The ID-Cooling SE-224-XTS Black and SE-224-XTS Basic are exceptional entry-level coolers. They deliver incredible performance for the price and have managed to live up to their predecessor, the SE-224-XT Basic's reputation. While the older offering did offer a bit more performance in certain tests, some of that is due to its higher RPM fan, which also produced more noise. At the same 45 dBA, the newer versions deliver competitive performance with improved looks. The only downside, if you can call it that, is the fact the coolers couldn't handle all the OC tests on our AMD Ryzen 9 3900X. However, it did manage to pass the OC tests on the Intel Core i9 10900K, even if by a razor-thin margin. Still, on these processors and at those settings, you really should be using beefier cooling anyway, so I wouldn't really consider this something worth dwelling on. Suffice it to say on any entry to mid-range CPU, the ID-Cooling SE-224-XTS coolers will prove more than adequate; however, competition is fierce, so ID-Cooling isn't the only option available.

As for the build quality, I will say both are perfectly fine. While they are not in the same league as, say, Noctua, that would be foolish to expect. In reality, I don't have any serious issues to report. The base on our two test samples was essentially flat, and I had no bent fins or other problems either. More importantly, there were no clearance issues, be it memory or graphics card. The only area I would like to see improved would be the mounting hardware. I found the solution more than acceptable on Intel, and while the AMD mounting hardware wasn't terrible, it could still be improved via threaded standoffs to make the process quicker. Those that have limited space in their current case will likely be happy to know the SE-224-XTS series should fit the majority of chassis available. Its height is only 151 mm, which is shorter than the previous generation, therefore making it compatible with a larger assortment of cases.

While everyone's love-it-or-hate-it feature, ARGB Lighting, is missing here the company does have ARGB versions available. So if you must have ARGB lighting ID-Cooling does have you covered although I can't speak to the performance of those offerings. That said, if you dislike ARGB lighting then you will likely be quite happy with the SE-224-XTS Black or Basic as both remain an incredible bargain.

Overall the ID-Cooling SE-224-XTS Black and SE-224-XTS Basic are both solid entry-level coolers that deliver great performance per dollar while still offering an aesthetically pleasing design, and while they may not KO their predecessor, they do still perform exceptionally well.