2024-07-28 06:21:03
The Thermalright Phantom Spirit 120 EVO (PS 120 EVO) is a dual-tower air cooler with seven heat pipes, equipped with seven Ø 6 mm heat conduction pipes and upgraded with two TL-K12 fans. Its all-black design enhances overall aesthetic appeal, supporting installation on new platform sockets such as Intel LGA 1851/1700 and AMD AM5/AM4. Although the price has increased, it is still within NT$2,000, and it comes with a 1-year warranty.
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Specifications of Thermalright Phantom Spirit 120 EVO (PS 120 EVO):
Intel socket: LGA 2066/2011/1851/1700/1200/115x
AMD socket: AM5/AM4
Dimensions: 110 x 125 x 157 mm
Weight: 810 g (without fans)
Number of heat pipes: Ø6 mm x7
Copper base: C1100 pure copper with nickel plating (flat)
Fan used: Thermalright TL-K12
Fan dimensions: 120 x 120 x 25 mm
Fan speed: 2150 RPM ± 10%
Maximum airflow: 69 CFM
Maximum static pressure: 2.87 mmH₂O
Fan power supply: 5V 3-Pin ARGB / PWM 4-Pin
Included thermal paste: Thermalright TF-7
Warranty: 1 year
Thermalright Phantom Spirit 120 EVO Dual Tower Air Cooler Unboxing
In 2020, Thermalright released the classic dual tower Peerless Assassin 120 (PA120), successfully taking the spot of the preferred air cooler from Scythe. Since then, the visibility of Scythe’s coolers such as the Fuma, Mugen, and Ninja has significantly decreased, and most air cooling demands have been occupied by Thermalright.
This unboxing of the Thermalright Phantom Spirit 120 EVO, abbreviated as PS 120 EVO, has a retail price of around NT$1,890 in Taiwan. It features a dual-tower design paired with two Thermalright TL-K12 fans and seven Ø 6 mm heat conduction pipes, providing a new dual tower air cooling option for Intel/AMD mainstream and high-end processors.
It supports installation on Intel LGA 2066/2011/1851/1700/1200/115x and AMD AM5/AM4 platforms, meaning that the upcoming new platforms from both companies will be supported. Of course, AMD has used the same sockets for several years, so it’s not a big deal.
∆ The Thermalright Phantom Spirit 120 EVO (PS 120 EVO) uses AGHP 4 fourth-generation gravity-inverted heat pipes.
∆ Basic features of PS 120 EVO.
∆ Basic specifications.
∆ Custom-shaped pearl cotton storage.
The PS 120 EVO still features a dual tower design, with dimensions of 110 x 125 x 157 mm. The stipulated height of 157 mm requires compact cases to verify compatibility. Unlike the cheaper original PS 120 model, the more expensive PS 120 EVO uses a plated black design for the tower and heat pipes, coupled with an aluminum top cover that enhances overall quality.
The tower itself has an Y-axis offset, meaning one can choose to position it closer to the M.2/GPU or the top of the case, while there is no offset on the X-axis. However, cooling fins have been cut to reserve space for RAM and motherboard VRM heatsinks to avoid installation conflicts.
∆ Tower height 157 mm.
∆ Reserved space for RAM and motherboard heatsinks.
∆ Y-axis offset shown.
∆ Completely blacked-out cooling fins with rounded edges.
∆ Aluminum top cover with the Thermalright logo.
All seven Ø 6 mm heat pipes are also treated with black plating, further enhancing overall quality while maintaining aesthetic appeal. The C1100 pure copper contact surface comes with a scratch protection film pre-applied, so remember to remove it before applying thermal paste!
∆ Blackened seven heat pipes.
∆ Transparent protective film.
∆ CNC C1100 pure copper with nickel-plated contact surface.
∆ Flat contact design.
The Thermalright Phantom Spirit 120 EVO (PS 120 EVO) comes with two TL-K12 fans that use S-FDB V2 bearings, with a maximum airflow and static pressure of 69 CFM and 2.87 mmH₂O, respectively, and a maximum fan speed reaching up to 2150 RPM ± 10%. Unlike the cheaper version that comes with C12 V2 fans, this time a more powerful fan is provided.
The fans are powered by a PWM 4-Pin, with 5V 3-Pin ARGB for synchronized ARGB lighting effects.
∆ TL-K12 fans.
∆ One male and one female ARGB connection cable for cable management, with PWM for fan speed settings and power supply.
∆ Fan lighting effects.
The accessories are the same as the original version, with no special differences. The contents include: two installations clips, TF7 thermal paste, PWM splitter cable, two sets of fan installation screws, Intel installation backplate.
∆ Accessory box.
∆ Overview of accessories.
∆ TF7 thermal paste.
∆ Display of fan installation clips.
