Thermalright Assassin X 120 SE White CPU Air Cooler
Bottom line: The Thermalright Assassin X 120 SE White CPU Air Cooler ($17.90 on Amazon as of 2026-10-06): Four 6mm AGHP heat pipes hold performance in vertical or horizontal case orientations; main trade-off: single 120mm fan and four heat pipes cap headroom on high-TDP overclocked CPUs.
As an Amazon Associate, SpecPicks earns from qualifying purchases. Full disclosure →
*Price sourced from Amazon.com. Last updated 2026-10-06. Price and availability subject to change.
Pros & Cons
Pros
- ✓ Four 6mm AGHP heat pipes hold performance in vertical or horizontal case orientations
- ✓ Fan peaks at 66.17 CFM and 1550 RPM while staying at or under 25.6 dB(A)
- ✓ 148mm height fits medium-sized mid-tower cases without a low-profile compromise
- ✓ One kit covers AMD AM4/AM5 and Intel 1150-1200, 1700, 17XX and 1851 sockets
Cons
- ✗ Single 120mm fan and four heat pipes cap headroom on high-TDP overclocked CPUs
- ✗ 148mm height rules out low-profile and small-form-factor ITX builds
- ✗ Fan is fixed at 1550 RPM plus or minus 10 percent, with no high-RPM mode
- ✗ Listing does not state whether thermal paste or a warranty is included
SpecPicks Verdict
SpecPicks scored Thermalright Assassin X 120 SE White CPU Air Cooler using a rating × review-volume × price-fit model applied to published specs and reviews across the cooling & fans category. Thermalright's cooling & fans lineup sits within the broader category mid-tier; price and specs are the deciding factors over brand loyalty here. Judge it on the specification table and the price rather than on sentiment: check the figures that decide your use case, then put it side-by-side with two or three close alternatives in the Compare tool before clicking through.
Common buyer scenarios for cooling & fans of this kind: matching it to an existing build, replacing a failing part, or upgrading from a previous-generation equivalent. Check the spec table below against your current setup — particularly socket / form-factor / power-rating fields — and confirm compatibility on the retailer's listing before purchase. Prices and stock are set by the retailer and may have moved since this page was last updated.
Key Features
- [Brand Overview] Thermalright is a Taiwan brand with more than 20 years of development. It has a certain popularity in the domestic and foreign markets and has a pivotal influence in the player market. We have been focusing on the research and development of computer accessories. R & D product lines include: CPU air-cooled radiator, case fan, thermal silicone pad, thermal silicone grease, CPU fan controller, anti falling off mounting bracket, support mounting bracket and other commodities
- [Product specification]AX120 SE WHITE; CPU Cooler dimensions: 125(L)x71(W)x148(H)mm (4.92x2.8x 5.83 inch);heat sink material: aluminum, CPU cooler is equipped with metal fasteners of Intel & AMD platform to achieve better installation
- 【PWM Fans】TL-C12CW; Standard size PWM fan:120x120x25mm (4.72x4.72x0.98 inches); fan speed (RPM):1550rpm±10%; power port: 4pin; Voltage:12V; Air flow:66.17CFM(MAX); Noise Level≤25.6dB(A), the fan pairs efficient cool with low-noise-level, providing you an environment with both efficient cool and true quietness
- 【AGHP technique】4×6mm heat pipes apply AGHP technique, Solve the Inverse gravity effect caused by vertical / horizontal orientation. Up to 20000 hours of industrial service life, S-FDB bearings ensure long service life of air-cooler radiators. UL class a safety insulation low-grade, industrial strength PBT + PC material to create high-quality products for you. The height is 148mm, Suitable for medium-sized computer case
- 【Compatibility】The CPU cooler Socket supports: Intel:1150/1151/1155/1156/1200/1700/17XX/1851,AMD:AM4 /AM5; For different CPU socket platforms, corresponding mounting plate or fastener parts are provided
Full Specifications
| Brand | Thermalright |
|---|---|
| Model | AX120 SE White |
| Voltage | 12 volts |
| Wattage | 15 watts |
| Material | Aluminum,Metal,Silicone |
| Dimensions | 4.92x2.8x 5.83 inch |
| Unit Count | 1 Count |
| Noise Level | 15 db |
| Part Number | AX120 SE White |
| Compatibility | PC |
| Material Type | Aluminum,Metal,Silicone |
| Cooling Method | Air |
| Number of Items | 1 |
| Air Flow Capacity | 66.17 cfm |
| Compatible Devices | Desktop |
| Included Components | cpu cooler |
| Power Connector Type | 4-Pin |
| Maximum Rotational Speed | 1200 rpm |
| Item Dimensions L x W x H | 4.92"L x 2.8"W x 5.83"H |
| Full listing title | Thermalright Assassin X 120 SE White CPU Air Cooler, 4 Heat Pipes, TL-C12CW PWM Quiet Fan CPU Cooler with S-FDB Bearing, for AMD AM4 AM5/Intel 1700/1150/1151/1200/1851 |
Ready to buy?
