Greetings everyone...I'm on a quest to make my unRAID server much, much quieter than it currently is.

 

I have already purchased some of the Noctua fans for most of the case:

 

(3) of Noctua NF-P12 120 mm Nine Blade SSO Bearing Fan with VCN - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835608004

 

(2) of Noctua NF-R8 80mm Fan - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835608006

 

I'll be installing those when they arrive sometime next week.

 

I'm now after a CPU Fan/Heat sink combo that will work with my Motherboard (SUPERMICRO MBD-X8SIL-F-O Xeon X3400) w/  LGA 1156 socket and my Case (Norco RPC-4224).

 

I have come across these two options (both from Noctua):

 

Noctua NH-D14 120mm & 140mm SSO CPU Cooler

 

 

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=35-608-018&SortField=0&SummaryType=0&Pagesize=10&PurchaseMark=&SelectedRating=-1&VideoOnlyMark=False&VendorMark=&IsFeedbackTab=true&Page=2#scrollFullInfo

 

or

 

Noctua NH-U12P SE2 120mm SSO CPU Cooler

 

 

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835608014

 

Any recommendations for me?

 

My primary concern is Noise.....I need as little as possible because this will likely be used in my living room for the next 3 years as I am moving to a small apartment in Korea (Seoul).  Thanks for any and all help!

 

Mike

 

 

I would recommend the Noctua NH-U12P SE2.  I have 2 of these and are very quiet, one is on my overclocked 2nd gen i7 main computer and the other is on my AMD bulldozer unRAID server.  I swapped out the fans with PWM for my main computer and used the U.L.N.A. resistors for my unRAID system.  I would suggest looking at the compatibility chart on Noctua's web site, the Noctua NH-D14 will not fit on a lot of MBs and will block memory slots if it does fit.  I would not recommend the NH-D14 because of compatibility and the NH-U12P has plenty of cooling even if overclocked.  The NH-D14 is so much bigger than the NH-U12P you may also have problems hooking up cables that are under the heat sink.  Just think if you have a cable come loose under the heat sink and may have to take the cooler off the processor and then reattach it.

It depends on your CPU ofcourse, I have an Intel i3 2120Y cpu.

 

The stock cooler is ok but still makes noise, I exchanged it for the Cooler Master Hyper 612S. It's a big cooling block but not to expensive ( http://tweakers.net/pricewatch/286927/cooler-master-hyper-612s/specificaties/ ),

 

I have completely removed the fan from this cooler, combined with this cpu the block alone keeps the cpu nice and cool at around 35 degrees (never above 40). I have used the system for several months and this is consistent event with heavy sabnzbd unpacking combined with downloading and video playback..

I use a noctua nh-u9b.

Many coolers block also the pci-e slot next to the cpu (on micro atx mainbords at least)

 

The standard fan i did swap out for a pwm controllable one of 90 mm.

Full speed it makes too much noise, but at lower speeds it is ok.

 

The NH-U12P did not block any of my PCI-e slots on either my AMD or Intel boards.  As for the blocked memory slots I used memory with a low profile heat spreader.  Noctua told me in an email when I was researching these two coolers that the heat pipes on the NH-D14 would interfere with the memory slots on my Intel motherboard and not be able to use the slot closest to the CPU.  Other motherboards my have a larger gap between the CPU and the memory and this would not be an issue.

Perhaps the orientation of the heatsink makes the difference. I have it so the airflow goes to backside of case, a 90 degree ratation would make it point to the top of the case.

Than it will never block PCI-E slot, but the airflow will change.

 

a 120 mm fan extends 60 mm from the heart of the CPU towards the PCI-E slot.

 

The topic starter has also a M-ATX board, and i just wanted to warn (in general) that you cannot assume all fans will fit.

 

The built quality of the Noctua is good, as far as i can tell.

Perhaps the orientation of the heatsink makes the difference. I have it so the airflow goes to backside of case, a 90 degree ratation would make it point to the top of the case.

Than it will never block PCI-E slot, but the airflow will change.

 

Depending on what socket you have will depend on the orientation, the coolers mounting hardware for each socket will dictate witch way you install your cooler.  I have a 1155 socket and it can be orientated two directions but my AM3+ socket will only fit in one direction.