The Noctua NH-D15 is an iconic product in the PC enthusiast community and a top recommendation if you are looking for the best CPU air cooler. And now, the Austrian cooling solutions giant has finally released its eagerly awaited successor.
Recently showcased at Computex 2024, the new NH-D15 G2 is said to offer significant improvements in cooling efficiency, noise reduction, and overall design, making it suitable for both gamers and professionals.
The biggest change comes in the form of the NF-A14x25r G2 round-frame 140mm fans. Noctua is using a liquid-crystal polymer (LCP) called Sterrox to make these new fans as this material offers much better dimensional stability as compared to conventional plastics. The fans are also quieter while improving the overall cooling capability compared to its predecessor.
The NH-D15 G2 also features a total of eight heat pipes and redesigned asymmetrical fin stacks that combine to offer up to 20% more surface area. Despite having a height of 168mm and a width of 150mm, Noctua says that its new flagship should offer enough clearance for graphics cards in the top PCIe slot in standard configurations.
The cooler will now come with a Torx-based multi-socket mounting system for improved stability and ease of installation. Noctua will sell the NH-D15 G2 in three different versions: Standard, HBC (High Base Convexivity), and LBC (Low Base Convexivity).
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The standard NH-D15 G2 features the same medium base convexity as most other Noctua heatsinks for optimal performance on AM5 sockets with the included offset mounting and on LGA1700 CPUs by using the provided washers or optional contact frames to mitigate CPU deformation caused by ILM pressure.
The HBC (High Base Convexity) variant is optimized for LGA1700 processors subjected to full ILM pressure or deformation from long-term use, ensuring excellent contact quality despite a concave CPU shape. Conversely, the LBC (Low Base Convexity) variant is tailored for flatter CPUs, providing proper contact on AMD AM5 without the need for offset mounting, and other flat CPUs (AM4, LGA2066, LGA2011) or lapped or custom flat heat spreaders.
The NH-D15 G2 cooler is available for $150, which includes an NM-SD1 screwdriver and Noctua’s latest NT-H2 thermal compound. To top it all off, the company will be offering a six-year warranty, making it a solid future-proof cooling solution for your PC.
