GameMax Glacier 360 Review: Great Performance, Beautiful Design

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Usman Sheikh

As a Senior Hardware Reviewer at Tech4Gamers with over a decade of hands-on experience, I dive deep into benchmarking GPUs, CPU coolers, and motherboards, pushing hardware to its limits. Passionate about overclocking and fine-tuning performance.

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If you are not familiar with this brand, Game Max was founded in 2013 in China and later expanded internationally. It’s a budget gaming brand that produces gaming PC hardware, including PC cases and cooling components such as air and liquid coolers. This brand has consistently adapted to market trends and evolved. Some of its products closely resemble premium offers in terms of design and aesthetics, yet are available at a more affordable price point.

Today, we are looking at their brand-new product, an All-in-one LCD Cooler with a massive 3.95-inch Magnetic LCD and a hidden tube design. Now, this cooler features a very LCD compared to the other coolers we have reviewed, and it supports the HD resolution of 720×720, preloaded with exclusive themes and animations. We’ll deep dive and see how it performs!

Let’s start with the specifications

What Makes The Game Max Glacier 360 Different?

A few aspects that caught my attention include the large, high-resolution display, the side-mounted tube design, and the integrated 360mm fans at an affordable price, which is unique among all-in-one liquid coolers. Additionally, it provides wide-ranging socket support for Intel platforms, something often lacking in top-tier brands like Lian Li and Arctic. At least, GameMax has ensured continued support for older generation sockets.

What About The Availability & Pricing?

The Game Max Glacier is available in two different sizes 240mm and 360mm and colors black and white. The 240mm has the set MSRP of $149.99 and the 360mm is priced at $169.99 which is only $20 more.

At the time of writing the review, we did not find any listings on any website for this cooler. As it was recently launched, it might take some time to appear on shelves.

Packaging 

Game Max Glacier 360 comes in very neat packaging; the outer box gives a gift-like vibe. The cooler image is rendered on a box, and the Intel LGA1851, LGA1700, and AM4/AM5 badges are cleanly displayed.

At the back of the box, Game Max has highlighted the cooler’s features and specifications.

Inside, the cooler components are secured in a thick molded foam; the radiator, block, fans, and cables are wrapped in plastic. They have also provided the installation manual, and the accessories are secured in a white box.

Accessories

Now, looking at the accessories, I was expecting a large number of accessories given its extensive compatibility with Intel platforms. The two type-C cables are also provided if you want to install the LCD outside of the case. Each accessory bag is clearly labeled.

Close Look At The Radiator and Assembly

Now, let’s first look at the assembly you’ll get out of the box. The Fans are preinstalled on a cooler.

It’s not like the traditional fans you see on other coolers; these fans are installed in a single frame, which could enhance internal airflow. Four screws on a radiator secure the frame.

The tubes are secured to the radiator with a single clamp. Since the tube lengths are short, it is more suitable to mount the radiator at the top of the chassis. There is also a coolant fill port on the top right edge.

The radiator has dimensions of L395 x W139 x H27mm, features 13 water flow channels, and has an FPI (Fins per Inch) of 20, which is standard.

Pump Design / Housing

The pump block features a clean, matte white finish. The detachable LCD can be installed via a gold-plated pin connector, and four magnets on the block to secure the LCD in place.

The mounting arms are pre installed on a block that is universally compatible with AMD and Intel platforms.

Two cables exit the pump: a 4-pin PWM cable for the pump and a 9-pin USB cable for the LCD panel.

Display 

Game Max has really taken the LCD seriously this time, and it’s a large 3.95-inch display. Almost a decade ago, we had cell phones at this size. The LCD is not only large, but it also supports a resolution of 720×720, a brightness of 300 Nits, and a refresh rate of 60Hz.

However, there are several ways you could make use of this LCD. The display can be powered via the provided Type-C cable for use as a secondary DIY screen on your chassis, or it can be left on a block. However, Game Max should have provided an additional accessory to hide the pump block’s connectors if you intend to use the LCD as the secondary display.

