It just keep proving how amazingly well designed is the Noctua D15… this cooler has been on the market since 2014 and still is one of the one to beat… incredible…
@@Kidkosmosthat’s not the point. The point is you could still be using it even from 2014 and it’s still at the top. Noctua engineers stuff to be good for like the next 20 plus years, it’s easily worth the investment.
Performance wise yes, build quality no, I used two PA120's prior to moving to a D15, which I've since returned, the fin stacks were so easy to bend or scratch compared to the PA120, also the D15 will scratch the top of cards with thicker back plates, as its has with my 7900xtx, something they've apparently fixed with the new update, however if I had a choice again I'd go with PA120 or Ak620, is a shame really as i love the quality of noctua fans which I currently use.
@@b1gd312 Same experience, hate the fins. But it also still applies my point, PA120 is a much modern design than the D15. Also if i am on the market for a new cooler, definitely PA120 is the one to go.
I think its more about performance being at a peak for that type of setup. Its pull / pull and only so much can be done in that situation. Hence why adding a proper INTAKE fan does so much....more than I expected actually.
Disagree. You wouldn't catch me putting that ugly hunk of grey in my pc even if it performs well. If you wanna flame the deep cool product go after the ugly blue logo that you can't change but at least it's from a competent company. Friends don't let friends by thermalright
for some reason my peerless assassin sucked when i used it i was idling at 45 and i instantly hit 100 on cinebench and benchmarking tomb raider i was hitting 85 (other games high 70's) ive comer to realize it was probably something to do with the lga socket and i probably (although i doubt it) didn't screw it down tight enough either way im using the deepcool lt720 now💀
I could check in your results that the Peerless assassin still is the best bang for your buck... But there is a new revision that has not been reviewed and is under the radar, the thermalright phantom spirit se... Either the rgb or black versions, it's less taller, has two more heat pipes, arguably more fins stacked and the fans are a revised version of the ones in the PA 120 se... Really looking forward to put this phantom spirit against the big names on the top!
Idc what costs more or less. That has nothing to do with the point here. This is THE best performing air cooler available and has 100% ram clearance. wtf are u even talking about. Oh let me guess, u own a $35 PA cpu cooler. Grow up u clown.
The buzzing is because they're slapping the fans butt up against the fins while running them in pull. There's a reason why Noctua provides THICKER rubber pads for the pull side of the heatsink.
It's wild how often I watch these reviews and come away thinking I should just get a Peerless Assassin. The work is very appreciated regardless how often that is my conclusion 👍
I was wodnering if this review will leave me wanting a nicer cooler, but I'm pretty happy with my Peerless Assassin, especially for less than half the price of this
I compared a Thermalright Phantom Spirit vs Enermax Liqmax III 360 AIO. Ther TA PS 120 beats the AIO by around 6-10 degrees in cinebench and AIDA64 tests
It might seem that the performance is a little bit disappointing, but there is one big thing to consider. RAM clearance. With the total height of 164mm it allows to install ANY RAM on the market regardless of its height and with perfect visibility for RGB lighting. For example, Noctua NH-D15 has only 32mm for RAM sticks without raising the fan and the height of the entire cooler. I think that many people will be interested in Assassin IV because of this (and its aesthetics).
@@gabrielt4305 it's really not a BIG reason. If you are upgrading your cpu cooler so you can use higher profile ram...Now, if you are doing a new build, it makes more sense to consider ram compatibility.
The last time someone added this many mechanisms to an air cooler it was Corsair’s A500, and we know how that turned out. Good to see that Deepcool made something super unique
Phantom Spirit 120 SE is my choice and I highly recommend it to everyone. It's basically the successor of Thermalright Peerless Assassin with seven heatpipes and better performance at an incredible price, but it's hard to find reviews for it.
@@HardwareCanucksare you planning to make review of Thermalright Frost Tower 120. I never seen it before, no reviews on youtube, seems like its released recently.
Nice review!, and yes I can heard the buzzing on the second unit too. The AK620 and Assasin III are still, for me, the best coolers performance/money. Far as I know you can also setup the AK620 as a pull-pull configuration (I didn't test it yet) so RAM issues shouldn't be a problem. You are not going to get the same performance, but still cheaper and a well built cooler. Cheers!
I'm running my AK620, on a 5600x, with the front fan on the back without any thermal issues. Fan speed set to a silent 35% and ram clearance is not an issue.
Love the looks, but just can't see how they're feeling justified bringing a worse product to the table and charging more for it...do manufacturers really think consumers are that stupid?
It's "worse" for performance, but it looks more refined and it's something a little unique. And it's not "bad", just "measurably worse than the best". It has a spot. I'm not buying it, but it has a spot in the market. Naming it the Assassin IV feels wrong, I will admit, since it's worse than the III, but that's marketing, not the actual physical product. If you see a review and still want it, that's your choice to make... Meanwhile the Assassin III is very hard to find for under $100, so yeah it's not worse in *every* way... At least this costs under $100.
