Founded in Beijing in 1996, DeepCool has built a solid reputation in the CPU cooler space in recent years, with options such as: Assassin III When AK620considered part of best cpu air cooler at the market. The company’s lineup includes both air coolers and his AIO coolers, plus computer cases, keyboards, power supplies, and other accessories.
But AMD and Intel’s latest CPUs require better cooling than ever before, so DeepCool is back with the new AK500 air cooler. The AK500 has a chungus radiator and a 120mm FK120 fan, but is that enough to tame Intel’s 12900K and enter the best cooler list?We’ll have to do some testing to find out. But first, here are the specs on his AK50 from DeepCool.
Specifications of DeepCool AK500
| cooler | Deep Cool AK500 |
| Manufacturer’s suggested retail price | $59.99 USD |
| heatsink dimensions | 127×90×158mm (with 127×117×158mm fan) |
| net weight | 1040g |
| Socket compatibility | Intel LGA2066/2011-v3/2011/1700/1200/1151/1150/1155 |
| AMD AM4/AM5 | |
| Rated noise level | Up to 31.5 dBa |
| heat pipe | (x5) 0.6 mm copper heat pipes |
| Rated TDP | Up to 240w with Core i9-10900k CPU |
Packing and inclusions
DeepCool’s AK500 is packed in a medium-sized box, with cardboard and foam used to protect the cooler during shipping.
Package includes:
- thick heatsink
- 1x DeepCool FK120 Fan
- Mounts for all latest CPU sockets including AM5 & LGA1700
- Full size tube of thermal paste
- manual
- driver
- low speed fan adapter
- Clip for second fan (not included)
Installation of cooler
Installing DeepCool’s AK500 is pretty straightforward. First, press the backplate onto the motherboard, then use the thumbscrew standoffs to secure it. Then set the mounting bar onto the standoffs and secure using the included thumbscrews.
The AK500 does not come pre-installed with thermal paste, instead DeepCool includes a medium sized tube of thermal paste that can be used for multiple purposes. After applying the thermal paste, you must secure the heatsink to the mounting bar with captive screws. This is where things get a little tricky. The right screw is easy to secure, but the left screw requires a long screwdriver through the heatsink body and can be difficult to aim.
New test configuration
| cooler | DeepCool AK500 Air Cooler |
| Comparison Coolers Tested | BeQuiet Pure Loop 2 FX, 360mm AIO |
| Cooler Master Master Liquid PL360 Flux 360mm AIO | |
| Cougar Forza 85 Air Cooler | |
| Cougar Poseidon GT 360, 360m AIO | |
| Corsair iCUE H100i Elite 240mm AIO | |
| DeepCool LS520, 240mm AIO | |
| CPU | Intel i9-12900K |
| motherboard | MSI z690A-Pro DDR4 |
| case | keep quiet!silent base 802 window |
| PSUs | Deep Cool PQ1000M |
What is the difference from other coolers?
Tall DRAM-compatible angled heatpipes
The AK500’s heatpipes have an angled offset to ensure compatibility with taller RAMs. Don’t worry about high RAM causing installation problems. According to DeepCool, the heatpipe’s internal capillary structure is optimized to achieve high heat dissipation regardless of the orientation of the cooler, whether it is installed vertically or horizontally.
Optimized metal mounting bracket
The included metal mounting bracket is optimized for good contact on the latest Intel and AMD platforms.
Mounting clip for second fan
The AK500 only includes one fan, but DeepCool includes an extra fan clip for enthusiasts who want to add a second fan to maximize cooling performance .
1x DeepCool FK120 Fan
Air coolers are more than just heat sinks. Included fans have a big impact on cooling, noise levels, and performance. DeepCool’s AK500 includes a single his 120mm FK120 model fan. There are two arrows on the side of the LK120 fan. One arrow indicates the direction the fan rotates and the other arrow indicates the direction of the airflow.
| model | FK120 |
| size | 120×120×25mm |
| fan rotation speed | 500-1550 RPM ±10% |
| air flow | 68.99 CFM |
| air pressure | 2.19mmAq |
| noise level | Max 31.5dB(A) |
| lighting | none |
checkerboard matrix fin array
The AK500 incorporates a checkerboard-like matrix fin array designed to increase the static pressure of the airflow.
test configuration
We test DeepCool’s AK500 paired with MSI’s z690 A PRO DDR4 motherboard and Intel’s i9-12900K CPU installed in BeQuiet’s Silent Base 802 computer case. In our previous review, we said that due to the increased heat density of the Intel 7 manufacturing process, as well as changes to core and component layouts, Alder Lake CPUs would be harder to cool than the most core-intensive previous generation CPUs. Workload.
This means coolers that kept previous generations like the i9-10900K nice and cool struggle to keep Intel’s i9-12900K below Tj max (the maximum temperature before the CPU starts throttling) It means that there are cases. Many coolers I tested failed to keep the i9-12900K below TJ max when the power cap was lifted for workloads like Cinebench and OCCT.
This review will primarily compare DeepCool’s AK500 and Cougar’s Forza 85, but I’ll also include the results of various liquid coolers I’ve tested recently.
Keep in mind that there are many factors besides the CPU cooler that affect cooling performance. Your system’s motherboard can particularly affect this, as there are boards on the market with CPU sockets that do not conform to Intel’s specifications, which can cause warping and poor contact with the CPU. The case you use also affects the cooling effect.
With Alder Lake’s cooling demands in mind, we evaluate CPU coolers in three different tiers.
Tier 1: These coolers are able to keep the i9-12900K below TJ max at most loads without enforcing power limits. I believe only the best liquid coolers meet this criteria.
Tier 2: These coolers can apply a CPU power limit of 200W to keep the i9-12900K below the TJ max threshold. I would expect most liquid coolers and the best air coolers to meet this standard.
Tier 3: These coolers are able to keep the i9-12900K below TJ max with a CPU power limit of 140W applied.
test method
To test the limits of a cooler’s ability to dissipate heat, we run two major stress tests. cine bench When OCCT 10 minutes each. This may be a short amount of time, but it’s enough to push most coolers (air and liquid) to their limits.
While stress testing in Cinebench, I ran with the power cap removed and a 200W CPU power cap applied. In this test setup with MSI’s z690 A Pro DDR4 motherboard and Be Quiet’s Silent Base 802 computer case, only the best coolers can pass the Cinebench test when the power cap is lifted.
Do not test OCCT without power capping. Because when I try this, the CPU package draws over 270W, instantly throttling even the best of his AIO coolers. Instead, we test at 200W to give the cooler a chance of passing. We’ve included the 140W results to provide comparable data to less power-hungry CPUs such as AMD’s Ryzen 5800X and Intel’s i5-12600K. 95W test results are also included for those interested in comparable results to lower TDP CPUs such as AMD’s Ryzen 5600x and Intel’s i5-12400.
