A Closer Look

The Noctua NH-U14S is a traditional single-tower-style heatsink. The heatpipes and base are out of nickel-plated copper while the fins are out of aluminum. In a bit of a twist, this cooler uses the Noctua NF-A15 PWM fan that is 140 mm x 150 mm x 25 mm in size. The extra width is certainly different when compared to the usual 120 mm- and 140 mm design. The bigger size of the NH-U14S means it should offer better cooling compared to the NH-U12S.


The simple design is nothing to get truly excited about but the build quality is spectacular. Add in anti-vibration pads on a quality PWM fan and it looks like the NH-U14S could be a winner. Noctua is also claiming 100% memory compatibility on socket LGA2011, which I will look into on the next page.


A Noctua cooler simply doesn't feel right without one of their beige and dark brown fans that look, well, unique would be a nice way to describe these. The NF-A15 PWM fan they used on this cooler spins at a maximum 1500 RPM, or 1200 RPM with the L.N.A. As can be seen, Noctua utilized flow acceleration channels to improve overall performance while keeping noise to a minimum.


The Noctua NH-U14S uses six heatpipes instead of the five on the NH-U12S. These are connected to the fins well, with no visible gaps to be found. The base is very smooth; however, it is still far away from a mirror finish.