Tuesday, July 2nd 2024
Noctua Announces $150 Flagship NH-D15 G2 CPU Coolers and NF-A14x25r G2 140mm Fans
Noctua today released its long-awaited NH-D15 G2 next-gen flagship model CPU cooler and NF-A14x25r G2 round-frame 140 mm fans. Continuing the legacy of the iconic NH-D15 and its NF-A15 fans, the new G2 products come packed with Noctua's latest technologies and have been carefully refined in all respects to provide even better quiet cooling performance than their award-winning predecessors.
"Our G2 products have been years in the making, and it feels amazing to finally be able to offer the first of them to our customers", says Roland Mossig (Noctua CEO). "We faced various challenges in both design and manufacturing, but we've cut no corners and gone the extra mile to make sure that the G2's will be worthy successors to some of our most iconic models. When you have them in your hands, I'm confident that you'll be able to sense some of the dedication and perseverance that went into creating these fans and coolers."
The NH-D15 G2 is the further improved second generation of Noctua's iconic NH-D15. With its state-of-the-art, speed-offset NF-A14x25r G2 PWM fans, eight heatpipes and asymmetrical fin-stacks that have been carefully fine-tuned to work in tandem with the new fans, it achieves even better quiet cooling performance than its award-winning predecessor. As such, the G2 version is a true flagship model that continues the legacy of the original NH-D15 by pushing the boundaries of air cooling and rivalling the efficiency of many all-in-one (AIO) water cooling solutions.
In addition to its further improved performance, the NH-D15 G2 also offers enhanced compatibility thanks to an offset construction that allows it to clear the top PCIe x16 slot on most current motherboards. Last but not least, the G2 version has been upgraded to the Torx -based SecuFirm2+ multi-socket mounting system with included NM-SD1 screwdriver as well as to Noctua's superior NT-H2 thermal compound. In short, the NH-D15 G2 has been further refined in virtually all respects from the heatsink and the fans all the way down to the mounting, thermal paste and accessory package. Topped off with Noctua's trusted 6-year manufacturer's warranty, it's the new number one choice for customers who demand the best of the best in air cooling.
Taking platform-specific optimisation to a new level, the NH-D15 G2 is available in a regular, standard version and two specialised variants: The regular NH-D15 G2 uses the same medium base convexity as most other Noctua heatsinks, which makes it a perfect all-rounder that provides optimal results on AM5 with the included offset mounting and on LGA1700 CPUs when utilising the included NM-ISW1 shim washers (or optional, so-called contact frames ) to reduce CPU deformation from ILM pressure. The HBC (High Base Convexity) variant is specifically optimised for LGA1700 processors that are used with full ILM pressure or have become permanently deformed in long-term use, providing excellent contact quality despite the CPU's concave shape. The LBC (Low Base Convexity) variant, by contrast, is specifically optimised for relatively flat CPUs. As such, it offers excellent contact quality on AMD AM5 even without the offset mounting as well as on other comparably flat CPUs (e.g. AM4, LGA2066, LGA2011(-3), lapped or custom flat heatspreaders, etc.).
For customers who would like to upgrade existing heatsinks such as the first-generation NH-D15, NH-D15S or NH-U14S series coolers, the new round-frame NF-A14x25r G2 fans will also be available separately, both in a regular single fan package (NF-A14x25r G2 PWM) and a dedicated dual fan package for push-pull configurations (NF-A14x25r G2 PWM Sx2-PP). Like the fans that come pre-installed on the NH-D15 G2, the ones included in the Sx2-PP set are fine-tuned with a 50rpm speed offset to prevent acoustic interaction phenomena such as periodic humming or intermittent vibrations.
The square frame version of the NF-A14x25 G2 fan for water cooling radiators and case cooling applications is currently scheduled for September.
Performance Claims
[Editor's Note: Some of the graphs do not start at 0, which could visually skew the results for you.]
Refer to this Noctua article for the company's performance claims.
Product PagesSuggested retail prices
The manufacturer's suggested retail prices are as follows:
"Our G2 products have been years in the making, and it feels amazing to finally be able to offer the first of them to our customers", says Roland Mossig (Noctua CEO). "We faced various challenges in both design and manufacturing, but we've cut no corners and gone the extra mile to make sure that the G2's will be worthy successors to some of our most iconic models. When you have them in your hands, I'm confident that you'll be able to sense some of the dedication and perseverance that went into creating these fans and coolers."
In addition to its further improved performance, the NH-D15 G2 also offers enhanced compatibility thanks to an offset construction that allows it to clear the top PCIe x16 slot on most current motherboards. Last but not least, the G2 version has been upgraded to the Torx -based SecuFirm2+ multi-socket mounting system with included NM-SD1 screwdriver as well as to Noctua's superior NT-H2 thermal compound. In short, the NH-D15 G2 has been further refined in virtually all respects from the heatsink and the fans all the way down to the mounting, thermal paste and accessory package. Topped off with Noctua's trusted 6-year manufacturer's warranty, it's the new number one choice for customers who demand the best of the best in air cooling.
