The SilentiumPC Fera 3 cooler probably doesn’t need to be introduced. This popular cooler is often installed in computer builds, where favorable price-performance ratio is a big deal. It also presents direct competition for the recently tested Freezer 34 from Arctic. In addition, I plan to supplement this pair soon with a test of the recently released 212 Evo V2 cooler from Cooler Master, and I will also add Windale 4 from FSP.
Conclusion and rating
SilentiumPC Fera 3 is simply an excellent cooler in its class. I was a little surprised by the temperature difference between the Fera and the recently tested Arctic Freezer 34 cooler, I expected a closer result. Unfortunately, this difference is achieved at the cost of a noisier fan in the Fera 3.
In addition, the used Sigma Pro 120 PWM fan emits an unpleasant high-frequency buzz at higher rpm. So I supplemented the standard tests with another set, where I combined the Fera 3 heatsink with the Arctic P12 PST PWM fan. The sound of this build was suddenly much more pleasant without leading to an excessive rise in temperature.
It would also not be a bad idea for the engineers at SilentiumPC to develop a slightly more user-friendly mounting system that would make use of integrated spring screws. But given the selling price, these are only minor flaws. Overall, this is a very solid product and in terms of price/performance ratio it will be very difficult to find an alternative.
| SilentiumPC Fera 3 |
| + Good cooling performance |
| + Great price to performance ratio |
| + High build quality |
| - Louder fan |
| - More complicated installation |