Just picked up the AK620 white for $55 for prime day. Paired with my 7800X3D it will have PLENTY of cooling! Love this new Assassin IV, but I think the AK620 at $50-55 on sale will also fit a majority of people here!
Thanks for the in-depth reviews. I am undervolting and overclocking my 12700K, but running into problems with my old cooler. (It's hitting 80C, and crashing Cinebench if I don't cap at 80C. Otherwise stable.) I'm imagining how much further I can go with a proper cooler for the 12700K. These things (CPU tuning) are a bit finnicky, so having such fine detailed data (such as across dB ranges and workload wattages, and the special gaming scenario test, showing frequency/FPS response) are very very informative for what I'm trying to do with my CPU. Thank you for that! Most outlets only show one bar graph, your line plots across dB ranges are very *chef's kiss* perfect. (I know that takes time, but it is much appreciated!) I'm as surprised as you that this thing doesn't beat the Assassin III for raw performance, but in hindsight, it's been really hard to believe anyone would get much better than the current gen, whether it be the Assassin III, the NH-D-15 or the Thermalright Peerless Assassin / Frost Spirit. I guess it was too good a notion to be true. For now. (I believe Noctua when they say their new D-15 will be 1or more degrees cooler. Lots of hard work for modest gains is believable, and Noctua's word is usually pretty good, in terms of avoiding making false claims to begin with.) I would second what I saw someone else say, I'm curious how the *Assassin Spirit* stacks up. Some are saying it's 2-4C cooler all while being quieter. Maybe they slightly optimized the contact plate or the heatpipe placement, IDK. One guy didn't test it properly (used only a Ryzen 3600) but found basically no difference (makes sense, that CPU can be cooled by practically anything...) Basically everyone else has said it's a few degrees cooler while quieter. No big name reviewers yet, though! Which seems like a shame. They also revived the actual Assassin Spirit single tower 120 that Gamers Nexus tested, but as a V2 model, and a bunch of 120 single-tower models, but I would assume those are pretty much the same performance as the Assassin X 120 family??? I never know until someone reviews one, Thermalright have too many models!!!!
All these new air coolers scare me to thinking that buying the Thermalright Phantom Spirit for $38 a month ago was a bad decision. But seeing the price tags and performance benchmarks for these new coolers immediately provide me relief 🤣
I actually dig it. It was meant for aesthetics with performance. And not everyone will have a 13900K cpu. This would be a good choice for a stealth build
Thanks for this comprehensive review. I'll stick the Thermalright Peerless Assassin SE as its a great budget option for the cooling performance it does
For the most value for money choices, you can't go wrong with any Thermalright's product. I'm using Assassin King 120 with chrome plated cooling surface replacing the similarly overpriced though not as expensive Cooler Master Hyper 212 for my rig. Now I'm adamantly promoting Thermalright's product to my friends and colleagues ever since as a cheaper and better quality alternative compared to more expensive AIO water cooling. Because air cooling don't dissipate or having pump issues and need to be replace.
Few questions come to mind: Does it run better with the additional fan if you take the 14 mm out of there? Is there space in that slot for a bigger fan? Does it actually run better if you take the side crating panel out? This whole design, while it looks neat and all, seems like it's a victim of style over substance. Judging from afar with a amateurs eye, it's like it is creating inefficient turbulence that hotboxes the airflow and temperature in the square vents where the Assassin 3 type design has more room to dump excess heat to the case and it's front fan doesn't eat air as a backdraft that has gone through it already. Would be really fun to see with a fine smoke test where it actually flows.
@@HardwareCanucks Apparently its coldplate is also more optimized for Ryzen 7000. It's probably not going to make any major difference but might be worth a look.
The exact video I've been waiting for! Unreal aesthetics & high-end performance, but still a bit underwhelming. For me, the performance difference between this and the top-end coolers is negligible, but I LOVE the aesthetics! Kudos for having the patience to test a retail unit, rather than pushing to be the first review!
The assassin 3 and DH-15 can radiate any heat that wasn't taken by the air flow into the case. With all the shrouding on the assassin 4, it can't do that. But what it does show is that the more air you push through it, the better it improves to make up for that loss of heat dissipation. It's basically operating off ramjet concepts, which are very loud, and need lots of air pumprd in to perform.
Awesome review and very honest and informative. Thanks! I guess I'll be hanging on to my D15 for a while longer. Suggestion for a future video: Test and compare all the Thermalright air coolers against each other!
I think the most unfortunate part about this cooler is it doesn't have teal colored fans like the thumbnail lol. I think I speak for myself and Dave2D that a white/teal version would look killer
only 2 weeks ago i made the switch from a lian-li gallahad 360 aoi to the deepcool AK620. i wish i had never drunk the liquid cooling coolaid. this thing is so silent and performs much better at a 3rd of the price. can only imagine the new assasin is better. never AOI/liquid again - edit: great review btw!
