Features:

  • State-of-the-art dual-tower design with 6 heatpipes and 2 fans provides class-leading cooling performance for overclocking or near-silent systems
  • Successor of the classic NH-D14; more than 250 awards and recommendations from leading international hardware websites and magazines
  • 2 highly optimised NF-A15 140mm fans with PWM support and Low-Noise Adaptors for automatic speed control and ultra-quiet operation
  • Includes high-end NT-H1 thermal paste and SecuFirm2 mounting system for easy installation on Intel LGA1150, LGA1151, LGA1155, LGA1156, LGA1200, LGA2011, LGA2066 and AMD AM4, AM3(+), AM2(+), FM2(+)
  • Renowned Noctua quality backed up by 6-year manufacturer’s warranty, deluxe choice for Intel Core i9, i7, i5, i3 (e.g. 10900K, 10700K, 10600K, 10980XE) and AMD Ryzen (e.g. 3950X, 3900X, 3700X, 3600X)
Works great with the i9 9900k.

I'm pairing the Noctua NH-D15 with the i9 9900k and the results are fantastic. My CPU is running stable at 5 GHz on all 8-cores with average idle temps between 32-37 degrees C and 50-65 degrees C during gaming. For other workloads, it typically is in the 40-49 degrees C range. I would highly recommend using the supplied thermal paste from Noctua as well since it is a high-quality paste that is non-conductive. It also was able to work with Corsair's Dominator Platinum RGB memory. The only modification I had to make was that I moved the first fan to the opposite end of the heatsink but in terms of performance, this has had no negative impact. If you prefer air-cooling like I do and want fantastic cooling, look no further. I also have to commend Noctua for exceptional packaging of materials They protect all of the components in the box with a large amount of padded protective material and everything comes in a fairly rigid cardboard box which protects the packaging contents. The product itself and even the package it comes in scream quality. If I build another system I'll buy another NH-D15, they truly make the best stuff.

No need to look any further. Buy it! Aces every category in performance, craftsmanship, and ease of installation.

I recently decided to swap over from my Corsair H60 Push/Pull setup. I had bought it when I was running my AMD 8350 FX. When I swapped over to an i7 4790k 2 years ago the H60 did an ok job with it as well. Not as stout as on the AMD because of the increased thermals from the i7. After lots of research I decided a Noctua cooler was going to be the next upgrade for my PC. Having never purchased a Noctua cooler before I didnt know what to expect. My research reading reviews and watching videos gave me a good idea though and the quality looked top notch. So once I made the decision I just had to decide on a compatible model for my motherboard and CPU socket. I went to Noctua's site and saw the compatibility for my Gigabyte Z97X UD5H Black Edition board. Clears the ram channels with ease. So I ordered it. Arrival: So when I got the package from Amazon, I dont think I had a proper appreciation for just how large this thing is. I wondered what I had gotten myself into when I opened it up. The packaging from Noctua is top notch. All the components are individually encased and the total contents is surrounded by foam. The company has taken great care to ensure your purchase arrives in pristine condition. Installation: I unboxed all the components. Looked at the instructions for my chipset 1150 and began breaking down my old cooler. Truth be told it took longer to get the H60 off my system than it did to get the NH-D15 installed. The instructions are precise and clearly written so its easy to understand. They depict two ways to orient the radiating tower so you can decide the best approach for your case and hardware. The brackets are well made and all metal. No plastic there so you can be assured that this will not flex on your board or chipset. It will have a firm back plate to secure to. I moved the fans to the left on mine so that I didnt encroach on any wiring and possibly nick a cable later breaking a fan blade. Operations: Once I fired up my PC I was blown away. I have never heard a silent computer before. Yet there it was. Up and running and not even a whisper of sound out of anything, not the GPU, not the CPU, and not my SSD's. It almost gave me cause for alarm. I had to look inside and make sure everything was actually running. I have been doing computer builds for 16 years and as a sysadmin I have never experienced something so whisper quiet. Performance: Where the rubber meets the road... what I bought it for after all. So my first test to see how it would perform was with Autodesk 3DS Max. I fired up one of my render scenes. Previously running a HD render of a simulated model would make the H60 scream. I fired off my first render and watched the temps and kept an ear out for increase in sound and cooler load to the fans. The fans never made a peep, if they increased in RPM and demand they certainly didnt let me know about it. Temps for my system: Upon boot after installation and a few hours of breaking in - Idle Min - 18C Max Temp: 57C (During Render at Max CPU usage) Average Temp: 20C Those temps looked great so I went on to do some gaming. I started with GTA-V Startup took under a minute and loading about as long. I swapped my games over to a dedicated SSD earlier in the week. Max temp during GTA-V at max settings. 48C. My GPU runs 20C hotter than the CPU. If I could get NOCTUA to make me a GPU cooler I would do it in a heartbeat. The performance is just unreal. If your case and board can support this cooler I recommend it. I dont think there is anything better on the air cooler market. The quality, design, ease of installation, and performance are a perfect 5 across the board in my book. When I build my next rig the cooler will be a Noctua without question.

