Installation

First, the cooler needs to be prepared for mounting. Start off by lining the brackets up with the two holes on the base. Using the small screws, tighten the brackets down so they are snug and secure.


Next, take the four hexagonal nuts with sleeves and push them through the proper hole on the brackets. Then, taking the plain hexagonal nuts, screw them onto the other nuts to hold those in place.


It is now time to install the backplate. Line it up with the four holes on the motherboard before dropping the longer screws down through those holes. Use the C-profile spacers to hold the screws in place. Now, apply the thermal paste so the heatsink can be mounted.


When mounting the cooler, line up the four screws with the four hexagonal nuts. Once set, simply switch to the backplate and screw the four screws in tight.


All that is left now is to mount the fan to the cooler. Keep in mind that you can mount the fan on any side you want. A unique airflow-optimization feature that lets you direct the airflow from any side you want, it can also create some flexibility with RAM compatibility.

The mounting hardware be quiet! has provided with the Shadow Rock 2 works just fine but is a bit on the awkward side. It also doesn't overcomplicate the installation. I would rate the installation process for the average user a 7 on a scale of 1 (hardest) to 10 (easiest).