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Review: be quiet! Shadow Rock TopFlow

by Parm Mann on 5 October 2012, 09:19 4.0

Tags: be-quiet

Quick Link: HEXUS.net/qabncz

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Test Methodology

To put CPU cooler performance into perspective we're testing using a high-end Intel Ivy Bridge system. A detailed description of our test bench and all comparison coolers can be found in the tables below.

Test Bench

Processor Intel Core i7-3770K (3.5GHz, 8MB cache, quad-core)
Motherboard Gigabyte GA-Z77X-UD5H
Memory G.Skill TridentX 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 @ 2,400MHz
Graphics Sapphire Radeon HD 7950 OC 2GB
Disk drive Samsung SSD
Optical drive Generic 24x DVD-RW
Chassis Corsair Graphite Series 600T
Power supply Corsair AX750
Operating system Windows 7 Home Premium (SP1, 64-bit)

Comparison Coolers

  Fan(s) Fan speed Heatsink dimensions
(inc. fans)
Warranty
Arctic Cooling Freezer 13 Arctic Cooling PWM 92mm 600 RPM - 2,000 RPM Height: 130mm
Width: 96mm 
Depth: 123mm
6 Years
be quiet! Dark Rock Pro 2 1 x SilentWings PWM 120mm
1 x SilentWings PWM 135mm

1,500 RPM
1,700 RPM

Height: 166mm
Width: 138mm 
Depth: 147mm
3 Years
be quiet! Shadow Rock TopFlow 1 x Shadow Wings PWM 135mm 1,500 RPM Height: 126mm
Width: 137mm 
Depth: 171mm
3 Years
Intel Reference E97378-001 Intel PWM 92mm 1,200 RPM - 2,800 RPM Height: 50mm
Width: 92mm 
Depth: 92mm
1 Year
Noctua NH-L12 1 x Noctua NF-B9  92mm
1 x Noctua NF-F12 120mm
1,300 RPM - 1,600 RPM
1,200 RPM - 1,500 RPM
Height: 92mm
Width: 128mm 
Depth: 150mm
6 Years
Noctua NH-U9B SE2 2 x Noctua NF-B9 92mm Standard: 1,600 RPM
Low Noise Adapter: 1,300 RPM
Ultra Low Noise Adapter: 1,000 RPM
Height: 125mm
Width: 95mm
Depth: 120mm
6 Years
NZXT Havik 120 2 x NZXT FZ 120mm Standard: 1,500 RPM
Low Noise Adapter: 1,200 RPM
Height: 160mm
Width: 125mm
Depth: 112mm
2 Years
Phanteks PH-TC14PE 2 x Phanteks PH-F140 140mm 700 RPM - 1,200 RPM Height: 171mm
Width: 140mm
Depth: 159mm
5 Years
Sapphire Vapor-X 2 x Sapphire Dual-X 120mm 550 RPM - 1,850 RPM Height: 164mm
Width: 135mm
Depth: 111mm
TBC
SilverStone Heligon HE01 SilverStone 140mm Low Setting: 500 RPM - 1,200 RPM
High Setting: 500 RPM - 2,000 RPM
Height: 165mm
Width: 150mm
Depth: 119mm
2 Years
Thermaltake Contac 39 2 x Thermaltake 120mm 800 RPM - 2,000 RPM Height: 160mm
Width: 104mm
Depth: 120mm
2 Years

Benchmark process

To get a feel for how well all of the above coolers compare, we start by running our Core i7-3770K at its default frequency and run Prime95's small-FFT test to apply maximum load to all four cores/eight threads. This test is run for 15 minutes while temperature is logged, and in order to provide a stabilised reading, we then calculate an average temperature across all cores from the last five minutes of testing.

We then repeat the same test, only this time with the Core i7-3770K processor overclocked to a modest 4,4GHz, with voltage increased from 1.17V to 1.22V.

Actual CPU temperature is recorded, but to take into account any temperature fluctuations in our lab, we also graph the delta temperature - that's CPU temperature minus ambient temperature. And, last but not least, to give you an idea of cooler acoustics, we use a PCE-318 noise meter to measure overall system noise in both idle and load states.

Notes

To put the onus on the CPU coolers, our Corsair Graphite Series 600T chassis is set to run with two fans; a 140mm front intake and a 120mm rear exhaust. The top 200mm exhaust is disabled. Both chassis fans are set to run as 'silent' from within the Gigabyte BIOS, while each CPU cooler is set to a 'normal' profile.