It's been nearly four years since we last looked at a Noctua air cooler here at OCIA.net. This is a real shame as they are widely considered one of the top air cooling manufacturers in the world, held in the same regard as Thermalright and Tuniq. Today we have their flagship cooler in for evaluation, the NH-D14. This is an absolute monster of a heatsink - more like two coolers welded together with dual fans. Those with cramped mid tower cases need not apply. But just because it is very large doesn't automatically make it worth your hard-earned money and this wouldn't be the first time that a large cooler has failed to deliver on perceived high expectations. Does the NH-D14 have what it takes to keep the Noctua brand in the top three globally? Keep reading as we put it to the test.


The NH-D14 arrived in the mostly white retail box seen above. There is a small photo of the cooler on the front flanked by a brief feature list. Around back we find more detail on these features, with a complete list of cooler specifications found on the top of the box (not pictured). The box is the largest I have ever seen for an air cooler which only led to more excitement. Below is a list of specifications borrowed from Noctua's website.



Like most mainstream aftermarket coolers, the NH-D14 has a wide compatibility list, covering both Intel and AMD configurations. The overall mass of the heatsink means it has a bit of heft to it, 1240 grams with both fans to be exact. The bare sink weighs in at 900 grams. So long as the mounting system is adequate, weight shouldn't be an issue. Also a non-issue is noise, with each fan rated at under 20 dBA.

Continue ahead as we take a closer look at the NH-D14.