Cooler Master Aquagate Mini Review

The biggest drawback to watercooling is the high initial cost related to the equipment you need to buy. Typically a starter kit will run you between 200 and 400 dollars and often requires that your case be modified during the installation process. This is where the Coolermaster Aquagate Mini is different. The system is small, self-contained, and virtually maintenance free. In fact Coolermaster claims that the system will remained filled for up to 2 years, which is actually beyond the usable life of many high-end systems today.

Cooling performance was excellent, the larger radiator helped keep our 3200+ cool under overclocked conditions and the larger fan allowed for a cooler and quieter running system. Though after using the Aquagate Mini we found many areas where the system could be improved.

For instance given the "all-in-one" nature of this unit we found it cumbersome that the fan was not thermally controlled, granted there is a handy dial to control fan speed but it would have been nice to have the fan adjust as the water temperature changed.

Another concern we had with the system is two-fold.
- How do we tell if the system is indeed full? And..
- If after 2 years (or less in the event of a leak) how do you fill the system back up?
These aspects are not covered in the manual but I suspect the answer will eventually show up in the Coolermaster Forums sometime soon.

Now for the ever popular list of Good things and Bad things.

Great cooling
Multi processor installations
Easy installation
Virtually maintenance free

Simple systems, limited functionality
System not thermally responsive.
No provisions for monitoring (temperature, pump operations)

I would like to thank Cooler Master for helping to make this review possible.