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BeQuiet Dark Rock Pro 3 Low Noise Heatsink Review
BeQuiet Dark Rock Pro 3 Low Noise Heatsink Review
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Abstract: The Dark Rock Pro 3 is dual tower, dual fan, low noise CPU heatsink. In other words, if you want a quiet heatsink that handles like a performance cooler AND you have a motherboard which can accommodate it's boxy footprint, you're reading the right CPU heatsink review!

 Manufacturer  Category  Published  Author 
BeQuiet   Cooling / Heatsinks   Feb 21, 2014   Max Page  

Home > Reviews > Page: Intel LGA2011 Heatsink Temperature Comparisons

FrostyTech Mk.III Synthetic Thermal Heatsink Test Results
Intel Core i7, Extreme Edition class heatsinks tested at a 200W heat load.
Results based on readings from a 38x38mm copper interface die with 200W heat load on the Intel version of the Mk.III Test Platform. Temperature results listed for each heatsink were calculated by determining the rise over ambient temperatures at time of test. Information on Frostytech's test methodology is available here.
Socket LGA2011/1366 compatible CPU heatsinks
manufacturer: model no.: *fan speed: 200w thermal test (°c) noise level (dba)

Coolermaster Nepton 280L high 10.6 58.8
Coolermaster Nepton 140XL high 11.8 59.6
Coolermaster Seidon 240M high 13.4 55.6
Silverstone Tundra TD02 high 13.6 53.0
Coolermaster Glacer 240L high 14.1 52.5
NZXT Kraken X60 high 14.5 60.7
Noctua NH-U14S 17.0 47.3
Coolermaster Seidon 120V high 17.5 54.3
NZXT Kraken X40 high 18.2 59.4
Silverstone Tundra TD03 high 18.7 58.1
Silverstone Argon AR01 high 18.8 53.0
Coolermaster Eisberg 240L high 19.1 50.5
BeQuiet Dark Rock Pro 3 high 19.5 43.7
Raijintek Themis high 19.7 52.8
Coolermaster V8 GTS high 20.0 59.7
Corsair Hydro H80i high 21.1 64.0
Noctua NH-U12S 21.1 46.2
Raijintek Ereboss high 21.4 49.7
Zalman Reserator 3 Max high 21.6 58.9
Scythe Mugen 4 high 21.7 41.9
Zalman LQ315 high 21.9 50.8
Silverstone NT06-P high 22.1 51.6
Raijintek Aidos high 23.0 55.6
BeQuiet Dark Rock Pro 3 low 23.3 34.5
Silentium Fera2 HE1224 high 23.4 37.6
Zalman LQ310 high 23.8 52.7
Scythe Ashura Shadow (SCASR-1000SE) high 24.2 51.4
Zalman LQ320 high 25.5 50.2
npowertek NPH-1366-115HC (LGA1366) high 28.7 44.8
Dynatron G556 (LGA1366/2U) 29.1 68.4
Dynatron G555 (LGA1366/2U) 30.4 67.8
Dynatron G666 (LGA1366/2U) 31.8 68.7
Silverstone NT01-Pro high 35.8 40.4
nPowerTek NPH1366-140HC (LGA1366) high 36.3 48.1
Zalman FX-100 (w/h ZM-F2 fan) 36.9 28.5
Dynatron G199 (LGA1366/1U) 47.6 62.6
Zalman FX-100 (hor, ver) 63.0 0.0
200w thermal test (°c) noise level (dba)
*heatsinks are ranked according to the 200w thermal test results column (rise over ambient temp.). low temperatures with low noise levels are considered best. for reference heatsinks with variable-speed fans, only the high speed (12v) fan test result is included in the comparison sheet; more detailed results reside in each specific heatsink review.

frostytech's socket LGA2011 Intel synthetic thermal test platform stresses socket LGA2011/1366 compatible heatsinks with a 200W heat load. Keep in mind that the AMD Integrated Heat Spreader and Intel LGA2011 Integrated Heat Spreader both measure ~38x38mm, so these test results can be extrapolated to AMD processor scenario's as well.

With a 200W heat load applied by the Intel LGA2011/1366 version of FrostyTech's synthetic thermal test platform, the BeQuiet Dark Rock Pro 3 heatsink yielded a very good result of 19.5°C over ambient with both fans spinning at stock speed. Reducing the speed of the 120mm and 135mm PWM fans to 1400RPM caused test temperatures to increase to 23.3°C over ambient.

Suffice to say, the BeQuiet Dark Rock Pro 3 is among the quieter LGA2011 heatsinks Frostytech has tested to date. As you can see by the results chart above, the next best performing heatsinks in the same noise range as the Dark Rock Pro 3 are the Scythe Mugen 4 and Noctua NH-U12S heatsinks. The self contained watercoolers do top the chart, but with a much greater noise output.

Ultimately, the BeQuiet Dark Rock Pro 3 is a very good low noise thermal solution, particularly on the Intel LGA2011 platform. It does occupy a huge volume of space which may cause interference issues with memory slots on some motherboards, but if low noise CPU cooling is your game that issue is simply unavoidable. Measure your clearances first!

The only aspect of the Dark Rock Pro 3 cooler we weren't entirely happy with was the finicky mounting hardware. The brackets are straight forward, but the little nuts and wrench can make installation a chore in confined computer chassis where access is generally restricted on two or more sides of the CPU socket. That being said, it's nice to know thermal aspects of the heatsink design were not sacrificed for the sole sake of easing installation.

To sum up, the BeQuiet Dark Rock Pro 3 heatsink is close to a "Noctua level" of build quality (but not quite there) and contains a good balance of innovative thermal design choices and noise reducing features to yield an effective, 200W capable low noise CPU heatsink. Recommended.

Related Articles:

The Top 5 best heatsinks for low noise and low temperature are ranked here. For more reviews on the latest heatsinks and cooling solutions, rely on FrostyTech's inventory of 400+ heatsink reviews. Here are a few other articles that you might enjoy as well.

- Scythe Ashura Shadow Heatsink Review
- Cooler Master Nepton 280L Liquid Cooling System Review
- SilentiumPC Fera2 HE1224 Heatsink Review
- Cooler Master Nepton 140XL Liquid Cooling System Review
- Zalman LQ320 Liquid Cooling System Review
- Coolermaster Seidon 120V Liquid Cooling System Review
- Scythe Mugen 4 Heatsink Review

 Previous Page ° Heat Sink Review Index  

Table of Contents:

 1:  BeQuiet Dark Rock Pro 3 Low Noise Heatsink Review
 2:  360° View - BeQuiet Dark Rock Pro 3 Heatsink
 3:  Sound Level Measurements: Which Heatsink is Quietest?
 4:  AMD Heatsink Temperature Comparisons
 5:  Intel LGA115x/775 Heatsink Temperature Comparisons
 6: — Intel LGA2011 Heatsink Temperature Comparisons

List all BeQuiet heat sinks that Frostytech tested?

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