Thermalright Assassin X 120 SE White CPU Air Cooler, 4 Heat Pipes, TL-C12CW PWM Quiet Fan CPU Cooler with S-FDB Bearing, for AMD AM4 AM5/Intel 1700/1150/1151/1200/1851 is listed on Amazon. Price, availability, shipping and returns are set by Amazon and its sellers — check the listing for current terms. SpecPicks earns a small commission on qualifying purchases — thank you for supporting independent review work.
*Price sourced from Amazon.com. Last updated 2026-10-06. Price and availability subject to change.
Related Cooling & Fans
More guides & deep dives from the SpecPicks archive
Browse all articles & guides →- RTX 4070 Super vs RX 7800 XT — Which to Buy in 2026
- Best Budget Gaming PC Build 2026 — ~$1,000 ($800 on Sale)
- The Complete Voodoo5 5500 AGP Driver Guide (2026 Edition)
- Emulation Hardware in 2026: FPGA, Software, and Cart-Reader Ecosystems
- Best 1440p Gaming GPUs in 2026
- How to Build a Windows 98 Retro PC in 2026
- Best Retro Handhelds in 2026 — From $35 to $500
More reviews from the SpecPicks archive
Browse all reviews →- Best AM4 CPU to Pair With an RTX 3060 12GB in 2026
- Ryzen 7 5800X3D vs Core i7-14700K on DDR4 for 1440p Gaming (2026)
- Handheld Gaming PC Sale: Best 2026 Deals to Buy Now
- Raspberry Pi OS Moves to the Linux 6.18 LTS Kernel
- ComfyUI on an RTX 3060 12GB: What Image Models Actually Run Well
- RX 580 in 2026: Still Worth It for 1080p Gaming?
- NVIDIA RTX PRO 6000 Blackwell vs RTX A6000: Is 96 GB Worth $4,000 More?
- Ryzen 5 5600G vs Ryzen 7 5700X: Best CPU for a First Gaming PC in 2026
- Cloning a Win98 Voodoo3 Boot Drive: SATA-IDE Adapter Workflow
- Qwen 3.8 vs Kimi K3: Which Open-Weight Model Fits a 12GB Rig?
- Ryzen 5 5600G vs Ryzen 7 5700X: Which Wins for Budget 1080p Gaming?
- Throw a Modern Retro LAN Party in 2026: The Hardware Checklist
- Best Streaming Gear for a $500 Twitch Starter Setup in 2026
- Best Gaming Controllers for PC in 2026: 5 Picks Tested Across Genres
- Ryzen 7 5800X vs Ryzen 9 3900X: Mistral Small 24B Offload (2026)
- Anthropic: AI Builds Working Exploits in Hours, Not Weeks
- AMD Ryzen Buying Guide 2026: Every Tier Compared
- Apple Intelligence Gets a Second Shot With Google and Nvidia Help
- Asus ROG Harpe II Extreme Brings a 65K-DPI Sensor — and a Gold Price Tag
- Build a $20 DualSense PC Adapter: The Open-Source Sony Workaround
- GPU VRAM Guide: Running a 5GB TTS Model Locally
- Ryzen 7 5700X vs Intel Core i7-9700K: Best Budget Gaming CPU in 2026
- Qwen 27B Context Collapse: Why MTP Drops 137K to 14K on 12GB GPUs
- RTX 5070 Ti vs 4070 Ti SUPER
Earliest SpecPicks reviews
Browse full archive →- Best GPU for Llama 3.1 8B (2026)
- Best GPU for Qwen 3 14B (2026)
- Best GPU for Qwen 3 32B (2026)
- Best GPU for Llama 3.1 70B (2026)
- Best GPU for DeepSeek-R1 32B (2026)
- Best GPU for Llama 3.1 405B (2026)
- How to run Llama 3.1 8B on NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090
- How to run Qwen 3 14B on NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090
- How to run Qwen 3 32B on NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090
- How to run Llama 3.1 70B on NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090
- How to run DeepSeek-R1 32B on NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090
- How to run Llama 3.1 8B on NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090