The choice between performance and aesthetics can at times can be really frustrating. When money is not the deal breaker, but space or décor constraints are the limiting factors, the situation can be very annoying. This is especially true when you are in the market for a processor cooler that must fit your computer case. If you are space constrained, or you just can not stand the sight of the Stackers and Cosmoses of this world and you want a top of the line cooler for your computer then Noctua has something special in store for you
The review is divided into 13 sections.
- Introduction
- Presentation
- The Noctua NH-C12P SE14 – SE for “Special Edition” 14 for “140mm fan”
- NH-C12P SE14 –A Closer Look
- The Fan
- Accessories bundle & On-line resources
- Official Specs
- Cooler Installation
- Testing
- Results
- Noise Levels
- Price/ Performance
- Conclusion
INTRODUCTION
Noctua is renowned for its line of processor coolers and high performance computer fans. Like Dior, Chanel, Ferrari of this world, top quality products carry a premium with them. This is well justified at times and in the case of Noctua that is certainly the case. The company’s products are relatively expensive as compared to many others. Notice I said “relatively”. If you look at the entire package, Noctua is usually at par or maybe even at a lower price point than its competitors. Goodies like extra fans, universal mount kits, and a complete installation kit are some of the extras that accompany Noctua’s processor coolers. Pair this up with top of the line quality of their products and the price does not seem high at all. In fact I’d consider them a good deal. The Noctua NH-C12P SE14 is a revised version of their NH-C12P.
PRESENTATION
The NH-C12P SE 14 comes in a slightly larger than average sized box for a processor cooler. The box follows the standard Noctua design. If you have ever bought a Noctua product in recent times, you will have no problems spotting the box in a busy store shelf. The front of the box has a small window that shows a part of the 140mm fan that is new to the second edition of the NH-C12P. It also highlights its salient features and that is about it. The single piece of information provided here which is most pertinent for prospective buyers is “high compatibility”.
More on this a little later in the article.
The back of the box describes the main features of the cooler in some detail. The information is accompanied by large icons, which are self explanatory. A picture is worth a thousand words, Noctua’s presentation is worth at least a couple of thousand words.
The top flap lists the cooler’s specifications. The heat-sink and fan specs are listed in two separate columns. The two sides of the box describe the cooler’s features in languages other than English and its dimensions respectively. Enough information is available on the box to adjudge if it will fit in a space conscious enclosure. This, I believe, is more important than fancy graphics or large windows, which might be eye catching but provide little or no useful information. I can’t really find anything to complain about the packing. It is sturdy and provides relevant information. And it is not drabby brown or overtly flashy
THE NOCTUA NH-C12P SE14. – SE for “Special Edition” 14 for “140mm fan”
The NH-C12P SE14 is a top down cooler. These are few and far in between in a world dominated by tower (i.e: front-back) coolers. The last great top down cooler was the Thermaltake Typhoon series, especially their “Big Typhoon”. Of course all Intel stock coolers are of the standard Top-down type. Ditto for AMD. But they are not exactly cutting edge. If they were there, both you and I won’t be here, but probably be tinkering and tweaking performance using stock coolers. The NH-C12P SE14 differs from its predecessor in two ways:
- The provision of Secufirm2 mounting system
- The 140mm NF-P14 fan which replaces the NF-P12 120mm fan
Like most top down coolers, the NH-C12P is a “C” type design in profile. There are however Noctua specific variations to the standard “C” design. There are airflow gaps in the heat sink which allows a large volume of air to flow over the motherboard components and lower their temperature. The heat-sink weighs about 550 grams. Add the 140mm fan and the weight increases to 730 grams. Not heaviest of the coolers around. As with every Noctua cooler, the accessories package is complete. You will not have to order extra bits to install the cooler in your computer, even if you have the latest Intel socket 1156 processors.
THE NOCTUA NH-C12P SE14. – A CLOSER LOOK
General Appearance
The cooler follows a “C” type design, typical for a top down cooler. The heat pipes enter from one side of the cooler, all in line and enter the heat-sink base from the same side, thus giving the appearance of the letter “C” The design decision that Noctua took modifies the traditional “C” design. These are:
- Heat dissipation plates are not of the same size
- Heat pipes on the two extremes run bare for a part of their course.
- Extra tall heat plates that course over the base
The Cooling Plates
The cooler is armed with a total of 44 aluminum cooling plates. Not all of them are of the same size & shape. The plates are arranged in a 20-15-9 pattern, when counting from the right in the picture above to the left. The central 15 plates are of different size as compared to the 29 other.
The 29 plates have a dimension of 12.5cm x 4cm. Notice that they taper off at the ends. They are not exact rectangles, but rather trapezoid (trapezium). The total area of one plate is about 47.6cm2. For 29 plates the total area for heat dissipation is 2761 cm2.
