Great timing, AT! I was just looking at some low profile HSF solutions for a SFF AMD ITX system I have kicking around. The case I'm using has about 70mm clearance IIRC, so I was looking at the Noctua NH-L9a, but I'll have to see if the other dimensions of the Reeven will work in that space.
Cryorig's C7 is a good ~100W option as well, speaking as an owner of one. The fan it shipped with did have some PWM noise, but Cryorig's CS was helpful and sent a replacement (which is flawless so far) with minimal fuss.
I've currently got a c7 in my Node 202 build cooling a 6600k. It barely does the job and after two replacement fans, I've finally given up on the fan side. I still use the base but I've custom mounted a 120mm sp fan to it and have seen much better temps. But still not that great. The L9i could t cut it either, which I had on prior to the c7. I've got a scythe big shuriken rev. B on the way to try out.
A 6600K with an overclock definitely pushes a C7 pretty hard. It keeps mine under control at 4.0, though stress testing does start to push the thermal limit.
Big Shuriken is probably the best you can cram into a Node 202. I have a 6600k at 4.5GHz in mine, and the Big Shuriken keeps it under 70C during x264 and Aida64.
I have a Cryorig C7 in my mITX system on a regular i5-6600. I could have gone with something taller, as there is room my Corsair 250D, but what was really appealing to me is the fact that the C7 fits completely within the socket area. Some mITX boards are pretty packed and some users reported that other, larger horizontal coolers could block the PCI-E slot or hit other components on the board.
Look no further than a Cryorig C1, it needs 74mm of clearance so see what you can do with your case options. I have one and it works wonders on an overlocked Intel Core i5-4690K @ 4GHz inside a Silverstone RVZ-01B.
Be very wary of the Cooler Master GeminII M4 as its base has poor CPU contact. The base is not flat and just has the heat pipes squished and exposed to the CPU leaving air gaps between the CPU heatspreader and heatsink base. I know this because I recently bought one for an HTPC with an AMD APU and haven't been very impressed with that aspect. The thermal performance is better than the stock heatsink and acoustics are excellent but the product is not as well engineered as it could be for $45.
That is kind of why I am asking. Although I have no complaints on how it's performing, I'd like to know if I should keep it or consider a newer/different HSF for my upgrade.
Not the subject of this article, but what stands out to me is the performance of AMD's Wraith. It's so close to the 212 EVO in every metric (except fan speed) that one can't help but conclude that AMD used the EVO as its benchmark during development. And very nearly hit it. On a bundled cooler.
You really should have included the Scythe BIG Shuriken 2 Rev. B cooler to your group as it's also a horizontal cooler. The company claims a max TDP of 130w on 115x CPUs. Noctua only claims 95w max TDP on 115x CPUs for the Noctua NH-C14S. Would have been nice to see how this compares.
Based on my experience (quietly cooling an i5-2300 in an extremely small HTPC case barely bigger than the ITX board dimensions) it would clobber all of these except for the Noctua, and it will fit where the Noctua will not.
Came to the comments to say just this. I've been running my Phenom-II 1055t (95W) in a mini-ITX system with the Shuriken Big for almost 6 years now, very happily and quietly.
For a low-profile cooler roundup, it seems odd to include the NH-C14S (at double the Z-height of the other coolers tested) but not the NH-L9i or even the NH-L9x65.
Yeah I always love folks that seem to think sites have every cooler, ram module, case, CPU, GPU under the sun to test against each other. If you have an infinite number of monkeys with typewriters...
These may not be tall coolers, but they're not all super low-profile either. I'd be interested in seeing reviews of the Cryorig C7 and Silverstone AR-05.
Its worth noting that while this review doesn't seem to mention the Raijintek Pallas or the CRYORIG C1... shouldn't assume those are unworthy of pretty serious consideration also.
Yeah the review is not apples to apples. In the world of SFF coolers there are the very tiny and larger solutions. The Noctua should be compared to coolers like the ones you mentioned.
This is from my personal experience only, but the L9i didnt cool much better than a stock Intel cooler. It just did it much quieter. I had one on an i3-6100 in a node 202 build and in a Bitspheonix prodogy mitx case. I then swapped the 6100 for a 6600k and that was beyond the l9is capabilities in either case. But that was to be expected. Even noctua doesn't recommend the L9i for anything more than 65w unless in a very well ventilated case.