Taking platform-specific optimisation to a new level, the NH-D15 G2 is available in a regular, standard version and two specialised variants: The regular NH-D15 G2 uses the same medium base convexity as most other Noctua heatsinks, which makes it a perfect all-rounder that provides optimal results on AM5 with the included offset mounting and on LGA1700 CPUs when utilising the included NM-ISW1 shim washers (or optional, so-called contact frames ) to reduce CPU deformation from ILM pressure. The HBC (High Base Convexity) variant is specifically optimised for LGA1700 processors that are used with full ILM pressure or have become permanently deformed in long-term use, providing excellent contact quality despite the CPU's concave shape. The LBC (Low Base Convexity) variant, by contrast, is specifically optimised for relatively flat CPUs. As such, it offers excellent contact quality on AMD AM5 even without the offset mounting as well as on other comparably flat CPUs (e.g. AM4, LGA2066, LGA2011(-3), lapped or custom flat heatspreaders, etc.).
For customers who would like to upgrade existing heatsinks such as the first-generation NH-D15, NH-D15S or NH-U14S series coolers, the new round-frame NF-A14x25r G2 fans will also be available separately, both in a regular single fan package (NF-A14x25r G2 PWM) and a dedicated dual fan package for push-pull configurations (NF-A14x25r G2 PWM Sx2-PP). Like the fans that come pre-installed on the NH-D15 G2, the ones included in the Sx2-PP set are fine-tuned with a 50rpm speed offset to prevent acoustic interaction phenomena such as periodic humming or intermittent vibrations.
The square frame version of the NF-A14x25 G2 fan for water cooling radiators and case cooling applications is currently scheduled for September.
Performance Claims
[Editor's Note: Some of the graphs do not start at 0, which could visually skew the results for you.]
Product PagesSuggested retail prices
The manufacturer's suggested retail prices are as follows:
- NH-D15 G2: EUR 149.90 / USD 149.90
- NH-D15 G2 LBC: EUR 149.90 / USD 149.90
- NH-D15 G2 HBC: EUR 149.90 / USD 149.90
- NF-A14x25r G2 PWM: EUR 39.90 / USD 39.90
- NF-A14x25r G2 PWM Sx2-PP: EUR 79.80 / USD 79.80
164 Comments on Noctua Announces $150 Flagship NH-D15 G2 CPU Coolers and NF-A14x25r G2 140mm Fans
buy a Peerless Assassin and slap Noctua fans on it ... mount and forget ...
best of both world ...case close
noctua.at/en/noctua-releases-its-nh-d15-g2-next-gen-flagship-model-cpu-cooler-and-nf-a14x25r-g2-fans
Also, this is a flagship top end product with a lot of extra small parts (whether you need it or not..) and targets the no-compromise consumer that don't want AIO.
It will be interesting to see how many AIO'o it will outperform
Why a consumer should care if company released 10 coolers in the last 4 years or 2 coolers? as long the cooler he wants to buy gives the performance requirement and is priced well, it's what matters.
even if you compare the NH-D15G2 to other premium coolers like Be Quiet! dark rock elite - it's still extremely overpriced. Should the customer pay for the company attempts for "perfection"?
IMO, not at all it's not his job to amortize the company failures. I personally help people daily with builds and hardware recommendations - I seriously doubt I can recommend for anyone that needs a cooler or is building a PC the NH-D15G2 at MSRP of 150$ unless he requests very specific things.
If you don't want to pay for that, I get it, you don't have to. But there are people that appreciate what's on offer here.
These prices are too hard to understand tbh, but in my particular use case.
There will be others that want it due to the brand itself, the small upgrades and just to have a reliable product.
High end headphones, I have hifiman aryas. Not going to complain about those either.
This title don't come free of charge...
What you are talking about are cards themselves. And while sure, you can bag on AIBs and NV for those models, FEs are beautifully built cards. Pretty much same feeling of premium as ye old Noctua products.
That’s what I meant that people should be consistent. I have Noctua fans in my rig and a D15S on my CPU. I, however, am not trying to convince anyone that they are good value - they aren’t, and especially not in the current market.
to get to the point the achieved slightly better performance and as result they have to sell it for such high price, why bother? And yes I'm well aware I can get new mounting hardware for old Noctua coolers, like my old NH-D14, will I want to do that? hello no, it's obsolete at this point and doesn't worth effort for it wont perform well on modern CPUs. In true honesty while their products are very good, and perform quite well they are not "Flawless" or "perfect", if something was perfect - you could not improve it anymore (which is not the case as we see). There are some noctua products that might be worth their price like the fans if they are remarkable and you already building very high end system with expensive water-cooling parts, but for the regular user that wants cooler that performs well - I would strongly suggest looking elsewhere.
I would add though, that there are instances where it's absolutely legitimate to berate expensive things. Audeze's headphones literally fall apart with normal usage. JLR's cars had absolutely unholy reliability and their dealers suck at repairing them on time. Noctua's stuff is expensive - but it keeps on trucking and the support is outstanding. And yeah, it's *for the cool kids* who also happen to like brown, sure.
The consumer, if he chooses so, pay the bill.
That's very basic.
If it's not worth to you, simply don't pay. Very basic. There's planty of other, very good, choice's out there.
Isn't it?
Not saying they should close that avenue completely but there are other places where they can sell more/charge less albeit probably with a lot more to do at their end.
8x 6mm pipes reminds me of the old Archon. I would have been more impressed with 8mm pipes and a refined cold plate to match it. Ahh well. I guess we shall see how it does soon enough.
But today you can't squeeze anything significant out of CPUs, so what's the point?
Even the fans themselves are quite expensive with LCP blades.