Thermalright Phantom Spirit 120 SE Black CPU Air Cooler,7 Heat Pipes CPU Cooler,Dual 120mm PWM Fans, 25.6dba,for AM4/AM5&Intel 1851/1700/1150/1151/1200, PC Cooler Tower

This all black cpu cooler is amazing and easy to install unless you are also trying to install one of those CPU frames because when you unscrew everything the backplate will fall off if you are trying to upgrade your existing build. I had to use painters tape to keep the backplate on while I screwed in the CPU frame for am5 before the CPU cooler. I was building in a Corsair 4000d airflow so thankfully it was big enough to build in without too much trouble. Make sure to measure your case to make sure parts like these fit. Here is a little tip, because of the price I didn't assume they sent you a quality thermal paste. They send you a big tube of their paste which is fine to use but I went and bought a better thermal paste just in case. I bought a tube of the arctic mx4 and it has my CPU a ryzen 7700 OC at 34-42 on average load not counting gaming or AI. With a high load the CPU can hit high 60s or 70s which is a lot better than the AMD stock wraith cooler I was using before which hit 80-90c. If you get the frame for the CPU be sure to have a screw driver with a strong magnet so you do not drop a screw on the socket which would bend your pins and ruin your motherboard. Which could have happened because I have tremors in my hands but the strong magnet in my LTT screwdriver made it so even the big cooler screws didn't fall. Installing it is pretty easy but I would recommend watching a video on how to do it if you have not installed a cooler like this before. Dual tower means you need a longer screw driver to get between the narrow towers to tighten the cooler to the board. Make sure it's tight too so you do not have to go in and fix it which is a hassle. The cooler comes with a big tube of thermal paste so do a test fit if you are unsure or want to check to see if you applied enough thermal paste to get the best temps possible. It's pretty quiet and the performance cannot be beat at this price. Get this one over the peerless assassin because it is new and has more heat pipes. With the fans be sure to manage the wires which I did by holding them under one of the fan clips after I connected them to the motherboard. If you don't cable manage and have top mounted fans the fan cables could get clipped and make an annoying clicking noise. Never wanted to spend 100 bucks on a CPU cooler before but for this price and performance you cannot beat it. I recommend this cooler very highly and this high performance budget smart company has gained a customer for life. I will hopefully be able to keep using their coolers for every build and recommendation for the rest of my life. Solid black looks sleek and amazing as well which puts it above other silver or brown looking coolers. The only other warning I would have is maybe the fan on the ram side of the board needs to be moved up a little. Get a low clearance ram for a no issue install but some thick/tall or RGB ram might make the cooler look a little off because one fan is a little taller than the rest of the cooler. I only have 2 slots of ram in but if I want to upgrade to 4 slots then I will need to pop the fan off to upgrade. I am trying to give you all the facts but it is not a serious negative. Just something to be aware of because I recommend this cooler at this price for any build where you want to save money but have quality parts. Spend less on a cooler and spend more for a GPU, CPU or nvme SSD. Attached is a pic of the temps from idle to AI testing and starfield.

Kenneth H Addison · 2025-06-29 · via amazon

If you're looking for top-tier air cooling performance without diving into the world of AIOs or spending a fortune, the Thermalright Phantom Spirit 120 an absolute gem. I’ve used many coolers over the years, and this one genuinely punches well above its price point - both in terms of build quality and raw cooling power. I installed this on an AMD AM5 build, and the mounting process was straightforward thanks to the clear instructions and solid hardware. The cooler feels premium right out of the box - sleek black finish, sturdy dual-fan setup, and those seven beefy heat pipes scream high performance. You can immediately tell this isn’t some budget-tier knockoff. In actual use, this cooler is a powerhouse. Temperatures dropped under load compared to my stock cooler and even outperformed some mid-tier AIO solutions I’ve tested in the past. What really surprised me is how quiet it runs - even when my CPU is under stress during gaming or video rendering, the fans remain barely audible. This cooler is a standout choice for builders who want serious thermal performance, a stealthy aesthetic, and exceptional value. Pros: Excellent cooling performance even under heavy loads Near-silent operation thanks to efficient dual 120mm fans Premium build quality with a sleek all-black design Compatible with a wide range of Intel and AMD sockets Easy installation with included hardware and clear instructions

Bruce L · 2025-04-23 · via amazon

It’s the goat for a reason. Cooking is excellent, I think I idle at 45. It’s a big cooler but that’s what is needed until we have a break through in materials science. Airflow is good apparently, because my temps are good. Noise is good. My computer makes a low hum that is impossible to heat when you have your headphones on. It functions great as my temps are good, better than the dark rock pro 5. Doesn’t look as visually appealing as the drp5 but it still looks pretty cool.

Ryan · 2025-09-30 · via amazon

Easy to install, and keeps my Ryzen 7 9700x nice and cool during long sessions.

George King · 2026-03-17 · via amazon

This is really quite a machine when it comes to CPU cooling, works perfectly. Keeps my 9600x running quite cool, in addition to my two intake and one exhaust case fans. It fit my Asus B650E-F Wifi Gaming motherboard well and came with hardware for both AMD/Intel CPUs. The thermal paste I wasn't super impressed with, it was just a little dry, if I could do it again I would have gotten separate thermal paste but it isn't enough of an issue to subtract a star.

Lydz ♡ · 2026-03-11 · via amazon

Best Buy

Not tracked at this retailer

MSI

Not tracked at this retailer

Newegg

Not tracked at this retailer

Newegg (Open Box)

Not tracked at this retailer

VALUE SCORE

Price

$20

Price

$20