Noctua NH-D15S – Conseil Config: Review| Test | Specs | Pros & Cons | Config | Set-up

Test – Noctua NH-D15S – Conseil Config: Review| Specs | Price | CPU Performance| Config | Advantage (Pros) and Disadvantages (Cons) and other important features that will help you make better decision.

Back at Noctua today with the latest addition to the “D” range, I named the NH-D15S! The NH-D15 first of the name is one of the best, if not the best cooler on the market, but also one of the most imposing which causes some undesirable effects like the blocking of the first PCIe port and some problems if ever the memory has. a radiator that is too high. Noctua has therefore decided to rework its flagship cooler by making sure to erase these little worries, the NH-D15S was born! Offered at a price of € 79.90, or € 10 less than the NH-D15, however, it only has a fan instead of the two of the original, let’s see what the beast has in store for us!

We will not dwell too much on the box, which is as usual at Noctua very sober, the model, the brand as well as the main strengths such as increased memory compatibility, the asymmetrical design for better PCIe compatibility, the NF-A15 fan etc. A little note is also present saying that the NH-D15S is a single fan version and has better compatibility than the NH-D15. At the back again a listing of the main strengths, but this time with a small spiel accompanying each of them.

On the side as usual all the technical characteristics are present, weight, dimensions, compatible sockets as well as the specifications of the fan.

Ah ladies and gentlemen of change at Noctua! Instead of falling directly on small boxes when opening, we fall on a foam plate, allowing to protect the entire contents.

Under the foam 2 boxes, 1 containing the cooler itself and 1 other containing the bundle, everything is protected by foam on each side, and below therefore the risk of having a damaged product on arrival is really very thin, as usual!

Voici la bête! Il ne change pas vraiment visuellement de son grand frère le NH-D15, à part le ventilateur en moins en façade, il sera difficile de voir la différence entre les deux sans regarder attentivement les détails, ce que je vais faire de ce pas! En tout cas, et comme d’habitude chez ces messieurs de chez Noctua la qualité de fabrication est irréprochable, le NH-D15S donne un sentiment de solidité lors de la manipulation et est là pour durer.

Premier constat par rapport au NH-D15, le caloducs sont un peu décalés sur le côté opposé aux ports PCIe pour s’accommoder d’une carte graphique collée au socket du processeur, à part cela il n’y a vraiment rien qui différencie le NH-D15S de son grand frère. Les ailettes en aluminium (au nombre de 45, de chaque côté) sont solides, ne sont pas tordues et appuient cette sensation de qualité.

A better view of the heat pipes, it is clearly seen that they are asymmetrical. The finish is usual, nickel-plated as in all high-end products.

In profile there is clearly no way to differentiate the 2 models, a good big radiator “dual tower” as we like them. As we can see, the edges have been cut in order to allow a very high compatibility with the memory (65 mm maximum), why on both sides you are going to tell me? Quite simply to allow installation on a 2011 socket which has memory modules on both sides! Notches are also there for the installation of a second (or third) fan if necessary.

Here again it will be very difficult to differentiate the 2 models, except for the heat pipe at the bottom on the photo which is shifted inwards, certainly because of the length necessary to reach the top, it is also a little deeper than the others. The brand logo is engraved on each radiator, so you don’t forget what you bought!

Underneath the finish is once again top flight, the surface in contact with the processor has a mirror effect with arcuate grooves, like the first NH-D15, convex surface point here.

The fan is an NF-A15 PWM model (the same as on the Noctua NHèU14S and NH-D15) running at a maximum speed of 1500 RPM (1200 RPM with the LNA adapter) so there will be no surprises here, the fans are excellent with a very good cooling capacity as well as a large margin of maneuver in terms of noise pollution!

The bundle consists of:

• 1 ventirad Noctua NH-D15S
• 1 tube of thermal paste
• 1 Intel mounting kit with its back plate
• 1 kit de fixation AMD
• 1 LNA adapter
• 2 clips for an optional fan
• 1 Phillips screwdriver
• 1 Noctua NT-H1 metal sticker
• The different manuals

We do not redo the bundle at Noctua, we have everything you need to install the NH-C14S without problems, screwdriver, thermal paste, adapter to lower the maximum fan RPMs and even a sticker metal logo, for those that they want to play it in society.

Specification: Noctua NH-D15S

No doubts Noctua must have had a painful delivery with her last baby, even if the dimensions are rather limited for a “dual tower” cooler, thanks to the presence of a single fan in the center! 16 cm high for 15 cm wide and 13.5 cm deep (with or without fan) for a total weight of 1150g (980g without the fan), similar to the NH-D15 first of the name to which we would have removed a fan.

The NH-D15S is of course compatible with all current sockets, going from 115x to 2011-3 at Intel (point of 1366 and 775 however, they have long been outdated) and all AMD sockets, as much to say that it will have to be done on purpose so as not to have a compatible socket 😉.

On the cooling side, Noctua offers 6 nickel-plated copper heat pipes responsible for transferring the heat to the 45 aluminum fins (on each side), themselves cooled by an NF-A15 PWM fan rotating at a maximum speed of 1500 RPM (1200 RPM) with the LNA adapter) for a given maximum sound level of 24.6 dB (19.2 dB with the LNA adapter).
Offered at a price of 79.90 € it is 10 € cheaper than its big brother but does not have a fan, as usual the NH-D15S is not given but we are entitled to a 6-year warranty accompanied by ‘an MTBF of 150,000 hours for the fan, so once purchased it is relatively easy, especially since Noctua ensures the compatibility of new sockets when they are released by providing free fixing kits if necessary.

