Cooling

I won't go that far but we're all prone to doing the same; I've certainly done it enough times

sygnus21 said:

seekermeister said:

Thanks for the pictures, because that makes it certain for me that it will not fit my system. Since the chipset HS/F is about the same height as the ram, I do not believe that this would fit over it. It looks like that cooler doesn't have the lower fan, so one that does would be even more impossible to fit.

EDIT: I called it a chipset HS/F, but thinking about it, I believe that it is actually cooling the CPU mosfets.

If you look at the pictures closely, it'll clear the chipset/HS. You can also check out the FAQ's - Noctua.at - sound-optimised premium components "Designed in Austria"!

Sorry, that page doesn't convince me that it will fit, but it did serve a good purpose anyway, because I had wondered about how it was attached. It means removing CPU retention module, and replacing it with the brackets that they provide. Those brackets look similar to ones that I have seen on other brands. Can that be done very easily, without removing the motherboard?

Which cooler are we talking about - the SE14 (mine) or the C14?

If you're talking about mine, it depends on orientation as shown in the images posted by me.

@ seekermeister, I don't know what else to tell you. I know I have no clearance issues other than the RAM height, which I addressed. My motherboard is a Gigabyte GA-X58A-UD5



The cooler is not hitting or touching anything other than the CPU.

I understand that you can't give a definite answer, but after looking again at the FAQ page that you linked, I found that I had overlooked the drawing with the measurement and tolerances of the cooler. I tried measuring my HS/F and RAM with a measuring tape, but that is not easy to do with any precision. I'm not sure exactly what to reference in terms of measuring heights from, but from the PCB of the motherboard itself, it appears that both the RAM and HS/F are about 2" high, which is more than the allowed height given. I pulled a stick of RAM, and if the heat spreader can be removed, it is not apparent. Since the cooler extends ~3.3" on the high side of the cooler, and I measured the distance from the center of the CPU socket to both the RAM and HS/F at ~ 2.5", it is certain that it won't fit. I don't think that changing the orientation would make a sufficient difference.

Well I will say that not all RAM spreaders (heat fins) are removable, even some sold by Corsair, so if RAM clearance is a concern well. However you can orient the cooler to accommodate the tall heat sinks. Remember I originally didn't removed my heat fins and the cooler still fit and worked.

Anyway I can clearly understand your concerns as I felt the same before I purchased one, and did a lot or research. In fact, my photos are the only one that really show how the cooler works in relation to Corsair's RAM dominator modules with the removable fins as I couldn't find anything on the net at that time showing this.

Peace

Thanks, It's just that it got confusing for a moment :)

Anyway the only clearance issues for the SE14 would be with the RAM's height.

I realized that I made one mistake, I hadn't allowed for the extra height of the CPU and it's socket. That raises the height above the PCB to about 2.1". I think that would leave ~ .1" of clearance for both the HS/F and the RAM. Therefore the Noctua NH-C12P SE14 would be my choice, except that the temperature given on the benchmark of this test was not as good as I hoped:

The Noctua NH-C12P SE14 CPU Cooler Review-Hi Tech Legion-The Noctua NH-C12P SE14 CPU Cooler Review

It ran 56 degrees loaded with a lesser CPU than mine, and that is not as cool as I want. Not all that much cooler than my CM Hyper TX3.