Here are a few demo examples showcasing the display with its preinstalled themes.

Display Modes

1 of 9

Software Experience

To customize the LCD, you need to download their software from their website, available on the downloads page, which weighs 370MB. During testing, we encountered a few issues indicating that the software is still in an unfinished state. For instance, there were minor typographical errors on the system information page, and the CPU clock frequency was reported incorrectly. Additionally, changing themes requires manually stopping the current layout before applying a new one, which disrupts the user experience.

On a positive note, the software is lightweight, utilizing only around 200–250MB of memory, and includes 26 preloaded themes. Overall, it’s simple, functional, and not cumbersome to use despite the minor bugs.

To take things further, the user can personalize the themes and upload videos/GIFS/images; however, the display cannot be used in secondary display mode in the default setup. For that, you would have to connect the LCD externally with the provided Type-C adapter.

Fans

The fans are ARGB and mounted on a single frame, which is also daisy-chained. The single frame could enhance the airflow efficiency. In total there are 9 translucent fan blades.

The top edge of the frame prominently features the brand’s signature ‘Lion’ logo.

Two white cables extend from the frame: one is a 4-pin PWM cable, and the other is a 5V ARGB lighting cable.

Here is the specifications for the fans.

Installation (AMD)

We’re using the AMD platform, so our installation steps will only be provided for that.

Prepare the socket

First, you need to remove the motherboard stock retention brackets from your AM4/AM5 motherboards. Then, you must install the (AMD) provided bracket. Secure the bracket in place with its bracket screws. Do not over-tighten the screws.

Now, apply the thermal paste to the CPU. Position the block into the brackets. Now secure the block with the bracket nuts. Once it’s done, secure the LCD onto the pump. It’s magnetic; you will know once it’s secured.

The installation was straightforward, and we encountered no issues whatsoever. However, the tube routing does not achieve perfect vertical alignment, as it slightly extends to the right. I’d have loved the Lian-Li approach here, where the tubes are perfectly vertically straight.

Cabling

Now that you have installed the cooler, it’s time to install the cables. My rule of thumb is always to configure the fan cables first. Two cables extend from the fan frame: the 4-pin PWM cable, which you must connect to the CPU_Fan header, and the ARGB cable, which will be seated on the 3-pin 5V-ARGB connector.

Since you have already installed the block, two cables are extending from it. One of them is a 4-pin PWM cable to power the pump, which will go to the CPU_OPT or the PUMP on your motherboard. Usually, it’s located at the top edge of the motherboard. The other cable is the 9-pin USB cable for powering the LCD, which will be plugged into the USB header at the bottom of the motherboard. However, if you wish to install the LCD outside the case and use it as a secondary display, you can skip this step and use the provided Type-C cable instead.

In total, four cables need to be installed. We had no issues whatsoever.

Testing Methodology

CPU Configuration:

• We evaluate the cooler’s performance using three different benchmark methods. Noise-normalized testing is performed at 40dB(A) at the 105W TDP and 170W TDP (Stock) of the Ryzen 9 9950X. We then test the cooler’s performance at the maximum PWM speeds for both TDP configurations. After that, we unlock the power limits of the CPU to see how much cooler it can dissipate the heat in terms of watts at the maximum PWM Speeds.

Controlled Environment:

• We have eliminated the influence of ambient temperatures in our data, and all results are presented as deltas over the ambient conditions. The tests were done in a controlled environment with a room temperature of 25°C.

Preparing System:

• The Coolers are tested in realistic conditions. We don’t use the open bench system; instead, we have installed the cooler in our HYTE Y70 case, mounted at the top. We ensure the airflow is adequate in the case and that the case fans are running at the fixed PWM speeds.
• We are using ID-Cooling X45 thermal paste for all coolers.

Software:

• We have ensured that no other software is running on the computer that could influence the CPU load.
• We’ll be using the Cinebench R23 Loop for 20 minutes after the warm-up test has been completed. Each test has a 10-minute cool-down time.

