Introduction and Technical Specifications

We take a look at a few CPU coolers from be quiet! to see how well they perform against the competition…

Introduction

be quiet! is a relative new comer to the US computer component market with an award-winning reputation for high quality power supplies and components in their native Germany. Recently, they have branched out into the highly competive cooling space with their Dark Rock and Shadow Rock cooler lines. The Dark Rock Pro 3 is the newest member of their Dark Rock cooler line, featuring a massive dual tower radiator and dual fan design. The Shadow Rock Slim is a recent addition to their Shadow Rock line, featuring a smaller footprint single radiator design to maximize motherboard compatibility with the cooler. The Dark Rock Pro 3 comes with a premium MSRP of $89.99, while the Shadown Rock Slim is available at an MSRP of $49.99.

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As a flagship solution, the Dark Rock Pro 3 cooler has most of the nice to haves to find on top-end coolers from other manufactures – copper base plate and heat pipes, nickel plating on all copper surfaces, thick dual radiator construction, dual fans, and a massive amount of heat pipes to wick the heat away from the CPU surface as fast as possible. be quiet! developed the cooler using dual fans, a 120mm front fan and a 135mm inner fan. Heat is transfered from the copper base plate to the dual aluminum radiators by a dense array of seven copper heat pipes. All surfaces are nickel coated for corrosion protection and scratch resistance with the nickel plating black colored to give the cooler a sleek and menacing appearance.

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The Shadow Rock Slim CPU cooler consists of a thick radiator cooled by a single 135mm fan. The cooler's radiator is aluminum, fed via four copper heat pipes threaded through the unit's copper base. While the heat pipes are bare copper, the base plate if nickel plated for corrosion and scratch resistance.

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Both coolers contain be quiet's standard cooler mounting kit, compatible with both Intel and AMD systems. Also included are a wrench to install the mounting kit to the motherboard and thermal paste for the CPU surface.

Technical Specifications (taken from the be quiet! website)

Cooler Specifications
  Dark Rock Pro 3 Shadow Rock Slim
Overall dimensions without mounting material (L x W x H), (mm) 150 x 137 x 163 74 x 137 x 161
Total weight (kg) 1.197 0.73
TDP (W) 250 160
Socket compatibility Intel: LGA 775 / 1150 / 1155 / 1156 / 1366 / 2011
AMD: 754 / 939 / 940 / AM2(+) / AM3 (+) / FM1 / FM2 (+)
Fan model, number 1 x SilentWings PWM 120mm
1 x SilentWings PWM 135mm
1 x SilentWings PWM 135mm
Overall noise level (dB(A)) @ 50/75/100% (rpm) 13.2 / 19.5 / 26.1 11.5 / 18.7 / 23.7
Warranty (Years) 3
Heatsink specifications
  Dark Rock Pro 3 Shadow Rock Slim
Dimensions (L x W x D), (mm) 123 x 133 x 163 52 x 130 x 161
Number of fins 90 52
Fin material Aluminum
Base material Copper
CPU contact surface CNC machined
Heatpipe number, Diameter (mm) 7, 6 4, 6
Surface treatment Aluminum / Dark nickel-plated None
General fan specifications
  Dark Rock Pro 3 Shadow Rock Slim
Fan dimensions (mm) 135 x 135 x 22
120 x 120 x 25
135 x 135 x 22
Speed @ 100% PWM (rpm) 1400
1700
1400
Air flow @ 12V (cfm, m3/h) 67.8, 113.8
57.2, 93.3
67.8, 113.8
Air pressure @ 12V (mm H2O) 2.1 / 1.23
Bearing type Fluid Dynamic Bearing Rifle
Rated voltage (V) 12
Input current (A) 0.11
0.20
0.11
Input power (W) 1.56
2.40
1.32
Connector 4-pin PWM
Cable length (mm) 200mm (135mm)
250mm (120mm)
220mm
Lifespan (h / 25°C) 300,000 80,000

 

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