Thermalright Phantom Spirit 120 EVO Thermal Performance Testing
This time, the Thermalright Phantom Spirit 120 EVO (PS 120 EVO) dual-tower air cooler was installed on a bare test platform, with an Intel Core i9 13900K processor and MSI MEG Z690I UNIFY motherboard. During testing, in the motherboard BIOS, the fan header speed was set to full speed, and the test scenario took place in a closed room at 24 °C. Since the ambient temperature of a regular room is difficult to control, this should only be used as a reference.
For testing software, we used AIDA64 FPU and Cinebench 2024 for multi-core testing to simulate temperature data under extreme load conditions. Additionally, we played “Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla” at 1080P resolution to present game performance, and data was collected using HWiNFO64 to record the maximum temperature and power consumption of the CPU and CPU package.
Testing Platform
Processor: Intel Core i9 13900K (QS)
Cooler: Thermalright Phantom Spirit 120 EVO (full speed)
Motherboard: MSI MEG Z690I UNIFY (BIOS Version: 7D29v1H)
Memory: Kingston FURY Renegade DDR5 RGB 7200 MT/s 16GBx2 (white)
Graphics Card: MSI GeForce GTX 1080 SEA HAWK X
Operating System: Windows 11 Pro 22H2
System Drive: Plextor PCIe Gen3 x4 M.2 2280 SSD 512GB
Game Drive: Intel 670P 2TB M.2 2280 PCIe SSD (Solidigm)
Power Supply: FSP Hydro PTM PRO ATX3.0 (PCIe5.0) 1200W
Graphics Card Driver: GeForce Game Ready 555.99
Case: STREACOM BC1 Benchtable V2
To supplement a few things, the first is that I updated the BIOS version of MSI MEG Z690I UNIFY to version 7D29v1H, the second is that the default PL1/PL2 of MSI MEG Z690I UNIFY is 288 W, and I will conduct the tests with the default settings of this motherboard, which means that the average long-term power consumption is limited to 288 W; the short-term peak power (to respond to Turbo Boost peak conditions) is also 288 W, with other settings being: Game Boots_off, XMP_on, fans in full speed.
In the AIDA64 CPU daily application load test, the 13900K consumes around 191 W; the maximum temperature is 78 °C, while during “Assassin’s Creed Valhalla,” the maximum temperature was 75 °C.
Under high-stress load testing, in one round of Cinebench 2024 multi-core rendering sessions, the maximum power was 227 W with the 13900K reaching a maximum temperature of 85 °C. During a thirty-minute long stress test using AIDA64 FPU, it reached a maximum temperature of 85 °C.
- AIDA64 FPU_30 Minute
- AIDA64 CPU_30 Minute
- “Assassin’s Creed Valhalla” 1920 x 1080(FHD)_5 Minute
- Cinebench 2024 Multi Core_1 Round
- CPU temperature is measured internally (core) or externally (case) from the diode in the socket, but it’s impossible to know accurately whether the measurement is internal or external. Most monitoring software displays CPU temperature based on this metric.
- The CPU Package temperature is recorded by all digital temperature sensors (DTS) within the package, taking the highest temperature average value within 256 milliseconds; this is the recommended CPU temperature value to observe in HWiNFO64, and whether the processor will overheat and throttle is based on this value.
∆ Cooling performance results.
∆ AIDA64 FPU testing situation.
Conclusion
The Thermalright Phantom Spirit 120 EVO (PS 120 EVO), when tested with an ITX motherboard and Intel i9-13900K, was able to keep the CPU power consumption of 214~227 W around 85 °C under high load stress testing. Roughly estimating, the cooling limit might be around 250 W, which is similar to the PL limitations most motherboards will set for the i9. Considering that users purchasing the PS 120 EVO for building a system might not opt for flagship motherboards, this dual-tower seven heat pipe cooler should handle normal usage without any significant issues even without additional overclocking.
Overall cooling performance might be slightly less than that of 360 AIO liquid coolers, with temperatures under high load usage being 9~11 °C higher; during gaming and daily usage, it’s 8~9 °C higher. However, the Thermalright TL-K12 fans running at full speed can be a bit noisy, so noise-sensitive users may need to customize the fan curve to find the best settings for their use case.
The PS 120 EVO differentiates itself with upgraded Thermalright TL-K12 fans and an all-black design; personally, I quite like this black design, as it provides a sharper visual effect suitable for users who prefer a low-key build style.
In terms of installation, it seems the fan clips could be tightened to make installation smoother, but considering the price of under NT$2,000, it’s hard to demand perfection. I paired this with Kingston FURY Renegade DDR5 RGB 7200 MT/s 16GBx2 (white) (Height: 44 mm), which raised the overall height from 157 mm, so if you don’t want the fans to be pushed up, it’s recommended to use memory modules that are 40~42 mm tall without RGB lighting for the best fit; after all, you won’t see it once installed.