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Review and testing Noctua NH-C14

Table of contents

1. Introduction

2. Delivery set, packing

3. Radiator

4. Installation

5. Testing, performance

6. Conclusions

Introduction

Back in 2009, the Austrian company Noctua began to thoroughly update the processor cooling systems. First of all, it was known for its high-quality fans, he is not coolers. After the release of the legendary supercooler NH-D14, enthusiasts around the world turned their attention to Noctua as a manufacturer of highly efficient cooling systems. After winning this class, it was decided to release a cooler with a top-design, when the fan is located parallel to the motherboard and simultaneously blows around the processor space. The first was the Noctua NH-C12P SE14, which carried few changes compared to its predecessors and had impressive dimensions. But unfortunately it turned out that it cannot compete with coolers of the same price segment. The engineers realized their mistake and had to create a new cooler from scratch. As a result, the Noctua NH-C14 was born, which is now slightly lower than its predecessor, and the efficiency should increase. In this review, we have to find out its effectiveness.

Delivery set, packaging

The cooling system is packed in a large, almost square box. There are no handles for easy transportation. The design is proprietary for Noctua and even the inscriptions are always in the same places, and differ only in some nuances. As always, there is no transparent window, so you can't really see it before buying. The potential buyer is left to be content with a photograph on one of the sides. Although who is stopping you from looking at it from all sides first on the Internet? All main features and innovations are listed on the box. The cooler is described in six languages ​​on one of the sidewalls, and in the other, all possible ways of installing the cooler and fans are illustrated.

Opening the box you will get access to a small cardboard box that holds the entire delivery set, except for the cooler itself - it is located immediately under this box in two layers of cardboard. The base is protected from scratches by a plastic cover that precisely follows the shape of the sole and stays firmly there. And unlike conventional disposable films, it can be put back into place after using the cooler. All complete accessories are divided into groups between bags. Although the bags themselves are reusable, their quality allows you to open them only once, after which they go straight to the trash can, as they literally fall apart in your hands.

Below is the complete set of delivery:

Fasteners for mounting the cooling system on systems with Intel and AMD processors. All this is packaged separately for each platform.

A pair of adapter kits to reduce the fan speed. The blue adapters drop the rpm to 750 rpm, and the black ones only to 900 rpm. Without adapters, the speed is 1200 rpm. Also included is an adapter for connecting two turntables to one three-pin connector.

Vibration-absorbing pads for using one complete fan as a case fan.

Adapters and screws for 140 mm fan mounting holes.

Branded thermal paste Noctua NT-H1 has long been recognized as one of the best among enthusiasts.

Screwdriver and a sticker on the case with the company logo.

Cooling system installation instructions. Separately for owners of systems based on Intel and AMD processors.

There are no complaints about the package, the cooler can work, as they say, "out of the box". It's nice that Noctua is attentive to the complete accessories. Further, the cooler design will be considered in more detail.

Radiator

Noctua NH-C14 is a typical representative of the top - heat pipe design. A special feature is the presence of two fans at once. One, as expected, is located on top, and the second is under the radiator. Since the set includes two fans of the 140 mm form factor, the design simply cannot turn out to be fast. Dimensions are 166 x 140 x 130 millimeters, and the weight is close to one kilogram. At the same time, without the turntables, the bare radiator will carry 700 grams. It is possible to leave only one fan under the heatsink, while lowering the overall height, but it will still be slightly higher than its main competitor Thermalright AXP-140. With a single turntable, it still has about the same height as the NH-C12P-SE14.

In fact, there is nowhere to reduce the height, the lower fan is already very close to the motherboard. Although it would be possible to do with one spinner - it is not so difficult to blow through plates four centimeters thick and with an intercostal distance of two millimeters. And by doubling the number of fans, it was already possible to reduce the distance between the ribs, thereby increasing the effective heat dissipation area. According to the latter indicator in absolute terms, it is far from supercoolers, but in its class it has no equal - the total area of ​​aluminum plates is 6500 square centimeters.

With a thickness of 0.5 millimeters, the contact between the plates and the copper heat pipes is further improved by soldering. They are also additionally fastened with steel staples. Taken together, this should have a positive effect on the overall performance of the cooling system.

