Noctua NH-C14 CPU Cooler Review

Now let’s get down to the benchmarks. For testing the Noctua NH-C14, I have used our resident testbed which comprises of an Intel Core i7-2600K CPU, Gigabyte P67A-UD7 motherboard, G.Skill RipJaws X 4GB ram, Zotac GTX 580 AMP! Edition GPU, WD 300GB VelociRaptor HDD with Windows 7 Ultimate and a Cooler Master 1200W Silent Pro Gold PSU. For comparisons I’ve added Noctua NH-D14, the Cooler Master V6 and the Intel XTS 100H heatsinks.

Please note that I have performed the benchmarks with the standard fan adapters, which means the NH-C14 is running at 1200rpm as well as the ULNA which makes the NH-C14 run at 800rpm.

Stock performance of the NH-C14 is incredible, keeping temperatures lower than anything we’ve tested before. The ULNA performance increases temperatures at just 2°C making them the preferable choice.

For overclocking, I increased the speed of the Intel Core i7-2600K to 4.7GHz with 1.450v and the G.Skill RipJaws X to 2134MHz with 1.660v on the current.

Stock performance of the Noctua NH-C14 is a tad bit better than the Cooler Master V6, much better than the NH-D14 under full load. With the ULNA, it is still very quiet, with temperatures once again hovering 2°C over stock speeds.

Given that both the NH-D14 and NH-C14 cost the same, I would definitely go for the latter. Not only because it’s marginally cooler, but also because of the customization in terms of space, speed and sound levels. Furthermore, the Noctua NH-C14 oozes quality in all aspects, from the thought put into making the installation process as easy as possible, to making the cooler itself become incredibly efficient at its job. If you have a high-end CPU and really want to unlock its full potential with extreme overclocked speeds, then the Noctua NH-C14 is a must buy.