I had very high hopes for be quiet!'s Dark Rock TF 2, as I have a soft spot for top-flow coolers because my first aftermarket high-end air cooler many years ago was a top-flow design. However, the Dark Rock TF 2, at least on my test systems, fails to impress where it matters the most, which is performance. Sure, the cooler has an exceptional noise profile, meaning it's quiet in all situations, but in terms of pure performance, it's not any different than a standard tower cooler for about a third the price. Now, be quiet! does state that the cooler is a niche design made for specific use cases, such as compact form factor builds or a system that requires additional cooling for the VRM or RAM and needs good airflow to let the cooler shine. My only problem with that is on an open test bench with no restrictions in a climate-controlled environment of 21–22°C and nothing to keep hot air near the cooler, its performance is still not what it should be. Just to verify, I did use a 140 mm low-RPM fan to help move cooler air to the top fan, and it made no noticeable difference as peak temperatures remained the same.

Build quality was exceptional in regards to fit and finish, and while the AM4 mounting hardware could be better, it's not the worst setup I have used. Clearance for the graphics card was fine as well, and even memory clearance was better than expected, although not perfect with be quiet! stating the maximum DIMM height to be 49 mm. A major selling point of the cooler is its height of 134 mm, which is nice for cases where you are limited in that regard, but when a cooler like the ID-Cooling SE 914 XT Basic can be had for sub-$30 and generally speaking performs close enough to the Dark Rock TF 2 while also being more compact, it essentially means the Dark Rock TF 2 ends up being a terrible value. Sure, you can remove a fan on the be quiet! cooler to drop the height down a bit more, but that also results in less performance, which would make the situation even worse.

Now, lower TDP processors will be just fine with the Dark Rock TF 2, but when you're paying this much for an air cooler, it better bring serious performance to the table. Even the additional cooling to various components would only really be needed if you had entry-level parts, at which point there is no reason to spend $86 on a cooler to then skimp on a motherboard with no or inadequate VRM cooling. This cooler performing this badly is quite baffling as well since it should be doing better based on the number of heat pipes and its overall mass. But I guess that just goes to show that, like the ID-Cooling SE-207-XT, size isn't everything. I should also point out that, yes, I have checked the mount, thermal paste spread, and other fans with the end result being the same: lackluster cooling performance on high TDP processors. Looking at the Dark Rock TF 2's stock performance, the cooler does alright, and for processors at or below 130 watts, it likely will suffice, but I see no way for this cooler to adequately handle up to 230 watts.

While I generally do like the majority of be quiet!'s coolers, the Dark Rock TF 2 needs a rework. Sure, if you're running a low core count or low TDP processor and want to spend more money than necessary, it might be just the ticket, but there are far better options out there for pragmatic consumers. As such, I cannot recommend be quiet!'s latest cooler.