Review: be quiet! Dark Rock 4

by Hilbert Hagedoorn on: 04/10/2018 01:03 PM | source: | 15 comment(s)

We test and review the be quiet! Dark Rock 4 CPU Cooler. Armed with totally black looks and a very silent fan, the new Dark Rock 4 might be able to impress you. It offers 200 Watts of cooling power, enough for most processors and a bit of overclocking, it, however, remains ridiculously silent.

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Koniakki
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#5536431 Posted on: 04/10/2018 01:17 PM

"Got the Looks!" Certified!

LimitbreakOr
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#5536450 Posted on: 04/10/2018 02:17 PM

I personally think it's hideous.

buhehe
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#5536461 Posted on: 04/10/2018 02:59 PM

I wonder how it performs compared to Noctua NH-U12S and 14S.

In terms of cooling performance it's on par with the NH-U9S, which only has a 95mm fan, thus being louder.
Since the NH-U14S has a similarly sized fan (135mm vs 140mm) that would be the best comparison to do.

Athlonite
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Joined: 2007-11-09

#5536482 Posted on: 04/10/2018 04:37 PM

Looks like it wouldn't allow for those dimms to used in dimm slot 1 if you put the fan on the correct side. Sorry but I wont consider any tower cooler as good if it blocks wholly or partially dimm slot 1 surely it can't be that hard to design it so that with a fan on the front it doesn't block any dimm slot, it's easy to do either move the fin stack higher (like in the Tuniq Tower/Tower II) or back further by angling the heat pipes so that theres atleast 124mm between the fin stack an dimm slot 1 I don't know why HSF makers can't seem to get that through their thick heads

Robbo9999
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#5536515 Posted on: 04/10/2018 05:52 PM

Not bad at all performance wise, just a few degrees off the NH-D15 as the article says - it's good that they've differentiated themselves from the NH-D15 by painting it black, it's a selling point for folks that like that look. I prefer the look of the bare metal of the Noctua coolers, but I am biased as I have the NH-D14!

kendoka15
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#5536585 Posted on: 04/11/2018 02:15 AM

An air cooling system that doesn't look like a pile of puke (looking at you Noctua, the yellow brown fans at least)? Interesting.

Arbie
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#5536610 Posted on: 04/11/2018 06:19 AM

I personally think it's beautiful and would be glad to have it in my rig.

However - I wonder about replacement fans. Both fans look unusually thin, and the 135mm is a very odd size. I don't want a cooler that must be replaced when a fan dies.

Robbo9999
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Posts: 1304
Joined: 2012-10-07

#5536617 Posted on: 04/11/2018 06:53 AM

An air cooling system that doesn't look like a pile of puke (looking at you Noctua, the yellow brown fans at least)? Interesting.

Hey, you calling my baby ugly! Yellow/Brown, I like it, reminds me of the 70's! ;-)

Fox2232
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#5536618 Posted on: 04/11/2018 07:05 AM

Stylish. Performing quite well. And noise level vs temperature makes it one of the best.

LesserHellspawn
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#5536625 Posted on: 04/11/2018 08:24 AM

Is there a computer somewhere around or under that chunk of metal ?

Olle P
Junior Member

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#5536633 Posted on: 04/11/2018 08:54 AM

The AMD mounting seems to leave much to be desired.
These coolers can only be mounted in one direction on AMD boards, the base model with horisontal flow and the PRO model with vertical flow.
At least there should be no problem with RAM clearance with the PRO model mounted that way...

jose2016
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#5536671 Posted on: 04/11/2018 12:45 PM

Is Thermalright le grand macho rt better?
There is a difference of more than 20 euros in favour of the thermalright.

jura11
Senior Member

Posts: 2007
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#5536742 Posted on: 04/11/2018 05:26 PM

Is Thermalright le grand macho rt better?
There is a difference of more than 20 euros in favour of the thermalright.

From Techpowerup review Thermalright Le Grand Macho RT is within 1-2°C from Noctua NH-D15 which is one of the best coolers on market and old Dark Rock is within 2-3°C from Noctua NH-D15

Plus Thermalright TY-147A supplied on Le Grand Macho RT is one of my favourite fans, have at home Le Grand Macho RT too which I have used on my 5820k or 5960x and this cooler is within 1-2°C from my NH-D15 although on Le Grand Macho RT I run single fan

Wanted to get as well BeQuiet Dark Rock just to test this on my PC how it performs

Hope this helps

Thanks, Jura

jose2016
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Posts: 42
Joined: 2016-12-31

#5537026 Posted on: 04/12/2018 11:23 AM

Plus Thermalright TY-147A supplied on Le Grand Macho RT is one of my favourite fans, have at home Le Grand Macho RT too which I have used on my 5820k or 5960x and this cooler is within 1-2°C from my NH-D15 although on Le Grand Macho RT I run single fan

Wanted to get as well BeQuiet Dark Rock just to test this on my PC how it performs

Hope this helps

Thanks, Jura

Thanks.

Koniakki
Senior Member

Posts: 2837
Joined: 2009-09-15

#5537027 Posted on: 04/12/2018 11:32 AM

^

Agree too. Seen from a few reviews around I would say the Thermalright Le Grand Macho RT is one step better than the be quiet! Dark Rock PRO 4.

Unless any compatibility issues are in play then the Thermalright Le Grand Macho RT would be my choice. Especially if €20 cheaper.

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