Today, we are writing our Arctic Cooling Liquid Freezer II 240 RGB AIO CPU cooler review. Here, we’ll focus on this all-in-one water-cooling solution that continuously keeps the CPU cool while maintaining quietness.
The product is considered as one of the best on the market, and it’s all thanks to its outstanding performance. Not only that, but it’s become a crowd favourite because of its competitive price.
Arctic opted to expand their lineup with ARGB and RGB models. And today, we’re checking out the design, functions, features, specifications, and performance of their AIO CPU cooler.
Is it as good as claims? Will it be something good for your build? Continue reading our Arctic Cooling Liquid Freezer II 240 RGB AIO CPU cooler review to find out.
Arctic Cooling Liquid Freezer II 240 RGB AIO CPU Cooler Packaging
The retail packaging for this product is compact, considering there’s a full AIO system inside. Its cardboard box has a nice matte finish to it.
In front, you’ll find a black and blue image of the cooler. Here, you’ll also find a label stating that it comes with a 6-year warranty. This will ease the minds of potential customers when considering this AIO CPU cooler.
On the upper-left corner, you’ll find Arctic and its logo. Then on the lower-left section is the name of the unit.
Both sides of the box feature QR codes though they bring you to different sections on the Arctic website. The QR code on one side is for technical support and for sharing feedback. The other side has a QR code for “more details”, a specifications table, and a summary for features.
Also, the cooler for our Arctic Cooling Liquid Freezer II 240 RGB AIO CPU cooler review was well-packed. It came wrapped in plastic and had cardboard around to further protect it from unnecessary bumps and damages during shipping. We think Styrofoam would’ve been more snug and secure, but nevertheless, the thick cardboard still worked anyway.
Just like with other AIO coolers, the Cooling Liquid Freezer II comes with all the mounting hardware needed. And what’s good is that these are what’s necessary for both the AMD and Intel systems. You’ll find multiple sets of standoffs, screws, mounting clips, and brackets.
Together with its installation hardware, the company included a syringe filled with their MX-5 thermal compound which is quite convenient.
Arctic Cooling Liquid Freezer II 240 RGB AIO CPU Cooler Review – Design and Functionality
As the name of the product implies, the Cooling Liquid Freezer II is a 240mm AIO CPU cooler. And with a lot of new AIO’s around, this particular product brings together a CPU pump unit and water block. These are connected with the help of braided cooling lines that lead to a radiator.
Its black-clad design was applied to the radiator that features Arctic’s branding at the top. You can also find this along the bottom edges of the radiator.
Shifting to the CPU’s combination unit, you’ll find a slightly-different looking design when you compare it to other similar products. The company chose a stealthy-looking design for their cooler which looks great and sophisticated with its black plastic casing.
The cooler has two preinstalled and organised 120mm P12 PWM PST RGB fans in the push configuration. If you’re looking to shift to a pull configuration, changing the fans around it is simple.
The centre hub of the fans has the company’s logo on it, along with RGB lights in sight. Additionally, the fans come with anti-vibration rubber pads on both sides.
The design of the product is also beneficial when it comes to adaptability for small cases including a mini ITX. This is because the block has an extremely tight width that’s 120mm.
The 38mm thickness makes it a bit thicker compared to its competitors. And with the fans, it’s able to generate a 63mm block.
We should consider the thickness when it comes to extremely small cases or low-ends. However, spaces of around 70mm are usually allowed.
The aluminium block has a collection of longitudinal ducts: half is for the outbound while the other is for the return. As for the return chambers at both ends, these remain protected by the metallic frame. So, they’re able to generate very resistant square corners.
We’re also checking the lighting and cables in our Arctic Cooling Liquid Freezer II 240 RGB AIO CPU cooler review.
When it comes to its lighting system, it has a backlight with RGB diodes. And, it’s compatible with the primary plate lighting technologies today like Gigabyte’s RGB Fusion, ASUS’ Aura Sync, and more.
For the cables, all these for powering the fans/backlight are beneath the braid together with the available hoses. And, the power supply of the complete AIO is a single 4-pin PWM cable for the fan. There’s also one 4-pin RGB cable available.
Key Features of the Arctic Cooling Liquid Freezer II 240 RGB AIO CPU Cooler
LGA 1700 Compatibility
The Liquid Freezer II comes with the LGA 1700 mounting kit, making it compatible with Intel’s Alder Lake processors. Although its heat spreader and socket are larger than the predecessor, it has a reduced CPU surface that remains centred.
The Ideal Configuration for All
With the cooler’s long hoses and lighting options, it’s a highly versatile CPU cooler that’s compatible with different systems. That means, you can use it effectively in both small and big towers. But of course, you need to watch out for the radiator’s thickness.
Lighting up Your Build with the Arctic Cooling Liquid Freezer II 240 RGB AIO CPU Cooler
The PWM pump of the Liquid Freezer II RGB features optimised RGB fans for static pressure. These provide you with superior, noise-free cooling that maintains low temperatures, as well as new aesthetics.
In-house Developed Pump
Unlike a lot of competitors, the Liquid Cooler II’s water pump is developed in-house. As a result, it performs more efficiently with significantly reduced humming and lower noise levels. Like the other components of the cooler, the pump is PWM-controlled.
Premium Radiator of the Arctic Cooling Liquid Freezer II 240 RGB AIO CPU Cooler
Unlike most AIO cooler manufacturers, Arctic relies on 38mm thick radiators with high fin density. With that, more water can be utilised in the circuit to increase the cooling surface.