Six copper heat pipes are responsible for transferring heat energy from the base to the heat dissipator. Their diameter is six millimeters. They are not the only ones holding the working body, a separate support is installed to help them. When viewed from above, it becomes clear that the array of aluminum ribs is a square of 14 by 14 centimeters. This suggests that the cooling system was originally designed for 140 mm fans. The tubes are not evenly spaced, but grouped so as to fall under the most ventilated areas of the fans. The plates themselves are even, without bends, only the edges with grooves and combs. At the base, the tubes are laid in special grooves and additionally soldered. They are packed tightly, the distance is no more than one and a half millimeters. In this case, the thickness of the base is approximately 2 mm. The build quality is at a high level, the thermal contact is strengthened both at the base and on the plates. But the polish is far from mirror-like, and there are also problems with evenness. Compared to Noctua NH-D14 in this regard, it looks much worse.

Installation

With two fans, the Noctua NH-C14 cooler should have no problems with the elements on the motherboard. The distance from the motherboard to the bottom turntable is 4 centimeters. Unless you can put the Corsair DDR3 Vengeance in the first two slots. But this is a disease of all large-sized cooling systems and is not a minus of this instance. If this is still a nuisance for you, you can remove the bottom fan, and you will have 6.5 centimeters in stock.

Due to the fact that on our bench motherboard ASRock FATAL1TY Z68 the processor socket is displaced upward, the cooler will protrude strongly at the top and rest against the power supply. The protrusion can be reduced by rotating the cooler with heat pipes perpendicular to the RAM slots. It is possible that this problem will not exist on other motherboards at all, so you should pay attention to the placement of the socket on your motherboard before purchasing this cooling system, so as not to end up in an unpleasant situation later.

Testing, performance

To test the efficiency of the cooler, a Core i7-2600 processor was chosen. We managed to overclock it to a frequency of 4000 megahertz under a voltage of 1.275 volts. The G.SKILL DDR3 RAM was not overclocked during the tests, there was no need for it. The operating system was Windows 7 Professional.The central processor was loaded with the LinX program, and the core temperature was monitored using RealTemp. During testing, the room temperature did not rise above 23 degrees Celsius.

A few words about the orientation of the cooler in the case. Testing has shown that the most effective position is with the heat pipes pointing upwards. When you turn 180 degrees, you lose up to five degrees, and at 90 degrees you lose one or two degrees. This is true on Intel processors, as there is no option to select orientation on the AMD platform. The heat pipes will always be parallel to the expansion slots.

First of all, we tested the work with the connected adapters, which limited the speed of rotation of the fans. At maximum speed, the temperature was 82 degrees, and it rose in 2 degrees increments when connecting adapters. And at 750 rpm, the CPU temperature was 86 degrees.

Further, the hero of our review was compared with the Thermalright AXP-140, since it is its direct competitor and the most effective at the moment. In all modes, our Noctua NH-C14 is ahead of the opponent by at least four degrees, which tells us that we are facing a new champion in this class. Experiments were also carried out with the installation of only one fan. The efficiency was reduced by five degrees. And it doesn't matter if it will be installed on top or below. The main thing is that it works for blowing.

The noise from a working cooler was also measured. With two fans running at maximum speed, the maximum noise was 32 dBA.

conclusions

It is not for nothing that Noctua named the next cooler NH-C14, because it is so similar to the NH-D14. The hero of our testing showed unsurpassed performance in comparative testing with the former flagship Thermalright AXP-140. And by right it takes this honorary title and respect of enthusiasts. Of course, he was not just lucky. This result was achieved thanks to the mind of Austrian engineers and a careful approach to detail in production. Its weight and the presence of two large fans in the delivery set played an important role. Also, do not forget that if you direct the air flow towards the motherboard, you will receive an additional bonus in the form of blowing around the processor space. Tower coolers are deprived of such an advantage. The only thing that can stop you is the price. It is comparable to the prices for top-end tower-type cooling systems, which are an order of magnitude more efficient.

Minuses

Considering that the cooler is blown by two fans, the intercostal distance could be reduced

Not the best treatment of the base

High price

pros

High quality workmanship, comfortable design

Rich delivery set

Uncompromising efficiency

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