The price is just way too much for the cooling performance. Its £95 here in UK. Thermalright Phantom Spirit is around half the cost and performs just as well
I'd like to see someone benchmark like 5 of the same model of cooler, and then plot them out. It's just so hard to figure out what is and isn't noise in the data when you're talking about differences of a few degrees.
IMO (I could be wrong), blocking the outside is bad for thermals. Now cool air gets sucked in but can't be blown out the SIDES of the heat fin stacks. So the air is HOTTER going into the 2nd fan than it otherwise would be.
Love Deepcool new look and better performing in testing. Do enjoy fans > aio but currently using a 360mm EK on a 5950x. Then looking for a smaller build
@hardware canucks: I recently got AK620 Digital Air Cooler for my new intel 13th gen build. The issue im facing is the digital display shows incorrect temperature and utilization readings when compared to Hardware Monitor readings. Would be great if the team review AK620 Digital cooler and also see if this is a common issue with it. Build Details: core i5 13500, B760M MSI MAG Mortar WiFi DDR5, 32GB 5600 Corsair Vengeance, 3060ti Founders Edition, 750W PSU, CH370 White case)
I wish I have seen this before... I just bought the Assasin IV yesterday and now I wish I could refound it and buy the Assasin 3 or the Frost Spirit 140 which is a way cheaper than this and better performing 😮💨 None of the reviews of Assasin 4 I saw before told me this, new suscriber just because I don't wanna make these errors again
I'd keep at at 1100 max RPM... it gets way too loud after that... also 1100 is more than enough for cooling. my BeQuiet air cooler never goes above 800. I just love a silent rig
So Deepcool Assassin III is the top dog in this test and also most performance/price ratio. Most for the buck. Costs about 110-120 euro here Thermalright Peerless Assassin 120 SE is a contender too. Costs only about 60 euro here. Im in the time for heatsink upgrade. I also like the Arctic Liquid Freezer II 360 AIO but it comes with some maintenance and such. Noctua NH-D15 is really great too costs about the same as Deepcool Assassin III here. Im on a old CPU but i thought that the heatsink/cooler could be used in the future system/platform upgrade.
FINALLY, a big dog review with numbers. I have been holding off on purchasing this cooler for the past month. I'd like to know what the VRM clearance is now.
Kinda' a bummer. Looks great, doesn't cover the RAM, but just doesn't hold up to coolers already on the market. I'll be holding off to see how the new Noctua D15 sterox performs.
That vibration is actually quite common on their fans, I would say 50% of their fans have strange oscillation noise. That's the one reason I don't buy DeepCool junk regardless of reviews.
It would be interesting to know how it compares to the DH-15S not just the DH-15. They seem to me more of a like for like, since they're both supposed to have memory spacing in mind.
Take an airflow case. Three case fans in front, noctua nh-d15 with one additional fan at the back, one case fan at the back... 10°C cooling in one second.
My experience with their FK120 fans is that they were the loudest fans in my case of the 3 brands i tried and one of the 3 had a noisy rattle. They're never getting money from me again
Pull configurations are tricky, the distance of the fan to the finstack is very important, too close to the fins and vibrations of them start generating high pitched noises
Would we see the cooler in that teal-like color like the thumbnail you guys got? That would be the only reason I would get it vs one of their other coolers.
Why would you not just buy the frost spirit or peerless assassin? You can have the cheapest and best, or the best quiet. Why would you pay EXTRA for anything other than the BEST?!
That's a relatively easy answer. Thermalright might be cheap and available in SOME regions but in others where they don't have distriobution, they're hideously expensive due to third party markups or not available at all. For example here in Canada the Peerless Assassin is routinely out of stock while at other times its $100+ but if you luck out its available for a fair price. So its a game of Russian Roulette. The Frost Spirit V3 on the other hand....forget about it. :(
@@HardwareCanucks Thank you! This was genuinely informative and I appreciate it! I did luck out then, getting the frost spirit v3 for $109 Aussie dollars! (approx $75 USD)
The idea of fans in pull configuration tends to be louder seems to be true at least partially. I tried having CPU & GPU fans in pull configuration(that's right you heard it. GPU fans in pull config. I use 90mm case fans on my gpu using zip ties to mount.), both of them results in louder operation. Noctua's cooler's have a thick silicone vibration damper on the pull fan I think for this reason. Having some distance between the pull fan and the heat sink itself seems to alleviate the problem.
well, who would have predicted that pull config on air cooler wouldn't perform so good... oh wait, everyone, except for deepcool engineers obviously :D Still like the looks and the compatibility, so you can choose if you prefer that over the pure performance.
Why do you need to breath the hot GPU air??? do a reverse setup that draws clean air from the rear exhaust (now intake). Can you test in such configurations? Either with a rear fan, a duct that bridges the gap, or, nothing at all.
Why didn't you point out the 2nd fan the 120mm has different cfm than the 140mm fan? 61 for the 140 and 48 cfm for the 120. That would cause issues, would it not?