I would've liked to see the heatsinks installed on a system in order to gauge how it might look on my own builds. Cooling performance is important, but I'm willing to sacrifice that if these coolers make it a pain to work on my computer.
I've got an AXP-200R in my HTPC. I didn't need to go that low of profile, but the huge fan is super quiet and perfect for my application. At 73mm of height clearance I'd think that the Thermalright model would have been in your review.
I've been using AXP-100's as my go to for small form factor builds. It would have actually been nice to see the AXP-100/200 in this review for comparison as the Thermalright options have become hard to acquire in Canada (not sure about elsewhere)
Can you add a bit more pertinent info? Like full socket compatibility. (2011.3?) Also can you talk about Rack U height as that is another place LP coolers are used. What is the minimum RU these coolers would fit? Thanks
A word of caution to those of you putting together a mini-ITX build - I had to return 3 coolers as they wouldn't fit on an Asus MAXIMUS VIII IMPACT. In all 3 cases, it wasn't because the cooler was too tall (I did measure the height available), but because the cooling pipes or whatnot would hit components on the motherboard. I can't speak for other motherboards, but the components on the Asus are so tightly packed in and all around the CPU socket, that available width is just as important.
Any VRM temperature measurements? And comparison to tower coolers? One of the advantages of top down coolers compared to conventional towers is their cooling of motherboard components, so would be interested to see.
Any chance of updating this roundup with results from the significantly more relevant Noctua NH-L9x65?
The NH-L9x65 is a comparable size / weight / height / price to both the Reeven & Phanteks coolers featured here where the NH-C14S is *double* the height and price of the other coolers...
Seems to me a review like this would be a lot more useful if heatsinks were normalized for a specific temperature or noise level. E.g. "The Cryorig produces 40dba keeping our 60w test load at 60c, and 35dba keeping it at 80c", or perhaps "At 35dba, the Noctua cooler kept our test load at 53c. With the Coolermaster cooler, due to the poor quality of the fan we were unable to get a sound pressure reading of 35dba without stopping the fan."
January 2016, I built a work-horse PC around the i7-6700K + Asus Z170 Deluxe Motherboard, inside of a 3U (5.75" Height) RackMount Chassis and the Noctua NH-C14S (single fan) was about the max height w/o going water cooling route. I run the 6700K @20% OC (4.8GHz) reliably, all the while the Asus MoBo LEDs never getting into the RED range. Noctua fans are warranted for 6years, which made my purchase a no-brainer.
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StevoLincolnite - Wednesday, January 18, 2017 - link
<3 Noctua.Samus - Wednesday, January 18, 2017 - link
The Noctua, although taller, has the best design. Inverting the fan is pretty smart.StevoLincolnite - Wednesday, January 18, 2017 - link
They also tend to be more expensive. But the cost is worth it in my opinion.nagi603 - Thursday, January 19, 2017 - link
Yes, they actually do provide far better workmanship and package. First Noctua I bought after Scythe blew me away, though it did cost twice the money.nathanddrews - Wednesday, January 18, 2017 - link
Great timing, AT! I was just looking at some low profile HSF solutions for a SFF AMD ITX system I have kicking around. The case I'm using has about 70mm clearance IIRC, so I was looking at the Noctua NH-L9a, but I'll have to see if the other dimensions of the Reeven will work in that space.80-wattHamster - Wednesday, January 18, 2017 - link
Cryorig's C7 is a good ~100W option as well, speaking as an owner of one. The fan it shipped with did have some PWM noise, but Cryorig's CS was helpful and sent a replacement (which is flawless so far) with minimal fuss.wolfemane - Wednesday, January 18, 2017 - link
I've currently got a c7 in my Node 202 build cooling a 6600k. It barely does the job and after two replacement fans, I've finally given up on the fan side. I still use the base but I've custom mounted a 120mm sp fan to it and have seen much better temps. But still not that great. The L9i could t cut it either, which I had on prior to the c7. I've got a scythe big shuriken rev. B on the way to try out.80-wattHamster - Wednesday, January 18, 2017 - link
A 6600K with an overclock definitely pushes a C7 pretty hard. It keeps mine under control at 4.0, though stress testing does start to push the thermal limit.nathanddrews - Thursday, January 19, 2017 - link
You guys talking about the AMD A8-6600K or the Intel i5-6600K?80-wattHamster - Thursday, January 19, 2017 - link
Good question! Intel in my case.nafs_asp - Tuesday, January 24, 2017 - link
Big Shuriken is probably the best you can cram into a Node 202. I have a 6600k at 4.5GHz in mine, and the Big Shuriken keeps it under 70C during x264 and Aida64.Brainonska511 - Tuesday, January 24, 2017 - link
I have a Cryorig C7 in my mITX system on a regular i5-6600. I could have gone with something taller, as there is room my Corsair 250D, but what was really appealing to me is the fact that the C7 fits completely within the socket area. Some mITX boards are pretty packed and some users reported that other, larger horizontal coolers could block the PCI-E slot or hit other components on the board.creed3020 - Thursday, January 19, 2017 - link
Look no further than a Cryorig C1, it needs 74mm of clearance so see what you can do with your case options. I have one and it works wonders on an overlocked Intel Core i5-4690K @ 4GHz inside a Silverstone RVZ-01B.YukaKun - Wednesday, January 18, 2017 - link
How does the "The Reeven Steropes RC-1206b" stack to the "CM GeminII M4"?They look very similar and the M4 does quite a good job with my old A8-3500 inside a Thermaltake SD200.