Replaced water

This air cooler defeated my old Corsair H100i v2 in cooling efficiency, noise, quality, and likely overall space consumption (no tubes or radiators blocking sides of the case). I'm getting at least 8-10C cooler with this thing over water and it's not even running at full speed. Not to say the water cooler was bad, but just weigh your options depending on how you set up your case cooling. It's awesome that this thing fits so many different socket types, should I choose to switch to AMD then I don't have to buy a different kit I just change out the mounts. The build quality of the hardware is outstanding, none of the parts feel cheap or of poor manufacturing. Assembly and installation is easy to follow even though it looks way too large to sit on the socket. Some may be concerned about strain on the CPU/socket but I'd say it's comparable to the old AIO in this category, the tubes on it definitely put strain on the socket. If you're not concerned with the interior looks of your case then you should seriously buy this thing. If you *are* concerned with the interior looks of your case then search for the Chromax product line to compliment this hardware. If you're unsure about the optional secondary fan fitting, take a 140mm case fan and set it on top of your RAM (vertically as if it were on the cooler sitting above the RAM). If it still clears the side of your case with a few millimeters to spare then you're likely OK. Even with the slight offset of the optional fan, using Corsair Vengeance LPX sticks, I had plenty of headroom in the Air 540 even though it stated a 170mm clearance. Both 140mm fans are almost fully adjustable, they move/notch up and down on wire clips using the heatsink fins as mounting points. The fans are 140mm with 120mm mounts, probably for compatibility to fit a 120mm fan as the optional for those with taller RAM. It does come with thermal paste too, at least mine did at the time of purchase. Keywords to help searches for fitting: -Gigabyte GA-Z170X-Gaming 7 -Corsair Air 540 -Corsair Vengeance LPX *Updated review for clarity and extended ownership

The most powerful, yet quiet, air cooler available today.

