TOP best CPU coolers: ranking of the most powerful 2021

The content of the article

1 be quiet! DARK ROCK TF
2 Noctua NH-C14S
3 Deepcool Gabriel
4 Deepcool Gammaxx 400

1 be quiet! DARK ROCK TF

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Price – 7,400 rubles

The first place in our ranking of the best CPU coolers is occupied by a horizontal model from be quiet!. People are usually skeptical about horizontal coolers due to the stereotype that powerful devices need water cooling or a tower. But the horizontal DARK ROCK TF with six heat pipes copes with cooling the processor no worse. The device is quite bulky, the size will be like a tower cooler, only with a cooling system for the chipset and VRM of the processor. The cooler supports a maximum heat package of 220 Watts. The model supports all sockets of modern processors, which, due to their computing power, heat up to impressive temperatures.

The cooler consists of two sections with a pair of 135 mm fans from Silent Wings. To solve the problem of cooler compatibility with be quiet! made the lower section of the cooler, which cannot produce sufficient heat transfer, more compact. The bottom fan is mainly needed to increase air flow in the space around the socket. The top one is considered the main one. Two heat pipes that come from the bottom section hold the second and are soldered to the base for greater efficiency. Due to its shape, the cooler is quite difficult to install - the upper section overlaps the nuts. Therefore, it’s unlikely that you’ll be able to install it quickly without taking out the motherboard.

It is worth noting the noise level during operation of the device - it is really extremely low. But it should be mentioned here that in terms of efficiency it will still be slightly inferior to tower coolers - the difference between their maximum heat transfer will be a few degrees, which is not particularly significant. And this is logical because more cooling fins are placed.

Advantages:

Silent
Well assembled
Cools effectively

Flaws:

Inconvenient to install

2 Noctua NH-C14S

Price – 7,300 rubles

The main competitor of be quiet! In the processor cooler market, Noctua has relatively recently released its horizontal cooler model, the NH-C14S. In tests, the model is not inferior to first place, and the fans and coolers themselves are of reference quality. The main difference between the NH-C14S is that it does not have a lower section - everything is answered by one with six heat pipes and a 140 mm fan, which was raised higher. Since 2019, AM4 has been added to the list of supported sockets. Previously, the company offered NM-AM4 kits to retrofit devices that were in low demand due to the problem being solved for free with a needle file. The company did not indicate what maximum thermal package the device supports. Instead, the list of processors that the cooler can work with included the most powerful Core i9-9900K and Ryzen 9 3900X, mentioning in the description that during prolonged operation at maximum frequencies the temperature may be high.

You don’t have to worry that this cooler will prevent you from using some RAM modules - since the main part was lifted into the air, a lot of free space was freed up below, which can be occupied by RAM modules.In the description of the processor cooler, the manufacturer writes that the first section is provided in case the user wants to install an additional fan for the chipset, VRM, and to improve airflow around the socket. The presence of a second fan will have a slight effect on cooling the processor itself.

The cooler installation is well thought out, and there are special slots for access to the clamp screws. Due to the smaller cooling fin area, the Noctua NH-C14S takes second place in the top best CPU coolers of 2021, behind the DARK ROCK TF from be quiet!.

Advantages:

Effective
High build quality
Silent
It is possible to install an additional fan
Compatible with all RAM modules

Flaws:

Insufficient airflow around the socket (standard kit)

3 Deepcool Gabriel

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Price – 2,400 rubles

Third place in the ranking immediately attracts attention with its low price, the presence of four heat pipes and asymmetrical design. The cooler does its job well of cooling the processor power circuits and does not interfere with the installation of RAM modules. Deepcool Gabriel is perfect for budget assembly on boards with a small number of phases. The main advantages of this model over tower coolers are its small dimensions and the fact that in the second case you will have to install an additional fan to cool the processor VRM.

Due to the small heat dissipation area of 2800 square centimeters, the manufacturer installed a 120 mm fan that spins at 1900 rpm. Therefore, the device may be a little noisy. The classic cooler from Intel is inferior to Deepcool Gabriel in efficiency, significantly reducing the processor temperature.The cooler from Intel is mentioned here, since most of the company's customers use equipment from Intel. Therefore, Deepcool adapts its products to work with Intel devices. Installing a cooler on AMD sockets will be problematic.

Advantages:

Small size
Efficiency
Good air flow to VRM
Low price

Flaws:

A bit noisy
Installation on AMD products is not thought out

4 Deepcool Gammaxx 400

Price – 1,600 rubles

This is already the second model from Deepcool in this top, which is still distinguished by its low price and high efficiency. The predecessor of the Deepcool Gammaxx 400 tower cooler was at one time most often recommended for budget builds. The new model retained the low price of 1,600 rubles and became even more efficient in terms of cooling due to four heat pipes and a 120 mm fan. It is also worth noting that the Gammaxx 400 has become thinner than the previous model - now there are no problems with installing RAM modules. The cooler works best with 95 Watt processors, but can also cool 125 Watt processors (only in a well-ventilated case).

There are small gaps between the tubes; they are acceptable due to the support of a small maximum heat package. In some models of processor coolers, the base is a heat spreader, but in this one it is more of an element for fastening. There is no backplate, the device is installed on the socket frame. Due to the design features, large height and weight, the cooler is more suitable for AMD sockets and Intel processors on socket 2011. Among the shortcomings, it is worth noting the strange backlight of four diodes at the corners, an insufficiently powerful fan and noise at high speeds.

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