Introduction

A big thank you to EK for providing the review sample!

EKWB is a PC water-cooling juggernaut founded as the brainchild of just one man's simple idea. From that jumping-off point, they have quickly become a dominant force in the enthusiast community with high-quality components for just about any custom water-cooling loop. The company's numerous awards show their continued attention to detail and exceptional quality. Other than a few hiccups along the way, EKWB has been wildly successful, and their continued push into the all-in-one liquid cooler space announces their entry into the mainstream market.


The EK Nucleus AIO CR360 Lux D-RGB (talk about a mouthful) is the subject of today's review. This latest offering from EK is part of their newest lineup of all-in-one liquid CPU coolers. It features a 360 mm radiator, daisy-chained fans for easier cable management, and is fully loaded with everyone's favorite feature – that's right, you guessed it, ARGB lighting. Considering the performance of previous EK AIOs, it will be quite interesting to see how this latest generation holds up. So, without any further delays, let's take a closer look!

Packaging

EK sticks with the white and orange theme for its packaging for their Nucleus AIO CR360 Lux D-RGB. On the front you're greeted by a full color image of the cooler in all its splendorous ARGB glory. Meanwhile the left side details the rotary fittings and rotatable top cover. Moving on to the back you get a breakdown of various features such as the full pressure technology fans (FPT), tunnel effect RGB lighting on the pump, high grade aluminium radiator, etc.


The right side is mostly plain except for the orange stripe, while the top has "Boost Your PC. In Style!" in bold lettering. The Nucleus AIO's specifications are all located on the bottom panel.

Contents

The internal packaging gives a premium feel as the unit comes encased in foam which I am always happy to see. Everything is secure and snug with no damage to my test unit during shipping.


The cooler does support most mainstream sockets from AMD and Intel, including AM4 and AM5 of the former and LGA115x, LGA1200, and LGA1700 of the latter, among others. EK even has a supplied a tool to make installing the standoffs easier which is a nice touch.

Common parts supplied for mounting include:

• 12x Fan screws 30 mm (4 mm thread length)
• 12x Fan screws 34 mm
• 12x Radiator screws
• 4x Mounting plate screws
• 4x AMD / Intel mounting thumb screws
• 4x Intel LGA20XX mounting thumb screws
• 4x Thumb nuts
• 4x Springs
• 3x 120 mm fans
• 1x Intel LGA1700 backplate
• 1x Intel LGA115X / LGA1200 backplate
• 1x Intel mounting bracket
• 1x AMD mounting bracket
• 1x Tube thermal paste
• 1x Mounting screw tool
• 1x 500 mm extension cable
• 1x Manual