What is arguably the best performing air cooler for high end CPUs?

[Lusss]

Hey so I've been wondering about this question and the answer that I've been finding lately was the Noctua NH-D15. Is it true?

[HanZie82]

Yes and no, its a really good cooler but there surely are better ones.

And also, since you can replace fans yourself, the cooling block should not be discounted if it has bad fans, since you can put your own on.

So no the NH-D15 isnt the best, but its a very very good one.

[Lusss]

2 minutes ago, HanZie82 said:

Yes and no, its a really good cooler but there surely are better ones.

And also, since you can replace fans yourself, the cooling block should not be discounted if it has bad fans, since you can put your own on.

So no the NH-D15 isnt the best, but its a very very good one.

hmmm I see. In that case, what are the other better air coolers? I'm curious.

[another random person]

The be quiet Dark Rock Pro 4 is another one similar to the Noctua NH-D15S. I personally am not too sure on the "Best" air cooler. There's a lot of variables in play.

[HanZie82]

5 minutes ago, Lusss said:

hmmm I see. In that case, what are the other better air coolers? I'm curious.

Usually the ones that have more mass and fins. Like a Scythe Ninja 5 or Mugen.
But those have worse fans, so they come under the NH-D15 in tests, but put the same fan on it, and it crushes the smaller cooler.

 

And yes "the best" is a personal thing, what you think might be the best another wont agree with.

So thats why you wont get a real answer on that one. (or they lie. hahaha)

[Darknighterror]

8 minutes ago, Lusss said:

hmmm I see. In that case, what are the other better air coolers? I'm curious.

Judging from this list , the best air coolers are the "Jonsbo HX7280" and the "Thermalright Silver Arrow SB-E Extreme"

 

"Cooler performance varies depending on the system. This list ranks coolers using generalized cooling performance from available benchmark results. Quality, aesthetics, acoustics, and ease of installation aren't accounted for. "

[HanZie82]

2 minutes ago, Darknighterror said:

"Cooler performance varies depending on the system. This list ranks coolers using generalized cooling performance from available benchmark results. Quality, aesthetics, acoustics, and ease of installation aren't accounted for. "

This matters way more then the list.

[Tan3l6]

Deepcool AK620 is also one of the best.

But the results in different reviews do variy.

Popular belief is that the NH-D15 is the best, but thats just like an opinion, maan.

[HanZie82]

1 minute ago, Tan3l6 said:

Deepcool AK620 is also one of the best.

But the results in different reviews do variy.

Popular belief is that the NH-D15 is the best, but thats just like an opinion, maan.

And why isnt this also an opinion?

[Tan3l6]

2 minutes ago, HanZie82 said:

And why isnt this also an opinion?

Looks more like a question.

[Lusss]

26 minutes ago, HanZie82 said:

Usually the ones that have more mass and fins. Like a Scythe Ninja 5 or Mugen.
But those have worse fans, so they come under the NH-D15 in tests, but put the same fan on it, and it crushes the smaller cooler.

 

And yes "the best" is a personal thing, what you think might be the best another wont agree with.

So thats why you wont get a real answer on that one. (or they lie. hahaha)

is there any video or source where someone replaces their air cooler fans with noctua fans or fans that are as good as those ones and end up getting better results?     I would appreciate it.

 

[jones177]

I use D15s with high end CPUs.

 

My i9 11900k uses one with a single fan. 

This is what it looks like running Cinebench R20. I also use one on a i9 9900k with similar results.

Spoiler

The D-15 the i9 11900k uses was bought in 2016 for a hot i7 6700k so they do last.

 

 

[Lusss]

22 minutes ago, jones177 said:

I use D15s with high end CPUs.

 

My i9 11900k uses one with a single fan. 

This is what it looks like running Cinebench R20. I also use one on a i9 9900k with similar results.

  Hide contents

The D-15 the i9 11900k uses was bought in 2016 for a hot i7 6700k so they do last.

 

 

What's your thoughts on the D-15 compared to other air coolers

[jones177]

8 minutes ago, Lusss said:

What's your thoughts on the D-15 compared to other air coolers

I have only tested it against Dark Rock Pro 4 and a NH-U14S.

 

The Dark Rock Pro 4 cools about the same as a D-15 but has clearance issues with some ram like CORSAIR Vengeance RGB Pro. 

 

The NH-U14S was used with an i7 6700k and a i7 8700k. It has a single fin stack but uses the same fans as the D-15. I like them for 6 core quite builds.

 

If I was buying now I would not get a D-15 since their size is a bit limiting. I would go for a Noctua NH-D12L that uses 120mm fans. Not as cool but if you are not overclocking the extra cooling of the D-15 may not be needed.

 

 

[freeagent]

I am running Noctua iPPC 3K fans on my Thermalright FC140. I doubt there are many air cooled setups that are better.. I used to own D14, right now I own Thermalright Frost Commander 140, Le Grand Macho RT, and True Spirit 140 Power. On 7nm, FC140 beats them all by a solid 8-10c in my setup. My other coolers are as good, or slightly better than D15. I still have my old first gen Ultra 120 Extreme, which I also preferred over D14. LGA1366 was my main setup for about 8 years.. old school muscle