I've got two D15s and a D15S for point of reference. I'll compare it here with alternatives like the Silver Arrow IB-E Extreme, NH-U14S, D15S, Cryorig R1 Ultimate and the Dark Rock Pro 3. The D15 deserves its reputation. It is, without any doubt, the most powerful cooler for the real world. It's true that the Reeven Okeanos can keep up with it, and the Silver Arrow IB-E Extreme can even surpass it, but in the real world, owners won't put up with coolers that loud. Those two are leveraging high RPM fans to compensate for inferior efficiency, and as a result, most owners are going to clamp down on fan speed and end up with lower performance coolers. The D15 is so quite, even under full load, that inside a case it might as well be silent. Its full performance range is, thus, accessible in the real world. If you're alright with loud heat sinks, I have to imagine that using two Noctua NF-A14 iPPC 3000s would still defeat all comers. I'm not sure how well those fans would fit given the NF-A15's (stock fan) strange frame. In my view, the Okeanos and Silver Arrow don't offer serious competition for this because of the way they achieve their performance. Far more interesting, for a comparison, are its direct competition from Be Quiet! and Cryorig, namely the Dark Rock Pro 3 and the R1 Ultimate. The R1 Universal, in my opinion, is the direct competitor to the D15S, so I won't get into it much here. The Dark Rock Pro 3, while it is measurably quieter, is simply not in the same league of performance as the D15. On top of this, it's harder to install, and in practical terms, both are virtually silent anyway. The DRP3 has more in common with the outgoing D14 anyway, with its dissimilar front and middle fans for memory clearance. The R1 Ultimate poses a much bigger challenge for the D15. It is ever so slightly behind the D15, and a little louder, but in some ways it's more, and in some ways it's less, compatible. The R1 is significantly taller than the D15, so people with certain case limitations will be left out. However, it's also narrower than the D15, meaning not only is it more friendly to the neighboring PCI-E slot, it's also easier to reach down and unlock the GPU from the motherboard. Furthermore, it overhangs the memory less, although due to the way the fans are mounted, it may still have less clearance than the D15. Perhaps the R1 Ultimate's biggest weakness, relative to the D15, is the fans. The XF140s do look great and are actually quite good fans, but they're still using modified sleeve bearings that will negatively impact noise and longevity, as well as severely limit orientation (not a problem for most builds). Although the D15 is probably the most powerful air cooler ever made, at least in terms of noise levels that normal people would find tolerable, it does have several weaknesses. The first is its extreme width, which I've already discussed. On some of my more poorly spaced motherboards, like my new Crosshair VI Hero, I actually have to remove the middle fan to reach the GPU lock. The other is, I'm sad to say, quality control. I've had many Noctuas before and never found an appreciable scratch. But I've had two D15s and a D15S and all three have had minor blemishes. The first D15 had a small, but deep, scratch on the top plate/fin. The second had other, smaller scratches, although these are not really noticeable. The D15S was the worst, which had a small, but easily recognizable, corrosion spot on it, and it's being returned now. I can only guess that the increased surface area, probably about twice that of the next largest current-generation Noctua cooler, the U14S, makes it that much more likely for a scratch to occur. Still, I've come to expect better from Noctua. That said, you simply cannot find an air cooler that puts out this performance at this volume. There is almost no reason to use anything else in general. That's why it gets 5 stars. Although it's arguably the most powerful, is it the best? Probably not. I'd say that, depending on your needs, the D15S or the U14S is better. The D15S comes with only a single fan, but it moves the heat sink away from the GPU, making it easier to work on the computer and clearing the GPU on smaller motherboards. The U14S has infinite RAM compatibility on both sides, making it easier to work on your computer and allowing you to use any RAM you like. Thus, depending on which compatibility issue concerns you more, I'd go with either a D15S or a U14S. Each gives up between 1 and 2 degrees Celsius in overclocked loads, due almost exclusively to being single fan heat sinks. If you want D15 performance, simply add a second fan to the D15S, and a dual fan U14S will get very, very close to the D15. In many tests, I've ever seen dual fan D15Ses beat D15s, although it's unclear why that would be. Perhaps they're better aligned with the intake and exhaust fans in the case. Perhaps they are less affected by the heat coming off of the GPU. I'm not really sure, but suffice it to say, you can achieve D15 performance without some of the hassles of the D15. I've added photos of the D15 (non-S) with and without the front fan to give you an idea of memory overhang. For compatibility reasons, some people may decide just to go without the front fan altogether, with also works fine.

Best air cooler on the market!

