The DeepCool AK620 Digital CPU Cooler Review: Big, Heavy, and Lit

Typical CPU coolers do the job for standard heat management but often fall short when it comes to quiet operation and peak cooling effectiveness. This gap pushes enthusiasts and PC builders towards specialized aftermarket solutions designed for their unique demands. The premium aftermarket cooling niche is fiercely competitive, with brands vying to offer top-notch thermal management solutions.

Today we're shining a light on DeepCool's AK620 Digital cooler, a notable entry in the high-end CPU cooler arena. At first blush, the AK620 Digital stands out from the crowd mostly for its integrated LCD screen. Yet aesthetics aside, underneath the snappy screen is a tower cooler that was first and foremost engineered to exceed the cooling needs of the most powerful mainstream CPUs. And it's a big cooler at that: with a weight of 1.5Kg and 162mm tall, this is no lightweight heatsink and fan assembly. All of which helps to set it apart in a competitive marketplace.

With that in mind, let's delve into how the AK620 Digital measures up in performance and its place in the aftermarket cooling landscape.

Packaging & Bundle

The DeepCool AK620 Digital CPU Cooler is presented in sleek packaging, featuring a simple cardboard box embellished with a stylish ribbon for an added touch of elegance. The cooler is securely packaged for transit, nestled in a nylon bag and cushioned by foam inserts to ensure it arrives in pristine condition. On the back of the box, key features and performance highlights of the AK620 Digital are prominently displayed, offering potential purchasers a concise overview of what this cooler brings to their PC setup.

Opening up the packaging uncovers a small cardboard box with the essential mounting accessories alongside basic, straightforward instructions. There is a syringe of premium thermal compound and a very basic screwdriver for the installation of the cooler. The included mounting kit is compatible with a wide array of CPU sockets, making the AK620 Digital versatile for use with numerous Intel (1700 / 1200 / 115x / 2066 / 2011) and AMD (AM5 / AM4) processors.

The DeepCool AK620 Digital CPU Cooler

The DeepCool AK620 Digital CPU Cooler stands out in its category with a formidable dual tower design, integrating six premium 6 mm copper heatpipes that are transferring the thermal energy from the base to the dual large fin arrays. The designer made the cooler black in its entirety, spraying every metallic part with a matte black paint and using two all-black fans. This cooler reaches a height of 162 mm, so compatibility is a consideration for several cases. At nearly 1.5 kg, the AK620 Digital is among the most substantial coolers on the market, highlighting the importance of removing the cooler from the motherboard during system relocation to prevent any potential damage.

DeepCool’s engineers have designed the fin arrays to be quite dense. The front intake and rear exhaust form a chessboard pattern, possibly as a measure to reduce aerodynamic noise, yet the fins facing the center fan are perfectly straight. The front array has an additional notch for the digital display’s cables to run through, improving cable management a little. We also found the top fin array scratched from some kind of tool, probably during the manufacturing process, but it is under the top cover so the factory quality control probably missed it.

The base of the DeepCool AK620 Digital is a rudimentary metallic block that braces the heatpipes and contact plate, while also acting as a support for the mounting brace. Its top and mounting brace are both sprayed with the same satin black paint as the rest of the cooler. The lowermost part of the base, the contact plate, is made out of solid copper, as is on any high-quality cooler nowadays – however, DeepCool took it a step further and also plated the copper, creating a perfect mirror finish that will not oxidize over time.

One of the most prominent features of the AK620 Digital is its very high-quality fans. DeepCool is using two FK120 (DF1202512CM) fans with fluid-dynamic bearing (FDB) engines and custom frames with shock-absorbing material integrated. The fans have a maximum rotational speed of 1850 RPM and are high airflow/low pressure designs, with numerous small blades. This type of fan is typically used when the expected airflow resistance is minimal. The fans lock on the fin arrays with typical wire braces, which also allow the adjustment of the front fan’s mounting height in order to clear the RAM modules, if and when that is necessary. With that said, if you do need to move the fans, be sure to take into account that raising the height of the fan will both require a case with a higher clearance, and there may be a small performance loss.

The key feature of the AK620 is the digital display at its top, which operates via a JUSB motherboard header. Additionally, DeepCool has installed A-RGB LED strips across the edge of the top cover for that extra bit of flair. The operation of the digital display is separate from the RGB lighting, which is connected to an A-RGB controller header, on the motherboard or third-party. It requires the installation of a basic software driver, which offers very limited programming options, such as the switch of the temperature unit from Celsius to Fahrenheit. The display only reads and displays the CPU temperature and usage from the motherboard’s sensors, it does not affect the performance or function of the cooler in any way. The display only has one orientation, so the cooler needs to be installed in a specific orientation.