The central column of 15 plates are trapezoid. Their dimensions are different from the 29 plates mentioned above. They are taller and narrower than the other 29 plates and while they extend down to the base plate of the heat sink, they fall short of the horizontal span of the other plates. The exact dimensions are a height of 7cm and width of 7.2cm at the top.The width at the base is 4.5mm. The total area of these plates is 46.35cm2. Thus their heat dissipation area equals 1391 cm2. As they extend all the way to the base, they can dissipate heat conducted from the base plate as well, adding to their cooling efficiency The total heat dissipation area is thus 4152cm2. . This compares to an area of 3860cm2 for the NH U-9B and 12000cm2 for the NH-D14. Each tower of the latter has an area of 6000 cm2.
The cooling plates feature the same notched design found on other Noctua coolers. This design feature helps reduce resistance to airflow.
The bottom of the cooling plates array has a clearance of about 51cm. This is more than enough to accommodate large north bridge heat-sinks. It is also possible to install the cooler with the heat pipe "C" bend pointing towards the top of the case. With the cooler oriented like this, a part of it will over hand the Northbridge and provide additional component cooling
The Heat Pipes
The cooler features 6 heat pipes that follow a “C” shaped course through the fan. The pipes are made of Copper and are Nickel plated. They have a diameter of 6mm each. They exit the base of the cooler from one side in one line and span out from there.
They spread out and enter the cooling plates again all in line. This maximizes the heat dissipation as the heat pipes are spaced apart rather than being super imposed. The outer heat pipes follow a lower course as compared to the central 4. As the central set of heat plates are shorter, these outer heat pipes are bare (i.e. not surrounded by heat plates for about 4mm) for a part of their course. This is to allow access to the spring loaded mounting screws. This will have some impact on their ability to dissipate heat.
The Heat-Sink Base
The base of the heat sink is flat but has a matte finish rather than a mirror finish. As has been discussed before (and at length) and shown by tests, the lack of a mirror finish does not put coolers at a disadvantage. In fact many manufacturers do not ship coolers with a mirror finished base. The extra cost incurred does not provide as much of a benefit. The minor imperfections can be filled up by thermal compound.
The overall build quality is top notch. The solder points are very difficult to detect if at all. There are no sharp edges that might cause abrasions. There is easy access to mounting screws. The heat pipes are arranged so as to provide optimal heat dissipation. Maximum points to Noctua for construction quality.
THE FAN
The cooler comes with a 140mm NF-P14 fan. This is similar to the one that is also bundled with the NH-D14 mammoth. The fan specifications are as follows:
The fan employs standard Noctua innovations. They have been discussed elsewhere, but are reproduced here as well:
- Vortex Control Notches
- Smooth Commutation Drive Technology
- Self Stabilizing Oil-pressure (SSO) Bearing
These are two small notches at the edge of the blade. These help reduce the noise produced by decreasing air turbulence and splitting the air current in multiple vortices. This distributes the noise generated over a wide range of frequencies making them less of a nuisance.
The picture shows a close up of the Vortex Control Notches on the fan blade.
Another source of potential noise is the fan motor itself. To reduce the noise generated by the motor Noctua employs a “Smooth Commutation Drive” technology which provides a greater continuous switching of the coils in the motor. This helps to reduce noise generated by the motor.
Helps lower the noise and enhance the life span of the fan This is one area that was improved upon as compared to the last production version of the NH-C12P. The 120mm fan is replaced by a larger 140mm fan. With the increase in size comes the added advantage of low noise and higher air flow.
The fans rest on 4 rubber pads. This helps reduce vibration and thus the noise generated during cooler operation. The fans mount on the heat-sink using clips. They are very easy to snap on and snap off, but are different from the system employed by the NH-D14. Noctua bundles a well engineered fan with this cooler. It is their top of the line 140mm. Premium components from a company that does not compromise on quality. The fan comes with a standard 3 pin connector. The cable is sleeved which makes cable management that
much easier.
Just like the fans that are bundled with the NH-U9B SE, the cable length is an ample 16 inches. If you are short on closely located power connectors on your motherboard, the added cable length will be a lifesaver!
