Arctic Freezer 36 A-RGB

Introduction

Deviating from the stock cooler that came with your CPU (if it even came bundled with one) doesn't necessarily have to be a costly proposition. There's a thriving market of budget air coolers, and joining them is Arctic's newly unveiled Freezer 36 series offering a variety of trims. These are tower-style coolers that measure 4.09 (L) x 4.96 (W) x 6.26 (H) inches (104 x 126 x 159 millimeters) millimeters and weigh 32.39 ounces (890 grams). They also feature four 6mm copper heat pipes and come with a pair of PWM fans. The coolers also have openings on the side that allow additional fresh air to be drawn in. This is also characterized by a new fan bracket. This makes it possible to use almost all fans on the Freezer 36. It is also equipped with two reliable fans optimized for high static pressure. It also has better contact. In other words, closely staggered direct-touch heatpipes for better performance on CPUs with high power density. And what really stands out is the multiple compatibility with Intel and AMD sockets. So you don’t have to worry about whether you need a CPU that is AMD or Intel and therefore have no restrictions. 5 different variants of the series are offered. The standard model of the performance-optimized single-tower CPU cooler is the Freezer 36, while the Freezer 36 CO is perfect for continuous operation and the Freezer 36 A-RGB Black and Freezer 36 A-RGB White are two A-RGB products. If you prefer a completely black air cooler, you can also buy the Freezer 36 Black. It has a clear design and therefore blends in perfectly with the system.

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Before we move on, here are the specifications from the manufacturer's website. Compared to its predecessor, the Freezer 35, which still had separate versions for AMD and Intel systems, the Freezer 36 is now compatible with both AMD and Intel systems in every color and fan variant.

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Packaging & Contents

The Arctic retail box is packed with information. It has a mix of black and white accents. A scaled-down image of the cooler itself can be seen on the right side with the Arctic logo, the optional 0dB mode, a tag indicating addressable RGB, and a six-year warranty label located right next to it. The product name is located near the image of the cooler ARCTIC also advertised their MX-6 thermal paste, which comes with the cooler.

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At the back of the box, the first thing we see is another code, but this time the code is used to get you the instructions via download rather than wasting paper. The top part is used to deliver the specifications.

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On the right side of the box, we find the cooler's name, followed up with the line explaining box content. In the white portion on the bottom of the panel, we find a code that will take you to the Freezer 36 A-RGB technical product page when scanned with a phone. It is also asked of you or share your experience with the cooler, whether it be good or bad.

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On the left side of the box, we find the cooler's name once again, but this time it is followed up with the supporting sockets. In the white portion on the bottom of the panel, we find a code that will take you to the Freezer 36 A-RGB product page when scanned with a phone.

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Inside, we find the parts (cooler, fans, and accessories) in boxes.

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No foam is used to keep accessories in one place, so it may be damaged when the external box is hit.

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The smaller box contains installation accessories to mount onto Intel and AMD sockets. Because of this new block, you just need four screws, but there are some spacers and two arms for mounting to AMD sockets too. ARCTIC's MX-6 thermal paste is included along with the installation tools.

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A Closer Look

The cooling tower of the Freezer 36 A-RGB has an excellent finish. In terms of size, the Arctic Freezer 36 A-RGB doesn’t stand out from its class. It offers dimensions of 104 x 126 x 159 mm (length, width, height) that make it compatible with most chassis, except the most restrictive in height. Meanwhile, its weight of 917 grams is neither too high nor light, average.

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It's 59 coated aluminum cooling fins are not sharp-edged and are arranged with perfectly even spacing on the 4 heatpipes. In order to minimize air noise, the fin edges on the intake side have been profiled instead of being cut straight, which has practically become the standard for air coolers.

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This cooler is quite interesting, as the fans are mounted in a really clever way. They’re the Arctic P-Fans, which I know are really great fans. Plus, they come with built-inn ARGB lighting, which I know a lot of people really like on their coolers.

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The fans actually just push-fit into some little circle clips on the heatsink tower, tool-free, just push it on, it clicks into place and you’re done. This makes it so easy to install them, remove them for cleaning, or to change the airflow direction should you have the need to.

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The top plate looks gorgeous, with four screws holding the plate down, and this hides the top fins and the ends of the heatpipes and is treated with a chrome finish Arctic logo which I think looks pretty smart.

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The cooler base also features a crossbar with mounting screws, which are equipped with integrated springs to achieve optimum pressure of the cooler on the CPU heat spreader.

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Those thick aluminum fins that are crossed by 4 U-shaped copper heatpipes with a diameter of 6 mm. The heatpipes remain in direct contact with the processor, thermal paste passing through, maximizing thermal transfer.

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Along with the ARCTIC FREEZER 36 A-RGB come two 120 x 120 x 25 mm P12 PWM PST A-RGB fans. These have a classic white plastic frame with rubberized corners to reduce vibrations, as well as some remounted screws that we will see later what they are used for. In addition, they specify a rotation speed of between 200 and 2000 RPM , an air flow of 48.8 CFM and a maximum loudness of 22.5 dBA , using Fluid Dynamic Bearings to increase their useful life. The P12 PWM PST A-RGB fan is not new on the market and is parametrically similar to the fans of rival coolers in the same price class. The fan impeller is equipped with ARGB LEDs for backlighting and the cables leading from the fan have the option of serial connection. So you will only need one PWM and one ARGB header on the motherboard. An interesting feature is the presence of a 0dB mode where the fan will stop if the PWM signal drops below 5%. For users who want to have a semi-passively cooled system this is certainly a welcome feature.