I had heard nightmare stories about AIO CPU coolers (All in One- A.K.A. closed loop water coolers), leaks destroying components, short lifespans, loud pumps, and the like. I decided to go with Noctua for all of my case fans as well (I got the 3000RPM Industrial fans for their robustness and quiet perfomance). Needless to say, I am extremely impressed with all of them. I have an i7-6700k under this massive cooler, and boy, does this thing cool. Running Aida 64 (stress tester; maxes CPU) the max Temp was 65° (C), with an average of only 62°, idling around 28°. Seeing these results, I decided to overclock it. I kept the voltage the same, but increased the clock speed to 4.6Ghz (factory "overclock" is 4.2). My Aida 64 Temps were even more impressive, still staying below 70° (YMMV). The average jumped to 67°, with a max of 69°. If you don't know, these Temps are well within the safe range for load Temps. It's performance does come at a price though, both in price, and in size. The saying rings true here: you get what you pay for. I wanted the best performance, but I paid $90 for that. The thing is absolutely massive too. When I took my PC down to college, I decided to lay the PC on its side to minimize the effect bumps would have on the cooler. It arrived without any damage, and works perfectly, but I still got extremely nervous every time I hit a bump. It also comes with an outstanding 6 year warranty, at which point I probably will have replaced many of my components, thankfully, noctua understand this, and send out adapters for new Motherboards/sockets at your request, free of charge. Even at 100% fan speed, they are not very loud, but they never come close to full speed. Under a gaming load they are inaudible, and under Aida 64, they are little more than a whisper. If you can't fit, or don't want to fit this monster in your PC, I'd highly recommend a different Noctua cooler. It seems to me that Noctua practices TQM (total quality management), with their dedication to quality products and customer service. It seems that every day, another big company puts profits over quality, and in the end, lose money, along with customers. Needless to say, it is a breath of fresh air to see a company who genuinely puts customers first. Off the top of my head I can only think of one other company on par with Noctua, and that is Discover (Credit Card company/bank). This is a huge compliment to both companies. When you call, you almost immediately get a real person, that you can easily understand because their employer hasn't moved the support overseas. Noctua, you have acquired a lifelong customer.

15 degree Celcius average temperature drops with Noctua NH-D15

I installed this cooler on an intel i7-7700k cpu. I upgraded from a cooler master hyper 212 evo. I ran Realbench benchmark and stress test on both coolers - 1. Image Editing - didn't record with 212 Evo but with Noctua - 38 Celcius with HD7950 GPU, 50 celcius without GPU 2. Video Encoding temps dropped from about 75 to 63 Celcius 3. Open CL temps dropped from about 58 to 48 Celcius 4. Heavy Multitasking dropped from about 75 to 60 Celcius 5. Stress Test dropped from about 78 to 58 Celcius So the cpu temps dropped an average of about 15 C or about 27 F The peak temps were much better using the Noctua - the wild swings in temps were better controlled. I am very happy with these results, the 7700k is a hot running cpu - I ordered some Arctic Silver 5 and will redo the tests later. Motherboard : Gigabyte Z270x Ultra Gaming. Ram: Corsair Vengence LPX 3200 - 2x8 GB DDR4 Case: Corsair Carbide Series SPEC-02 Mid Tower Gaming Case GPU: Saphire HD 7950 3GB (leftover from another build) HDD: Samsung 850 Pro 256GB The Noctua NH-D15 clears the ram with no issues. The Noctua is large and I had to remove one fan in order to install the GPU in the PCI-e x16 slot. With one fan installed on the Noctua, I ran Realbench again and the temps went up on average about 2 degrees Celcius. Gamers Nexus tested the x8 vs x16 PCI-e on several games 'frames per second' - "From a quick look, there is a little below a 1% performance difference in PCI-e 3.0 x16 and PCI-e 3.0 x8 slots. The difference is not even close to perceptible and should be ignored as inconsequential to users fretting over potential slot or lane limitations. We are not sure how this scales with SLI (particularly MDA 'mode') or dual-GPU cards, but hope to research once we've got more hardware in the lab." So, I will move my GPU to the x8 slot, use two fans on the Noctua, and install additional fans in the case and will update the results. Me resting temps are about 30 Celcius. With better fan placement I hope to get them down. With two fans on the Noctua and no GPU installed the resting temps were 28 Celcius.

