Having a good heatsink is key to the health and performance of our PC. From there, we’ve always recommended that it’s worth a thousand times more to buy a good one for your processor than not a more powerful processor. The limitation when buying them? The height that our box and base plate allow us. Especially in the Mini-ITX. The Noctua NH-D12L promises to put an end to this problem.
One of the biggest issues when mounting a heatsink is the height from the CPU. The reason for this is that the vast majority of models on the market have a height of 158 mm. The problem? Many cases support at most 150mm or even 145mm in height. What the CPU does inside can’t get any better cooling.
In reality, there is nothing worse than not being able to properly cool the PC’s processor, since not doing so affects its lifespan and prevents it from reaching certain performance peaks. Additionally, it can affect the rest of a computer’s components through thermal drowning, especi ally those of a compact nature where there is less space between them.
This is the Noctua NH-D12L heatsink
We are facing an active type radiator with only 145mm high, which means we can install it in more PC cases than other models. Although its compatibility does not stop there, it is designed to work on both CPU with LGA1200 and LGA1700 socket
As it is an active heatsink, it must obviously contain a fan and in this case the Noctua NH-D12L is equipped with a fan type NF-A12x25r type PWR. A fan suitable for the radiator with dimensions of 93×83mm instead of the classic 120 x 105 mm of conventional fans. This being the secret to achieving a lower height compared to the rest of the CPU coolers on the market. In addition, it is equipped with what is necessary to install a second fan of the same type, in case we think that the cooling it provides to the processor is not sufficient.
It is therefore ideal for mounting in SFF (Small Form Factor) type cases such as Mini-ITX. Of course, you need to make sure that the tower you plan to buy or own will be able to support it in height. Since we are not dealing with a low profile heatsink. You must therefore be attentive to the specifications of the PC case where you are going to install it.