The be quiet! Dark Rock 5 is a middle-sized CPU cooler. The retail box securely includes the CPU cooler and its accessories. The product will cost $69.90 / €69.90 / £69.99. MSRP (3 years warranty), The product supports many Intel (>1700 / 1200 /1150 / 1151 / 1155) and recent AMD (AM5 / AM4) sockets.

Opening the box unveils the contents, the CPU cooler is in the middle, and accessories and everything are well organized and protected

• 1x CPU cooler
• Several user manual languages
• 1x thermal compound
• 1x Intel Mounting Kit
• 1x AMD mounting Kit
• 1x long philips screwdriver

The product includes a modified Silent Wings 4 120mm fan, that according to be quiet! supports up to 2100rpm and produces 29.3dB at max RPM

The CPU cooler is big and users must use the online motherboard-compatible website to be 100% sure about compatibility. At the top, there is a magnetic top cover that includes the be quiet! logo. The exact dimensions of the product can be found below.

The total height of the product is around 161mm in height for the cooler and around 136mm in width. There is a 40.0mm height clearance for the memory modules, which is a nice touch even due to its asymmetrical design you won't have a problem with high-height memory modules.

The Dark Rock 5 includes 6 heat pipes with Φ6mm dimension and the base is made out of copper to allow the use of liquid cooling as well. The fins are made out of aluminum and the product has a ceramic coating for protection and a matte stealth look.

High-end RAM modules often feature tall heat spreaders or ARGB LED attachments. While they enhance the aesthetic appeal and performance of the memory, they increase its size. This limits the clearance for your air cooler heat sink and fan. Dark Rock 5 solves this issue with its asymmetrical design that allows the use of high-height RGB modules.

A side view of the cpu cooler

The back design of the fins

Installing the CPU cooler requires some steps. For our tests we used an AMD5 CPU (AMD Ryzen 7950X), so we had either view the online video from be quiet! or simply read the included manual some basic steps are mentioned below:

1. To permit mounting of the cooler please remove both the plastic retainers of the AMD retention module. The factory-fitted backplate affixed to the rear side of the motherboard will be needed for subsequent installation of the cooler.

2. Place the 4x AMD spacer nuts onto the backplate bolts protruding through the front side and affix both short AMD mounting brackets with the AMD backplate screws.

3. First remove the protective foil from the underside of the cooler. Spread the thermal paste on the surface of the CPU. The amount supplied is sufficient for one or two applications.

4. Position the cooler mounting bridge centrally on the cooler. Next place the cooler unit onto the CPU. Loosen both heatpipe caps that are found in the middle of the topside of the cooler

5. Insert the Intel/AMD mounting bridge fastening screws from above into the cooler mounting bridge and then screw these alternately tight. You can use the cross-tip screwdriver for this. Subsequently, retighten both heatpipe caps on the topside of the cooler.

6. Connect the fan cable to the CPU motherboard. As a last step attach the top cover again via magnets.

Below is a picture of the Dark Rock 5 installed with four memory DIMMs that are not affected at all by the CPU cooler.