Review: noctua nh

Noctua world leader in the manufacture of high performance heatsinks, is recreated with its new heatsink "Noctua NH-C14". Its design gives us security, silence and robustness. In addition to being equipped with the two fantastic NF-P14 fans. Thanks to the versatility of the type C design, it allows us three types of configurations: double fan, low profile and spacious.

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NIGHT CHARACTERISTICS NH-C14
Compatible Socket	Intel LGA 1366/1556/1555/775 AMD AM2 / AM2 + / AM3 / AM3 + / FM1 (Only in AMD it is necessary to keep the blackplate of the motherboard)
Dimensions without fan	105 (height) x 140 (depth) x 166 mm (height)
Dimensions with fan	130 (height) x 140 (depth) x 166 mm (height)
Weight	700gr and 850/1000 gr with fan
Material	Copper (base and heatpipes), aluminum (fins) soldered joints and nickel plated.
Features fans included	2 x NF-P14 (140x140x25mm): SSO_Bearing bearings Rotation speed 1200RPM Rotation speed with LNA: 900RPM Rotation speed with ULNA: 750 RPM Air flow: 110.3 m3 / h Loudness: 19.6 dBA Power: 1.2W Voltage: 12V MTBF: 150, 000h
accessories	LNA and ULNA rheostat NT-H1 Thermal Paste SecuFirm2 Intel and AMD Mounting Kit. Sticker

As usual, Noctua does not skimp on using the highest quality copper and aluminum in the manufacture of its heatsinks. Its complete compatibility with all the processors on the market make it a secure implementation for any platform update. Possibly the NF-P14 are the best 140mm fans on the market for airflow / noise.

We have to highlight the wide configurations that it allows us thanks to its C design:

Double fan design:

This design allows us to get the most out of our processor thanks to its six heatpipes. In addition to offering extraordinary performance and quiet cooling. One of the advantages of using the horizontal heatsinks, that we should not fear that the side abuts the heatsink. The Noctua NH-C14 provides excellent airflow to the RAM and components on the board near the socket.

Low profile design:

The NH-C14 becomes more compact when we use it in its low profile version (we only use the lower fan), it is only 10.5 cm high, making it a perfect ally for small boxes and HTPC.

Spacious layout:

If we remove the NF-P14 top fan we have more space to install memory or high profile chipsets. The distance between the socket and the fan is 6.5 cm.

The box that houses the heatsink is very bulky, back and bottom:

The heatsink is a beast with its 900 gr of weight with the two fans.

Side view of the heatsink.

The Noctua has 6 heatpipes and endless aluminum sheets with extraordinary quality.

The base is nickel-plated copper and as always the finishes at Noctua are extraordinary:

Noctua NF-P14 140mm x 140mm x 25mm fan:

The fan is very quiet, and when they work together they are barely audible thanks to their SSO Bearing bearings. We leave a detail of its blades:

The accessories that the Noctua NH-C14 is composed of are:

• Noctua NH-C14.2 heatsink x NF-P14 fans.Intel and AMD Secure FIrm2 mounting kit.NT-H1 thermal paste. LNA and ULNASilentblocks rheostatsInstallation manual.Intel and AMD instruction manual.

The Secure Firm 2 installation system provides multi-socket support for SecuFirm2 ™ enthusiasts, provides great socket compatibility (LGA 1366, LGA 1156, LGA1155, LGA 775, AM2, AM2 +, AM3, AM3 +, FM1) and meets the highest security requirements, performance and ease of use. The first thing we must do is install the Secure Firm in the base of the motherboard and insert the 4 fixing screws:

Next we must decide in which position we are going to orient the heatsink. Once decided, we must take the two plates and screw in the 4 screws:

Once the NT-H1 thermal paste has been applied. To install the heatsink it is not necessary to remove the fans from the heatsink, we tighten the side screws with the supplied wrench and this is the result:

The finish of the base is extraordinary:

Now is the time to choose our configuration. In this case we have chosen Double fan to appreciate what problem we may have with the installation of RAM. It took us a bit of work to install the memories, we recommend installing the memories first and then the heatsink.

Once the memories are installed, the result is impressive as we can see in the following image:

TEST BENCH:
Box:	Silverstone FT-02 Red Edition
Source feed:	Antec HCG620W
Base plate	Asus Maximus Gene-Z
Processor:	Intel i7 2600k @ 4.8ghz ~ 1.34-1.36v
Graphic card:	Gigabyte GTX 560 Ti SOC
RAM:	G.Skills Ripjaws X Cl9
HDD:	Samsung HD103SJ 1TB

WE RECOMMEND YOU New Noctua NF-A12x25 and NF-P12 fans

To test the actual performance of the heatsink we are going to stress the CPU with full memory floating point calculation (Linx) and prime number (Prime95) programs. Both programs are well known in the overclocking sector and serve to detect failures when the processor works 100% for long hours.

How are we going to measure the processor temperature?

We will use the internal sensors of the processor. For this test on Intel processors we will use the “Core Temp” application in its version: 0.99.8. It is not the most reliable test, but it will be our reference in all our analyzes. The test bench will be around 29º ambient temperature.

In our test bench we will use the default fans of 2 x NF-P14 at 12v with the three configurations available for the NH-C14:

• Double Fan. Low Profile Spacious.

Here are the results we have obtained in our laboratory:

The Noctua NH-C14 heatsink has surprised us with its unique body dissipation ability. Noctua has equipped with two excellent NF-P14 fans to the heatsink, the upper fan draws in fresh air and the second fan blows the air towards the base. As we have seen the Noctua NH-C14 is not a heatsink made for the Overclock, but if necessary it is able to compete against other heatsinks designed for the overclock. Its results are outstanding with an Intel 2600k @ 4800mhz: 69º C with Linx and 73ºC Prime95.

The fans have worked at 12v without any noise, thanks to one of the best bearings on the market: SSO Bearing. But if we look for SilentPC, Noctua includes among its accessories two rheostats LNA and ULNA that make it inaudible. The accompanying accessories are very extensive, with the best thermal paste on the market, with a SecuFirm2 ™ mounting system, a key that facilitates the installation of the heatsink and with the two NF-P14 fans mentioned above.

If you are looking for an all terrain heatsink the Noctua NH-C14 should be the one. Its wide variety of configurations and excellent materials make it a benchmark heatsink on the market.

ADVANTAGE		DISADVANTAGES
+ GREAT PRESENTATION AND WIDE COMPATIBILITY SOCKET	- SOMETHING EXPENSIVE PRICE
+ EXCELLENT PERFORMANCE AND DESIGN
+ INCLUDES 2 NF-P14 FANS AND NT-H1 THERMAL PASTE
+ EASY INSTALLATION AND SILENCE
+ SILENT BLOCKS AND RHEOSTATS

The Professional Review team awarded him the gold medal: