Cool and Quiet, Like a Ninja: Cooler Master Nepton 240M CPU Cooler Review

OK, so maybe the Nepton 240M is not my cup of tea.

But don’t take that to mean that Cooler Master’s latest AIO WC solution is a bad product.

It’s actually an effective alternative to not just one, but two, “conventional” CPU cooling solutions.

First and foremost, it’s a definitive advance over air cooling. This is beyond dispute, one that raw data will support. Eight degrees Centigrade is a significant improvement in peak CPU temperatures. Overclockers, in particular, will be chuffed to enjoy such a good reduction in peak CPU temperatures. Not only that, but this performance does not come at the expense of increased noise output. The two Silencio fans see to that.

Then there is the advantage of convenience, especially when compared to a custom-built water cooling loop. I won’t lie: A custom water-cooling solution takes more time to prepare, set up, and assemble. The Nepton 240M, on the other hand, is just a smidge more time-intensive to install than your typical CPU air cooler. If you have a buddy helping you, particularly when you’re installing the radiator into your chassis, then installation is much easier. You just need an extra set of hands, really. But even doing things solo, the Nepton 240M is really as simple as can be. The pictorial instructions are super-easy to follow, which helps, and the product itself is well-engineered.

It’s hard to come up with anything significantly negative to say about the Nepton 240M. Indeed, the only thing I can definitively complain about is the stiffness of the FEP tubing. This is where having a second pair of hands would really help. The stiffness of the FEP tubing might prevent coolant flow-killing kinks, but it also makes installation a little bit more troublesome. However, it’s not a deal-breaker. It’s just something to be aware of.

Also something to be wary of is the fragility of the radiator fins. As I mentioned, though, this is true of every single radiator I’ve seen, whether it’s on a pre-fab water-cooler or one for a custom loop. Radiator fins just will not absorb much punishment, so just be mindful of this as you handle your Nepton 240M.

What I’d really like to find out, actually, is how an AIO water-cooling solution compares directly with a custom-built solution. Unfortunately, I don’t have a spare set of water-cooling gear with which to make the comparison. My main PC is cooled by a custom-built water loop, but it’s not convenient for me to disassemble my machine just to make a comparison. However, it’s my hope that we here at Techgage might be able to make such direct comparisons between a pre-fab water-cooling solution and a custom-built one sometime in the future.

At the time of writing, Cooler Master has not provided any pricing info, but I personally expect it to be somewhere in the realm of $120.00. At this projected price range, the Nepton 240M looks like a good value, particularly when you consider that it’s a superior performer to any air-cooled solution as well as the fact that it’s hard to build a custom-built water-cooling set-up for less than that.

As good as it is, though, it still doesn’t sway me away from my preference for DIY solutions.

But that’s just biased ol’ me talking.

Pros

• Superior performance compared to air coolers.
• Very quiet in operation.
• Mostly easy to install.

Cons

• Stiff FEP tubing negatively impacts ease of installation.