Arctic Cooling Freezer 13 Pro CPU Cooler Review

Conclusion and Final Thoughts

This was the first time I have used a cooler from Arctic Cooling. I will say that the overall experience was good. The cooler is solidly built and was very easy to install. The chipset cooling fan is a new feature; it will be interesting to see if more coolers might start showing up with similar setups. Overall I think that long time users of the Freezer series would be happy with this cooler for their next system.

The sound level rating that Arctic Cooling used for the Freezer 13 Pro is the Sone. The Sone is a perceived level of sound; it is not like dB ratings. Since there is no direct conversion, in a roundabout way, 0.4 Sone is roughly equivalent to 24 dBA. Now the Scythe fans I use in the test bench for top exhaust are rated 1200RPM and push 68.5 CFM at 24dBA. In my testing I found the Freezer 13 Pros fans to sound the same or quieter as the Scythe fans; I know I could not hear the Freezer 13 Pro over the Scythe fans.

The secondary Cross Blow fan did help with cooling the voltage regulators and the ICH chipset. This could help with those running the higher overclocks to prolong the life of the board.

The mounting system for the Freezer 13 Pro was easy to install. I would have liked to have seen a backing plate for it, though. The Freezer 13 Pro weighs in at 902g; thats twice the limit of 450g that Intel states as the max weight for the socket. The height of the Freezer 13 Pro will be something to keep in mind, as well. At 159mm its a tall cooler. It seems to be the average height anymore, but users with small cases will need to do some checking on the max cooler height for their case. For those with small cases and those used to Arctic Cooling’s smaller 92mm coolers take a look at the Freezer 13 Pros little sibling, the Freezer 13. The Freezer 13 has a 92mm fan and stands 130mm tall, but does not have the Cross Blow fan.

I currently could not find the Freezer 13 Pro online anywhere other than on Arctic Coolings website for $54.90 plus, according to the shipping calculator, another $20 or so for international shipping out of Hong Kong. So if you want the Freezer 13 Pro it might be worth waiting for an online e-tailer to get one in stock. At the $54.90 price, and some better shipping cost, the Freezer 13 pro is a nice cooler. Currently where I can find it, the shipping cost is a bit high.

Legit Bottom Line: The Freezer 13 Pro is a nice cooler and its new Cross Blow feature does help cool the motherboard around the socket.