Be Quiet! Dark Rock Pro 2 vs. Noctua NH-D14

[MadFrog]

Hi! :)
I can't decide what cpu cooler I should buy!?
The cooler is going to cool an Intel Core I7 3770K.

The cpu is mounted on an Evga Z77 Stinger. In a Bitfenix Prodigy.

I like when my system is RELAY quiet! :)

So I want the most quiet cpu cooler, with the best cooling performance! :)

So what woul you pick?

 

Be Quiet! Dark Rock Pro 2 link: http://www.bequiet.com/en/cpucooler/309

 

Noctua NH-D14 link: http://www.noctua.at/main.php?show=productview&products_id=34&lng=en

 

~ Kristian Gyde Denmark.

 

[Hans Christian | Teri]

Their performance (both noise and cooling) are within a margin so small that I'd say go for the one you think looks the best. They're both really solid performers. :)

[Morfy]

DarkRock 2 looks rock solid (hehehe :))

[Ddm5]

I currently own a Dark rock pro 2 mate and it's quite the beast, looks great to, 4.8Ghz, 1.36V on my 2500k, 100% Load on Prime95 was 75'c max with the thermal paste that comes with it.

[Tardbarn]

Hi there, I have both coolers you have mentioned. I switched to the Be Quiet cooler for aesthetic reasons.

The thermals for the Be Quiet cooler are better, but by only about 1-2 degrees. The sound is very similar, both ship with fantastic fans, however I have noticed the noctua fans have a SLIGHTLY more noticeable motor noise when you under-volt the fans. 

 

The mounting mechanisms are the biggest difference, the Noctua cooler is much easier to install. If you get the Be Quiet cooler I would heavily recommend taking out the motherboard tray, or if that's not possible, the motherboard entirely. You have to screw in the cooler from the backplate rather than on the CPU socket side, it makes things slightly more tricky.

 

But that will cause 15-20 minutes of mild frustration, if you don't plan on removing the cooler frequently and like the aesthetics of the Be Quiet fan more, I would strongly suggest you go with it over the Noctua cooler. 

 

If you have any more questions please ask, I've wasted so much  money on cooling and I'd hate for other people to unnecessarily go through the same ordeal.

[That Norwegian Guy]

As has been said, they are very similar in performance, thus I would recommend the Dark Rock Pro as it has substantially quieter fans.

 

Also it is a sex beast.

[boggle4321]

from experience i think you will get a few degrees cooler on the noctua, but the dark rock looks better (to me). so id go with the dark rock

[MadFrog]

Hi all :)
Thanks for all the answers!:)

I will order a Dark Rock Pro 2 tomorrow! :D

 

~Kristian Gyde Denmark

[Tardbarn]

Good choice! You won't be disappointed, I just got mine a week ago and I love it. 

[MadFrog]

Tardbarn:
That sounds gr8! :D
I'we just ordered mine from Caseking.de I realy hope that, I will get it before friday! :D
I Will link some pictures of the build, and some temps! ;)

[Tardbarn]

Awesome, can't wait to see them! Here's what it look like in my Cooler Master HAF-XB:

 

 

[MadFrog]

Tardbarn:
Woow that realy looks good! :D
What is your temps indle and load? :)

[Tardbarn]

Sorry, I had to edit this a few times:

 

Core temps at idle are: 42, 36, 39 and 28.

Core temps at load with LinX stabilize at around: 76, 82, 78 and 77.

That's with a 3570K lazily overclocked to 4.0 GHz @ ~1.216V.

 

Mind you, those are with all the fans in my system running around at 75% of their max.

I have two 140mm Be Quiet Silent Wings 2 fans as intakes. 1 Rear 120mm silent wings 2 fan as an exhaust.

[Tardbarn]

Oh one more thing, if you like I can do tests with the fans running at 50%, which make them basically inaudible. It won't necessarily be representative of what you will get, but at least it will give you an idea.

[Corvus]

I own a Dark rock Pro 2, and it is awesome, a bit big though. ;)

Temps are 36c idle, and 67 during 100% load, and this is on a 3570k @4.2ghz.

[Tardbarn]

I own a Dark rock Pro 2, and it is awesome, a bit big though. ;)

Temps are 36c idle, and 67 during 100% load, and this is on a 3570k @4.2ghz.

 

Nice to see that you mounted it so that the Be Quiet Logo is facing the correct way :P

 

How's the PSU?

[Ddm5]

Nice to see that you mounted it so that the Be Quiet Logo is facing the correct way :P

 

How's the PSU?

I have the same PSU mate and it's pretty decent, be warned though, the semi modular Be quiet! Pure power power supplys have short cable lengths and I ran into problems with this, all in all, great PSU. 

[nightlitezzz]

Performance is so close I would just pick it based on appearance.

[MadFrog]

Hi all :)
I will be getting my Dark Rock Pro 2 to day! :D And I will opload some pic's and temps :D

[Nit3Rid3R]

Dark Rock Pro 2, looks nicer. 

[Corvus]

Nice to see that you mounted it so that the Be Quiet Logo is facing the correct way :P

 

How's the PSU?

The PSU is according to me great, however, as Ddm5 said the cables are quite short.

Another "drawback" is that the 24pin is quite badly sleeved at the end of it, so it's basically a cable rainbow. ;)

But I like it. Haven't heard the fan once. :P

[Tardbarn]

The PSU is according to me great, however, as Ddm5 said the cables are quite short.

Another "drawback" is that the 24pin is quite badly sleeved at the end of it, so it's basically a cable rainbow. ;)

But I like it. Haven't heard the fan once. :P

 

Yeah, it's a shame, I wanted to get a Be Quiet PSU but went for a Corsair one instead because of the individually sleeved cables they sell. Hopefully they will get better cabling in their next generation of PSU's.

[Mr. C]

Hi all

I will be getting my Dark Rock Pro 2 to day! And I will opload some pic's and temps

 

 

Sure... where is it then ?

Hate these type of guys who never return and tells how it went..