The assembly does not change from other Noctua products and turns out to be as usual very simple and fast, let’s go!

To start, you have to put the back plate in place under the motherboard, being careful to put it in the right direction.

Then put the black plastic spacers as above.

Once done, all you have to do is install the 2 fixing plates.

Then they must be screwed, and once done pose a grain of rice of thermal paste.

Then nothing could be simpler, you have to put the radiator (without the fan) on the processor and screw the 2 screws accessible between the 2 radiators. Once screwed, just place the fan making sure that it blows towards the back of the case and it’s done!

PCIe and memory compatibility

As usual the big fear when buying a cooler is compatibility with the motherboard, by that I mean the memory as well as the PCIe port which can be stuck to the socket. Let’s see what this gives for the first PCIe port first:

Noctua did not lie when he said that the compatibility with the first PCIe port has been worked on, it will be possible to install a graphics card there without the slightest problem! Now make room for memory, to do this I did not take a photo from below because with 6.5 cm of available height it will almost be necessary to do it on purpose not to find a compatible memory.

The radiator covers the first 2 memory slots, nothing really annoying anyway given the space available in height.

The test platform

The Noctua NH-D15S has been tested on the configuration below:

• Processor : Intel Core i7 875K @ 3.2 Ghz
• Motherboard : Asus P7P55D
• Mémoire: Kingston HyperX 4 x 2 Go 1600Mhz
• Disque dur: WD Raptor 150 Go
• Graphics card : Sapphire Toxic 5850
• Power supply : Seasonic X650

The test protocol

The core i7 875K has been slightly overclocked to 3.2Ghz. The temperatures under load are an average of all the cores for 3 tests of 30 minutes on OCCT, the temperatures at rest were taken after 15mins on the desk (still an average of the 4 cores).

The cooler has been tested against:

• be quiet! Pure Rock (tested here)
• be quiet! Dark Rock 3 (tested here)
• be quiet! Dark Rock Pro 3 (tested here)
• Noctua NH-U12S (tested here)
• Noctua NH-U14S (tested here)
• Noctua NH-D15 (tested here)
• Scythe Ninja 4 (tested here)
• SilentiumPC Grandis XE1236 (tested here)

The choice of coolers is not random, the NH-D15S being a “Dual Tower” cooler I compared it to its competitors in my possession, namely the be quiet! Dark Rock Pro 3, Noctua NH-D15 and the SilentiumPC Grandis XE1236. In addition to the “Dual Tower” coolers, I added the be quiet! Dark Rock 3, Noctua NH-U12S, Noctua NH-U14S as well as the be quiet! Pure Rock, which is an entry-level cooler, will also be there to see the difference in performance. Likewise, the Scythe Ninja 4 which represents an excellent performance / silence / price / compatibility and present ratio.

The temperatures

As we can see at the level of temperatures the NH-D15S is very slightly less efficient than its big brother the NH-D15, quite simply due to the ablation of one of the two fans present on the latter. In PWM and with 53 ° the results are excellent, at the level of the other “big” coolers of the comparison but 3 ° above its big brother, in 12V with 48 ° it remains above a good part of the coolers of the comparative and always worse than its big brother of 2 °, in 5V there is not much difference with the PWM mode because we arrive at 54 °, an excellent performance!

Noise pollution

Warning: Part to be taken with a grain of salt, unfortunately not having access to the appropriate equipment and using an android application to take the readings The measurements below are only indicative! The readings were taken 15cm from the cooler.

In terms of noise pollution, it is once again very good for the NH-D15S, the fan behaves really very well as usual with Noctua with 36 dB in PWM mode, 31 dB in 5V and 45 dB in 12V. However, it should be noted that in PWM the fan does not turn at the same speed as in 5V, when it turns at 600 RPM in 5V it only turns at 300 RPM in PWM (at rest), which makes that even by putting the ear glued to the latter it is not possible to hear it in this mode.
As usual, the fan does not suffer from any parasitic noise, no friction, no buzzing of any kind, simply a pleasure for the ears as long as it does not turn fully of course because with 45 dB it will be heard clearly.

Here we are at the end of this test, what about the NH-D15S from Noctua?
Noctua took the performance and size monster that is the NH-D15 and decided to drastically increase the compatibility of the latter by giving us the NH-D15S, no more blocked PICe port and we remove the fan present above memory modules to allow large radiators.

Performance level as one would expect the results are excellent, but logically a little below its big brother (from 2 to 3 °). The noise pollution is also contained and up to what Noctua is used to offering us, namely inaudible at rest and very contained under load, as long as the fan is not turned to maximum, in which case it becomes rather noisy (but an LNA adapter is provided to bring it down from 1500 to 1200 RPM). However, it should be noted once again that the NF-A15 fan is a pleasure for the ears, no parasitic noise of any kind.

Offered at a price of 79.90 € TTC and guaranteed for 6 years, it is 10 € cheaper than its big brother, most certainly due to the presence of a single fan, to buy with your eyes closed if the budget is there and you have a motherboard with PCIe port close to the socket.

Advantages

• Memory and PCIe compatibility
• Very good performance
• Excellent finish
• 6 year warranty
• SAV Noctua

A big thank you to Jakob from Noctua who allowed me to do this test.

Where to find the Noctua NH-D15S?

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