The Silverstone Argon AR03 is a very surprising CPU cooler. It is not the biggest nor the best but what it does for $49.99 is amazing. Its build quality is solid with no noticeable flaws in my sample. The design is, while simple, very well thought out. The anti-vibration fan mounts show that, with Silverstone going so far as to offer extras for a second fan. The use of these fan mounts really is nice as it does lower sound levels by a small amount. That said, noise levels clocked in at just 47 dBA with 100% fan speed. These are not the best results I have seen, but users should not hear this cooler in the majority of today's cases. Those that do will hear a rush of air and little else. The cooling performance of the Silverstone Argon AR03 is exceptional. With just a single fan, it rivals the Phanteks PH-TC12DX and even does well against the far more expensive Corsair H90. Silverstone has really hit the sweet spot when it comes to balancing cooler performance with noise.

Silverstone Argon AR03's downsides are minor. The Argon AR03 is meant to be used on Intel sockets LGA2011 and LGA1366, as those CPUs have a large IHS. This allows for optimal contact with the heatpipes. CPUs that feature a smaller IHS, such as Intel's LGA1155 CPUs, will end up having two heatpipes that do not make full contact with the CPU, which results in lower performance. Users in such a situation should look at the Argon AR01 and AR02 instead. The only other thing that springs to mind is the blue and white fan. It limits the user's ability to match the cooler with their hardware's color. This is a very minor issue; however, many enthusiasts take great pride in having a PC where all parts match a certain color theme. The only other thing that comes to mind is the lack of a second fan. The fan Silverstone included is quiet, and a second fan could have further improved performance.

In the end, the Silverstone Argon AR03 is a damn good cooler for its size. It offers exceptional cooling with a good noise profile and can take a second fan. All of that with a price tag of just $49.99. Now, if only I liked blue.