Will there ever be a review where you test the heatsinks themselves? That's what I'm always wondering, what the best cooler would be if you'd just strap on whatever Noctua fan comes closest to the stock fan in terms of size and shape. Or are the heatsinks tuned to always work best with the respective stock fan? Who knows maybe the Assassin III is the best cooler of all time with that testing methodology lol
I was wondering if the tests with the Noctua NH-D15 results were/are achieved with the new AMD offset mounting clip which offers 1-3 less C if you're running high end CPUS (usually around 3 though). Well that is, if you're using an AMD CPU. Can you please clarify? :D *edit* i'm a moron, just realised its an i9 13900k, but its an interesting development and for sure benchmarks should take that into account for future AMD setups
I have the AK620 from DeepCool I head the buzzing issue on one fan so hard I head to reach out to the support. After all I got some FK120 fans as a replacement but the buzzing is just silent. I needed to ajust my fancurve because over 1500rpm the buzzing (vibrations) continues. I still love my DeepCool AK620 but it needed some ajustment i dont recommend the casual user.
So the first "faulty" one had 2 db higher sound per 100 rpm over 1000 rpm, that seems quite within reasonable error for electronic devices? 1-2 db difference must be expected, no?
It just keep proving how amazingly well designed is the Noctua D15… this cooler has been on the market since 2014 and still is one of the one to beat… incredible…
There are coolers that perform almost as good for WAY less.
@@Kidkosmos yes i know, i am just saying specially considering the ages that the noctua d15 has.
@@Kidkosmosthat’s not the point. The point is you could still be using it even from 2014 and it’s still at the top.
Noctua engineers stuff to be good for like the next 20 plus years, it’s easily worth the investment.
Performance wise yes, build quality no, I used two PA120's prior to moving to a D15, which I've since returned, the fin stacks were so easy to bend or scratch compared to the PA120, also the D15 will scratch the top of cards with thicker back plates, as its has with my 7900xtx, something they've apparently fixed with the new update, however if I had a choice again I'd go with PA120 or Ak620, is a shame really as i love the quality of noctua fans which I currently use.
@@b1gd312 Same experience, hate the fins. But it also still applies my point, PA120 is a much modern design than the D15.
Also if i am on the market for a new cooler, definitely PA120 is the one to go.
Feels like they spent more time engineering for looks rather than extra performance.
I think its more about performance being at a peak for that type of setup. Its pull / pull and only so much can be done in that situation. Hence why adding a proper INTAKE fan does so much....more than I expected actually.
Spent time tô design a Square/box? 😅
@@thiagodelgado3128no look at the engineer in it
@@HardwareCanucks It is why noctua has spent years on fan design for the new d15
🙄🙄
Thermalright Peerless Assassin is still the best.... Aside from aesthetics, it have better price to performance overall
@rokie.Atleast the NH-D15 offers covers to make up the looks
@@mosescelica17 the Peerless Assassin (non SE) which is also a little taller than the SE is a little more appealing aesthetically than the SE one.
Disagree. You wouldn't catch me putting that ugly hunk of grey in my pc even if it performs well. If you wanna flame the deep cool product go after the ugly blue logo that you can't change but at least it's from a competent company. Friends don't let friends by thermalright
Buy*😂😂😂😂 before i get flamed
for some reason my peerless assassin sucked when i used it i was idling at 45 and i instantly hit 100 on cinebench and benchmarking tomb raider i was hitting 85 (other games high 70's) ive comer to realize it was probably something to do with the lga socket and i probably (although i doubt it) didn't screw it down tight enough either way im using the deepcool lt720 now💀
I could check in your results that the Peerless assassin still is the best bang for your buck... But there is a new revision that has not been reviewed and is under the radar, the thermalright phantom spirit se... Either the rgb or black versions, it's less taller, has two more heat pipes, arguably more fins stacked and the fans are a revised version of the ones in the PA 120 se... Really looking forward to put this phantom spirit against the big names on the top!
Idc what costs more or less. That has nothing to do with the point here. This is THE best performing air cooler available and has 100% ram clearance. wtf are u even talking about. Oh let me guess, u own a $35 PA cpu cooler. Grow up u clown.
The buzzing is because they're slapping the fans butt up against the fins while running them in pull. There's a reason why Noctua provides THICKER rubber pads for the pull side of the heatsink.
It's wild how often I watch these reviews and come away thinking I should just get a Peerless Assassin. The work is very appreciated regardless how often that is my conclusion 👍
Yeah.....the Peerless is very very good.
I was wodnering if this review will leave me wanting a nicer cooler, but I'm pretty happy with my Peerless Assassin, especially for less than half the price of this
Agreed. I have the Peerless Assassin 120 as well. Glad to see it still holding its own. Waiting to see HC review of Cooler Master MA824 though.
