Scout models and the much larger Trooper line of cases. Following on from the progenitor of the line, and the more recent Scout 2, the CM Storm Scout 2 Advanced has a hard act to follow.  However, with the revisions that have been made to the styling, functionality and not to mention the rather attractive Gun Metal finish Cooler Master are likely to have another winner on their hands. » Details

Must Have Award at Kitguru

Eisberg 240L Prestige by Kitguru : 04-23-2013 Overall we have been very impressed with what the Cooler Master Eisberg Prestige 240L has to offer.  It delivers something different from the other all-in-one liquid CPU coolers on the market which is sure to appeal to enthusiasts. When it came to performance we saw significantly better temperatures than all of the comparison coolers which included the impressive Corsair H100i and H110.  The only aspect of the cooler that we don’t like is the obnoxiously loud pump whine when running it at 12V.  Using 7V still yields excellent temperatures though, and the pump is near silent, so we would certainly recommend using this setting. The mounting mechanism is much simpler than that of the Seidon 240M and makes installation quite simple.  The poor quality printed guide might scare inexperienced users however. At a price of around £115 from WAE+, the Cooler Master Eisberg Prestige 240L is well priced.  Amazon stock it for £130 inc vat. While it is around £15 more expensive than the Corsair H100i and around £25 more expensive than the Seidon 240M and Corsair H110, it offers a significant performance advantage as well as the possibility of expanding the loop in the future. Pros Excellent performance. Well priced. Expandable loop. Easy mounting system. Cons Poor instructions. Whine with pump at 12V. Kitguru says: An impressive enthusiast model from Cooler Master. » Details

Worth Buying Award at Kitguru

Seidon 240M by Kitguru : 04-03-2013 Overall we are impressed with what the Cooler Master Seidon 240M has to offer.  It’s clear that Cooler Master mean business in the all-in-one liquid cooling market as they have invested time and money into their own models to compete with the established brands in the market. The Seidon 240M is their first attempt at a 240 mm liquid CPU cooler and it really is a very capable product.  It scored very close to the Corsair H100i in our performance tests, which is very impressive indeed.  The Corsair H100i does have a number of other features, though, such as the Corsair Link software configuration utility that vastly enhances the coolers different functions and performance. Cooler Master’s mounting mechanism isn’t the best we’ve experienced as it can be quite tricky to secure the retention brackets onto the CPU block. It isn’t a huge issue, as we have used some air coolers with more complex mounting systems. At a price of around £90 from Overclockers UK we feel that the Seidon 240M is a little expensive considering the better featured H100i can be had for only £10 more. We imagine it will come down in price a little over time as it’s only just been released, at which point it will make a much better buy.  If it hit the £80 mark we would say it’s a must have. » Details

Silver Award at PC Gameware

Seidon 240M by PC Gameware : 04-02-2013 The Cooler Master Seidon 240M has performed admirably in all of my testing, keeping the temperature of my overclocked 3770K down to 60 degrees when at full speed (via PWM), so there’s certainly no denying the Seidon’s cooling ability. The Seidon 240M came well packaged with a host of mounting hardware allowing it to be fitted to most of today’s CPU Sockets (see above for full list). The inclusion of a rubber mounting gasket to minimise vibration/noise is also a nice touch. Despite this, at full speed the Seidon is far from quiet, but then you do have to consider that you have two fans running at close to 2400 RPM. The good news is that you don’t have to have the fans at high speeds to get good cooling. During my testing the difference between full and low fan speeds with the CPU overclocked at 4.3GHz (see PWM Profiles above) was just 3.75 degrees, but the difference in noise levels was a whopping 16db. Obviously this would suggest that you stick to lower fan speeds (I’d say around 1500RPM or less) as this will keep the noise down but still provide excellent cooling. As the Seidon is PWM controlled you should be able to find your own sweet spot of Temperature/Noise via the BIOS/UEFI. Also testing with Prime95 is not very real world, during gaming with the fans set at low you’re unlikely to see temperatures above 60 degrees (assuming an ambient of around 21). The only real issue with the Seidon for me is the look, it’s a shame that Cooler Master didn’t do something a bit better with that pump housing, it just looks a little too industrial for my liking. Here’s hoping for a revised version with a nice flat top and an red illuminated Cooler Master logo! Overall though the Seidon is undeniably a great All in One Water Cooler and for the price (currently around £88) it’s pretty good value too. » Details

