Noctua NH-D15 – Still Worthy, 10 Years After Its Release?

Test Methodology

I first install the cooler into a hemi-anechoic chamber, and with the help of a highly sophisticated sound analyzer, I take all necessary noise measurements required for the testing. Afterward, I install the system inside a giant climate chamber, where the ambient temperature remains steady at 25 degrees Celsius; this way, I don’t have to take the delta difference into account since I can evaluate all coolers under the same ambient temperature. I used to believe that taking the delta difference between the measured temperature of the CPU and the ambient temperature provided accurate results. Still, after testing with the climate chamber, I soon realized this was not the case.

Climate Chamber Technical Specifications:
  • Manufacturer: Giant Force
  • Model Number: GTH-800-20-CP-AR
  • Temp Range: -20℃ ~ +100℃
  • Humidity Range: 20% ~ 98% RH
  • Temp/humidity Constancy: ±0.2℃; ±2.5%RH
  • Temp/humidity Uniformity at center: ±0.5℃; ±4%RH
  • Indication Resolution:
  • Internal Dimensions (WHD): 100 x 100 x 80 cm
  • External Dimensions (WHD): 145 x 190 x 135 cm
  • Net Weight (approx): 450 kgs
  • Heat-up Time (No load, no linear): (from 20°C to +100°C) 30min
  • Pull-down Time (No load, no linear): (from 20°C to -20°C) 50min
  • Cooling System: Airtight compressor + evaporator fins + air-cooling condenser
  • Power Source: 3Φ AC 380V ±5%, 50Hz±1% 10KW
  • Based on Standards: ISO 5801-2007, AMCA 210-0, ASHRAE 51-2007, IEC 61591-2005, GB/T 1236-200

Besides the Giant Force climate chamber, I also use the following equipment.

Testing Equipment:
  • Noise Test Environment: Hemi-Anechoic Chamber with 6 dB(A) noise floor
  • Conditions: 25 (+-2) degrees Celsius, 40-50% humidity
  • Sound Analyzer: Bruel & Kjaer 2270-S G4
  • Microphone: Bruel & Kjaer Type 4955-A
  • Mic Calibrator:  Bruel & Kjaer Type 4231
  • Data Logger: Picoscope TC-08

To evaluate the coolers, I use a superpower-hungry Intel i9-13900K. This beast reaches 360W of sustained load, which I measure accurately using a Powenetics v2 system. Below are all the parts of the CPU cooling station test system. The thermal paste I use is Arctic Cooling MX-4. I run at least two test sessions and take the average results. In all tests, the applied conditions are the following:

  • Ambient Temperature: 25°C ±0.5°C
  • Humidity: 30% ±4%RH

Intel Test System Specs

Mainboard Asus Prime Z690-A
CPU Intel 13900K Package Power Limit (PL1, PL2) set to 250W
GPU NVIDIA 1070 Ti
NVMe XPG GAMMIX S50 Lite 1TB
RAM XPG Lancer DDR5 (2 x 16GB) 6000MHz
Power Supply Seasonic Vertex 1200W
(Cybenetics Platinum)
CPU Cooler What is under test!
Case DimasTech Bench

I also use an AMD system to evaluate the cooler’s performance. This processor’s maximum actual TDP is 195-200W.

AMD Test System Specs

Mainboard Asus TUF GAMING X570-PLUS
CPU AMD Ryzen 9 7900x
GPU Embedded
NVMe XPG GAMMIX S50 Lite 1TB
RAM XPG Lancer DDR5 (2 x 16GB) 6000MHz
Power Supply Seasonic Vertex 1200W
(Cybenetics Platinum)
CPU Cooler What is under test!
Case Cooler Master Test Bench

The load application is no other but the notorious Prime95 (small FFTs), which applies a tremendous load to the processor. I run each test for 20 minutes, allowing for a 10-minute cool period between each test. The whole procedure is fully automated thanks to a particular application that I made for this purpose. In AIOs, the pump runs at full speed during the entire testing duration.

The critical point in my methodology for coolers is that I consider the CPU’s average frequency during testing because it doesn’t remain steady throughout the tests. It constantly changes according to the load and the operating temperatures. Moreover, I have the Powenetics system to continually measure the CPU’s power consumption, which is way more accurate and faster than using a software solution like HWinfo.

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One thought on “Noctua NH-D15 – Still Worthy, 10 Years After Its Release?

  1. I had an AIO cooler for my 10th gen I9 and it would hit 100⁰c after just a couple of hours of gaming. I put in the NH-D15 and it hasn’t been above 80⁰ since. I would still highly recommend the NH-D15 and my next computer I will probably try the NH-D15 gen2.

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