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NH-D15 VS CNPS20X 90 euro vs 45 euro, which one should I buy?

LethoX
Go to solution Solved by Metallus97,

In case you really need a dual tower, go with D15. Max perf and silence. Yes the Zalman will do the job but Noc is much better quality and they will last longer.

 

That said: Yes I am a Noctua Fanboy.

So I've been wanting to buy a NH-D15 since it's considered by many the best air cooler. But I ended up watching a review of the Zalman CNPS20X, which actually beat the NH-D15 in some cases and they were generally very close in performance.

Now I've actually had a NH-D15 before and I absolutely loved it, but the Zalman is literally HALF the price. So I'm wondering if there's anyone here that have experience with the CNPS20X or perhaps both coolers, that can tell me which one you would go with considering the price difference of them. Any help is very much appreciated!

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Do you even need dual tower hsf?

What's your cpu?

Ryzen 5700g @ 4.4ghz all cores | Asrock B550M Steel Legend | 3060 | 2x 16gb Micron E 2666 @ 4200mhz cl16 | 500gb WD SN750 | 12 TB HDD | Deepcool Gammax 400 w/ 2 delta 4000rpm push pull | Antec Neo Eco Zen 500w

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In case you really need a dual tower, go with D15. Max perf and silence. Yes the Zalman will do the job but Noc is much better quality and they will last longer.

 

That said: Yes I am a Noctua Fanboy.

FOLDING MONTH 2021! GOGOGO and save on some heating costs 🙂

 

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I don't "need" it, but I do want a dual tower. Considering I want a quiet build, I'm leaning towards the Noctua. Also because of the warranty & they provide brackets for the future.

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8 hours ago, LethoX said:

I don't "need" it, but I do want a dual tower. Considering I want a quiet build, I'm leaning towards the Noctua. Also because of the warranty & they provide brackets for the future.

If you're aiming for low noise, the NH-D15 would be better. 

What are you cooling?

If you ever need help with a build, read the following before posting: http://linustechtips.com/main/topic/3061-build-plan-thread-recommendations-please-read-before-posting/
Also, make sure to quote a post or tag a member when replying or else they won't get a notification that you replied to them.

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2 hours ago, WoodenMarker said:

If you're aiming for low noise, the NH-D15 would be better. 

What are you cooling?

It's just a 5600x, so it doesn't really need such a big cooler. Still nice though for a quiet build and I can upgrade CPU later on without worries of it running hot. I'll probably end up with the NH-D15, because I want a quiet build.

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Where I live there is only a 15€ difference between the coolers.

At a price of 45€ the Zalman cnps20x is truly a steal. I'd stick with it.

Besides, you'll never use the full capacity of dual tower coolers anyway with modern mainstream hardware.

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If ur looking for price for performance u might consider the be quiet! Dark Rock Pro 4. I am using a be quiet! Shadow rock rn and its plenty to cool my cpu, all core locked at 4.5GHz (i7-9700F 8 cores) under load already while having just 4 heatpipes and one fan. But just for pure silence take the noctua

Ping me or quote me in replys ples. Anyone talking about AiOs and trashing people for a front mount watch THIS JAYZTWOCENTS VID because u 99.9% skipped or didnt understand the Gamers Nexus vid...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Spoiler

Also pineapple doesnt go on pizza

 

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4 hours ago, rafe_28 said:

If ur looking for price for performance u might consider the be quiet! Dark Rock Pro 4. I am using a be quiet! Shadow rock rn and its plenty to cool my cpu, all core locked at 4.5GHz (i7-9700F 8 cores) under load already while having just 4 heatpipes and one fan. But just for pure silence take the noctua

Prices are wack here in Denmark, the dark pro 4 is the same price as the Noctua NH-D15S. About 7-8 euro less than the NH-D15. So I guess that's another good reason for me to go with the Noctua.

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14 hours ago, III-Argon-III said:

Where I live there is only a 15€ difference between the coolers.

At a price of 45€ the Zalman cnps20x is truly a steal. I'd stick with it.

Besides, you'll never use the full capacity of dual tower coolers anyway with modern mainstream hardware.

I would buy it, but I've seen people saying it's quite noisy and I do prefer a quiet build. Seems to that Noctua is the most quiet you can get, when it comes to case fans & coolers so I'll probably go with the noctua.

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16 minutes ago, LethoX said:

I would buy it, but I've seen people saying it's quite noisy and I do prefer a quiet build. Seems to that Noctua is the most quiet you can get, when it comes to case fans & coolers so I'll probably go with the noctua.

Dont look at what people say as most people have no clue what they are talking about and just repeat what good marketing says. Read or watch reviews done by competent people. 

https://www.gamersnexus.net/hwreviews/3573-zalman-cnps20x-cpu-cooler-review-benchmark-vs-noctua-nh-d15-others

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3 hours ago, Jeppes said:

Dont look at what people say as most people have no clue what they are talking about and just repeat what good marketing says. Read or watch reviews done by competent people. 

https://www.gamersnexus.net/hwreviews/3573-zalman-cnps20x-cpu-cooler-review-benchmark-vs-noctua-nh-d15-others

From the charts the Zalman looks about equal to the NH-D15 in noise and maybe even cools better. However what I "heard" was that the CNPS20x had a weird pitch or static noise to it. Mainly because of the "X" mounting it has in front of the fans. Which is the main thing that's keeping me from buying it to be honest. I'm also wondering if it makes a difference what case fans I have, like right now I have 3x noctua nf-a14 case fans. If I bought the NH-D15, then all my fans in my case would be noctua and perhaps my PC would be overall more quiet since it's the same brand?

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CNPS20X has the unfortunate "feature" of blocking the 2 RAM slots closest to CPU. Maybe different with other motherboards...

It is possible to install dual-channel RAM configuration with low RAM sticks but even then have to rise the one fan that is closest to RAM slots a bit "upward", so it might not be compatible with ATX cases that only support CPU cooler height of 165mm. My case allows 167mm and the one fan is touching it.

(there is an option to put one fan in the middle and one near the exhaust of the case, but that is an uneffective setup imo)

 

I don't know if the D15 has the same problem/feature.

I edit my posts more often than not

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3 hours ago, Tan3l6 said:

CNPS20X has the unfortunate "feature" of blocking the 2 RAM slots closest to CPU. Maybe different with other motherboards...

It is possible to install dual-channel RAM configuration with low RAM sticks but even then have to rise the one fan that is closest to RAM slots a bit "upward", so it might not be compatible with ATX cases that only support CPU cooler height of 165mm. My case allows 167mm and the one fan is touching it.

(there is an option to put one fan in the middle and one near the exhaust of the case, but that is an uneffective setup imo)

 

I don't know if the D15 has the same problem/feature.

Think it's about the same with the D15, thankfully I have a case with 190mm CPU cooler clearance so it shouldn't be a problem. Appreciate the input!

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Just a heads up: many ram slots, especially the B1 one are able to be cleared by moving the fan a bit up the heatsink, enabling you dual channel ram. Also idk which fan bearings the coolers use but i assume the cheaper ones are having fluid dynamic bearings, which run the danger of clogging up with dust inside the bearing and killing your fan, while a dried out ball or rifle bearing can be fixed with some light machine oil for a few months probably

Ping me or quote me in replys ples. Anyone talking about AiOs and trashing people for a front mount watch THIS JAYZTWOCENTS VID because u 99.9% skipped or didnt understand the Gamers Nexus vid...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Spoiler

Also pineapple doesnt go on pizza

 

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