ACCESSORIES BUNDLE & ON-LINE RESOURCES
The cooler comes with a very comprehensive accessories package. It is becoming a cliché: the cooler comes with everything that is required to install the cooler and more! The standard secufirm2 mounting system for both contemporary Intel and AMD platforms is included. The cooler can be installed on any of the following platforms: Intel LGA 775, 1156 and 1366 socket based motherboards AMD AM2, AM2+ and AM3 socket based motherboards A tube of Noctua’s own NT-H1 is also included. It is non-conductive and does not require a burn-in time to achieve maximal efficiency. It is also comparatively easier to remove as compared to Arctic Silver 5 (AS5). Though the performance is very similar to the latter, it is still recommended especially for novices. This is so as a. It is non-conductive b. Easier to remove Beyond this it is basically user preference. Some would swear by AS 5 and use nothing else. Others are not so choosy. A pair of fan clips, speed control cables (Low Noise Adapter and Ultra Low Noise Adapters LNA & ULNA), Noctua badge, and installation guides complete the package. The fan control cables help lower the fan rotational speed, lowering noise levels. They are a good addition and show the attention to detail Noctua pays to its package. All the recent Noctua coolers that I have come across also included a Philips head screw driver in the accessories. For some odd reason one was not included in this. Maybe an oversight for the review sample? I am only nitpicking here, but when there are no faults to be found, one has to nitpick!
ONLINE RESOURCES
The extensive FAQ on Noctua’s website covers everything. It is highly recommended that users go over the FAQ before proceeding to installing and using the cooler. For this particular model, the FAQ points out a potential issue with Zalman MFC-2 fan controller (which is incidentally on one of the review platforms) and memory modules with extra tall heat spreaders. Kudos to Noctua for providing such an extensive on-line resource.
OFFICIAL SPECS
The following information is taken from Noctua’s website:
COOLER INSTALLATION
The cooler is tested in two different systems. One represents a typical HTPC Setup. The other is an enthusiast class gaming machine. The prowess of the cooler is tested in an enclosure where real estate is limited. It will also be tested in a system where heat dissipation is critical. Noctua suggests not installing the cooler with heat pipe "C" bend pointing towards the back of the case. This is to prevent the power regulators from getting too hot. As you will see, proper orientation can provide additional air over the power regulator components at the back of the processor socket. For Intel platforms a base plate needs to be placed below the motherboard. If your case does not have a cut out in the tray for installation (and removal) of cooler, the motherboard has to come out of the case. This could add at least another 15 minutes to installation time. If you are in the hunt for a new case, get one with a cut out in the tray. Highly recommended. The installation process is exactly the same as any Noctua fan that uses the Secufirm2 system. It has been described here and here but is also reproduced below.
INSTALLATION IN A COMPACT CASE - Test Bed
For testing in a compact case, a Legend computer case was used. This represents a common size for a compact case. The interior of the case has just about enough room to mount a full ATX case –just about. As you will see, the cooler can fit inside the case with relative ease.
Back-plate & Bolts
As this is an LGA 775 platform, the rubber inlay is placed in the back-plate. The 4 bolts are passed through the opening for this platform.
Mounting Bars & Thermal Compound
The mounting bars go on next. They can be oriented vertically or horizontally depending on how the cooler is be oriented. To provide air flow to the power regulators at the rear of the board, it is recommended that the bars be placed as shown. The cooler can then be installed with the central cooling plates facing front to back, providing air to the memory module as well as the power regulators. Enough thermal compound was applied to the processor heat spreader to create a thin even layer. Remember that thermal compound only helps to fill in the imperfections in the metal heat spreader and the heat sink base. A thick layer will impede heat transfer.
Heat-Sink Installation
The heat sink is then mounted using the two spring loaded screws. The fan must be installed after this step, as it will be difficult (but not impossible) to tighten the screws once the fan is in place.
The heat-sink is installed so that the central longer plates face front to back. This allows air to flow out of the spaces between the plates and on to the power regulators at the back of the board.
The same plates can provide air to the memory modules.
There is ample space between the heat pipes and the north bridge.
The heat plates right next to the heat pipes can also provide some air to the north bridge.
Installing the Fan
Once the heat sink is secured, the fan is clipped on to the heat-sink. Completing the installation of the cooler.
The cooler was removed from the mount to see the contact it makes with the heat spreader on the processor. The results are very good. The contact is very uniform.
As you can see the cooler is a tight fit. There is not enough room at the back for a regular “thick” 25mm fan. Though a 20mm fan would fit in just fine. It is possible to install this cooler in a cramped for space small computer case.
INSTALLATION IN A MID TOWER CASE - Test Bed
The procedure for installation mirrors that of installation in a mid tower case. Only the rubber inlay has to be removed from the back-plate as this is a LGA 1366 platform.
The Ideal Installation
The Mid tower case has ample room to install the heat sink in the ideal orientation
Here you can see how the central longer heat plates are right next to the cooler on the power regulators at the rear of the board. Air from the plates has direct access to the fins on the power regulators. (green arrows). The cooler also over hangs the Northbridge, providing it with additional cooling
The cooler fits perfectly inside the case with room to spare. A "fat" 38mm fan at the rear is comfortably accommodated.
