Final words and conclusion
Final words and conclusion
The cooler tested today needs to be placed in the intended context; it is aimed at the folks that need pure silence acoustics wise, do not expect an overclocking capable beast. No, it aims at processors that are not overclocked and granted any modern age quad-core or six-core proc will be cooled to decent values with this cooler. And the best part is this, it does so that completely silent. And me personally, I like it very much.
Aesthetics
The top flow looks always remain trivial as taste differs, but we think that it is an OK looking product. The fan is dark and thus will fit most motherboards that have a black PCB. The copper pipes are very visible though, perhaps something nickel plated would have looked nicer.
Cooling performance
The cooler certainly performed decent enough, but we do need to mention that we armed our test system (deliberately) with the difficult to cool Core i7 4970K, obviously on purpose. The default clock frequency performance is OK, nothing more, nothing less. Overclocking with a CPU like this is ill-advised though. With our 4790K processor at 1.3 Volts/4600 MHz heat jumped to 77 Degrees C, high, but that is still okay and allows for a mild tweak.
Acoustics
Fantastic (!) for noise levels, at defaults (not overclocked) this is an incredible silent product, on our ASUS Sabertooth we simply leave the default fan profile for what it is, and yeah we reached ~31 DBa under full processor load. Up-to 1.30 Volts (tweaked) the noise levels remain extremely low, but after 1.35v we don't have any cooling performance left. So really this is an all silent product, but at default clock frequencies is continuously what I need to say and recommend here.
Pricing
The kit as tested today will cost roughly 60 USD / Euro, obviously, you will not reach the 'enthusiast' segment of cooling. be quiet! does offer its 3-year manufacturer’s warranty. Available now, the Shadow Rock TF 2 top-flow CPU cooler is priced at €60 / $60 / £54.99 MSRP.
Final Words
The Be Quiet! Shadow Rock TF2 is intended for the guys and girls that despise noise, really this probably is one of the most silent coolers ever. It does so while keeping the Core i7 4790K we used at acceptable temperature levels as long as we do not overclock it, you are totally fine. The trade-off with the smaller form factor and relative average performance is an incredibly low noise level, you'll be hard-pressed to be able to even hear noise coming from this puppy. Granted, I do find the cooler priced rather steep at 60 bucks. Anyhow, time to conclude a thing or two. This product ticks the right boxes for the audiophiles, It is also less tall, which is ideal for more compact builds. The marvel simply is that it is a totally silent, and that is the sole purpose of this product. In the end, we can surely recommend the Pure Rock Slim, if you stick to the intended purpose of this product though, mainstream cooling with nice low noise levels.Overall we like the Be Quiet! Shadow Rock TF2, if you do not plan to overclock or tweak your CPU the temps will remain fine, however, a sheer inaudible solution then now available to you. If acoustics are what you seek.
Like Depeche Mode I'd say ... enjoy the silence.
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