Cooler Master MasterLiquid MLR vs be quiet! Shadow Rock 3

The Cooler Master MasterLiquid ML240R RGB is a great CPU Cooler for its $114 asking price.

The be quiet! Shadow Rock 3, however, while a reasonable product for $49, doesn't stack up against its competitors quite as well. If you're considering CPU Coolers in the $40 range, you might want to check out some better options.

The Cooler Master MasterLiquid ML240R RGB managed to earn a spot in roundups from two sources that are known for their trustworthy review methodology - Expert Reviews and Tom's Hardware - but fell short of making it to the top of their lists.

As for the be quiet! Shadow Rock 3 - it impressed reviewers at Windows Central, a trustworthy source that conducts solid hands-on testing. It did great in its "Best CPU Coolers for AMD Ryzen 7 3800X in 2020" roundup - in fact, it earned its "Best Value" title, which, on its own, indicates a certain level of quality.

We conducted an analysis of all of the review data that we could find on these two products. First, we focused on sources that tested and rated both of them, like Tom's Hardware, and learned that they all showed a preference for the be quiet! Shadow Rock 3.

Then we took a look at the highest review scores that these two CPU Coolers received. We found that the Cooler Master MasterLiquid ML240R RGB managed to earn a rating of 10 from Expert Reviews, whereas the be quiet! Shadow Rock 3 got its highest, 9, score from reviewers at Tom's Hardware.