360mm Xigmatek Aurora 360 ARGB AIO CPU Cooler reviews

Everything looks and functions great, comes with a controller and everything

I've had this cooler for a little over 2 years now. Out of the box, it works fine. It was able to cool a Ryzen 5800X relatively well, though it would get up to the 90C mark under full load in very specific situations like converting images using all threads, but generally it wouldn't go much higher than the mid-70's. The pump had a distinctive whine at full speed, I mitigated this by setting a power curve for the pump which runs it at about 70% when temperatures are lower which causes the pump to online whine when the CPU is under load. The cooler includes a fan controller with a seemingly proprietary connector designed for the specific fans it includes. It has extra slots so you can buy extra fans and connect them to the same controller. The controller takes molex and can connect to the motherboard so that the fans RGB sync with the motherboard. The controllers does NOT however receive speed control via the motherboard and instead comes with a remote allowing you to toggle between two speed settings, one of which is moderate but a little noisy and the other which is a hurricane. The fans themselves look nice, as does the infinity mirror design on the pump head.

Unfortunately, I'm now replacing this unit as several problems have arisen in the time since I've bought it and I no longer trust it. First of all, the fan controller just outright stopped spinning the fans one day. It still kept them lit, but the fans stopped dead. I didn't notice at first until I looked at a temperature monitor and saw my CPU had been locked hard at 90C for several hours. I had purchased extra fans and thus had an extra fan controller on hand to replace it, but this was nonetheless very concerning. The second issue that has come up is a rather loud rattling sound from the pump that coincides with the whine when under load. Much like with the whine, it doesn't occur unless the pump is running at 100% power, but it's even louder than the already quite loud whine and though my temperatures are still as they ought to be, I worry this is an early sign that the pump is on the way out and may fail at some point in the future.

With all this in mind, I would not recommend this AIO Cooler. It's cheap and looks nice, but the performance is subpar compared to basically all other 360mm AIO coolers on the market, the fans run too fast at the slowest speed and can't be controlled by the motherboard creating unnecessary noise, the pump whines under load, and the general reliability of the fan controller and the pump itself are questionable. Your CPU is no doubt worth many times more than what this pump is. Spend a bit more and get something that will prolong it's life by keeping it cooler and not potentially damage it due to a failed pump.

Bought on special, quick delivery and operates as expected. Easy to install with the instructions, comes with all the backplates for different CPU brands, controller for the ARGB fans and thermal paste. Performance is noticeable decrease in CPU temp compared to my 120 AIO I had before, pump is super quiet while at 100% speed and the fans set to the low speed are super quiet but still give basically the same CPU temp while at full speed. ARGB is controlled via remote and included control box which allows up to 10 connections. Well worth at the special price and I'm happy with the purchase. Would look to buy from the same brand again in future.

Good cooler has my Gen 11 i7 sitting around 24degs when just on net. Syncd to mystic lights easily. Fans ok for sound but havnt got them connected to temp yet they just run full speed.