I compared a Thermalright Phantom Spirit vs Enermax Liqmax III 360 AIO. Ther TA PS 120 beats the AIO by around 6-10 degrees in cinebench and AIDA64 tests
It might seem that the performance is a little bit disappointing, but there is one big thing to consider. RAM clearance. With the total height of 164mm it allows to install ANY RAM on the market regardless of its height and with perfect visibility for RGB lighting. For example, Noctua NH-D15 has only 32mm for RAM sticks without raising the fan and the height of the entire cooler. I think that many people will be interested in Assassin IV because of this (and its aesthetics).
Exactly, this is a big reason to upgrade
@@gabrielt4305 it's really not a BIG reason. If you are upgrading your cpu cooler so you can use higher profile ram...Now, if you are doing a new build, it makes more sense to consider ram compatibility.
@@joshholmes1372 im getting this one because its almost as good as the noctua but it just looks way better and the ram is still visible
a $35 thermalright cooler will do the exact same thing
The last time someone added this many mechanisms to an air cooler it was Corsair’s A500, and we know how that turned out. Good to see that Deepcool made something super unique
Great to see that I wasn't the only one requesting a second sample, but mine wasn't because of the Fan noise, but performance.... 🤔
Performance from the second sample was pretty much what we expected given the fan config.
Phantom Spirit 120 SE is my choice and I highly recommend it to everyone. It's basically the successor of Thermalright Peerless Assassin with seven heatpipes and better performance at an incredible price, but it's hard to find reviews for it.
Interesting. I can't see how it would be better performance on a current gen CPU but will request.
Just ordered one on Prime Day for about $36 and can't wait!
I'm curious about the Phantom Spirit 120 (non SE version). Can't seem to find it anywhere.
@@HardwareCanucksare you planning to make review of Thermalright Frost Tower 120.
I never seen it before, no reviews on youtube, seems like its released recently.
AK500 and 620 are my to go. With that white as well.
Coming from a custom loop guy, only Mike can get me to nerd out on air coolers 😄
Hahahaha
Nice review!, and yes I can heard the buzzing on the second unit too. The AK620 and Assasin III are still, for me, the best coolers performance/money.
Far as I know you can also setup the AK620 as a pull-pull configuration (I didn't test it yet) so RAM issues shouldn't be a problem. You are not going to get the same performance, but still cheaper and a well built cooler.
Cheers!
I'm running my AK620, on a 5600x, with the front fan on the back without any thermal issues. Fan speed set to a silent 35% and ram clearance is not an issue.
Love the looks, but just can't see how they're feeling justified bringing a worse product to the table and charging more for it...do manufacturers really think consumers are that stupid?
agree, but people pay more for looks all the time, even if its worse. see rgb stuff
Yes they do and they have more than enough evidence to prove it hence why they do it.
Yes they are. People will buy it for the looks
It's "worse" for performance, but it looks more refined and it's something a little unique. And it's not "bad", just "measurably worse than the best". It has a spot. I'm not buying it, but it has a spot in the market.
Naming it the Assassin IV feels wrong, I will admit, since it's worse than the III, but that's marketing, not the actual physical product. If you see a review and still want it, that's your choice to make... Meanwhile the Assassin III is very hard to find for under $100, so yeah it's not worse in *every* way... At least this costs under $100.
DeepCool high on its own fumes. All that praise got to their head.
Just picked up the AK620 white for $55 for prime day.
Paired with my 7800X3D it will have PLENTY of cooling!
Love this new Assassin IV, but I think the AK620 at $50-55 on sale will also fit a majority of people here!
Thermalright Peerless Assassin costs half of this and performs a little better 👍
Thanks for this review. Can't wait to see the new revised NH-D15 get a review.
Thanks for the in-depth reviews.
I am undervolting and overclocking my 12700K, but running into problems with my old cooler. (It's hitting 80C, and crashing Cinebench if I don't cap at 80C. Otherwise stable.) I'm imagining how much further I can go with a proper cooler for the 12700K.
These things (CPU tuning) are a bit finnicky, so having such fine detailed data (such as across dB ranges and workload wattages, and the special gaming scenario test, showing frequency/FPS response) are very very informative for what I'm trying to do with my CPU. Thank you for that! Most outlets only show one bar graph, your line plots across dB ranges are very *chef's kiss* perfect. (I know that takes time, but it is much appreciated!)
I'm as surprised as you that this thing doesn't beat the Assassin III for raw performance, but in hindsight, it's been really hard to believe anyone would get much better than the current gen, whether it be the Assassin III, the NH-D-15 or the Thermalright Peerless Assassin / Frost Spirit. I guess it was too good a notion to be true. For now. (I believe Noctua when they say their new D-15 will be 1or more degrees cooler. Lots of hard work for modest gains is believable, and Noctua's word is usually pretty good, in terms of avoiding making false claims to begin with.)