Gold Award at Skratchwiz PC

HAF XB by Skratchwiz PC : 03-31-2013 From the first time I set eyes on the HAF XB I instantly fell in love with it, now not everyone will feel the same way but you’ve got remember that this case serves two functions, LAN box and test bench. If you’re looking for a desktop tower then with the HAF XB sitting on your desk there’s not going to be much room for anything else and I’d recommend an alternative. But for those who like the idea of an easily transportable case for LAN events then the HAF XB is perfect, the carrying handles on either side feel strong and makes it more comfortable when carried. With the design of the HAF XB been set out on two levels it frees up space around the motherboard allowing more cool air to move around and cool your GPUs and the CPU area, but I would like to have seen more fans included and would recommend adding at least an extra fan in the rear or roof if using has a standalone case. Moving onto the test bench side of things what more can I say? It’s awesome! For me being a reviewer I’m forever installing and uninstalling heat sinks, Graphics cards and other components for test purposes. The removable motherboard tray makes it easier to install CPU back plates with it all done outside the case, and the fact that I’ve access from three sides makes it easier to quickly get in there if needed. The HAF XB only faulted in a few places but this will only bother me if I was using it to house a static system. I’ve already mentioned that more fans are needed but maybe a few cable routing cut-outs would have been nice, even though with careful planning there are plenty of cable tie hooks scattered around. Cooler Master always delivers and the HAF XB carries on with their tradition of producing high quality products and it truly deserves the Skratchwiz PC Gold Award! » Details

Must Have Award at Kitguru

HAF XB by Kitguru : 02-12-2013 The Cooler Master HAF XB is a remarkable design concept. It caters to the experienced system builder and hardcore enthusiast user. Not only does it have a vast array of features including plenty of space for CPU Coolers and watercooling radiators, but it fits it all in effortlessly without any serious system build concerns. In terms of features the HAF XB can support thick 240mm radiators … even in a push-pull configuration, or if you prefer, it can cater for CPU Coolers with a maximum height of 180mm. One of the greatest design features is the motherboard tray which can be completely removed via four thumbscrews. This allows for easy installation of new motherboards without requiring a complete system disassembly. Obviously you can use this chassis as a test bench, giving easy access to all computer components. We also appreciated the dual carry handles which allow you to move the case around without much effort. The design is not without a few niggles. It is very hard for example to fit power cables as the space between the supply and the back of the X-Dock bays is quite limited, especially when you have to try and bend a thick 24-pin power cable. Admittedly, there is a solution as you can unscrew the power supply and slide it out an extra few inches before installing any cables. However, when you try to refit the power supply, it can be quite tricky to seat the cables in the correct position. The thermal performance of the HAF XB is exceptional as there is a high-level of airflow through the chassis which really reduces the temperatures of all components. With just these two fans fitted the CPU temperature dropped 10 degrees lower than our expected value inside a standard case. Even the motherboard temperature only increased by 2 degrees on load. Sadly this incredible airflow comes with a caveat. Noise emissions are very high. That said, this chassis is only really designed for those of you who want to overclock your system and keep it extremely cool, or want easy access to the components – with multiple system rebuilds.  It would be possible to reduce noise levels, by swapping out the fans for low noise models, obviously at extra cost. Overall, we did really like using the Cooler Master HAF XB. It is really designed for reviewers and people who are always tinkering with their system components. The build quality is also excellent and the chassis feels very solid. No doubt, we love it. Pros Can be used as a test bench. Excellent thermal performance. Great case for system building. Can fit 240mm watercooling radiator. Tons of features. Cons Poor acoustic performance. Hard to router power supply cables easily. Has a broad footprint. » Details

Silver Award at PC Gameware

Quick Fire TK by PC Gameware : 02-08-2013 Overall I have enjoyed my time with the CM Storm Quickfire TK keyboard and it has now given me a problem. I am going to have to spend some time thinking as to whether I finally replace my trusty Logitech G15. I admit I would miss the LCD panel, but the mechanical keys are very tempting. With this in mind it’s worth looking at the other aspects of the CM Storm Quickfire TK keyboard as it does have a few minor issues: The keyboard isn’t as stable when raised up on its rear feet and it can occasionally slip NKRO Which mode are you in? The lack of an indicator to show which mode (NKRO/6KRO) the keyboard is in is an oversight, but for the low price of around £68.00 (at the time of review) for this keyboard it’s probably expected. It’s also worth noting that for around £65 you can find other Full Size mechanical keyboards in the market place. But the one thing the CM Storm Quickfire TK Mechanical Keyboard does bring to the table is its ability for precision keystrokes to be recognised which allows you to respond in game without any hesitation, and as noted above if the keyboard is responding with a high level of accuracy then it can only be your own fault when things don’t go right in game. » Details

