Question 1

Will this work on an LGA 1150 socket?

Accepted Answer

Yes. I used this heatsink with my new build in March 2014. My CPU is an Intel i7-4770K (Haswell) processor on a Gigabyte board. It's a perfect fit.

It's my understanding that LGA-1154 and LGA-1150 sockets are the same size for mounting heatsinks. It would be nice if Newegg or the manufacturer would change the item description to reflect this.

It's a beautiful and very quiet heatsink.

Question 2

Is this cooler capable of cooling overclocked processors? I plan on buying an fx 6350 and overclocking it to 4.2 ghz.

Accepted Answer

This is an excellent cooler made by a company that has Quality at the very top of it's priority list. I fill my cases with Noctua fans.

With that said, this cooler has the potential to do very well with OC'ing your CPU. At 4.2 this is just a minor bump on that chip and should have no problem. Remember, your cpu fan will require fresh air to cool the cpu so your case needs to have a good intake supply or no air cooled system will do very well.

In my experience with the FX line, with the right air flow and this cooler, you could go much further without problems.

Question 3

Will this fit, work on AM3+ our only AM3?

Accepted Answer

"SecuFirm2™ multi-socket mounting system
Noctua’s enthusiast grade SecuFirm2™ multi-socket mounting provides broad socket compatibility (LGA1366, LGA1156, LGA1155, LGA1150, LGA775, AM2, AM2+, AM3, AM3+, FM1, FM2, FM2+) and meets the highest demands in safety, performance and ease-of-use."

directly quoted from their site:

http://www.noctua.at/main.php?show=productview&products_id=35&lng=en

I'll just add, that this is a great heatsink. I ran a ton of tests when I first got it and my temps were great accross the board. I have a total of 5 Noctua fans in my coolmaster haf xb ranging from 80mm - 140mm. I am in love with air cooling now. so much more quiet than watercooling and so much less maintenance.

Question 4

Is there enough clearance for memory with tall heat spreaders under the cooling fins / fan? In particular G.Skill F3-12800CL8D-8GBXM. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231445

Accepted Answer

With standard height RAM I can get my fingers in between the cooler and the dimms and wiggle a bit. Ripjaws' heatsinks are about half an inch taller than the stick itself (source: g.skill forums) so you'll have room, but it'll be "like a glove" tight. Definitely install the RAM first.

Question 5

Can I mount (replace) the fan with Noctua NF-A14 PWM 140mm, item #N82E16835608044?

Accepted Answer

I don't know why you would want to do that, but mine is already installed and working very well I might add- I live in Southern California so it gets pretty hot.

As for changing out the fan you'll I couldn't say.

Question 6

will this fan fit an AM3+ socket?

Accepted Answer

According to Noctua's web site it does.  it does come with a variety of mounting brackets.

http://www.noctua.at/main.php?show=productview&products_id=35&lng=en

Question 7

In what direction did you install this? I'm thinking of installing this CPU cooler with the bent heat pipe portion toward the upper(roof) exhaust fan. Can I install this in this direction in ASUS M5A97 EVO rev. 2 motherboard? Or would you recommend a better direction for installation?

Accepted Answer

I have this heat sink mounted in a MATX tower (Dell 760) with an MSI A88XM Gaming motherboard, and have the bent portion of the heat pipes over the memory, and have plenty of clearance for tall RAM, and my APU (AMD A10-7850K Kaveri 12) never gets over 50C.  BTW, my APU is rated at 3.7Ghz, but mine runs at 4.0Ghz with no overclocking.  One piece of advice:  Mount your cooler & CPU/APU on your motherboard before you install the motherboard in your case.

Question 8

Will this work on an FM2+ socket?

Accepted Answer

Yes, it will. Check Noctua's website for this particular model. Their website says, "Noctua’s enthusiast grade SecuFirm2™ multi-socket mounting provides broad socket compatibility (LGA1366, LGA1156, LGA1155, LGA1150, LGA775, AM2, AM2+, AM3, AM3+, FM1, FM2, FM2+) and meets the highest demands in safety, performance and ease-of-use."

They give you a couple little packages with different mounting options.

Question 9

Can you replace the fan with any other 140mm fan? Can you mount a 120 if you wanted to? Thanks!

Accepted Answer

The C12 will only fit round 140mm fans with mounting holes in the same location as standard square 120mm fans.  Most standard 120mm fans should fit.  I highly recommend the 140mm Noctua A15 PWM fan as a replacement for the non-PWM P14 fan that's included with this cooler.. it fits the C12 perfectly.

Questions & Answers