Alphacool's Eisbaer Aurora 360 HPE is a bit of a mixed bag. It hits some high highs and low lows. On the positive front, it provided excellent cooling performance on our Intel test bench. While the fans can be excessively loud because of high RPM, they do deliver performance good enough to place the cooler near the top of the charts. However, more performance is available with different fans. A quick rebench on the Intel test system with similarly fast static-pressure-focused fans resulted in a 2°C drop in temperatures in the OC Blender and FPU tests. This improvement was documented in both the maximum RPM and noise normalized tests. What does that mean? It means Alphacool's new HPE fans, while rather decent, still have further room for improvement. It also means this new radiator design with more coolant channels has further untapped potential.

On the other hand, performance on our AMD test bench left much to be desired. The performance fell far enough behind for it to lose out to top-tier heatsinks, like the Deepcool Assassin III. This shows that Alphacool has some more R&D to do to optimize the cold plate for better performance on AMD processors. Again, high highs and low lows.

So performance can be good, if not great; that is, if on the right platform. However, the user experience also matters. Alphacool again shows promise with the Eisbaer Aurora 360 HPE, but doesn't quite hit the mark. Overall build quality is fantastic; the Aurora 360 HPE is an all-copper liquid cooler, so it won't suffer from corrosion or other problems other AIOs exhibit as they age since it doesn't mix metals. It is also expandable and has a fill port to keep the cooler working at maximum efficiency long-term. The quick-disconnect fittings allow for easy integration with Alphacool's Eiswolf AIO product line, so users may opt to add GPU liquid-cooling to the mix. Meanwhile, memory and graphics card clearance is also perfect. Users won't have to worry about a coolant hose blocking a DIMM slot, or a fan clip touching the backplate of a graphics card as is the case on some of the massive air coolers.

Where things fall apart is the mounting hardware. It is now 2022, and the hardware, while robust and compatible with a massive number of CPU sockets, is undoubtedly in need of a redesign. It is frustrating to work with on Intel systems. A captive nut only held in place on a sliding track by a plastic washer that is a pressure fit means it slides around on the Intel backplate regardless of whether it is the plastic or new heavy-duty metal backplate. Add the mounting screws the end-user has to get just right and you are trying to adjust eight different contact points to get everything lined up and seated properly. As you can guess, it's frustrating, to say the least, since adjusting one may have another you already had perfectly situated move. It was far less problematic on AMD as the cooler uses the standard backplate that comes with the motherboard. Still, it can be further improved just the same.

Overall, the Alphacool Eisbaer Aurora 360 HPE is a unique liquid cooler with valuable features, such as its all-copper design, serviceability, and expandability that make it a compelling option. It also doesn't hurt that it delivers exceptional performance on our Intel test bench. As such, it is a cooler I would recommend if you are running an Intel platform. If you are running an AMD system, you will likely find more bang for your buck elsewhere.