ARCTIC Freezer 36 - Single-Tower CPU Cooler with Push-Pull, Two Pressure-optimised 120 mm P Fans, Fluid Dynamic Bearing, 200–1800 RPM, 4 Heatpipes, incl. MX-6 Thermal Compound

Works like a charm. Definitely better than the water cooled cpu. Air cooled rocks!!! Will definitely buy this product again. Easy installation. Everything i needed was all included. 5 Star.

As of July 2025 this is undoubtedly the best budget air cooler for AM5 series CPU’s. The size (compared to a field of what are largely monstrously sized coolers) is pleasantly unobtrusive. The cooling is likewise impressive. A few warnings: At the motherboard the standard ‘base’ gets replaced by what are essentially two ‘bridges’. A two screw ‘bar’, at the base of the cooler, screws into the peak of those two bridges. The effect is that the two base/bar screws and the heat-sink base itself form a three-way force connection to the board & cpu. It’s not as stable as a 4 way connection. If you bump it (even a little) it may twist a little on the cpu. The heat sink has very innovative insets that let you ‘plug-in’ fans using standard fan screws. This means you can work setting-up the other connections/memory etc. without most the cooler (fans) being in the way. HOWEVER, be very careful applying force when pressing those fans into the heat sink … the base can twist around at the CPU connection point fairly easily. The design is good, the price is right, but you need to be gentle & thoughtful putting it together. Which I suppose is true of the other ‘monsters’ out there as well.For what it’s worth the Black Freezer 36 is replacing an older Arctic Freezer Xtreme (On my 10 year old FX 8350) … which since it fits AM4’s … should also work with an AM5 ? The older cooler is ~10.5 years old, so I’m guessing half way to it’s 100,000 MTF hours ? I also used that cooler model on an early Ryzen system I built for my son. Great performance from both. I’m very happy with ‘Arctic’ products in general (Price, performance & innovative design).

Ditched a water cooled system for this one. Just as cool and less maintenance.Unless you shell out on 3 fan AIO or custom loop, this air cooler will be not only cooler but also more quiet than your 2 fan AIO. And last longer (AIO liquid will eventually dry)

Fit exactly as supposed to, way better than the AM4 spring loaded cooler design. Snap in bolts had me confused at first, but install super easy once you figure it out.Performs great, light weight, solid value for the cooling performance 1 week in.

Easy to assemble and install, with all the parts and tools necessary to finish the job, including thermal paste. Instructions are also available from the manufacturers website in the form of a short video. The only issue I encountered was self inflicted, as I did not identify the airflow arrows on the fans and had to reconnect them. Since they just click into place with light pressure it was no big deal. So far it is keeping my i7 cpu very cool, but I have not stressed the system yet. I do not anticipate any issues going forward. Very satisfied with this purchase as it seems well built and quiet.

Pros:Beautiful, clean aesthetic.Snap on fans are so much easier to deal with than clips. I hate clips.Arctic fans are quiet.Cons:Can become audible when under heavy (stress testing) load, but that's any CPU cooler. Most of what you're hearing is air moving, though.I'm pretty impressed with this little cooler. I put it on a 7600X and it only really gets warm when stress testing. I do run the CPU in eco mode, though, which helps. I hear my case fans more than I hear the CPU cooler.I wouldn't run this CPU cooler on a chip bigger than eight-core, though. I don't think it's got the thermal mass to dissipate the heat a 12- or 16-core chip would output. Should be fine for x800x3d, x700X, x700 though.

Wow! Despite its price point, it is a surprisingly effective and very silent air cooler. I am quite impressed! The video reviews I checked before deciding for this item were positive, and my experience so far confirm their conclusions.

The Artic Freezer 36 Black is easy to install, looks great and is whisper quiet even at an aggressive fan profile. I only wish that the cold plate covered the entire Ryzen CPU. Maybe it covers Intel CPU's better. Recommending it is a "hmmm maybe" if you have Ryzen and know how to undervolt your CPU and set an aggressive fan profile. If you have Intel, you would have to ask someone else what they think.