Sound Level Testing
While we were testing cooling capabilities, as outlined in our recent introduction article, we were also tracking the sound level of each of the coolers using a Risepro SPL meter attached to a boom arm pointed directly at the fans of the radiator at a distance of 12 inches. We recorded the dB(A) level for each fan and pump speed tested. The ambient room sound level measured 33 decibels. Displayed below are the results of our Stock Clock Testing.
One thing to note is that the Sickleflow fans used by the MasterAir MA624 registered a minimum of 750RPM and a maximum of 1450RPM on our test rig. Therefore, the 100% Fan and 1500 RPM fan speed tests are operating at 1450 RPM and the 600 RPM fan speed test is operating at 750RPM.
100% Fans
At maximum fan levels, the be quiet! Cooler Master MasterAir MA624 Stealth was the quietest at 40.9 dB(A) with the Dark Rock Pro 4 right behind it (40.9 dB(a)). The Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO hit 51.9 dB(A) and the Iceberg Thermal IceSLEET X7 Dual hit 54.1 dB(A)! From a subjective perspective, the Cooler Master MasterAir MA624 Stealth and be quiet! Dark Rock Pro 4 was rather unremarkable while the rest of the units were audible.
1500 RPM Fans
Dropping down to 1500 RPM, the Cooler Master MasterAir MA624 Stealth is the lead at 40.7 dB(A) with the be quiet! Dark Rock Pro 4 was just behind at 40.9 dB(A) and the Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO was about 4 dB(A) behind it at 44.7 dB(A). The X7 Dual was far behind all of these at 52.7 dB(A)!
1000 RPM Fans
When we lowered the fans down to 1000 RPM, the Cooler Master MasterAir MA624 Stealth and be quiet Dark Rock Pro 4 tied for the lead with a value of 38.7 dB(A). The Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO is right there on its heels at 39.9 dB(A). The Iceberg Thermal IceSLEET X7 Dual was off in the weeds at 44.1 dB(A). At this point, the noise from all of the coolers sounded like it merged with the background noise for everyone except the IceSLEET X7 Dual.
600 RPM Fans
Lowering the fans to 600 RPM saw the Cooler Master MasterAir MA624 Stealth and be quiet! Dark Rock Pro 4 to maintain the lead at 37.4 dB(A). The Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO registered 38.7 dB(A) while the Iceberg Thermal IceSLEET X7 Dual continues to trail at 39.9 dB(A).
The Cooler Master MasterAir MA624 Stealth appears to perform about on par with the be quiet! Dark Rock Pro 4 overall, which is pretty impressive in our book. With that said, let’s move on and recap all of this for you today!