Installation tips
- Make sure the orientation of the mounting bars is correct. Take a look at your motherboard. If you see extra-ordinarily high cooling solutions on the chipsets you will need to adjust the orientation of the fan accordingly.
- Ideally the cooler should be installed with the “C” shaped heat pipes pointing towards the top of the case. When installed in this position, the cooler will over hang the Northbridge, providing it with air. It will also allow air to flow over the power regulators at the rear of the board as well as over the memory sticks at the front
- When installing the cooler, tighten both screws alternatively, one turn at a time. This prevents skewing of the cooler.
The Fans have to be installed AFTER the heat-sink is fixed to the secufirm2 mounting system. It is not impossible to tighten the screws through the fan blades, but it is pretty cumbersome.
TESTING
The cooler is tested in the compact case against: 1. Stock Intel Cooler (for E5200) 2. Noctua NH-U9B SE The cooler is tested in the mid tower case against: 1. Stock Intel Cooler (for Core i7-920 Processor) 2. Noctua NH-D14 3. Noctua NH-U9B SE 4. Thermalright Ultra-120 eXtreme
RESULTS
COMPACT CASE/ INTEL E5200
For the compact case, OCCT (V3.1.0) was used in the standard mode. The setup is ideal for HTPC based activities. It runs off a “silent” (fan-less) video card (Sparkle 9400GT Silent Edition). There was no need to over clock the processor or to run the torture Linpack test.
The cooler does very well, as well as NH-U9B SE with two fans. The chart does not show results of the cooler with noise control adapters. The reason being that the performance numbers were with in 1°C of this value with the Low Noise Adapter (LNA) and 2°C with the Ultra Low Noise Adapter (ULNA). The extra rotational speed of the fan has no impact on cooling performance showing that even at low speeds the efficiency of the cooler is pretty high.
NO FAN TEST
Just like the NH-U9B SE, the cooler was tested in the same setup without its fan.
No real surprises here. The cooler maintains its lead over the NH-U9B SE. It keeps the E5200 cooler by 4°C.
MID TOWER CASE/ INTEL Core i7-920 (3.6 GHz)
The cooler was then tested in a high-end gaming machine. The processor was over-clocked (about 1 GHz over stock clock). To make things interesting the gigantic 200mm fans that come with the case were removed. As before OCCT V3.1.0 was used. This time the Linpack “torture” test was run with Hyper-Threading set to “ON”.
The pertinent benchmarks are highlighted. The red boxes show the direct comparison results between a Thermalright 120 Ultra eXtreme equipped with a single fan and the Noctua NH-C12P. The results are very comparable. Both perform exactly the same when their fans run at default speed and then at 900 rpm (with LNA on the Noctua). Only when the ULNA is used does the Noctua fall behind, but then the fan’s rotation speed and the resultant noise drops further. The cooler comes ahead of the NH-U9B SE and the stock Intel cooler, which has a hard time keeping with. The leader of the pack is however the NH-D14.
Noise Levels
The Mid tower system was used as a test bed for testing noise levels.
For legibility the chart is color coded. Intel’s stock cooler takes top honors here. It generates more noise than any other cooler, including the 2 fan NH-U9B SE. The quietest of the bunch is the NH-C12P SE14 with its single fan running in ultra low noise mode. Thermalright 120 Ultra eXtreme was tested using Noctua NF-P12 fan and thus generates about the same level of noise. Here is a reference for noise levels:
Price/ Performance
The retail price of the NH-C12P SE 14 is about US$68. The closest competitor, the Thermalright 120 Ultra eXtreme is about US$75. The latter does not come with any fan. Add a decent fan and the price is bound to go up by about US$ 5-20. What appears to be a “hefty” price tag is actually less than what you might pay if you opt for an alternate.
Conclusion
This fan is a niche product. It is for those who are looking to capitalize on the cooler’s dimension with respect to the case size of their computers. It can fit in chassis that can't house a Thermalright 120 ultra eXtreme and perform just as well. In a typical HTPC case it can keep the processor cool enough without the need of its fan! If you want the best top down cooler ever made, one that performs just as well as standard tower design coolers, fits in a compact case and comes with everything you will need to set it up then stop musing and go out and get a Noctua NH-C12P SE14.
PROS
Low Profile Cooler Cools motherboard components as well as the processor Competitive performance Top notch construction Universal installation kit 140mm premium fan with fan speed control cables. Extra long fan cable length Lowest noise generation Can be used without a fan (As tested)
CONS
No LEDs on the fan May interfere with very tall memory heat spreaders No screw driver in the installation kit (no love for the NH-C12P SE14!)
Follow Wccftech on Google to get more of our news coverage in your feeds.
