NZXT Kraken X53 RGB 240mm AIO Liquid Cooler Review

Enter the NZXT Kraken X53 RGB, another 240mm AIO Liquid Cooler without that nifty LCD screen, but still with style to match.

Soooo, not long after we’ve taken a look at NZXT’s Kraken Z53 240mm AIO Liquid Cooler, we’re back again with another review featuring its more affordable bro. Enter the NZXT Kraken X53 RGB, another 240mm AIO Liquid Cooler without that nifty LCD screen, but still with style to match. 

Product Specifications

Waterblock	Dimensions: Diameter: 80mm; H: 55mm Material: Block: copper; Housing: plastic
Pump	Motor Speed: 800 – 2,800 + 300 RPM Power: 12VDC, 0.3A
Radiator	Dimensions: 123 x 275 x 30mm Material: Aluminum
Tube	Length: 400mm Material: Ultra-low evaporation rubber with nylon braided sleeve
Cap	Material: Plastic and brass Rotational Orientation: 360° with 30° increments LEDs: 9 LEDs NZXT RGB Channel Output Voltage: 5V DC NZXT RGB Channel Output LED Qty.: Up to four LED strips - 10 LEDs per strip, Up to five Aer RGB fans, Up to six NZXT RGB accessories
Fans	Model: AER RGB 2 120mm Quantity: 2 Dimension: 120 x 120 x 26mm Speed: 500 - 1,500 + 300 RPM Air Flow: 17.48 - 52.44 CFM Air Pressure: 0.15 – 1.35mm-H2O Noise: 22-33dBA Bearing: Fluid dynamic bearing Power Consumption: 12V DC, 0.18A, 2.2W Connector: 4-pin PWM Life: 60,000 hours / 6 years
Limited Warranty	6 Years
OS	Intel Socket LGA 1200, 1151, 1150, 1155, 1156, 1366, 2011, 2011-3, 2066 Intel Core i9 / Core i7 / Core i5 / Core i3 / Pentium / Celeron AMD Socket AM4, sTRX4*, TR4* (*Threadripper bracket not included) AMD Ryzen 9 / Ryzen 7 / Ryzen 5 / Ryzen 3 / Threadripper
Price	$159.99/Php8,100 (lowest price locally)

Release the Kraken… Again(?)

We’ve had our first brush with NZXT recently when we reviewed the Kraken Z53 RGB. That one’s also a 240mm AIO Liquid Cooler. It’s the same as this one, so we kinda set our expectations here that we’ll get pretty similar results. Or at least close.

So, right off the bat, the Kraken X53 RGB follows NZXT’s white and purple signature packaging. All the necessary info such as specifications and socket compatibility are printed on the box to help you out if you happen to just be in the market for an AIO liquid cooler but don’t know which to buy yet. 

BUILD THE EXTRAORDINARY

NZXT packs everything you’ll need to setup the Kraken X53 RGB. For starters, there’s the radiator and pump (thermal paste is already pre-applied so you don’t have to go out of your way to find one, there’s also two Aer RGB 2 120mm fans, a set of cables, screws and washers.

For compatibility, NZXT also includes an AMD retention bracket and an Intel backplate in the package. And once again to note, by default the Intel retention bracket is already installed. Changing it is easy, though. And by the way, instead of a traditional paper manual, you’ll get a card with a QR code printed on it to access the manual on a pdf file. This is actually more handy, not to mention more environment-friendly. It’s like the equivalent of ditching the CDs for drivers on motherboards. Who has a CD-ROM these days?

Hassle-free Installation

NZXT’s mounting system for the Kraken X53, similar to what’s on the Kraken Z53, makes installation so easy. Installing the pump doesn’t require a screwdriver, and all you’ll need one for is attaching the fans to the radiator and that to the case. From there, you’re good. 

Once again, we’re working with our GIGABYTE X570 AROUS ELITE motherboard paired with a Ryzen 5 3600X. As NZXT still features the Intel retention bracket here, you can replace that with a simple twist and install the AMD retention bracket the same way. Just line them up properly. The radiator and fan are 30mm and 26mm thick respectively, so yeah also check out the clearance of your case if you’re going for this.

Enjoy the Lightshow

We’ve actually been thinking hard about this – why does the Kraken Z53, especially at its price, not have the AER RGB 2 fans, while the more affordable X53 has two of them. Well, basically, here’s what we came up with. The Kraken Z53 has a nifty LED screen, and more RGB on your case would likely deter attention from it. That, and R&D pretty much costs something. As opposed to the Kraken X53 RGB where you can set up a thematic lightshow with your system, you get the point.

Okay, more to the point. The Kraken X53 RGB features 25 RGB modes. I counted them all.

1. Fixed

2. Breathing

3. Fading

4. Marquee

5. Covering Marquee

6. Pulse

7. Spectrum Wave

8. Alternating

9. Starry Night

10. Rainbow Flow

11. Super Rainbow

12. Rainbow Pulse

13. Candle

14. Wings

15. Tai Chi

16. Water Cooler

17. Loading

18. CPU Temperature

19. GPU Temperature

20. FPS

21. Wave

22. Level

23. Sync

24. Bass

25. Gain

Check some of them out in action here:

Something important to note. Fan control is not included with the Kraken X-3 series, unlike the Kraken Z53 we recently reviewed that lets you set the fan curve, and with different profiles to boot.  

So, anyway, let's get down to business.

We’re reviewing this one similar to how we reviewed the Kraken Z53. Ambient temperature is around 32-33 degrees Celsius, and our system comes with a GIGABYTE X570 AORUS ELITE and a Ryzen 5 3600X at 4.2GHz/1.35V. The tests are a 15-minute idle run after Windows finishes starting up everything, followed up with an hour of Realbench 2.56 Stress Test using up to 16GB of RAM. The Pump is set to performance, while the fan curve set to default. 

TEST SYSTEM SETUP

Motherboard	GIGABYTE X570 AORUS ELITE
CPU	AMD Ryzen 5 3600X 4.2GHz, 1.35V
GPU	AMD Sapphire Radeon 5600 XT
RAM	ZADAK 16GB 3600MHz
Cooler	NZXT Kraken X53 RGB 240mm AIO Liquid Cooler
Storage	Plextor M9Pe(G) 512GB + WD Green HDD 2TB
PSU	CORSAIR RM750
OS	Windows 10
Display	ViewSonic VX2758 1080p 144Hz Monitor

The NZXT Kraken X53 is a decent 240mm AIO Liquid Cooler that delivers superb performance and stylish aesthetics without the premium price that comes with the more expensive Kraken Z53. Now, in this regard, this will be more on features than it is on performance. There's plenty of customizations available on the Kraken X53, but the fan control option on NZXT CAM is an option you'd want to have and it's sorely missing here. It's more of an inconvenience than an actual problem, but a lot of us would want a centralized control hub where we can check everything in one place.

As for the Infinity Mirror Ring LED, it's nice that it's not limited to just aesthetics. While it's focus is primarily that, its temperature color shift based on temperatures is a neat party trick. You can also rotate the cap if you find the pump interfering with other components. 

It's easy to install, performs very well, and looks great. What more can I say? It's pretty much affordable at Php8,100 for what it is, but if you happen to still find it expensive but you just got to have that Infinity Mirror Ring LED, there's a non-RGB fan version that costs Php7,150. But then again that's like the moon without the stars.