be quiet! Shadow Rock LP, BK002, 130W TDP, CPU Cooler, Low Profile

First things first, the cooler is of amazing quality and provides exceptional performance. I'm a function over form type of guy so I have always sought out downdraft style coolers for my builds. The mounting system is very simple and sturdy, just as good as noctua in my opinion. This has been the best downdraft cooler I've ever used. So in the photos you see I swapped the fan to an Arctic because Arctic sells their fans in five packs and that's how many fans that case has room for. Right now it's cooling a max voltage 11400 and stays below 70 and whisper quiet during day long gaming sessions. In my opinion if you're spending money on a build, and downdraft coolers interest you, then there's no question that this is worth a look, if you don't necessarily have a heat problem and can't justify $50 for a cooler then get something else, you can get a $10-20 air cooler that will cool almost anything as long as you're not overclocking. But for small form factors and/or high wattage CPUs then this cooler with the added benefits of being a downdraft style cooler make this an easy number one pick for me. Keep in mind that style and a compact size do come at cost, and that for me that was clearance for the ram and VRM heat spreaders. If you set it up the way I did, because my VRM heat sinks are very tall and would not fit under the extended side of the cooler. That's not a problem it's just something to take into consideration when planning around this cooler, use low profile ram. For reference, the board is an MSI h510i pro Wi-Fi and the RAM is crucial ballistics. The cooler would not clear gskill rip jaws in The orientation pictured. Great cooler if it fits your style and/or application. Mounting system noise level easy to install. Give a thumbs up if you appreciate my honest review!

I just installed this on my open frame AMD desktop that sits only a couple of feet from my ears and what a difference it makes. The stock fan frequently would spin up to maximum speed and was very loud. This new fan is so quiet that I can now hear other fans in nearby equipment that I never heard before.It was a slight pain to install and the instructions could be more detailed, but in the end it took maybe 15 minutes without any real frustrations.It has only been a few hours since I put it in, but this is already making a significant impact on my quality of life!

Pros: Low profile, quiet fan, cools relatively well for a small heatsinkCons: Not that easy to install, quirky designSpecs of the computer I installed this in:Processor: Intel i5 6600kMotherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z170N-Gaming 5RAM: Corsair LPX 16GB DDR4Case: Phanteks Enthoo Evolv ITXI had a different heatsink installed before this, so all components have been installed prior. Because the case is relatively spacious for an ITX, I had plenty of room to work with. Installing the backplate is relatively straight forward, and shouldn't cause too many problems. However, for most ITX motherboards, getting the heatsink and fan installed might be a little bit tricky. Before screwing in the mounting arms, make sure to figure out how you want to orient the heatsink. Make sure you have enough clearance for your capacitors, RAM, and other components. I had to watch out for an internal USB3 port, so I only had one option for orientation. Once you figure out how you want to mount the heatsink, getting it secured is pretty straight forward. The Shadow Rock uses one solid bar to hold the heatsink to the arms. The heatsink comes with thermal paste pre-applied, so you don't need to worry about that. If you prefer to use your own, just wipe the base with a clean cloth and you'll be good to go. Getting the fan to attach to the heatsink can be a bit of a challenge since the included brackets don't flex very well. Combined with the limited space of an ITX case, it took me a few tries before I could get the fan to attach. I've installed many heatsinks in many differenet form factors, and I would say this was probably one of the more difficult ones. If you have installed Noctua heatsinks, then you'll know how easy installation can be. Unfortunately, be quiet! doesn't have that part down yet. Additionally, the included instructions are pretty vague.Heat dissipation is pretty good. On idle, the 6600k hovers around 25-30C. Under load, it can shoot up to 40-50C. These temperatures might be a little bit lower than a standard rig since I don't have a discrete graphics card installed yet. Also, the Evolv ITX is a bit larger than other ITX cases, so that should be noted as well. Under normal circumstances, this fan is extremely quiet. For all intents and purposes, it is silent; ambient noise drowns out any sound it might make.Overall, I'm happy with this heatsink, and it definitely should be considered for ITX rigs. Installation isn't the easiest, but it shouldn't be too difficult for seasoned builders either. It works very well with the latest Intel (and AMD) processors, and doesn't break the bank. be quiet! is a relatively new player in the CPU cooler market, but they are very promising. Give this one some serious consideration.

I can now see why there are complaints over why the installation is hard. If you are installing this on a motherboard that is already screwed into a case, then you're gonna have a bad time. I installed it on to a mITX motherboard before securing it in the case and the process was a breeze. This was because of the fact that I had no space limitations to work with. I opted to use Corsair's new fan because it pushes more air at full speed. I didn't purchase this cooler for the low sound benefit, but I agree, the be quiet! fan is VERY quiet. My i7-6700k tops out at 74 degrees C under full load at 4.6GHz and 1.29v core. Installed on a Gigabyte Z170N-Gaming 5 motherboard in a Silverstone RVZ01-E case.