Be quiet! Shadow Rock 3: features and review
A silent cooler for the processor is the dream of any PC owner. Let's reveal the secret - only a water cooling system will help to achieve silence. By the way, very soon the TeraNews portal will receive this device for a test. In the meantime, get acquainted with the new Be quiet! Shadow Rock 3. The cooler really is quite quiet. And the cooling performance is impressive.
For the first time, an active cooling system was spotlighted at CES 2020. There was no new product on the manufacturer’s official website. It seemed that this was another know-how that would not go into mass production. But, after a couple of weeks, the Germans provided full information about the cooler and announced the date of sales.
Be quiet! Shadow Rock 3: cooler for PC
| Physical dimensions | 96x130x163 mm |
| Number of radiator plates | 30 |
| Maximum noise | 24,4 dB |
| Base material | Aluminum |
| Power dissipation | Up to 190 W |
| Radiator Material | Aluminum |
| Base treatment | Copper spraying, polishing (the possibility of applying any paste) |
| The number of heat pipes | 5 |
| Tube diameter | 6 mm |
| Fan dimensions | 120h120h25 |
| Third-party fan mounting option | Yes |
| Fan consumption | 12 Volt |
| Fan speed | 1600 rpm maximum (automatic adjustment) |
| Power Consumption | 2.4 watts at maximum speed |
| Length of cable | 220 mm |
| Claimed fan run time | 80 thousand hours |
| Sockets | AMD AM3 (+), AM4, Intel LGA115x, LGA20xx and LGA1200 |
| Thermal grease included | Yes, branded, disposable tube |
| The presence of mounts for these sockets | Yes, fully equipped, there is a screwdriver |
| Manufacturer's Warranty | 3 years |
| Declared price | 50 Euro |
Thinking out loud
It is worth noting that at the CES 2020 exhibition, the German manufacturer announced the use of the Shadow Wings 2 model fan, which is built using screw threaded plain bearings. However, on the official website of the company, this information is not indicated. Which looks suspicious. But for all the time the Be quiet! The users had no complaints. So, we’ll write this off to the site administrators flaw.
As for the cooler Be quiet! Shadow Rock 3 is a continuation of the famous line of cooling systems Shadow Rock 2. Finally, the manufacturer came up with the idea to bring the tubes to the contact pad of the processor. Prior to this, a nickel heel was used. In general, this solution already allows more efficient heat dissipation. The number of tubes was also increased (by 1 pc.) And the diameter was reduced (from 8 to 6 mm). But the number of plates is greatly underestimated - from 51 to 30. This change can only be explained by the desire to squeeze the cooler into the micro-ATX system units. It is hoped that the declared characteristics of heat dissipation will correspond to reality.
In general, the cooling system looks attractive. In the price category, in terms of noise - heat dissipation, Be quiet! Shadow Rock 3 easily competes with all well-known brands. Among the closest competitors is Noctua NH-U9S. But you cannot compare these coolers, because the Noctua brand has a larger supply of fan durability (150 thousand hours of MTBF). It remains to wait for a full review of Shadow Rock 3 or the launch of new coolers from competitors. Taking an opportunity, we want to share recommendations on a choice power supply and the system unit for the computer, which 99.99% of users simply turn a blind eye to. But in vain!