Cheers!
creed3020 - Thursday, January 19, 2017 - link
Be very wary of the Cooler Master GeminII M4 as its base has poor CPU contact. The base is not flat and just has the heat pipes squished and exposed to the CPU leaving air gaps between the CPU heatspreader and heatsink base. I know this because I recently bought one for an HTPC with an AMD APU and haven't been very impressed with that aspect. The thermal performance is better than the stock heatsink and acoustics are excellent but the product is not as well engineered as it could be for $45.YukaKun - Friday, January 20, 2017 - link
That is kind of why I am asking. Although I have no complaints on how it's performing, I'd like to know if I should keep it or consider a newer/different HSF for my upgrade.Thanks for the input as well :D
Cheers!
LiviuTM - Wednesday, January 18, 2017 - link
It's Celsius.80-wattHamster - Wednesday, January 18, 2017 - link
Not the subject of this article, but what stands out to me is the performance of AMD's Wraith. It's so close to the 212 EVO in every metric (except fan speed) that one can't help but conclude that AMD used the EVO as its benchmark during development. And very nearly hit it. On a bundled cooler.wolfemane - Wednesday, January 18, 2017 - link
You really should have included the Scythe BIG Shuriken 2 Rev. B cooler to your group as it's also a horizontal cooler. The company claims a max TDP of 130w on 115x CPUs. Noctua only claims 95w max TDP on 115x CPUs for the Noctua NH-C14S. Would have been nice to see how this compares.Spunjji - Wednesday, January 18, 2017 - link
Based on my experience (quietly cooling an i5-2300 in an extremely small HTPC case barely bigger than the ITX board dimensions) it would clobber all of these except for the Noctua, and it will fit where the Noctua will not.mm0zct - Thursday, January 19, 2017 - link
Came to the comments to say just this. I've been running my Phenom-II 1055t (95W) in a mini-ITX system with the Shuriken Big for almost 6 years now, very happily and quietly.edzieba - Wednesday, January 18, 2017 - link
For a low-profile cooler roundup, it seems odd to include the NH-C14S (at double the Z-height of the other coolers tested) but not the NH-L9i or even the NH-L9x65.80-wattHamster - Wednesday, January 18, 2017 - link
One works with the samples one has, presumably.jabber - Thursday, January 19, 2017 - link
Yeah I always love folks that seem to think sites have every cooler, ram module, case, CPU, GPU under the sun to test against each other. If you have an infinite number of monkeys with typewriters...jtd871 - Wednesday, January 18, 2017 - link
These may not be tall coolers, but they're not all super low-profile either. I'd be interested in seeing reviews of the Cryorig C7 and Silverstone AR-05.jtd871 - Wednesday, January 18, 2017 - link
Could you guys please update Bench with all these results?!Great_Scott - Wednesday, January 18, 2017 - link
It should happen pretty soon. Hey, Bench was updated with the new Core i3 results and there isn't even a review out yet!dreamcat4 - Wednesday, January 18, 2017 - link
Its worth noting that while this review doesn't seem to mention the Raijintek Pallas or the CRYORIG C1... shouldn't assume those are unworthy of pretty serious consideration also.creed3020 - Thursday, January 19, 2017 - link
Yeah the review is not apples to apples. In the world of SFF coolers there are the very tiny and larger solutions. The Noctua should be compared to coolers like the ones you mentioned.b4bblefish - Wednesday, January 18, 2017 - link
I'm really confused why the Noctua L9 or L9x65 wasn't used here since those would have been more relevant to this shootout?Basically instead of 3 comparable fans it's just 2 low profile ones and a large cooler which really shouldn't be compared to the other 2...
