Noctua NH-C14S and NH-D15S Review

The Build

As both the Noctua coolers we're looking at utilise the same Secufirm2 fixing system we're only going to cover it the once.  For those not familiar with it, it's common to pretty much all modern Noctua coolers and is one of the simplest systems you'll ever come across.  With Noctua supplying distinct sets of instructions and fittings for each CPU socket the first step is to either screw through to your supplied back plate or in the case of the 2011 we're using straight into the mobo

The mounting brackets can then be placed atop these bolts and screwed down.  Noctua give the option of being able to mount the cooler in the traditional manner or at 90 degrees is you so desire.

The cooler is a bit of a chunky monkey and fills out the interior of our CoolerMaster "Test Trooper" nicely.

The stepped indents in the fin stack allow a total of 65mm of clearance under the cooler on each side, with the absence of tha additional fan meaning that full use could be made of this space with tall RAM.

If you're looking for a cooler that will match the colour scheme of your case Noctua isn't the first place to look.  What the NH-C14S does possess though is the ability to slip into cases a hell of a lot smaller than this.