Silver Award at Overclockerstech

Centurion 6 by Overclockerstech : 02-07-2013 Coolermaster have produced a great chassis here in terms of aesthetics and it reminds us of a 1980?s feel and rock guitars. For a RRP of around £55 to £59.00 then it is an absolute bargain and has a nice solid feel to it. The brushed aluminium effect-together with the unique placement of the power/reset buttons really helps the product to stand out. Internally the wire management holes are all in the correct place and are large enough and together with the motherboard clips should enable the end-user to have an overall tidy case. The powder coating is of excellent quality both internally and external and though it is a steel-based chassis we cannot grumble at this -due to the nature of its pricing. We are a liquid cooling based website and as such we have a few minor grumbles with the cooling aspects of this case. In the first instance if Coolermaster are marketing this product as water cooling ready then they really should include the mounting screws for the radiator as the fans have to go external to the case. To add to this if the latter items are external then one would expect a hole for the fan power cables to enter the chassis and head towards the motherboard. Personally we think these are small oversights but are still there and we think these could be addressed in a minor revision. As far as the air cooling is concerned if the top grill supports 140mm fans then would logically would extend that to the side panel, allowing for quieter fan cooling of essential items like graphics cards. As far as design and air cooling we have very few grumbles and indeed the product is an absolute must for those on a tight budget. Apart from the side panel not having 140mm fan mounts we have no complaints what so ever and if we explore the wiring system then we can see the obvious attention to detail and for that we are grateful as we have reviewed other cases of a similar price point that lack a eight-pin EPS hole for instance. We think this case is designed for air and water cooling as an almost bonus feature. We cannot recommend this chassis as ‘Water Cooling’ ready but it does come close and would be better if only Coolermaster had the foresight to include the radiator mounting screws! Regular readers know that we only recommend a case water cooling ready if it can fit a custom radiator such as the XSPC RS240MM together with its fans internally. For air cooling we have no hesitation to give this elegant case a nine out of ten and the water cooling features a 6.9. Therefore if we combine the results each would obtain a Gold and a Bronze Award. However if we average these two things out then we would recommend a strong Silver for the Coolermaster Centurion Six. Pros: Elegant classy looks Unique placement of Power/Rest buttons Lots of placement options for fan Quality feel Good powder coating Wire mangement placement is excellent Tidy internal looks Massive CPU inspection hole (large enough for Mosfet and MCH) Water Cooling Supported (But also see cons) Cons: Water cooling fans have to go external to the case No radiator mounting screws No hole for the external fans to thread the fan power cables through. Top grill has 140mm fan support but why not the side panel? Overclockers Tech are pleased to announced a 8.1 out of ten and therefore a Silver award » Details

Editors Choice at eTeknix

Seidon 120M by eTeknix : 02-05-2013 As of writing, Cooler Master’s Seidon 120M CPU cooler is still a very new product. Pre-order pricing for it is available and it shows the price to be around £48. At that price we are looking at something that is about 10% cheaper than Corsair’s H55 yet offers an almost identical level of performance and much better acoustics. Cooler Master have produced a product that is a class-leader at the entry level end of the all in one liquid CPU cooler market. My test results and impressions show that the Cooler Master Seidon 120M is a very good product. However, there are still a few negatives to cover first before we elaborate on the positives. My first minor disappointment about the Seidon 120M comes in the form of its tubing. Cooler Master have opted for the ribbed plastic tubing which is much less flexible than its rubber counter-part. Despite immense amounts of feedback from the reviewing and consumer communities over the last few years, company’s still continue to churn out this inferior plastic tubing when nearly everyone prefers the rubber type. Unfortunately Cooler Master are one of those, and I hope they rectify this in the future. The only reason I can think of,  that justifies why they do this, is that it allows them to bring this product to the market at a lower cost, but realistically speaking I can’t imagine the increase in cost of upgrading to rubber tubing would be that high. I have a second concern which is more of a knit-pick than anything, but I will state it anyway. The pump unit, which Cooler Master have given a very nice robust design that looks pleasantly different to all those other Asetek rebrands out there, has aesthetically bad LED placement. Now I understand having an LED on the pump, because that is “all the rage” these days to make it look more funky and interesting, but why isn’t the Blue LED placed underneath the Cooler Master logo to illuminate that? Instead it is randomly placed where it looks odd and as-it-stands, I would rather have no LED at all than have it the way it is. Negatives aside I still believe the Cooler Master Seidon 120M is probably the best entrance into the all-in-one Liquid CPU cooler market anyone could make. Coming in at £48 it is definitely one of the cheaper, if not the cheapest, option yet it still offers a highly competent level of performance. The inclusion of a wide range PWM fan allows it to offer an excellent compromise between silence and performance, depending on what your preference is. The build quality is excellent and the mounting kit, as I have come to expect from Cooler Master, is simple and effective. As a result of those things, I have no hesitation at all in awarding the Cooler Master Seidon 120M our Editor’s Choice award. Congratulations to Cooler Master and we look forward to seeing more great things from their future water cooling products. » Details