Introduction

I have always had a theory and have preached to deaf ears about this all too much in the past. Quite some time ago, when single CPU, self contained, water cooling units were introduced, I was skeptical about how well they would actually cool vs. a good heatsink and fan combination. My theory is - even though there is a constant flow of water passing through one end then being cooled by a small radiator on the return, it still doesn’t mean there is efficient cooling. These units are compact and usually have small radiators, which I feel can’t keep up with the heat generated by the CPU. Therefore, over time, the water being circulated becomes warmer, making the self contained cooler less efficient.

These self contained water cooling units have another problem – leakage. I have personally had three leak (yes, the systems were slightly overclocked) after short periods of use. The leakage caused malfunctions with my video cards and wireless NICs. Usually what fails is the seal, because they use a gasket, and the gasket usually becomes compromised due to the heat, which in turn causes gaps and ultimately leakage. I have since resorted back to air cooling and not having to worry about waking up in the morning to find my computer components fried due to water damage.

Noise bothers me, and if my computer is too loud, I can’t sleep, so I normally stay away from the real large heatsink and fan combinations due to fan noise. I would rather run my computer stock than overclocked if it means a good nights sleep. This past November (2009), Noctua introduced a heatsink and fan combination called the DH-14, and when I saw a picture of it, my jaw dropped, it is gigantic. Having used Noctua heatsink and fan combinations in the past, I know that they are virtually noiseless, so I began to wonder how well it would cool and how much noise it would actually create.

The Noctua DH-14 CPU cooler is designed for use with all of today’s most popular processors, no matter what the platform. The Noctua DH-14 is a dual tower (radiator) heatsink and fan combination that has 12 copper heatpipes (6 per tower), one 140mm, one 120mm fan, and aluminum fins. Total weight of the Noctua DH-14 is 1240 gms and its total width, height and depth are a whopping W=5.5”/ H= 6.3”/ D=6.2”.