Test Setup

Here is our test setup!

Test Results – Noise Normalized 40 dB(A)

Results at the fixed noise level at 40dB(A).

105W TDP

170W TDP

Test Results – Maximum Speed

Results at the Maximum PWM Speed.

105W TDP

170W TDP

Test Results – Maximum Heat Capacity

How many watts before it throttles?

Sustained Clock Speeds

Noise and RPM Readings

Let’s take a look at the Noise and RPM Readings. We conducted tests across four different PWM range levels.

25-50% PWM

75-100% PWM

Here is the structured table illustrating fan noise levels at various PWM percentages. The Floor Noise Level is 36dB(A).

Should You Buy It?

Buy It If

✅ You Want An Exceptional Cooling: GameMax Glacier 360 delivers top-tier performance, cooling AMD’s Flagship Ryzen 9 9950X across various heat loads.

✅ You Want a Huge Display: This cooler comes equipped with a large 3.95-inch IPS display that supports 720p HD resolution and a 60Hz refresh rate.

✅ You Want the Peace of Mind: The GameMax Glacier 360 comes backed by a comprehensive 5-year warranty.

Don’t Buy It If

❌ If Your Chassis Does not Support Top-Mounted Radiator Installation: GameMax Glacier 360 cannot be mounted on the side or bottom of the chassis.

Final Thoughts

We spent several days testing this cooler across various TDP (Thermal Design Power) and noise level ranges. Overall, the results were satisfactory. The cooler delivers reliable thermal performance and should not disappoint in terms of cooling efficiency. However, the accompanying software needs improvement; it remains buggy but is still functional.

GameMax has taken a different design approach this time, inspired by Lian Li’s tubeless concept, but refinement is still needed, particularly in tube alignment, which isn’t yet perfect. As not all chassis are the same, and not all motherboards and CPUs are mounted in the same location, it is essential to consider the specific details of the chassis and motherboard. Game Max should have provided more adjustments to manage the tube. We have a large case; due to its size, the tubes feel a bit stretched. If the tubes were a little longer, it wouldn’t be an issue.

On a positive note, the LCD can function as an external secondary display, and the inclusion of a Type-C cable adds a nice DIY-friendly touch. One limitation is that the fans are integrated into a single frame and cannot be replaced individually. Additionally, during our testing, the fans were noticeably loud under load.

I’m loving the display so far for its size, which adds a very nice touch to the aesthetics if customized properly. It’s a high-resolution display. If you’re sitting a little farther away, say 40-50cm, you could read the screen data or check what’s happening on the LCD. The big screen size is as big as an iPhone 5, which was launched in 2012.

Cooling Performance And Noise

From a performance perspective, the cooler performed very well and easily handled the Ryzen 9 9950X even at the unlocked power level. However, I still have a few complaints about the cooler’s noise. The pump was barely audible, but the fans were much louder in our tests than those of its competitors.

Build Quality 

The overall build quality of the cooler did not disappoint, but it could still be improved. LCD magnets are not strong enough to hold the screen in place. The screen can easily shift out of position with a slight touch. No, the LCD wouldn’t fall on its own, but still take the precaution if you’re moving your PC to the other room. However, the tubes could have been slightly longer for perfect alignment. Apart from these small issues, the cooler is durable and delivers good build quality.

MSRP & Value

This cooler is priced at an MSRP of $169.99, and in terms of value, we believe it’s an excellent choice. We’ve tested several other liquid coolers within this price range or slightly higher that delivered comparable performance and features. However, given its larger size, high-resolution display, and impressive 5-year warranty coverage, this cooler stands out as a strong option.

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Usman Sheikh

I’m Usman Sheikh, a Senior Hardware Reviewer at Tech4Gamers with over a decade of experience in the tech industry. My journey began in 2014 as a senior administrator for Pakistan’s largest gaming community forum. Passionate about PCs and hardware, I specialize in testing and reviewing components like graphics cards, CPU coolers, and motherboards, while also sharing insights on overclocking and system optimization.