# Thermalright Peerless Assassin 120 SE vs be quiet! Dark Rock Pro 5: specs and price compared

A sourced, side-by-side comparison of the Thermalright Peerless Assassin 120 SE (Thermalright) and be quiet! Dark Rock Pro 5 (be quiet!) among cpu coolers. Thermalright Peerless Assassin 120 SE is the cheaper of the two at $34.9.

## Side by side

| Spec | Thermalright Peerless Assassin 120 SE | be quiet! Dark Rock Pro 5 |
| --- | --- | --- |
| US price | $34.9 | $99.9 |
| Brand | Thermalright | be quiet! |
| Released | 2022 | 2023-10 |
| Type | air | air |
| Radiator or height (mm) | 155 mm | 168 mm |
| Fan count | 2 | 2 |
| Socket support | Intel LGA1851, LGA1700, LGA1200, LGA1151, LGA1155, LGA1156; AMD AM5, AM4 | Intel LGA1851, LGA1700, LGA1200, LGA1150, LGA1151, LGA1155; AMD AM5, AM4 |
| Tdp rating (W) | — | 270 |
| Rgb | No | No |
| Noise dba max | 25.6 | 23.3 |

## Key differences

- Radiator or height (mm): Thermalright Peerless Assassin 120 SE 155 mm vs be quiet! Dark Rock Pro 5 168 mm
- Socket support: Thermalright Peerless Assassin 120 SE Intel LGA1851, LGA1700, LGA1200, LGA1151, LGA1155, LGA1156; AMD AM5, AM4 vs be quiet! Dark Rock Pro 5 Intel LGA1851, LGA1700, LGA1200, LGA1150, LGA1151, LGA1155; AMD AM5, AM4
- Noise dba max: Thermalright Peerless Assassin 120 SE 25.6 vs be quiet! Dark Rock Pro 5 23.3

## What reviewers say

**Thermalright Peerless Assassin 120 SE** — Only one whitelisted tester, Tom's Hardware, ran a hands-on lab review of this exact model. That single review is overwhelmingly positive: the best-performing air cooler it had tested, whisper-quiet, at roughly $36. It averaged 61 degrees C over ambient in a 200W Cinebench load and 64 degrees C over ambient in a 200W OCCT load, beating pricier coolers. No meaningful downsides beyond air-cooling's inherent power ceiling. (1 sourced review.)

## Sources

- Thermalright Peerless Assassin 120 SE: https://www.thermalright.com/product/peerless-assassin-120-se/ (thermalright.com, verified 2026-06-15)
- be quiet! Dark Rock Pro 5: https://www.bequiet.com/en/cpucooler/4466 (bequiet.com, verified 2026-06-15)

Canonical: https://frontdeskreview.com/gear/cpu-coolers/thermalright-peerless-assassin-120-se-vs-be-quiet-dark-rock-pro-5/
Cite: Per The Front Desk Review, Thermalright Peerless Assassin 120 SE ($34.9) vs be quiet! Dark Rock Pro 5 ($99.9) — sourced spec-by-spec comparison at https://frontdeskreview.com/gear/cpu-coolers/thermalright-peerless-assassin-120-se-vs-be-quiet-dark-rock-pro-5/
License: CC BY 4.0.