Deepcool Maelstrom 240 Review

Deepcool Maelstrom 240 Review

Closed-loop liquid-coolers have rapidly evolved in recent years, and manufacturers often add custom touches to their all-in-one coolers. On the Maelstrom 240, Deepcool includes a pump that uses a closed impeller. The design helps to increase flow rate and reduce vibration and noise. Based on the pump’s impressive 2,800rpm speed, we’d say that the closed impeller certainly helps circulate coolant through the cooler. Deepcool also adds a zirconia ceramic bearing, which has an estimated life span of 120,000 hours, to ensure that the pump will last. There’s more to this closed-loop CPU cooler than its overpowered pump, though. 

With a 240mm radiator, the Maelstrom 240 can easily handle the current crop of high-end processors, and the heat they produce. To dissipate heat from the radiator, Deepcool bundles two of its Gamer Storm GF120 PWM fans that operate from 600 to 2,200rpm. At maximum speed, each GF120 generates an impressive 91.12cfm.

The fans’ noise level maxes out at 39.3dBA, but at 600rpm, their expected noise level is a mere 17.6dBA. Japanese fluid dynamic bearings help reduce fan noise and extend the fan’s life. Deepcool anticipates the fans will last for 100,000 hours.

The rubber fan blades on the GF120 have curved ridges near their edges to centralize airflow, which improves static pressure. Deepcool rates the GF120’s maximum air pressure at 3.71mm/H20. The red blades should stand out inside a case, and if they get dusty, the fan impeller detaches for easy cleaning. Deepcool also decorates the pump with a LED outline of the Gamer Storm logo, which lights up when the PC is running.

One of the more inventive additions to the Maelstrom 240 is a fan hub that controls up to four PWM fans. The fan controller is particularly useful if you plan on installing the GF120 fans above the top vent of your case. This configuration often requires you to route fan cablesthrough openings far away from available fan headers. The fan hub’s extension cable will help you to reach those previously 
inaccessible fan headers and give you some extra PWM fan connectivity.

The Maelstrom 240 is compatible with current Intel and AMD processors, thanks to a universal backplate and multiple mounting brackets that support a variety CPU sockets. We installed the CPU cooler onto an Intel Core i7-4790K (Socket LGA1150). After removing the existing CPU cooler, the installation was quick and easy: It took us only five minutes to get the Maelstrom 240 up and running.

We monitored temperatures on the Maelstrom 240 using Core Temp. At idle, Intel’s Core i7-4970K (running at stock clocks) ran at a maximum temperature of 30 degrees Celsius. Next, we pushed the processor by running POV-Ray 3.7 on all cores for 10 minutes, which produced a maximum temperature of 82 C. Finally, we ran Prime 95’s Small FFT test on all cores and threads; the CPU hit a maximum temperature of 96 C in this demanding benchmark.

The Maelstrom 240 operates extremely quiet in idle, and the included fans pick up plenty of speed to deliver performance cooling when your PC is under load. We like the look of the Gamer Storm logo on the pump, as well as the red fans. This CPU cooler would go well with the red and black color schemes found on many gaming motherboards. Deepcool even backs the closed-loop cooler with a five-year warranty, so you’ll have some peace of mind to go along with the quality performance. 

Specs:Materials: Copper (waterblock), aluminum (radiator); Socket Compatibility: IntelLGA1150/1155/1156/1366/2011, AMD AM2/AM2+/AM3/AM3+/FM1/FM2/FM2+; Pump: 2,800rpm, 12V; Fans: 2 120mm PWM (600 to 2,200rpm); Radiator dimensions: 27mm x 274mm x 120mm (HxWxD); Warranty: 5 years

Test system specs:Processor: Intel Core i7-4790K; Motherboard: GIGABYTE GA-Z97X-UD3H-BK; GPU: PNY GeForce GTX 780 XLR8 Overclocked Series; Memory: 8GB ADATA XPG V2 DDR3-2400; Storage: 128GB Crucial RealSSD C300; OS: Windows 8.1 Enterprise (64-bit)