If you have installed an All In One / Closed Loop Cooling solution in the past decade you probably already know what to expect when it comes time to install your shiny new PL360 FLUX AE. Yes, it is not an Asetek built unit but all AIOs follow a similar installation path. Albeit with a few different quirks depending on the actual OEM/ODM of said AIO. In the case Cooler Master, most of these quirks are merely tradeoffs that any manufacture has to make in order to offer as easy an installation as possible to as many people as possible.
For example, this unit does not come with the top mounting brackets preinstalled for you. These days, that is actually a good thing. Both Intel and AMD are making some excellent CPUs these days… so showing preference for one over the other would annoy half their customer base. The same is true of not pre-applying TIM. There is a major difference in size between LGA 115x (35x35mm), LGA 1700 (45×35), and AM5 (40x40mm). As such anything pre-applied would have to either cater to the lowest common denominator (and be suboptimal for everything else) or have TIM smear all over the motherboards CPU securing bracket (also suboptimal).
When it comes to installing a new AIO on a new build we like to being with the waterblock and get it partially prepped for installation. In the PL360 FLUX AE’s case that means grabbing the properly labeled baggie for a given socket type. In this case, LGA1700. This actually deserves mention. We love the fact that Cooler Master took the time to separate the mounting hardware by socket type and then label them. Yes, many others do this as well. But every time a manufacture goes out of there way to make their customer’s lives a little bit easier… we are going to mention it.
With the proper brackets in hand you can see that they are keyed. So too are the slots on the side of the PL360 FLUX AE’s block keyed. Thus, installing them ‘upside down’ is impossible (which was an issue with earlier generation Asetek’s for example).
So… slide them in until the bolt holes on the bottom of the block line up with the bolt holes in the bracket. Then using the factory LockTite’d bolts.. secure it in place. Rinse and repeat for the other and you can then leave the block alone (for now).
The next step is to prep your motherboard. Depending on your socket type this will either involved picking the right backplate (Intel 11xx vs 1700) or using the stock backplate (AMD and Intel 20xx). Since we are using an Intel LGA1700 based motherboard this cooler requires choosing the proper Intel backplate to install.
It is actually fairly easy to pick the right one… as the 1700 is labeled 1700 and the 11xx has no such label but does have double sided tape pre-applied. If you are not the ‘read the instructions first’ type builder, the rectangular’ish / small ‘i’ looking backplate is for LGA 11xx, and the one that looks like a fancy capital ‘I’ (or something else if you are so inclined) is for 1700 motherboards. Either way its pretty easy to tell them apart.
Put it in place, grab the properly labeled bag of double ended bolts… and secure this polymer backplate in place. With that accomplished we would then recommend turning your attention to the fans and installing them. The only exception to this is if you are planning on using six in a push/pull configuration. If that is the case, only install the ‘bottom’ 3 fans and leave the others for when you mount the radiator.
The only recommendation we can make when it comes to the fans is that you need to make sure all six cables (2 per fan) are pointed in the right direction. With the ‘right direction’ being towards the back of your case when the rad is installed. We say this as you are going to have a bit of a rat’s nest to hide on the other side of the case. It is what it is.
With that done it is time to mount the waterblock. Thanks to some real forethought on Cooler Master’s part, you can mount this block in any direction you so choose… as long as you are using a LGA 1xxx system.
If not, you will only have two options.
But we have four and it is a nice bonus for Intel owners. We say that as the inlet/outlet ports may be a wee too big in the footprint department and may hit your motherboard’s VRM heatsinks in certain directions. Even on small heatsinks it is tight.
The same is true of your RAM, but with (up to) four options to choose from it is not a hardship to get at least one>/i> direction to ‘work’.
All that is left is to pick a spot for the magnetic controller box, plug in the various cables (of which there are admittedly a ton)… and start enjoying your new beastly cooling solution.
Overall for a 360mm class AIO the PL360 Flux AE is a well thought out piece of kit. Cooler Master has done as much as they can to ensure you do not run into any build breaking installation issues. So yes. Overall we think they did a rather good job. As such the MasterLiquid PL360 Flux 30th Anniversary Edition easily lives up to its Special Edition branding,
