Cooler Master Seidon 240M and 12 More Coolers: The Retest and Mega-Roundup

Conclusions: It Always Depends on Your Needs

Before I get into specific recommendations, it's worth taking a few moments to talk about the three new coolers that were tested today: the Cooler Master Seidon 240M, the Noctua NH-U12S, and the Noctua NH-U14S.

First, while the Swiftech H220 may be the best 240mm closed loop cooler available, it also commands a healthy premium over the competition. This leaves Corsair's H100i and the Cooler Master Seidon 240M competing against each other, and this one's really a no brainer in favor of Cooler Master. The Seidon 240M sometimes lists for cheaper than the H100i, and while you don't get the software functionality or extra fan headers of the H100i, the 240M is slightly more efficient overall, and its mounting system is head and shoulders above the H100i. If you're in the market for a 240mm cooler and the Swiftech is too rich for your blood, then you're going to want the Seidon 240M.

What surprised me was just how well the two new Noctua coolers performed. The NH-U12S is basically at least as good as the stalwart NH-D14, but it's smaller and it's cheaper. Meanwhile, the big brother NH-U14S puts in a solid performance of its own, but losing that top PCI Express port for just a couple more degrees of performance is a major drag. These are both excellent air coolers in their own right, but if you're looking to spend premium cash on an air cooler, I'd go with the NH-U12S and then probably tack a second NF-F12 PWM fan on to the order.

I was happy to evaluate three new products and have all of them perform well. Asetek's probably none too happy that Cooler Master made a better 240mm cooler than they do (let alone CoolIT's mediocre entry), while Noctua's newer, simpler cooler designs seem to be more effective than the older, bulkier ones. Though it's not a head turner, as the least expensive cooler on the charts, the Cooler Master Hyper 212 Evo continues to perform admirably and justifies the Bronze Editors' Choice award it earned in the last roundup.

So what do you buy for what market? If you're on a budget, then your decision has been made for you: the Hyper 212 Evo is the best bargain out there. As for the rest of the coolers, you essentially need to consider your options. Outside of the NZXT Kraken X40 or Corsair H90 with a second fan, closed loop coolers under the 240mm mark just don't impress. The H80i was better than the H55 and H60, but that doesn't mean much when Noctua's solutions are competitive at around the same price. You have to run the H80i full bore for it to break away from the NH-U12S or NH-U14S, and that's a tough sell when either cooler can do the same job more quietly.

When you go north of $100, you're really looking at getting an H90 or Kraken X40 and buying a second fan, buying a Seidon 240M, or going for the Swiftech H220. The comparably priced 280mm Kraken X60 is able to break away from Swiftech's H220, but it has to run its fans a lot faster to get there, and you'll have a much harder time finding a case compatible with it than you will the H220. At ~$110, I'd probably opt for the Seidon 240M over having to beef up one of the 140mm solutions, but at ~$140, the Swiftech H220 is really where the buck stops.

It bears mentioning that in my last review, the H220 had issues with pump noise and harmonic resonance in the testbed. Using the retail kit, I experienced no such issues during testing. With my chief concerns largely taken care of in the retail model, I'm now totally comfortable giving the Swiftech H220 a Bronze Editor's Choice award. It's heavy, it's powerful, it's copper, and it's as good as you're going to get before you go full custom (which, hilariously, you can also do with it.) The same award also goes to Noctua's NH-U12S, which at $65 is as good a bargain as you're going to get from Noctua, and screams quality while offering solid performance.