Cooler Master MasterLiquid ML280 Mirror Liquid CPU Cooler Review

Testing

Changes to our AIO cooler test system have recently been made, so we are starting fresh with our testing method and results. The following components are used in our new test rig.

CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 1800X
Cooling: Cooler Master MasterLiquid ML280 Mirror
Motherboard: ASUS Crosshair VI Hero
Graphics Card: PowerColor Red Devil Radeon RX 580
Memory: HyperX Savage DDR4-2666 16GB
Storage: Corsair Force MP500 M.2 PCIe NVMe SSD
Case: Fractal Design Define R6 Tempered Glass
Power: SilverStone SST-ST55F-G

As our testbed is brand new, the list of coolers we will be comparing is currently quite small, but will be growing in the near future.

– Cryorig H5 Universal
SilverStone PF240-ARGB
ARCTIC Liquid Freezer II 240
Corsair iCUE H115i RGB PRO XT
Alphacool Eisbaer Aurora 360 CPU
NZXT Kraken X63
NZXT Kraken Z73
Corsair iCUE H150i ELITE CAPELLIX
– Cooler Master MasterLiquid ML280 Mirror

For performance testing we will first test idle temperatures. These are taken on the Windows 10 desktop an hour after the system has been turned on.

Idle

For load testing we will be running the AIDA64 system stability test with the CPU only checked. This puts a full load on our CPU. We run this test for 1 hour and record the highest temperature throughout the test.

Load

Lighting

As mentioned previously, the ML280 Mirror features ARGB LED lighting in the pump housing, accented by an infinity-style mirror. The included ARGB controller is quite lacking, offering a rainbow, color cycle, and three static colors. If you are looking to customize this cooler’s lighting to match the rest of your rig, we definitely recommend connecting this AIO to a compatible motherboard. Below are a few pictures of the cooler in rainbow mode, as the color cycle and static color options are quite underwhelming.

MasterLiquid ML280 Mirror

MasterLiquid ML280 Mirror

MasterLiquid ML280 Mirror