wolfemane - Wednesday, January 18, 2017 - link
This is from my personal experience only, but the L9i didnt cool much better than a stock Intel cooler. It just did it much quieter. I had one on an i3-6100 in a node 202 build and in a Bitspheonix prodogymitx case. I then swapped the 6100 for a 6600k and that was beyond the l9is capabilities in either case. But that was to be expected. Even noctua doesn't recommend the L9i for anything more than 65w unless in a very well ventilated case.
xenol - Wednesday, January 18, 2017 - link
I would've liked to see the heatsinks installed on a system in order to gauge how it might look on my own builds. Cooling performance is important, but I'm willing to sacrifice that if these coolers make it a pain to work on my computer.bigboxes - Wednesday, January 18, 2017 - link
I've got an AXP-200R in my HTPC. I didn't need to go that low of profile, but the huge fan is super quiet and perfect for my application. At 73mm of height clearance I'd think that the Thermalright model would have been in your review.AXP-200R website: http://thermalright.com/product/axp-200r/
AXP-200R in use: http://i256.photobucket.com/albums/hh175/bigboxes/...
stlouis1 - Thursday, January 19, 2017 - link
I've been using AXP-100's as my go to for small form factor builds. It would have actually been nice to see the AXP-100/200 in this review for comparison as the Thermalright options have become hard to acquire in Canada (not sure about elsewhere)genzai - Wednesday, January 18, 2017 - link
Can you add a bit more pertinent info? Like full socket compatibility. (2011.3?)Also can you talk about Rack U height as that is another place LP coolers are used. What is the minimum RU these coolers would fit?
Thanks
Ranger1065 - Thursday, January 19, 2017 - link
Good heavens Anandtech, a new article! Don't overdo it now. It seems to me more effort is expended on Tweets these days. Interesting read though.colonelclaw - Thursday, January 19, 2017 - link
A word of caution to those of you putting together a mini-ITX build - I had to return 3 coolers as they wouldn't fit on an Asus MAXIMUS VIII IMPACT. In all 3 cases, it wasn't because the cooler was too tall (I did measure the height available), but because the cooling pipes or whatnot would hit components on the motherboard.I can't speak for other motherboards, but the components on the Asus are so tightly packed in and all around the CPU socket, that available width is just as important.
zodiacfml - Thursday, January 19, 2017 - link
awesome performance but too big and pricey. the Reeven seems to be good value here as it is tiny compared to a Hyper 212 evo.Voldenuit - Thursday, January 19, 2017 - link
Any VRM temperature measurements? And comparison to tower coolers? One of the advantages of top down coolers compared to conventional towers is their cooling of motherboard components, so would be interested to see.losonn - Saturday, January 21, 2017 - link
Any chance of updating this roundup with results from the significantly more relevant Noctua NH-L9x65?The NH-L9x65 is a comparable size / weight / height / price to both the Reeven & Phanteks coolers featured here where the NH-C14S is *double* the height and price of the other coolers...
Yuriman - Tuesday, January 24, 2017 - link
Seems to me a review like this would be a lot more useful if heatsinks were normalized for a specific temperature or noise level. E.g. "The Cryorig produces 40dba keeping our 60w test load at 60c, and 35dba keeping it at 80c", or perhaps "At 35dba, the Noctua cooler kept our test load at 53c. With the Coolermaster cooler, due to the poor quality of the fan we were unable to get a sound pressure reading of 35dba without stopping the fan."pseudoid - Tuesday, February 28, 2017 - link
January 2016, I built a work-horse PC around the i7-6700K + Asus Z170 Deluxe Motherboard, inside of a 3U (5.75" Height) RackMount Chassis and the Noctua NH-C14S (single fan) was about the max height w/o going water cooling route. I run the 6700K @20% OC (4.8GHz) reliably, all the while the Asus MoBo LEDs never getting into the RED range. Noctua fans are warranted for 6years, which made my purchase a no-brainer.Antoine. - Tuesday, January 23, 2018 - link
FYI, the C14S perfectly fits in a Streacom F12C case (even with the fan on top)! I know, I have both and tested both options when I was setting it up!