Noctua's best CPU cooler gets a successor after 10 years
The NH-D15 G2 comes with Noctua's new 140 mm NF-A14x25r G2 fan. It reduces the temperature by around 3 °C.
The square version of the NF-A14x25r G2 can already be seen in the housing.
(Image: Noctuas)
Noctua's most powerful CPU air cooler to date is getting a successor ten years after its launch: the NH-D15 G2 replaces the previous NH-D15. It uses an improved heat sink, two new NF-A14x25r G2 fans (PWM), an updated mounting system and higher quality thermal compound.
Noctua delayed the NH-D15 G2 for years in order to get the corresponding fans ready for the market. Like the 120 mm NF-A12x25 fan, the NF-A14x25r G2 uses a rotor made of Liquid Crystal Polymer (LCP). The material is stiffer than other plastics and therefore enables a particularly small impeller gap between the fan frame and rotor tips. This increases efficiency because fans convey the most air at the rotor tips.
Noctua emphasizes that the NF-A14x25r G2 is not just an enlarged version of the NF-A12x25. The 140 mm fan has its own hub and rotor geometry. It also uses a new motor with a Hall effect sensor, which is designed to control the fan more precisely and efficiently. When used on a radiator or CPU air cooler, it is designed to compensate for the back pressure with a higher torque.
Two such fans are included with the NH-D15 G2. Noctua runs them with a small speed offset of 50 revolutions per minute. This is intended to reduce so-called beat frequencies, which manifest themselves as humming at the same speed.
Meanwhile, the cooler body uses more fins, eight instead of the previous six heat pipes to dissipate the heat and has an asymmetrical lateral design. This means that the CPU cooler no longer blocks the top PCI Express slot on most motherboards.
Noctua NH-D15 G2 (4 Bilder)
A special version for AMD processors
Noctua is launching three versions of the NH-D15 G2 with different base plates. The standard version is shaped like other Noctua coolers – the manufacturer refers to a medium curved contact surface. It is not completely flat because the heatspreaders of processors are slightly concave.
On average, the standard NH-D15-G2 should work a good 3 °C cooler on a 250 watt heating element than the previous NH-D15. Noctua states a reduction from 41.3 to 38.1 °C.
The variants with low base convexity (LBC) are intended for AMD systems, including the upcoming Ryzen 9000, if you do not want to move mounting material for offset mounting. With this combination, the CPU cooler sits as flat as possible in the middle.
This works almost as well as the standard version with offset mounting. The latter is worthwhile for AMD because the compute chiplets with the CPU cores are not centered under the heatspreader.
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Kontakt bei AMD-Prozessoren
And one for Intel CPUs
The variant with high base convexity (HBC) is intended for Intel's LGA1700 processors from the Alder Lake generation (Core i-12000) under certain operating conditions. Here too, it depends on how users operate their processor.
By default, the LGA1700 mounting frame exerts so much pressure on the processors that they bend slightly in the long term. A more convex base plate is therefore recommended. The so-called washer mod or a separate contact frame reduce this phenomenon, which is why Noctua recommends the standard version of the NH-D15 G2 in such cases.
With the washer mod, the mounting frame is removed and washers are placed on the mainboard to reduce the pressure. Noctua also includes suitable 1 mm washers.
In general, we are talking about temperature differences of around 1.5 °C. If in doubt, those interested should simply buy the standard version, says Noctua.
(Image: Noctua)
High prices
In terms of price, the NH-D15 G2 has it all: all three versions cost 150 euros. For this, you can already get all-in-one water cooling systems with large radiators, which, however, have a pump as a potential source of noise.
Noctua sells the NF-A14x25r G2 individually for 40 euros. A double pack costs 77 euros – for which Noctua has also set the speed offset. So far, the fan is only available with a round frame. The square version is expected to be available in September.
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