I would second what I saw someone else say, I'm curious how the *Assassin Spirit* stacks up. Some are saying it's 2-4C cooler all while being quieter. Maybe they slightly optimized the contact plate or the heatpipe placement, IDK. One guy didn't test it properly (used only a Ryzen 3600) but found basically no difference (makes sense, that CPU can be cooled by practically anything...) Basically everyone else has said it's a few degrees cooler while quieter. No big name reviewers yet, though! Which seems like a shame. They also revived the actual Assassin Spirit single tower 120 that Gamers Nexus tested, but as a V2 model, and a bunch of 120 single-tower models, but I would assume those are pretty much the same performance as the Assassin X 120 family??? I never know until someone reviews one, Thermalright have too many models!!!!
Still waiting for the next gen NH-D15, sadly I'll be old when Noctua finally releases it! 😅😅
next year hopefully by what they say in their roadmap.
i guess the price will be "next gen" as well.. :)
this is pinnacle of tech reviewing, kudos to you all for making such great and honest reviews which will be very helpful for consumers like me.
Man deepcools new design language is amazing and kudos fornthem to being cohesive with every product design.
All these new air coolers scare me to thinking that buying the Thermalright Phantom Spirit for $38 a month ago was a bad decision. But seeing the price tags and performance benchmarks for these new coolers immediately provide me relief 🤣
I actually dig it. It was meant for aesthetics with performance. And not everyone will have a 13900K cpu. This would be a good choice for a stealth build
TR is so underrated, bought Frost Spirit 140 V3 for 68$ and its so good and almost silent
Not a fan of near proprietary fans which would be difficult to source.
Thanks for this comprehensive review. I'll stick the Thermalright Peerless Assassin SE as its a great budget option for the cooling performance it does
It looks amazing, but the peerless assassin costs half as much.
For the most value for money choices, you can't go wrong with any Thermalright's product. I'm using Assassin King 120 with chrome plated cooling surface replacing the similarly overpriced though not as expensive Cooler Master Hyper 212 for my rig. Now I'm adamantly promoting Thermalright's product to my friends and colleagues ever since as a cheaper and better quality alternative compared to more expensive AIO water cooling. Because air cooling don't dissipate or having pump issues and need to be replace.
Looks better than any others. Doesn't block the Memory. Easier to install. So long as it is quiet, I can live with the minor negatives.
Few questions come to mind: Does it run better with the additional fan if you take the 14 mm out of there? Is there space in that slot for a bigger fan? Does it actually run better if you take the side crating panel out?
This whole design, while it looks neat and all, seems like it's a victim of style over substance. Judging from afar with a amateurs eye, it's like it is creating inefficient turbulence that hotboxes the airflow and temperature in the square vents where the Assassin 3 type design has more room to dump excess heat to the case and it's front fan doesn't eat air as a backdraft that has gone through it already. Would be really fun to see with a fine smoke test where it actually flows.
Mike, please test the Thermalright PS120SE Phantom Spirit 120 SE. It's a 7 heatpipe version of Peerless Assassin 120 SE.
The Peerless Assassin doesn't need more heatpipes.
@@HardwareCanucks But the price of PS120SE is near/same as PA120SE. Maybe diminishing performance?
@@HardwareCanucks Apparently its coldplate is also more optimized for Ryzen 7000. It's probably not going to make any major difference but might be worth a look.
The exact video I've been waiting for! Unreal aesthetics & high-end performance, but still a bit underwhelming. For me, the performance difference between this and the top-end coolers is negligible, but I LOVE the aesthetics!
Kudos for having the patience to test a retail unit, rather than pushing to be the first review!
Thanks. Yeah we waited a fair bit for this and basically doubled the man hours but....it worked out I guess.
Such a great overview/review. Class. Best in the business IMO!
I'm waiting for the Fuma 3. I have a Fuma 2, and I like the design. Looking forward to see the improvement.
Thanks a lot for the sound samples. Much needed for cooler rewviews.
The assassin 3 and DH-15 can radiate any heat that wasn't taken by the air flow into the case. With all the shrouding on the assassin 4, it can't do that. But what it does show is that the more air you push through it, the better it improves to make up for that loss of heat dissipation. It's basically operating off ramjet concepts, which are very loud, and need lots of air pumprd in to perform.
Awesome review and very honest and informative. Thanks! I guess I'll be hanging on to my D15 for a while longer.
Suggestion for a future video: Test and compare all the Thermalright air coolers against each other!
Great video man!, But that Spawn background though 💯!
I think the most unfortunate part about this cooler is it doesn't have teal colored fans like the thumbnail lol. I think I speak for myself and Dave2D that a white/teal version would look killer
only 2 weeks ago i made the switch from a lian-li gallahad 360 aoi to the deepcool AK620. i wish i had never drunk the liquid cooling coolaid. this thing is so silent and performs much better at a 3rd of the price. can only imagine the new assasin is better. never AOI/liquid again - edit: great review btw!
I bought it. It looks pretty. Cools well. Nothing more to ask for really.
Great review. Wondering how the Assassin IV would perform if that rear fan was moved up front for a more traditional push/pull configuration.