Since water has a higher heat capacity than copper or aluminium, this cooler offers a slower temperature increase.
Smooth VRM Fan
Small fans are known for being loud and fragile, but Arctic has developed a quiet and durable diagonal fan. This 40mm VRM fan is just as durable as the company’s other case fans. If it fails, Arctic’s customer service team will send a replacement free of charge, without replacing the whole unit.
Like the Liquid Freezer II’s pump, the fan is PWM-controlled and it can cool your base area and voltage transformers. It’s effective for overclocking, cases with poor airflow, and inadequate VRM cooling. You can also switch it off manually if your system has sufficient VRM cooling.
High-quality Hoses and Built-in Cable Management
The fibre-reinforced EPDM tubing of the Liquid Freezer II allows installation even in large cases. This feature also effectively prevents the evaporation of the coolant so you won’t worry about refilling the water cooling system.
In addition, there’s an integrated cable management system that hides both the RGB and PWM cables of your radiator fans.
Optimised Fan on Static Pressure
We continued working on our Arctic Cooling Liquid Freezer II 240 RGB AIO CPU cooler review. And here, we saw that the illuminated P-fans were fixed to the compact water cooling system right out of the box. What’s good about it is that it works with a couple of advantages.
Increased static pressure for optimised cooling performance (1.8mm H2O) and extended speed range of 200 to 2,000 RPM. It has lower power consumption at 0.11A, decreased rubber bumpers and vibration that’s reduced by >95%.
Additionally, it has an enhanced lifetime, high-quality plain bearing, PWM for syncing fan/pump controls, and RGB sharing. The latter is specifically for simultaneous lighting.
Specifications
The Arctic Liquid Freezer II is an AIO CPU cooler that’s compatible with AMD’s AM4 sockets. It also works with Intel’s LGA sockets including 1200, 115X, 2011, 2066 sockets. Plus, the company packed this CPU cooler with a mounting kit for the LGA 1700 sockets.
This AIO unit has an unlimited RAM clearance and its operating ambient temperature is between 0 and 40°C. This product also comes with a 6-year limited warranty.
Pump/Cold Plate
There’s a 40mm VRM fan with an RPM of 1,000 to 3,000 that’s PWM-controlled. Plus, its pump that’s PWM-controlled as well can handle a working frequency ranging from 800 to 2,000 RPM.
The total power it consumes is 0.5 to 2.7W (pump and VRM fan). For its cold plate, it is made of copper with micro-skived fins. There’s an MX-5 0.8g of thermal paste present as well.
Fan
The Cooling Liquid Freezer II has two ARCTIC P12 PWM RGB 120mm fans. These have a speed of 200 to 1,800 RPM and a fluid dynamic bearing.
Their noise levels are at 22.5 dBA, voltage & current are 0.08A & 12V DC. The fans’ airflow is 48.8 CFM while static pressure is 1.85mm H2O. And, ARCTIC made use of a 4-pin connector for the fans.
RGB
The LEDs used are 12 RGB LED lights per fan which makes use of a 4-pin 12V-G-R-B connector. For the current/voltage, it’s at 0.2 A/12V.
Size & Weight
The radiator is 277 x 120 x 38mm and the pump without tubes is 98 x 78 x 53mm. Its outer tube diameter is 12.4mm while the inner tube is 6.0mm. For its tube length, it measures 450mm.
It weighs a total of 1,191g when you include the radiator, fan, pump, and tubes.
Let’s continue our Arctic Cooling Liquid Freezer II 240 RGB AIO CPU cooler review by checking how it performs.
Hands-on with the Arctic Cooling Liquid Freezer II 240 RGB AIO CPU Cooler
Before we get to the actual performance of the Cooling Liquid Freezer II, let’s discuss its installation process.
When we installed the product, the first thing we had to prepare was the backplate. We slid the screws into the correct slot on the backplate before utilising the washers to secure these.
Then, we were able to position the backplate on the board then used the standoffs and washers to secure them. After that, we secured the mounting arms to their standoffs.
Threaded holes were offered for the thumb nuts along the cooler mounting bridge. With these, the heatsink was properly secured. The last and easy part was plugging it into the fan header, then that’s it.
For our Arctic Cooling Liquid Freezer II 240 RGB AIO CPU cooler review, we also tested the product. This is to help you decide if this cooler is something you need for your PC.
During our initial base frequency test, the Liquid Freezer II already delivered great cooling performance.
The CPU’s temperatures were 23°C at idle mode and 59°C under load.
The Liquid Freezer II was able to maintain low temperatures even under heavy loads even when we overclocked our CPU.
Aside from keeping our processor cool and under control, it was one of the most quiet coolers we’ve used. Its noise level was only at 32dBA during idle mode and 39 dBA under loads.
Arctic Cooling Liquid Freezer II 240 RGB AIO CPU Cooler Review Summary
We loved the product that we tested for our Arctic Cooling Liquid Freezer II 240 RGB AIO CPU cooler review. It’s an excellent cooler that has an elaborate design and offers superior performance too. It can cool high-end processors without noise and is excellent for overclocking.
We also appreciate the small changes like the two included RGB fans and the new MX-5 thermal paste. The redesigned syringe-shaped applicator of the latter allowed for easier application when we were installing the cooler.
Another thing we liked about this cooler is its built-in cable management. This allowed us to easily install the cooler faster.
Overall, it’s a well-designed cooling system that offers great performance. Since it’s compatible with Alder Lake processors, it’s one of the options we highly recommend if you’re upgrading your PC.
If you want this AIO cooler for your processor, you can purchase it online from Arctic’s official website.
