The SilverStone Argon AR07 Cooler Review: Tower Cooling on a Budget
by E. Fylladitakis on June 9, 2017 9:00 AM EST- Posted in
- Cases/Cooling/PSUs
- SilverStone
- Cooler
Conclusion
With the Argon AR07 SilverStone is trying to entice a very specific type of system builder: power users that will be building large gaming systems or workstations but, at the same time, are on a limited budget. This is an interesting market intersection since it’s a group of builders who need better performance and aren’t afraid to spend money on it, but are looking for the “sweet spot” in parts’ performance and pricing, in order to get the best deal for their money. For many companies then this is a low-key but still very important market: if you can make a great product, you'll be watching it sell in high volumes for years to come.
In terms of quality, the Argon AR07 is a well-made product, without any significant imperfections. The unplated copper heatpipes may get oxidized over time, but that will not be causing any real damage to the cooler, only degrade its aesthetic value. Also, due to their unique design, the aluminum fins have many sharp edges and great care is required during the installation of the cooler. Other than these imperfections, the Argon AR07 is a mechanically solid product, with a good mounting mechanism and a firm fins array. However potential buyers should also note that the Argon AR07 is 163 mm tall, so it will require a fairly wide case to fit, a layout that not all budget-minded cases will be designed for.
But more importantly, the overall performance of the Argon AR07 is actually better than what we originally assumed before testing the cooler. Although it cannot compete with premium 140 mm tower cooler offerings directly – nor is it meant to – the AR07's thermal performance does come relatively close, especially with its fan running at higher speeds. At the same time, the $35 cooler is significantly cheaper than premium 140 mm offerings, making it a very appealing choice to users who need a good aftermarket cooler but at a more reasonable price. You do end up trading off a few °C (or dB(A)) in lost performance, but for budget builders this can lower the overall cost of the system, or more likely allow for investing more money on betters parts elsewhere.
Meanwhile when compared to the popular and similarly priced Cooler Master EVO 212 tower cooler, the size of the Argon AR07 offers it a substantial advantage in terms of thermal and acoustics performance. Whereas the EVO 212 is based around a 120 mm fan and its fin array is sized to match, the AR07 is a 140 mm design and benefits accordingly. With more surface area and more airflow it can achieve better results, but this does come at a roughly $5 premium, so it's not going to be quite an apples-to-apples scenario.
Ultimately, assuming that the system’s case is wide enough to fit the 163 mm tall cooler, the SilverStone's Argon AR07 is a reasonable choice for users who are trying to combine good overall performance with the lowest possible cost. The company has hit a good balance between build quality, performance, and price, making it very competitive with the best of the budget coolers, and an option worth taking a look at.
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Outlander_04 - Saturday, June 10, 2017 - link
I hope they have other colorsjardows2 - Monday, June 12, 2017 - link
This is a nice review, and a nice product. Without overclocking, there is a limited level of heat dissipation that is needed before diminishing returns sets in. Spending $75-$100 that will provide no better practical results is a waste. The noise levels are starting to get close on these "budget" products compared to the premium products.To see a product like this that performs competitively with premium products, at a price level competitive with what is considered the "budget" champion, is exciting to me!
mschira - Tuesday, June 13, 2017 - link
Shouldn't a cooler with a 120mm fan be plenty efficient?I guess if a 140 fan fit's in why not, the bigger the merrier, but 120 fan is pretty big already.
I remember the days when CPU coolers had 80mm fans, and they did the job pretty fine.
And they did so with CPUs that consumed quite a lot of power.
Coolers were a little noise at times back in those days, so I get you want a bigger fan.
M.
Outlander_04 - Tuesday, June 13, 2017 - link
All else being equal a 140 mm fan can move more air at lower speed with less noisemschira - Wednesday, June 14, 2017 - link
No doubt that is true. If a 140 cooler fits, that is good. But it often won't.M.
alchemist83 - Sunday, June 18, 2017 - link
140mm, that extra 20mm makes all the differrence in terms of noise output.vext - Thursday, June 15, 2017 - link
Great article, the Argon 7 looks like a good inexpensive alternative. But I have to point out that the best cooler in the article is the Thermalright 140 True Spirit Direct by almost all of the criteria. Just look at the performance graphs. I wish there was just a little discussion about the top performing cooler and what you lose to save $15. The Thermalright is $46 at Newegg right now. That nominal difference gets you a much better fan, full nickel finish, better thermals, and just a better overall , more attractive design. If you think about it, CPU coolers are perhaps the one thing that you can keep using over many computer builds. IMHO it's worth paying just a little more for the best. Thermalright is effectively the Rolls Royce of air cooling. They are also far more reasonably priced than Nexus.Leyawiin - Saturday, June 17, 2017 - link
The other Argon coolers have neat little silicon barrel type fan mounts that easily slide into the cooler and isolate vibration at the same time. Shame to see Silverstone backtrack and start using those damned wire fan mounts again.alchemist83 - Sunday, June 18, 2017 - link
Totally agree, my AR01 had silicone mounts, very easy to use and helps to eliminate vibration.alchemist83 - Sunday, June 18, 2017 - link
Had me an AR01 - was pretty good, lasted a few years till i got bored and upgraded to a Thermalright Macho Rev.B. Way better cooling perf & its totally silent at times. Has full cleareance for high DDR. QUite cheap at 35 pounds, I cant fault it.