Testing Configuration and Benchmarks Used
To verify that the cooler kit operates up to specs, the Noctua NH-U14S CPU cooler was tested with the CPU running in both stock and at a known stable overclocking speed using both Z77-based and Z87-based motherboards, so that comparative results could be provided for both Ivy Bridge and Haswell-based systems. The results are presented for the cooling kit under review as well as the XSPC Raystorm 750 EX240 water cooling kit, Corsair H100i water cooler, and the Thermalright SilverArrow SB-E air cooler for performance comparison purposes. The benchmark tests used should give you a good understanding of the Koolance kit's capabilities so that you, the reader, can make a more informed purchasing decision. The comparison coolers were selected based on their superior performance capabilities.
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Test System Setup |
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CPU |
Intel Z77-based system Intel Core i5-3570K Stock – 3.4GHz, 34 x 100MHz Base Clock Overclocked – 4.4GHz, 42 x 105MHz Base Clock Intel Z87-based system Intel Core i7-4770K Stock – 3.5GHz, 35 x 100MHz Base Clock Overclocked – 4.68GHz, 28 x 167MHz Base Clock |
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Motherboard |
MSI Z77 MPOWER MSI Z87 MPOWER |
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Memory |
Intel Z77-based system G.SKILL 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2133 modules Stock – 1600MHz, 11-11-11-30-1T Overclocked – 1960MHz, 11-11-11-30-1T Intel Z87-based system Corsair Vengeance Pro 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1866 modules Stock – 1600MHz, 9-10-9-27-1T Overclocked – 1780MHz, 9-10-9-27-1T |
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Hard Drive |
Samsung 840 EVO 250GB SSD Intel 520 240GB SSD Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB SATA III HD |
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Sound Card |
On-board sound |
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Video Card |
Intel Z77-based system MSI R7870 Hawk 2GB Intel Z87-based system NVIDIA GTX 570 1.25GB |
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CPU Cooling |
Noctua NH-U14S CPU cooler Thermalright SilverArrow SB-E CPU Air Cooler XSPC Raystorm 750 EX240 water cooling kit Corsair Hydro Series™ H100i Extreme Performance CPU Cooler |
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Video Drivers |
AMD ATI Catalyst 12.8 NVIDIA 320.18 |
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Power Supply |
Corsair 650 Corsair HX750 |
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Operating System |
Windows 7 Ultimate x64 |
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Thermal Paste |
MG Chemicals 860-60G Silicone Heat Transfer Compound |
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Coolant |
XSPC kit 1 liter Distilled water 3 capfuls Redline Water Wetter 1 capful Iodine (10% solution) 1 drop PT Nuke |
The 64-bit Windows 7 based test bench used for LGA1155 board testing includes an Intel Core i5-3570K CPU, 8GB of DDR3-2133 memory, an MSI R7870 Hawk 2GB video card, and an Intel 520 240GB SSD drive. Using the selected components gives us the ability to demonstrate the cooling system's capabilities rather than that of the system components.
The 64-bit Windows 7 based test bench used for Intel Z87 LGA1150 board testing includes an Intel Core i5-4770K CPU, 16GB of DDR3-1866 memory, an NVIDIA GTX 570 1.25GB video card, and a Samsung 840 EVO 250GB SSD drive. Using the selected components gives us the ability to demonstrate the cooling system's capabilities rather than that of the system components.
Benchmark Tests used for evaluation:
- LinX Intel Linpack Benchmark v0.6.4 (Intel Z77-based testing)
- AIDA64 Extreme Edition v3.00 (Intel Z87-based testing)
- Geeks3D FurMark v1.10.2
I assume this cooler being
I assume this cooler being 150mm width wouldn’t fit Intel MB that have graphic slot at top , instead of many that have PCI-E 16lane down one slot .
cheap price ,54$
http://www.ncixus.com/products/?sku=82802&vpn=NH-U14S&manufacture=Noctua
Another horrible
Another horrible testing/review from PCPer. Good job!
What about it is so horrible?
What about it is so horrible? Care to make some constructive criticism?
People are idiots. Great job
People are idiots. Great job PCPer as always, and Go Big Blue!
Thanks for the review, any
Thanks for the review, any plans with the D15?
Rather than testing two CPUs which both produce relatively little heat but use lackluster heatspreaders, I think it would be more useful to test one of those and a high power, soldered CPU (LGA2011 or AMD).
D15 review will be coming
D15 review will be coming sometime in the next few months.
Thanks…
The ‘continue reading our
The ‘continue reading our review…’ link on the front page for this article links to pcper.com, not the article.
Any idea if you can buy a
Any idea if you can buy a second low noise adapter and use it for a dual fan set=up? I get that it should make the dual fan set-up quieter but run hotter, but how much cooler or how much hotter?
My first guess would be it would run very similarly to the single fan configuration without the LNA.
Your best bet would be to
Your best bet would be to contact Noctua support to see if they can either send you one or sell you one (an LNA adapter that is). If you buy a second Noctua branded fan, they normally package them with the LNA adapter as well. You could also make one yourself if your technically savvy enough – its just a power cord with an in-line resister to dampen the fan voltage.
As far as performance goes, you'd probably see an increase of 1-2C over full speed with the Noctua fans so most likely equal to single fan operation or sitting in between single fan full speed and LNA operation.
The ‘continue reading our
The ‘continue reading our review…’ link on the front page for this article links to pcper.com, not the article. i
Fixed. Thank you…
Fixed. Thank you…
” I get that it should make
” I get that it should make the dual fan set-up quieter but run hotter, but how much cooler or how much hotter?”
Minor increase in noise, minor increase in performance.
Great Review! I have read 10+
Great Review! I have read 10+ reviews of this cooler before this review and I learned additional information reading this review. I also appreciate all the pictures. I love reviews like this which are heavy on pictures. I have never been to PC Perspective before and I will be coming back.