Best CPU Air Coolers We've Reviewed (2023): Thermals, Mechanical Design, & Value
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Date: 2023-11-27
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Comments and reviews: 20
Damien
I know that's probably not true (???), but I can't help but think that Arctic Cool and ID Cooling are the same company, umbrellas, or affiliates. Not that anyone in North America would ever know. Things like this got me thinking, even more so ,since the Lian Li video where the fan industry is such a huge cash cow. From a business perspective, if you have multiple companies within the same industry, you will profit more in the long run; e.g. overhead costs, market demand, etc. You could even cannibalize your own companies for a better competition edge in the market. You could research and develop one, then incorporate the old tech into the other. From a model perspective, you could even control and eventually monopolize the fan market. And, before some says, But you can't monopolize the market, it's illegal! Yes, it is in North America, but it's not in China. In China that's considered good business. It already exists; i.e. the piping fabrication market has many companies in China, but there's only one real company a the top of the ambarella - The Chinese Government. And, It's value in this industry is in the trillions.
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I know that's probably not true (???), but I can't help but think that Arctic Cool and ID Cooling are the same company, umbrellas, or affiliates. Not that anyone in North America would ever know. Things like this got me thinking, even more so ,since the Lian Li video where the fan industry is such a huge cash cow. From a business perspective, if you have multiple companies within the same industry, you will profit more in the long run; e.g. overhead costs, market demand, etc. You could even cannibalize your own companies for a better competition edge in the market. You could research and develop one, then incorporate the old tech into the other. From a model perspective, you could even control and eventually monopolize the fan market. And, before some says, But you can't monopolize the market, it's illegal! Yes, it is in North America, but it's not in China. In China that's considered good business. It already exists; i.e. the piping fabrication market has many companies in China, but there's only one real company a the top of the ambarella - The Chinese Government. And, It's value in this industry is in the trillions.
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gamersnexus
I have installed a bequiet topblow cooler in my new i3 12100 based HTPC build in a Grandia case and it is more quiet than the noctua one i had in the previous system.
My sister in law's PC uses the same Grandia case with an i5 13600K (E-core bs disabled) and it is very quiet as well with a more beefy bequiet dual fan top blow cooler. The only problems we had with building this PC is the abyssmal thermal and noise performance of the terrible board partner Eagle OC RTX 3060Ti Harrier Jet plastics edition from Gigabyte. Even at the 179 which i paid on ebay as returns new in box item, this card was a ripoff.
It would be nice, if you would do a best and worst list on board partner graphics cards, because they are lacking in quality lately.
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I have installed a bequiet topblow cooler in my new i3 12100 based HTPC build in a Grandia case and it is more quiet than the noctua one i had in the previous system.
My sister in law's PC uses the same Grandia case with an i5 13600K (E-core bs disabled) and it is very quiet as well with a more beefy bequiet dual fan top blow cooler. The only problems we had with building this PC is the abyssmal thermal and noise performance of the terrible board partner Eagle OC RTX 3060Ti Harrier Jet plastics edition from Gigabyte. Even at the 179 which i paid on ebay as returns new in box item, this card was a ripoff.
It would be nice, if you would do a best and worst list on board partner graphics cards, because they are lacking in quality lately.
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Dyson
Thank you for a great review of CPU air coolers. I like that you have rankings in a number of categories. Cost, aesthetics, noise, fit, and effective heat transfer all play a part in picking the right CPU cooler. To that list I will add dust. Dust happens. The more cooling needed the more dust happens and the less effective the cooler is and the more air is needed and the fan noise gets louder and the more dust is drawn into the computer. GN can only test dustless CPU coolers, the noise limited test at different power levels ranked by temperatures are the best predictors of the rate of dust accumulation. This works best if the bios fan curves are set to the lowest speed until a CPU temperature of about 70C and then reaching 100% at about 90C.
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Thank you for a great review of CPU air coolers. I like that you have rankings in a number of categories. Cost, aesthetics, noise, fit, and effective heat transfer all play a part in picking the right CPU cooler. To that list I will add dust. Dust happens. The more cooling needed the more dust happens and the less effective the cooler is and the more air is needed and the fan noise gets louder and the more dust is drawn into the computer. GN can only test dustless CPU coolers, the noise limited test at different power levels ranked by temperatures are the best predictors of the rate of dust accumulation. This works best if the bios fan curves are set to the lowest speed until a CPU temperature of about 70C and then reaching 100% at about 90C.
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someShadow
If GN keeps being sponsored by Thermal Grizzly Kryosheet maybe you guys should actually do a review on this thermal pad as there is no info/review right now about its performance.
It would be very informative to compare Kryosheet to TG Carbonaut, IC Graphite Thermal Pad, the thermal pad that is rumored to be the same thing but sold by the actual manufacturer Smart High Tech under the name FrostSheet and some commonly used thermal pastes like TG Kryonaut, Noctua NT-H2 or Arctic MX-4.
Also, a comparation to Honeywell PTM7950 would be cool as that is supposed to be the ultimate TIM to use on CPU/GPU dies with performance similar to liquid metal but without most of the downsides and with very long lifetime without degradation.
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If GN keeps being sponsored by Thermal Grizzly Kryosheet maybe you guys should actually do a review on this thermal pad as there is no info/review right now about its performance.
It would be very informative to compare Kryosheet to TG Carbonaut, IC Graphite Thermal Pad, the thermal pad that is rumored to be the same thing but sold by the actual manufacturer Smart High Tech under the name FrostSheet and some commonly used thermal pastes like TG Kryonaut, Noctua NT-H2 or Arctic MX-4.
Also, a comparation to Honeywell PTM7950 would be cool as that is supposed to be the ultimate TIM to use on CPU/GPU dies with performance similar to liquid metal but without most of the downsides and with very long lifetime without degradation.
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TheKayack1
you should make a video about double fan air coolers and RAM clearance, it's one of the few things NOBODY seem to talk about yet it is really important for DDR5 RAM as most people don't buy/can't afford Low Profile RAM, as far as i know the only modern cooler that was supposed to work with tall RAM was the Scythe Fuma 3 this year (53mm of clearance i believe), in the end i couldn't find it for a reasonable price in my country (European) so i had to buy Low Profile G.Skill RipJaws S5 RAM to fit with a Thermalright Phantom Spirit 120SE.
yes i know you can raise the fans for tall RAM but it will influence temps anyway.
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you should make a video about double fan air coolers and RAM clearance, it's one of the few things NOBODY seem to talk about yet it is really important for DDR5 RAM as most people don't buy/can't afford Low Profile RAM, as far as i know the only modern cooler that was supposed to work with tall RAM was the Scythe Fuma 3 this year (53mm of clearance i believe), in the end i couldn't find it for a reasonable price in my country (European) so i had to buy Low Profile G.Skill RipJaws S5 RAM to fit with a Thermalright Phantom Spirit 120SE.
yes i know you can raise the fans for tall RAM but it will influence temps anyway.
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Raiden
Been racking my brain between cpu coolers for my recently purchased Ryzen 7 5800x (Own a Noctua D9L (x2 fans - has been keeping my 7700k 4.8Ghz very cool, almost can't tell it's overclocked temp wise) & a Hyper 212 Evo (x2 fans) but was also debating buying either a Noctua D15 or Dark Rock Pro 4 - but also concerned about the clearence in my case [Cooler Master Haf XB Evo with a 200mm fan on the top])
My intentions are definitely 3D animation/rendering in Blender. Maybe a small OC, unsure on that atm
However the results on that Thermalright Peerless Assassin looks amazing for the price vs the D15 and Dark Rock Pro 4
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Been racking my brain between cpu coolers for my recently purchased Ryzen 7 5800x (Own a Noctua D9L (x2 fans - has been keeping my 7700k 4.8Ghz very cool, almost can't tell it's overclocked temp wise) & a Hyper 212 Evo (x2 fans) but was also debating buying either a Noctua D15 or Dark Rock Pro 4 - but also concerned about the clearence in my case [Cooler Master Haf XB Evo with a 200mm fan on the top])
My intentions are definitely 3D animation/rendering in Blender. Maybe a small OC, unsure on that atm
However the results on that Thermalright Peerless Assassin looks amazing for the price vs the D15 and Dark Rock Pro 4
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em.2
GN CPU cooler videos are always a must watch for me - cooling and airflow are the parts of the PC that got me interested in building.
I'm curious as to how much stock you guys put into the more intangible parts of the cooler purchase, like warranty/RMA standards.
For example, if you tell me that the Deepcool Assassin IV has comparable cooling-per-dollar to the Noctua NH-D15, Noctua's well-documented 6-year warranty is enough to be a tie-breaker.
Do those less-tangible elements factor in to your product reviews at any stage, or do you mainly focus on the hardware in a vacuum?
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GN CPU cooler videos are always a must watch for me - cooling and airflow are the parts of the PC that got me interested in building.
I'm curious as to how much stock you guys put into the more intangible parts of the cooler purchase, like warranty/RMA standards.
For example, if you tell me that the Deepcool Assassin IV has comparable cooling-per-dollar to the Noctua NH-D15, Noctua's well-documented 6-year warranty is enough to be a tie-breaker.
Do those less-tangible elements factor in to your product reviews at any stage, or do you mainly focus on the hardware in a vacuum?
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Pika
Please do a comparison of the newish high performance long lasting phase-change thermal pads (Honeywell PTM7950 & Thermal Grizzly KryoSheet) vs high end thermal pastes (Thermal Grizzly Kryonaut, ProlimaTech PK-3 Nano Aluminum, etc). We all know that Liquid Metal (such as Thermal Grizzly Conductonaut) is the best performance whys, but the very close thermal performance matched with the ease of use & longevity out where it gets interesting.
Even though testing has already been done by a few, it would be good to see it done to your high level of standards.
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Please do a comparison of the newish high performance long lasting phase-change thermal pads (Honeywell PTM7950 & Thermal Grizzly KryoSheet) vs high end thermal pastes (Thermal Grizzly Kryonaut, ProlimaTech PK-3 Nano Aluminum, etc). We all know that Liquid Metal (such as Thermal Grizzly Conductonaut) is the best performance whys, but the very close thermal performance matched with the ease of use & longevity out where it gets interesting.
Even though testing has already been done by a few, it would be good to see it done to your high level of standards.
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MyTech
Are these results for flat, horizontal, or vertical mounting? It can have an effect on the liquid in the heat pipes.(I imagine more effect on a super cheap design that only considered one orientation.
I would also like to know how fans rank in heat removed per unit of fan[and rgb] wattage input. I have a 24 industrial shop fan that can move a ton of heat but on high it draws around 400watts of its own. (Around 2500cuft/minute with significant pressure differential, though not on par with radial blower pressures.)
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Are these results for flat, horizontal, or vertical mounting? It can have an effect on the liquid in the heat pipes.(I imagine more effect on a super cheap design that only considered one orientation.
I would also like to know how fans rank in heat removed per unit of fan[and rgb] wattage input. I have a 24 industrial shop fan that can move a ton of heat but on high it draws around 400watts of its own. (Around 2500cuft/minute with significant pressure differential, though not on par with radial blower pressures.)
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Anders
As someone who doesn't care THAT much about looks, but found the Noctua brown to be actively off-putting I went with their Chromax Black variant, which at the time was not priced as a value option to say the least. Had it been today the Peerless Assassin would have gotten the purchase without as much as a blink. Their new 60 Thermalright Phantom Spirit 120 looks like a direct assault on the (currently) 130 Chromax Black for those who are placing a bit more emphasis on looks.
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As someone who doesn't care THAT much about looks, but found the Noctua brown to be actively off-putting I went with their Chromax Black variant, which at the time was not priced as a value option to say the least. Had it been today the Peerless Assassin would have gotten the purchase without as much as a blink. Their new 60 Thermalright Phantom Spirit 120 looks like a direct assault on the (currently) 130 Chromax Black for those who are placing a bit more emphasis on looks.
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Melnikov
I dont understand why you are checking it with 4 year old processors. The newer ones have much higher wattage requirements.
And its REALLY confusing that each test is with different CPU's and its making a mess. looks like you're taking data from old testing, why not take one high end CPU and check how everybody is cooling him?
And it would be great to see Noctua U12/14 with TWO fan configuration, this is really gonna blow your mind! That's a really good cooler.
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I dont understand why you are checking it with 4 year old processors. The newer ones have much higher wattage requirements.
And its REALLY confusing that each test is with different CPU's and its making a mess. looks like you're taking data from old testing, why not take one high end CPU and check how everybody is cooling him?
And it would be great to see Noctua U12/14 with TWO fan configuration, this is really gonna blow your mind! That's a really good cooler.
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kingofnfsfan
Thermalright is my favorite budget cooler company right now. In my country the ARGB coolers are sometimes even cheaper than normal coolers. Got myself a Phantom Spirit 120 and it is the best cooler i've ever had. Super quiet and the installation is very easy.
That said i also have their AXP90-X53 and you should stay away from their slim coolers. The mounting solution is crap and it bent my mainboard so hard that my pc wouldnt boot anymore.
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Thermalright is my favorite budget cooler company right now. In my country the ARGB coolers are sometimes even cheaper than normal coolers. Got myself a Phantom Spirit 120 and it is the best cooler i've ever had. Super quiet and the installation is very easy.
That said i also have their AXP90-X53 and you should stay away from their slim coolers. The mounting solution is crap and it bent my mainboard so hard that my pc wouldnt boot anymore.
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Tech
I have utilized many of these coolers in my builds and the Thermalright peerless Assassin and Frost Spirit rival the Noctua NH-D15 cooler which I have also used. in my experience, these are the best air coolers. The Frost Spirit is probably a little better then the Peerless Assassin. I presently have the Noctua NH-D15 Chromemax Black cooling a Ryzen 9-5950X and it has no issues whatsoever maxing out at 82C at 100% CPU load.
