Thermalright Peerless Assassin 120 SE CPU Cooler, 6 Heat Pipes AGHP Technology, Dual 120mm PWM Fans, 1550RPM Speed, for AMD:AM4 AM5/Intel LGA 1700/1150/1151/1200/1851,PC Cooler

My Ibuypower water cooler failed on my system. (I discovered this is very common).I was debating on either getting a water cooler or going to Air cooling. I checked a lot of videos online and this air cooler kept coming up in the top 5 replacement recommendations over and over again. (search water coolers vs Air coolers)Since I don't do any overclocking and the fact that they are much more reliable, I bought this unit.It works really great. It cost so much less than a water cooler and (in my opinion) is easier to install that a water cooler unit with hoses and radiator and cpu block.Positives:Very AffordableCools very wellVery well madePackage comes with everything you need. (different cpu socket mounts and thermal paste)Extremely reliable. (no worries about coolant leaks or pump failure or in my case, clogged lines)The fans that come with it seemed pretty quiet. (more than my cheap water cooler fans)Negatives:Can be a little difficult to install. The most difficult part was installing the fans.The instructions could be better. (they're not horrible). I do recommend watching online videos.Its big, you definitely need to make sure you have enough room in your case.Additional Recommendations:The thermal paste that comes with the package is ok, but I would highly recommend buying a high quality NON CONDUCTIVE thermal past.(Thermal Grizzly Kryonaut, Artic-mx4, Cooler Master MasterGel Pro v2 etc)This is important!Make sure its NONCONDUCTIVE. Some thermal paste uses metallic ingredients to aid in thermal conductivity. The problem with this is that if you apply too much, it can go into the cpu electronic components and damage your system. With noncoductive thermal paste, this isn't a issue so you don't really need to be too exact. (If its a little too much, it doesn't hurt anything.)This Air cooler also comes in single or double tower configurations, if your case can support it, I would definitely get the double tower.Make sure you get the fans installed/oriented correctly.I would also recommend installing cpu temperature monitoring software as well to make sure that everything is working correctly. I would definitely recommend this to anyone who wants a very reliable and very affordable air cooling option.

When I built my PC five years ago I installed a Dark Rock Pro 4 for my CPU cooler. It worked very well, but over the years the fans grew louder, the cooling became less efficient, and dust began to accumulate in hard to clean places. I decided to look for an affordable replacement and settled on the Thermalright Peerless Assassin. Overall, I believe this was a very good choice.Compared to my Dark Rock Pro 4, the Thermalright Peerless Assassin was a breeze to install. The LGA 155x bracket fit my motherboard and was easy to install. The thermal paste seemed thicker than other pastes I've used, but it went on neatly and is clearly working. The spring screws seem to have secured the cooler to the brackets very well. My biggest complaint with my old cooler was installing the fans. Happily, I can report that the Peerless Assassin's fan are easy to install, and remove if needed, and are secure.In terms of performance, I'm completely satisfied. The fans are not as quiet as my Dark Rock Pro 4 when I first installed it. However, they are an acceptable low volume. My PC has an Intel Core i7-8700k CPU and the cooler has no problem keeping it between 20C to 30C while idle or under a light load. I am no longer an avid gamer, and do not play modern video games, however I did test the thermals while playing Minecraft. It kept my CPU around 40C most of the time and would briefly shoot up to 50C when loading parts of the map.At less than 40 USD this cooler is a fantastic option for CPU cooling. Its significantly less expensive than comparable coolers, is easy to install, and delivers good performance.

Replaced a dead Corsair AIO with this Thermalright. My expectations have been blown away! That AIO was causing me tons of issues. It was 6 years old, but I think that last year it slowly dragged my computer down as the CPU temps got hotter and hotter until finally my machine started shutting itself down.Now I have a reliable hunk of aluminum moving heat off the CPU, so no more wondering if the pump in my AIO is still working. Or thinking, "Is the liquid within the AIO is still good and viable... or even still there! Maybe it dried out?!"Already with light load and even at idle the temperatures on my CPU are 40-50C cooler than they were with the dead/limping AIO. The Thermalright really is doing it RIGHT and keeping my CPU cool and thriving. Thanks for making such a great product at an incredible price!

I picked up the Peerless Assassin 120 SE, and it has been fantastic.What I LoveSimple To Install: Different mounting hardware for Intel and AMD came in the box: standoffs, a backplate, screws, and even thermal paste. Just screw the backplate on to your motherboard, put the cooler base on, and then clip the fans on.Rock-Solid Performance: It kept the temperatures noticeably in check under load- awesome for an air cooler and new contenders that are quite expensive.Included Thermal Paste: Not sure how it actually compares to any premium pastes out there, but it worked straight out of the box.One Minor QuirkManual Language: The instruction sheet is only in Mandarin, so I had to resort to online instructions. An English insert would make things all the easier.Pro TipAttach the fan cables to the header of your motherboard before clipping them onto the heatsink. When the PC is built, the cpu connecter pins might get tucked under the heatsink, so have it pre-connected will spare you plenty of grief.If you want top‑tier air cooling without spending on liquid, this cooler is hard to beat at around $35. Highly recommend.