Introduction 

These days CPU coolers seems to be getting bigger and bigger. Take for example the last CPU cooler we reviewed ... the Noctua NH-D14. It's quite a beast, and no doubt one of the largest CPU cooler we've tested to date. But being big doesn't necessarily mean it's the best. Luckily for Noctua, the latter is true.

With Noctua's heatsink being so large, a decent fan with enough airflow is need to help dissipate the heat. While most highend CPU coolers use 120mm fans, Noctua's CPU coolers come with their award-winning silent cooling fans, such as the NF-P14 measuring upto 140mm. This is one of the selling points which have made Noctua a favourite amonst highend performance users and enthusiasts. According to Noctua, their silent fan spins at a low rpm of 1,200 and can output 110.3 cubic meters/hour of airflow. What's more, if you use the included LNA cable (Low Noise Adaptor), the fan speed drops to 900rpm, producing airflow reduces to 83.7 cubic meters/hour. This reduction in speed of the fans makes the CPU cooler extremely silent.

Noctua CPU coolers may not look aesthetically pleasing, but it's the performance that counts. And for this reason, many highend performance users and enthusiasts, who cherish silence choose Noctua ... thanks to their silent fans and LNA cables. For those who are not familiar with Noctua products or the company itself ... here's a reminder taken from their website.

In this review, we'll be taking a look at the Noctua NH-C12P SE14 CPU cooler. It's designed for both AMD (AM2, AM2+, AM3) and Intel processors (LGA 775, 1156, 1366), and features a C-type design with airflow-gaps and 6 heatpipes. It comes with their award-winning NF-P14 silent fan measuring 140mm, as well as one LNA cables (low noise adaptor). Weighing in at approximately 730g and measuring upto 114x140x152mm including fans, the NH-C12P SE14 is slightly smaller than their flagship NH-D14 cooler, which we reviewed two weeks ago.

I've been told that the NH-C12P SE14's C-type design with airflow-gaps, allow cooling of system components such as memory modules and mosfets, which surround the CPU socket. Sounds interesting, but we're more interested in the overall cooling performance of the NH-C12P SE14, and how it compares with its bigger brother ... the NH-D14 and other CPU coolers in its class.

We'll be testing the Noctua NH-C12P SE14 on our test rig which consist of an Intel Core i5 - 650 @ 3.2Ghz, Gigabyte P55 USB3 motherboard, Geforce GTX 460 OC, 4Gb Crucial Ballistix Tracer and a Silverpower 650w power supply. It's the same system we've been using to test other CPU coolers.

OK no more talking ... let's take a closer look at the specifications and features of the Noctua NH-C12P SE14.

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