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I have utilized many of these coolers in my builds and the Thermalright peerless Assassin and Frost Spirit rival the Noctua NH-D15 cooler which I have also used. in my experience, these are the best air coolers. The Frost Spirit is probably a little better then the Peerless Assassin. I presently have the Noctua NH-D15 Chromemax Black cooling a Ryzen 9-5950X and it has no issues whatsoever maxing out at 82C at 100% CPU load.
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Stanis aw
The best cooler is Noctua's cooler. Their coolers have proven quality to last and they support with latest mounting kits even their oldest, year 2005 coolers. Other brands mostly support only ones they just sell. They create compatibile kits not to give you option to use your cooler for longer, but to be able to sell their existing lineup. Your opportunity to buy this kit is only side effect.
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The best cooler is Noctua's cooler. Their coolers have proven quality to last and they support with latest mounting kits even their oldest, year 2005 coolers. Other brands mostly support only ones they just sell. They create compatibile kits not to give you option to use your cooler for longer, but to be able to sell their existing lineup. Your opportunity to buy this kit is only side effect.
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itech
Seeing the Noctua passive cooler reminded me something, have you guys considered using the schlieren imaging on what how static vs airflow type fans flow through a radiator, for AIO and/or custom cooling, just as a side project or for fun? Although I think it would be too time consuming to set it up, especially with all the work going on behind the scenes.
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Seeing the Noctua passive cooler reminded me something, have you guys considered using the schlieren imaging on what how static vs airflow type fans flow through a radiator, for AIO and/or custom cooling, just as a side project or for fun? Although I think it would be too time consuming to set it up, especially with all the work going on behind the scenes.
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Jamal
Would love to see these best coolers tested on the new platforms. It would let us know which of these would be feasible to carry forward to a new system.
That and more tests of low profile coolers. with so many sandwich stype ITX cases out there, as well as older cases that don't support tower coolers, it's an area that doesn't get enough coverage.
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Would love to see these best coolers tested on the new platforms. It would let us know which of these would be feasible to carry forward to a new system.
That and more tests of low profile coolers. with so many sandwich stype ITX cases out there, as well as older cases that don't support tower coolers, it's an area that doesn't get enough coverage.
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Gabi
Yeah, that Jonsbo stuff is often not bad at all, just, not useable for everything.
Their cases are sometimes nice too, some other cooling stuff like M.2, not the best, cheap, but used in the right cases a lot of bang for your buck, you'll just mostly be on the cheaper stuff. That said, you might be getting a lot for your money.
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Yeah, that Jonsbo stuff is often not bad at all, just, not useable for everything.
Their cases are sometimes nice too, some other cooling stuff like M.2, not the best, cheap, but used in the right cases a lot of bang for your buck, you'll just mostly be on the cheaper stuff. That said, you might be getting a lot for your money.
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Eli
Based on your review of the Thermalright PA120 I picked up the black version on sale for the same price as the gray one. It was about a 10 degree drop compared with my hyper 612 v2 while running at a higher turbo. You guys are the best tech journalists in the world in my opinion and the work you do is invaluable to the community
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Based on your review of the Thermalright PA120 I picked up the black version on sale for the same price as the gray one. It was about a 10 degree drop compared with my hyper 612 v2 while running at a higher turbo. You guys are the best tech journalists in the world in my opinion and the work you do is invaluable to the community
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Vens
Not a fan of Deepcool brick. I prefer the rough, industrial air cooler look with a purpose over black box, that can be anything. Also VRM airflow may be not as good with this one.
Not a bad fan and considering there aren't many new ones this year, probably it is justified to be top. I just wouldn't hype about it.
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Not a fan of Deepcool brick. I prefer the rough, industrial air cooler look with a purpose over black box, that can be anything. Also VRM airflow may be not as good with this one.
Not a bad fan and considering there aren't many new ones this year, probably it is justified to be top. I just wouldn't hype about it.
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Mike
Just did a White Case build with a Lian Li Lancool mesh, used a DeepCool AK620 with ARBG on top in White. Fits in the case, initial running CPU at 37C The 3 Lian Li fans on front, the 2 fans on the DeepCool are very quiet. Just finished Saturday night, have a GPU bracket coming to Vertical mount.
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Just did a White Case build with a Lian Li Lancool mesh, used a DeepCool AK620 with ARBG on top in White. Fits in the case, initial running CPU at 37C The 3 Lian Li fans on front, the 2 fans on the DeepCool are very quiet. Just finished Saturday night, have a GPU bracket coming to Vertical mount.
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