CPU cooler group test review with 3770K

Noctua NH-D14

Released quite a while ago yet still the king of cooling is the Noctua NH-D14. Combining a massive six heatpipe dual radiator design with an exquisite NF-P14/NF-P12 dual fan configuration, the NH-D14 is built for ultimate quiet cooling performance. Topped off with a tube of Noctua’s award-winning NT-H1 thermal compound as well as the new SecuFirm2 multi-socket mounting system, the NH-D14 is a great choice for the highest demands in premium quality quiet cooling.

Armed with six heatpipes, two radiators and two of the best fans available on the market, the Noctua formula works out well. As you'll be able to witness, it is still the best performing cooler that remains at acceptable noise levels as well. It's a little more pricey and big though! Though in all honesty, you can purchase these coolers for 70 EUR/USD already if you browse a little in etail.

Memory wise you should really stick to low-profile DIMMs and yes, it is a bulky cooler. But my man... it's good.

Noctua NH-L12

Intended as a low-profile cooling solution Noctua recently released their Noctua NH-L12, and it is impressive. Very quiet and, for your default cooling needs, more than sufficient. You'll find the product in the 50 EUR/USD segment, making it a bit pricey, but the cooler has two quality fans and the sheer silence is just amazing. 

The NH-L12 is a low-profile quiet cooler designed for use in small form factor cases and HTPC environments. With its flexible NF-F12 (120mm) / NF-B9 (92mm) dual PWM fan setup, the NH-L12 can be configured for either full performance in dual fan mode or extra-low profile (66mm) with the top fan removed. Bundled with the award-winning NT-H1 thermal compound and Noctua’s SecuFirm2 multi-socket mounting system, the NH-L12 packs everything a premium quality quiet cooler needs into a highly compact package.

The NH-L12 is a low-profile quiet cooler designed for use in small form factor cases and HTPC environments. While it provides first rate performance in its class, it is not suitable for overclocking and should be used with care on CPUs with more than a 95W TDP. The cooler has been designed to allow you to use high-profile memory DIMMs.

Installation of the Noctua coolers is easy and simple. In fact, I dare to say the best in the business. 

and yes there really is a second fan tucked away under there

Coolink Corator DS

For you personally Coolink probably doesn't sound that familiar. The Coolink product products however come from the same house as Noctua. In fact, when you look at the mounting system alone, you'll notice that they use the very same gear. Coolink is a little harder to find, but their products are great really. The Coolink Corator DS brings the concept of direct contact cooling to the next level by further improving heat transfer.

• Four 8mm heatpipes
• Asymmetrical dual fin stacks
• Gapless Direct Touch technology
• SWiF2-120P high-performance 120mm fan
• PWM fan speed control
• SecuFirm2 multi-socket mounting system
• Chillaramic thermal compound

Thanks to four large 8mm heatpipes, a dual fin stack design and a PWM controlled SWiF2 120mm fan, the Corator DS achieves a nice balance between cooling performance and quiet operation. The Corator DS' high-end package is topped off with the SecuFirm2 multi-socket mounting system and a tube of Coolink's Chillaramic thermal compound.

The cooler is massive in size, it is also slightly more noisy then the others under full CPU load (but remains at very acceptable levels) but it performs really well actually. We'll show you that in the benchmark test results later on. We advise low-profile memory DIMMs in your system. And hey, the price of this product is only 38 EUR.

Guru3D.com » Articles » CPU cooler group test review with 3770K » Page 3