Cooler Thermalright Peerless Assassin 120 SE Black Dual-Tower CPU Cooler

Thermalright Peerless Assassin 120 SE Black is a dual-tower air CPU cooler aimed at mid-range and more serious gaming/workstation configurations. You get two 120 mm fans and a massive heatsink that can handle loaded CPUs without sounding like a vacuum cleaner. It is compatible with a wide range of sockets, including AM4/AM5 and LGA 1700/LGA 1851, making it a good option for both new and future upgrades. The black design is clean and discreet – without RGB, which is a plus if you are going for a simpler build.

What you get

The two 120 mm fans with a range of 500–1550 RPM give you a good balance between cooling and silence, allowing you to keep the system almost silent at lower speeds. The airflow of 132.34 CFM is serious for an air cooler and helps keep temperatures under control during prolonged gaming or rendering. The maximum static pressure of 1.53 mmH2O is important in a dual-tower design because the air needs to pass effectively through the tightly spaced fins of the heatsink. The noise level of up to 25.6 dBA means that even under load it won't dominate over the other fans in the case, especially if you set an adequate fan curve through BIOS or software.

• Dual-tower design with 2x 120 x 120 x 25 mm fans, providing a larger cooling area compared to standard single towers.
• Wide RPM range from 500 to 1550 RPM, allowing fine-tuning between silence in idle and good airflow under load.
• Total airflow of 132.34 CFM, suitable for cooling hotter CPUs in gaming and workstation configurations.
• Maximum static pressure 1.53 mmH2O, which helps the air effectively pass through the dense radiator of the dual-tower construction.
• Low noise level up to 25.6 dBA, making it a suitable choice for a quiet system, especially with a well-tuned fan curve.
• 4-pin PWM connector for both fans, allowing the motherboard to automatically adjust the speeds based on the CPU temperature.
• Compatibility with sockets AM4, AM5, LGA 115x, LGA 1200, LGA 1700, and LGA 1851, giving you freedom in choice and future platform upgrades.

Who it is suitable for

This cooler is a good choice if you are building a mid-range to more serious gaming or productivity build and want stable air cooling without RGB and unnecessary noise. It is suitable if you plan upgrades between different generations of CPUs, as it covers popular sockets for both Intel and AMD. It is not the most suitable if you are aiming for extreme overclocking or looking for an entirely RGB aesthetic for a showcase build.

The combination of dual-tower design, two 120 mm fans with high airflow, and relatively low noise makes the Thermalright Peerless Assassin 120 SE Black a very sensible choice if you are looking for serious CPU cooling without entering the territory of expensive AIO water solutions.