For the last 14 years, a high-end Noctua CPU cooler has always crowned the list of air coolers in our list. The NH-D14 and NH-D15 were both excellent, and each was the best air cooler when it was launched.
Yes, the unfathomable colour combination of chocolate and “beige” (closer to light pink-brown off-white) made them an interesting* and unique choice from an aesthetic perspective, but there was no denying that the performance was the best.
Noctua offered a serious package deal: Best-in-class performance, fantastic build quality, excellent noise levels, and great customer service. It was no wonder that Noctua products found a home in the PC case and in the heart of many, many gamers…
The End of Noctua’s Air Cooling Dominance:
No king rules forever, though. When the D15 G2 was launched, reviewers were startled by the $150 price point. While it was the best air cooler, the D15 G2 was priced higher than many AiO (watercooled) units, and air-cooling does not really compete with water-cooling.
More recently, several factors have come together to force our noble king to abdicate:
- Powerful new coolers were released by competitors. These coolers provide excellent cooling that is within-margin-of-error of the D15 / G2, but for a cheaper price.
- Competition in the AiO space has brought prices down to where great AiO solutions are now as affordable as best-in-class air cooling.
- The final nail in the coffin, and the trigger that prompted this update: The D15 went from $100 (launch price) to $140 currently. The D15 G2 went from $150 to a completely indigestible $180.
Why is 9-year-old hardware increasing in price? Why buy the D15 for $140 when the other high-end air coolers are in the $80-$100 range? For that 1 celsius improvement in temps?
You can get better temps with a decent $100-$120 AiO, thus getting the performance you desire and saving money. This disparity becomes more glaring with the $180 G2, which is more expensive than even the highest AiO solutions we recommend.
Indeed, it is unfortunate, but the D15 and the D15 G2 are no longer logically priced. We love them still, but until they become more affordable, they will be replaced by other options.
Replacing the D15:
What options, you ask? We have added the following HSFs to the database of recommended coolers.
Air coolers:
- ID-COOLING Frozn A620 Pro SE
- Thermalright Phantom Spirit 120
- Cooler Master MasterAir Stealth
- be quiet! Dark Rock Pro 5
240mm (dual fan) water cooling units:
- Montech Hyperflow 240
- Lian Li Galahad II Trinity 240
- be quiet! Light Loop 240
360mm (triple fan) water cooling units:
- Arctic Liquid Freezer III 360
- be quiet! Light Loop 360
- Lian Li Galahad II Trinity Performance 360
These options are already live in the US version of the guide, and should roll out to other countries if they are available and the prices are logical.
What do you think? Got any other HSF recommendations that you would want us to look at?
Notes:
* “interesting” is the polite way of saying “glaringly ugly”