Cooler Master V10 CPU Cooler Review

Installation

For the first time ever, we here at HWC are going to strongly recommend you remove your motherboard from your case before installing this beast...regardless of what case it is. Yes, even if you have a case with an aftermarket backplate cut-out in the motherboard area (e.g. HAF 932, ATCS 840) you will still have to yank it and do this installation the old fashioned way. The reasons for this will become clear as you read this section but it all comes down to size, and the cumbersomeness of this monster cooler. On their website, Cooler Master have a very informative video showing the installation procedure and they too do it the way we are going to tell you to.

Before you do remove your motherboard there are a few things you should do first to prep the V10 for installation. Where this bad boy can accommodate such a wide range of systems (everything from AM2 to i7) it does not come set up from any one of these. To us this is a good thing as it saves time uninstalling parts which we do not need.


The very first thing you have to do is dig out the top brackets (or bracket in the case of AM2) and thread the four double threaded screws onto them. This is a lot easier said than done as the top threaded part (the part which screws unto the brackets) is a reverse direction Bastard Thread. On other words you tighten it down just like you would to removed a normal thread.


When that simple, yet odd, task is completed you then mount the brackets to the base of the V10. Each bracket uses two small screws to hold it in place and it should only take a second or two per screw to tighten the lil’ fellers into place. When this is accomplished and all four screws are in place and the mounting brackets are secure, you then peel the paper off four of the rubber bumper pads included and stick one per screw unto the V10. These bumpers slip over the shaft of each screw and stick to the bracket itself. It may take a little coaxing to get them properly positioned as the ends of the bracket are properly sized to help keep the pads in place via friction as well as the glue. When all this done you are now ready to remove your motherboard.

What we recommend (and the pamphlet vaguely describes) is to lay the V10 on its back and for all intents and purposes mount the motherboard to it. In other words, right before you remove the motherboard from the loving embrace of the case you will need to clean prep the CPU area and then apply a small amount of TIM to it. This certainly is a funky way of doing things but we found if you place a screwdriver underneath the downdraft end of the V10, it becomes a very stable platform to lay the motherboard on. When it is in place and all four screws are sticking up through their proper holes, you quickly place the appropriate bracket over them and spin the four little nuts into place. When they are all hand tightened you then dig out the small socket which Cooler Master includes and crank all the nuts down.


All you have to do now is plug in the V10 4 pin fan header along with the Molex for the TEC and reinstall the motherboard. Depending on how large a case you own, you may run into problems here as this sucker overhangs the edge of the motherboard by a good couple inches (there is a very good reason Cooler Master uses a ATCS 840 in their video). If you do have enough room you may also have trouble (depending on your motherboard layout and design) plugging in your 20/24 pin cable as in our case it is directly under the downdraft portion of the V10. It was not an issue of clearance but more one of blinding grouping it into position. In the end we had to swing our test bed around so we could get a good view of it.


All in all this is a quirky installation, one which really cries out for a case with a removable motherboard tray. A removable motherboard tray may not help you too much with plugging in your power cables (unless you have long cables and a bit of imagination) but it certainly will make reinstalling the motherboard easier. Overall, it will take you longer than normal to install the V10, but we think the effort may just be worth it as any worries we have about the V10 breaking motherboards were alleviated by simply working with it to install it! The backplate will certainly spread out the weight enough to keep the PCB from snapping and honestly, if you are careful when moving your case 1.2Kg is not that big a load for modern motherboards to handle. With that being said we probably would not use this to cool a LAN party going system!