Was wondering the same
Same, but also without the second fan and only using the 140mm
I think I'll still rock my Black Chromax Noctua NU12S I only use i5 chips anyways
The price is just way too much for the cooling performance. Its £95 here in UK. Thermalright Phantom Spirit is around half the cost and performs just as well
Peerless Assassin for 40€..cannot be matched!
I'd like to see someone benchmark like 5 of the same model of cooler, and then plot them out. It's just so hard to figure out what is and isn't noise in the data when you're talking about differences of a few degrees.
IMO (I could be wrong), blocking the outside is bad for thermals. Now cool air gets sucked in but can't be blown out the SIDES of the heat fin stacks. So the air is HOTTER going into the 2nd fan than it otherwise would be.
It looks absolutely mad. I really like that clean box design
Love Deepcool new look and better performing in testing. Do enjoy fans > aio but currently using a 360mm EK on a 5950x. Then looking for a smaller build
I am curious on how it performs without the second pull fan and only using the 140mm. Like a d15s.
That thing is almost as large as my entire PC with a 4090 FE. In the Dan A4 H2O.
SOLD! Thanks for the review.
I love your cooler/fan reviews. Can you test Corsair Link and the Alphacool metal fan ? 😃
Yes to both
Happy with my Assassin 3, but this one sure has a clean look.
Please, DeepCool, keep making the Assassin III !!!
@hardware canucks: I recently got AK620 Digital Air Cooler for my new intel 13th gen build. The issue im facing is the digital display shows incorrect temperature and utilization readings when compared to Hardware Monitor readings.
Would be great if the team review AK620 Digital cooler and also see if this is a common issue with it.
Build Details: core i5 13500, B760M MSI MAG Mortar WiFi DDR5, 32GB 5600 Corsair Vengeance, 3060ti Founders Edition, 750W PSU, CH370 White case)
I wish I have seen this before... I just bought the Assasin IV yesterday and now I wish I could refound it and buy the Assasin 3 or the Frost Spirit 140 which is a way cheaper than this and better performing 😮💨 None of the reviews of Assasin 4 I saw before told me this, new suscriber just because I don't wanna make these errors again
Still regret the Assasin IV?
@@RARA-kf2qw mmm no, it is a good cooler and it seems beautiful, but if your budget is limited I think it's better to spend that money smarter
I'd keep at at 1100 max RPM... it gets way too loud after that... also 1100 is more than enough for cooling. my BeQuiet air cooler never goes above 800. I just love a silent rig
Never thought somebody would make a Kaaba replica as a cooler
I like the color of the one in the thumbnail.
Can't beat my lovely Peerless Assassin SE
So Deepcool Assassin III is the top dog in this test and also most performance/price ratio. Most for the buck. Costs about 110-120 euro here
Thermalright Peerless Assassin 120 SE is a contender too. Costs only about 60 euro here.
Im in the time for heatsink upgrade. I also like the Arctic Liquid Freezer II 360 AIO but it comes with some maintenance and such.
Noctua NH-D15 is really great too costs about the same as Deepcool Assassin III here.
Im on a old CPU but i thought that the heatsink/cooler could be used in the future system/platform upgrade.
I've just noticed Thermalright Frost Tower 120 on amazon, is this newest cooler from them?
Never heard of this. I swear Thermalright is trying to spam the cooler market.
FINALLY, a big dog review with numbers. I have been holding off on purchasing this cooler for the past month. I'd like to know what the VRM clearance is now.
They shouldve make an Assassin Digital, and it's going to be a instant buy from me.
I'd be buying it for performance for sure...
I did not anticipate that this review would make me want to buy the Deepcool Assassin 3...
Expect the unexpected I guess....
Kinda' a bummer. Looks great, doesn't cover the RAM, but just doesn't hold up to coolers already on the market. I'll be holding off to see how the new Noctua D15 sterox performs.
It doesn't really sound quiet though. Sounds rather like you could make music from the tonality of the fan noise.
Holding my breath for the NH-D15 V2.
That vibration is actually quite common on their fans, I would say 50% of their fans have strange oscillation noise. That's the one reason I don't buy DeepCool junk regardless of reviews.
Did DeepCOOOL prioritize design over functionality? I have reservations about whether this cooler is suitable for the Assassin series.
It would be interesting to know how it compares to the DH-15S not just the DH-15. They seem to me more of a like for like, since they're both supposed to have memory spacing in mind.
Well, the frost spirit 140 feels waaaaaay more compelling now
Take an airflow case. Three case fans in front, noctua nh-d15 with one additional fan at the back, one case fan at the back...
10°C cooling in one second.
My experience with their FK120 fans is that they were the loudest fans in my case of the 3 brands i tried and one of the 3 had a noisy rattle. They're never getting money from me again
Pull configurations are tricky, the distance of the fan to the finstack is very important, too close to the fins and vibrations of them start generating high pitched noises
It need to be paint for the white builds, and an infinit mirror or LCD screen is a good complement. The blacks are strong in white builds
Still running my Alpenföhn K2 happy as ever
Would we see the cooler in that teal-like color like the thumbnail you guys got? That would be the only reason I would get it vs one of their other coolers.
