I was hesitant about liquid cooling at one time. I’d heard horror stories about them leaking and destroying other internal components, so I always thought it was more hassle than it was worth. Having said that, the people I listened to were talking about custom setups—the kind where you have to heat and bend the tubing, the kind subject to all kinds of human error. Once I learned about all-in-one liquid coolers, I decided to try them.

The ASUS Prime LC 360 ARGB all-in-one liquid cooler is a ready-to-go solution – you simply need to install it into your case and use the provided brackets to match your CPU choice. I was a little surprised by this, as previous installs have at least required me to install the fans as well, making sure that they were blowing air the correct way, but being pre-installed, you won’t have that problem.

The water block is quite small, measuring in at 65.1 x 60.58 x 68.5mm, meaning it will easily fit into almost any case, and it comes with a copper CPU plate, and a touch of thermal paste already spread across it, though I would encourage you to add more for better heat transfer. It also comes with an addressable RGB panel that can either be left as is or fitted with one of the two supplied infinity mirror lenses, offering some extra flare to your build.

These will either show ASUS in a sea of dots or PRIME with some stylized stripping, and they can be fitted in any rotation to ensure that they will display correctly once installed. I dare say you could even use one to make a template of your own design if you are so inclined.

It comes with brackets to suit both AMD and Intel processors, supporting sockets for either AM4 or AM5 AMD processors, or Intel LGA 1851/1700/1200, or 115x, alongside screws to work with whatever your chosen board may be.

The three pre-installed 120mm fans can spin at up to 2200RPM, give or take 10%, moving up to 75.7 cubic feet per minute while only outputting about 34dB(A) of sound while in use, and they can run either as power-managed fans, or purely off DC power, giving you options as to how to power them. They are also made using translucent white material, allowing the addressable RGB lighting to shine through them, and being Aura Sync compatible, these can be adjusted to match your mood through the ASUS Armoury Crate application.

These are pre-installed on an aluminium radiator, measuring 397 x 120 x 27mm, which is connected to the water block by 400mm sleeved rubber tubes. Power is delivered to the pump and fans separately, with standard 4-pin header connectors and 3-pin connectors for the ARGB elements: one for the water block and one for the integrated fans. 

Additionally, the fan ARGB connection has a split that can be used to plug in and control other ARGB elements within your case, offering the chance to chain RGB components without taking up too many headers on your board.

There is, however, a downside to the ASUS Prime LC 360 ARGB all-in-one liquid cooler, though it’s not as bad as some might have you thinking. From what I have seen and found online, you cannot replace individual fans should one or two fail. You might be able to remove the whole panel to install your own fans individually, but the initial setup has the fans linked through the frame they are built into, and I wasn’t prepared to pull apart something I had to send back to find out. I don’t think this will be much of an issue, as ASUS is known to use high-quality components, and a 6-year warranty backs this.

We received the white version of the ASUS Prime LC 360 ARGB all-in-one liquid cooler, and I have to say that I am very impressed. The simple lines, clean white panels, and the infinity mirror effect on the water block offer a very elegant appearance that complements any build. Not only is it incredibly easy to install, but it feels very durable, and being one of the more budget-friendly options, I was pleasantly surprised.

Written by: Mathew Lindner