Why you can trust Tom's Hardware Our expert reviewers spend hours testing and comparing products and services so you can choose the best for you. Find out more about how we test.
Thermal Results with noise normalized to 38.2 dBA
Finding the right balance between fan noise levels and cooling performance is important. While running fans at full speed can improve cooling capacity to some extent, the benefits are limited and many users prefer a quiet system.
With this noise normalized test, I’ve set noise levels to 38.2 dba. This level of noise is a low (but slightly audible) volume level. MSI’s E360 does very well in this noise-normalized test, providing the third-best result when fans are tuned for low noise levels.
No Power Limits Thermal Results
Without power limits enforced on Intel’s i7-13700K, the CPU will hit its peak temperature and thermally throttle with even the strongest air coolers and some AIOs. So for most coolers, we measure the CPU package power to determine the maximum wattage cooled.
However, MSI’s E360 provides a level of cooling performance that most others are unable to achieve – it kept our Core i7 CPU under its peak temperature in this workload. As such, I’ve compared the actual temperature of the CPU in this benchmark against the six other coolers I’ve tested that are capable of this level of cooling.
While MSI’s E360 is the worst result in the graph above, the fact that it is even on this list demonstrates that its cooling capacity is amongst the strongest available today. Equally important are noise levels, and the MSI provides the best result here!
In its full-speed configuration, MSI’s E360 is quieter than half of the AIOs I’ve tested here, landing right in the middle of the pack. MSI also includes a low-noise PWM splitter for the fans, and with this installed it does not lose any thermal performance. Since it doesn’t lose performance with the low-noise adapter, I will judge this cooler by its “low noise” mode. In this mode, MSI’s E360 runs quieter than any of the competing products I’ve tested it against.
175W Cinebench Results
Most coolers on the market are able to keep Intel’s i7-13700K under it’s peak temperature if the power consumption is limited, so for this test, we’ll be looking at the CPU’s actual temperature. Its thermal performance in this scenario is good, on par with DeepCool’s LT720 and MSI’s last-generation S360 AIO.
As with the previous result, where the E360 shines is noise levels – it runs quieter than all competing AIOs, with the exception of DeepCool’s LT720.
125W Cinebench Results
The lowest power limit I test with Raptor Lake CPUs is 125W. This is a high enough limit to allow the CPU to maintain its base clock speeds even in the most intensive tests, and most coolers should be able of keeping the CPU below Tjmax – even low end coolers.
Really, thermals do not matter in this scenario. Even Intel’s basic stock cooler can handle a load like this with ease. Noise levels, rather than CPU temperature, are the most important factor here. That said, with a thermal result of 38C over ambient – MSI’s E360 ties for the third-best result we have recorded in this workload. But how about those noise levels? The E360 is the second-quietest result I’ve recorded from an AIO on this testing platform, with a noise level of 39.6 dBA. Very few liquid coolers will provide better results here.
Conclusion
Usually, MSI (and often competing companies) release new lineups of products by launching the premium products first. But MSI has reversed that order with the release of its “budget” E360 AIO. It has a variety of engineering improvements that allow it to perform on par with the most-expensive last generation AIO coolers, while maintaining lower noise levels. MSI’s E360 is the quietest AIO I’ve tested that is also capable of keeping Intel’s i7-13700K under TJMax in even the most intensive of workloads.
It just needs a price cut to be competitive. And considering that all we have is its launch price at this point, you may find it for $20 or so less by the time you read this. In that range, it would be easier to recommend. But there is a whole lot of very good competition in the AIO realm these days.
Ultimately, this cooler makes me excited for the rest of MSI’s upcoming cooling lineup. When the new budget-focused E360 offers the same sort of performance as MSI’s best-performing AIO from the last generation, it will be interesting to see how its upcoming high-end coolers will perform!