Its a photoshop.....for clickbait reasons. ;)
@@HardwareCanucks It's working! lol
Why would you not just buy the frost spirit or peerless assassin? You can have the cheapest and best, or the best quiet. Why would you pay EXTRA for anything other than the BEST?!
That's a relatively easy answer. Thermalright might be cheap and available in SOME regions but in others where they don't have distriobution, they're hideously expensive due to third party markups or not available at all. For example here in Canada the Peerless Assassin is routinely out of stock while at other times its $100+ but if you luck out its available for a fair price. So its a game of Russian Roulette. The Frost Spirit V3 on the other hand....forget about it. :(
@@HardwareCanucks Thank you! This was genuinely informative and I appreciate it! I did luck out then, getting the frost spirit v3 for $109 Aussie dollars! (approx $75 USD)
The idea of fans in pull configuration tends to be louder seems to be true at least partially.
I tried having CPU & GPU fans in pull configuration(that's right you heard it. GPU fans in pull config. I use 90mm case fans on my gpu using zip ties to mount.), both of them results in louder operation.
Noctua's cooler's have a thick silicone vibration damper on the pull fan I think for this reason. Having some distance between the pull fan and the heat sink itself seems to alleviate the problem.
I wish they would offer the pusher fan (120mm fan) to consumers.
seeing the charts... i think this could be a good ad for thermalright with their peerless assassin. $35 same perfomance as +$100 coolers
well, who would have predicted that pull config on air cooler wouldn't perform so good... oh wait, everyone, except for deepcool engineers obviously :D Still like the looks and the compatibility, so you can choose if you prefer that over the pure performance.
Why do you need to breath the hot GPU air??? do a reverse setup that draws clean air from the rear exhaust (now intake). Can you test in such configurations? Either with a rear fan, a duct that bridges the gap, or, nothing at all.
Why didn't you point out the 2nd fan the 120mm has different cfm than the 140mm fan? 61 for the 140 and 48 cfm for the 120. That would cause issues, would it not?
Will there ever be a review where you test the heatsinks themselves? That's what I'm always wondering, what the best cooler would be if you'd just strap on whatever Noctua fan comes closest to the stock fan in terms of size and shape. Or are the heatsinks tuned to always work best with the respective stock fan? Who knows maybe the Assassin III is the best cooler of all time with that testing methodology lol
Heatsinks are typically tuned for fans. Or at least all the good ones. Noctua stated this in our interview.
@@HardwareCanucks ah ok, thanks for the info!
Noctua fans aren’t even that good, as shown in other Hardware Canucks reviews.
@@KellyWu04 it was just an example
Hope you do a review of the assassin 4s now that it came out
I was wondering if the tests with the Noctua NH-D15 results were/are achieved with the new AMD offset mounting clip which offers 1-3 less C if you're running high end CPUS (usually around 3 though). Well that is, if you're using an AMD CPU. Can you please clarify? :D
*edit* i'm a moron, just realised its an i9 13900k, but its an interesting development and for sure benchmarks should take that into account for future AMD setups
01:22 I'm confused. Why does the Frost Spirit 140 (4x8mm heatpipes) cool 5°C better than the Frost Commander 140 (5x8mm heatpipes) ?
I explained this here: th-cam.com/video/ydmwatdUwR8/w-d-xo.html
Is there any possibility that you can try benchmarking these coolers on a Ryzen CPU like AM4 & AM5 Platform and see if these rankings would change?
im looking to do air cool with my next build. i like this cooler
Can we please get a review of the new Cooler Master MA824 as well.
I just got their AK620 Digital, and it makes that same weird noise, think I should hit them up about it?
Mike, I've been curious for awhile now, nothing to do with the cooler, but,
what are the speakers on your desk, brand, model,etc. ?
Edifier 1280T. :)
@@HardwareCanucks Much Thanks !
I have the AK620 from DeepCool I head the buzzing issue on one fan so hard I head to reach out to the support.
After all I got some FK120 fans as a replacement but the buzzing is just silent. I needed to ajust my fancurve because over 1500rpm the buzzing (vibrations) continues.
I still love my DeepCool AK620 but it needed some ajustment i dont recommend the casual user.
It you be interesting to compare it against the new Coolermaster Masterair 824, as they are both pull-pull coolers.
The MA824 is a push / pull
hello brother I have a tiny question, does deepcool assassin IV is compatiable with motherboard ASUS ROG STRIX Z690-A GAMING WIFI D4?
Are you guys going to be on Threads?
So the first "faulty" one had 2 db higher sound per 100 rpm over 1000 rpm, that seems quite within reasonable error for electronic devices? 1-2 db difference must be expected, no?
Not really. Decibels use a logarithmic scale which means 2 decibels is SIGNIFICANTLY higher in the auditory spectrum.