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The cooling fans come with PWM pass-through cables so you can daisy chain them easily, and there’s the RGB connector too.


Installation Process

We have had to remove the socket fixing the processor to the motherboard to replace it with the one that includes this heatsink.

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After that, we just have to pour MX-6 thermal paste on the processor and place the heatsink on it, fixing it on both sides with two screws.

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We then place the two fans on both sides, with a simple click, and we can see how the set is compatible with memories of any height, since the fan on the right is just flush with the one located on the left. There is no need to worry about collisions with particularly high heat sinks on overclocking RAM modules with the Freezer 36 A-RGB, as the fans do not protrude beyond the RAM slots.

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With the heatsink mounted, we can see how sensational it looks with its ARGB LED lighting, which we can fully configure from the software of any modern motherboard.

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Testing & Methology

For today's testing, we'll be using a new test setup, so we've also tested a few other coolers as part of it for direct comparison. We have recently equipped our lineup with a Ryzen 9 5950X processor, which is significantly more demanding. Perhaps the most important thing is that we are testing in a classic case, a large and very well ventilated Fractal Design Meshify 2 XL. In addition, it also allows the installation of a 480 mm heat exchanger on the ceiling. We always install the tested AiO coolers with an exchanger on the ceiling, while there are high-quality fans on the front wall of the cabinet for good air access to the cabinet. Very quiet graphics are also installed so that it does not disturb the results.

Testing coolers in practice

What else do you need to know about our testing? We test all coolers without manual adjustment and regulation. We leave everything to automatic regulation, that is exactly how the vast majority of users will use them. Of course, all coolers (and their fans) usually have the possibility of manual regulation, which affects performance and noise. The cabinet used definitely also plays a big role, and above all the temperature in the room. In our case, the temperature during testing is always around 20, maximum 21°C.

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AMD Ryzen 9 5950X processor cooling.

As for the Ryzen 9 5950X processor, it also plays a big role when comparing coolers. The maximum safe operating temperature of this model is up to 95°C according to AMD. It is only at this point that the processor starts to limit clocks and therefore performance. The processor is actually made up of three separate chips under the heatspreader, so it is not a monolith (one chip). There are two 7nm 8-core/16-thread ZEN 3 and one low-end 12nm I/O pieces of silicon. The two small 7nm chips generate the most heat. In general, a larger chip area is more advantageous for cooling, as heat is dissipated more easily across the surface. However, with the current AMD ZEN chips, which are very small (only around 80mm2), the heat is extremely concentrated (as well as the transistors in the chip themselves) on a very small area. The area through which the chip transmits heat to the heatspreader is very small, which is why there are significant temperature fluctuations. A processor such as the Ryzen 9 5950X shows significant and rapid temperature changes, depending on the load. This processor can show high temperatures, but that doesn't mean it's heating up, so to speak. It makes a big difference if you have a small 70mm2 chip with a temperature of 80°C or a 200mm2 large chip with the same temperature. The Ryzen 9 5950X is actually extremely efficient with a low base TDP of only around 105W. However, even with powerful cooling, temperature fluctuations between 65 - 85°C in various types of load and 30 - 40°C in idle states are common. In our case, we are testing a typical longer-term load in CineBench R23, and all coolers are left in their own auto-regulation mode, so the fan speed and noise are different. And so here are the main differences.


Performance

Out of the gate, with our stock settings used, the 71°C result is impressive and less than three degrees from the top of the chart.

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Applying the overclocked settings, we find the Arctic Freezer 36 A-RGB within three degrees of the top of the chart again.

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But the shocking part came when we noise-normalized the numbers. Here we saw that the Freezer 36 was extremely quiet all across the board, completely outperforming most of other coolers in noise-to-performance in the upper Fan speeds. The only cooler that was actually able to score less of this amazing ratio was the single fan Arctic Freezer a35!

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Final Thoughts

Arctic really pulled a rabbit out of the hat with the Freezer 36 Dual Fan coolers. Not only is performance solid but price to performance is also exceptional which is now greatly improved by an ongoing discount(€19.13-€25.96). While this air cooler was not able to surpass the thermals of any of the Top tested air coolers, it was still able to come decently close, which given the price difference, is impressive. Plus, it has two great fans that offers excellent airflow while operating with low noise. The installation was simple without any difficulty at any point in the process. The clean black finish on the cooler itself looks sleek and gives the Freezer 36 A-RGB a clean look. Its height of just under 16 centimeters can sometimes exclude it from compatibility with some cases.

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Overall, the Arctic Freezer 36 A-RGB is a solid cooler that proves going cheaper does not necessarily mean sacrificing quality. The cooler will bring tears to the eyes of some more expensive models. In summation, the Freezer 36 A-RGB provide excellent value and performance, and are backed with a stellar warranty, making them easy to recommend.

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