Excellent CPU cooler

My i-5 was running into the 90s (degrees C) with the stock cooler when at 98% usage of all 4 cores during video conversions, no overclocking at all. I could get those temps down to the 70s using a regular house fan blowing at the motherboard in an open case. The CPU temp hasn't gone above 48 with all 4 cores maxing out during video conversion since installing the Noctua NH-D15 with both fans. My first picture shows the space around the cooler in my HAF 912 case. My second picture shows that the cooler clears the first slot for my video card to be in the best performance first slot in this orientation (and allows me to use the second fan.) When turned 90 degrees blowing out the top vent I could not use the second fan and the first slot together. My third picture shows my CPUs at 100% and had been for over 30 minutes with my CPU temps at 48 and 49 with core temps at 44, 43, 45 and 49.

Strong, silent and effective

I purchased this after reading the positive reviews to replace a Corsair water cooler. Pros: • Impeccable build quality. Those Austrians know what they are doing. • Easy install (although make certain you plan for your wiring connections BEFORE doing the install) • Effective. I am running an i3-8350K CPU overclocked to 4.5GHz, and this unit does the trick. Max temperature under load has been 135 degrees F. • Quiet. I've rarely encountered the fans running faster than 550 RPM. • Excellent thermal compound included with the kit. • Fans are PWM (versus DC), meaning better low-speed control. Con (sort of): • This thing is BIG. Make certain your case can handle its size. Just buy it. You won't regret it.

Liquid cooling performance for less

First off. This thing is HUGE. (See other reviewers pictures). I'd recommend plugging in the CPU power connector before mounting the cooler, because it becomes a pain afterwards (but still possible unless you have very meaty hands). It's able to keep my i7-6700k stable and safe while over clocked to 4.6ghz. Processor idles at 32 Deg C at 51% fan speed. During general Internet use it keeps it below 42 Deg Celsius (chrome with 10+ tabs). I haven't checked when under gaming load, because honestly I'm preoccupied. But the processor remains stable and I've had 0 thermal alerts. All I can ask for. Perfectly read by Asus mobo (some fans have resulted in CPU fan speed error for some reasons). This clears G.skill Trident Z ram with room to spare. Just note the outside fan will sit slightly higher than the middle fan. Taller ram may require only 1 fan to be used. Now on to the best thing about this unit... the mounting hardware. This is seriously the best designed mounting system I've come across. Installed in a breeze. The included thermal paste is a silver based thermal compound comparable to Artic Silver. No need to buy a separate compound. It works great. The packaging is also a work of art. Very neatly and intelligently organized. I don't really care about this kind of stuff, but it was a peasant touch.

The Air Cooler that beats Water Coolers

I purchased a Noctua NH-D15 after hearing for nearly a year that this cooler can outperform many water cooling products. I ordered it with one worry, my Ram modules were the super high Cosair Vengeance Pro RGB sticks. When it arrived I could see that the cooler is massive and comes with two fans, one located between two cooling towers and the other on the outside near the ram (at least its near the ram on a Asus "Tuf gaming pro plus wifi " motherboard. My ram clearance fears were quickly realized, the ram sticks were way too tall to fit under the fan which overhung slots 1 - 3. Then, I read the instructions and saw that you can mount the outer fan further up the heat sink tower with very little loss in cooling capacity. The raised fan cleared the tall ram modules and still fit (snugly) inside my full tower case. And cooling? Well my Ryzen 9 3900x now idles at between 31 and 34 degrees Celsius and even running intensive benchmarks (Prime95, Cinebench R20) it never gets above 68C. Compare this to my stock Wraith Prism that idled at 45C and during intensive tests would rise to a high of 89C. This product is a must for overclocking and recommended for people who don't like seeing a hot 3900x hitting close to its temperature throttle ceiling.

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