Reviewing Noctua's NH-P1 passive CPU cooler, including thermal benchmarks on various CPU heat loads. Testing includes Schlieren photography, benchmarks vs. stock coolers, and more.
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Testing is done FULLY PASSIVE. There are no case fans for this testing. It is completely passive testing unless otherwise stated. Reviewing the Noctua NH-P1 required some changes to our testing setup. It's simply not capable of sustaining our normal heat loads, which were designed largely for higher-end liquid and air coolers, so we had to introduce a ~68W heat load in the form of an R5 3600. This data would transplant to the R5 5600X fairly cleanly, as they're similar in heat load. The NH-P1 has large 1.5mm thick fins, or more appropriately called "plates," that have wide gaps between them. These gaps help ensure that natural convection isn't impeded by the heatsink itself. Schlieren photography proves useful in here for visualizing the air patterns. We also finally tested some of the AMD stock coolers, so you'll see the AMD Wraith Prism vs. Spire vs. NH-P1 vs. Scythe FUMA2 (for a baseline or control). We still show our 200W and 123W heat loads for perspective, but remember that this cooler isn't advertised as being capable of handling those.

RELATED PRODUCTS

Noctua NH-P1 on Newegg: https://howl.me/ck4BrevwyH8
Noctua NH-P1 on Amazon: https://geni.us/iWsIW
Noctua NH-D15 on Amazon: https://geni.us/4VUjCZ
EK AIO Elite D-RGB on Amazon: https://geni.us/EPspjqA
Arctic Liquid Freezer II 420 on Amazon: https://geni.us/PpbWg
Arctic Liquid Freezer II 360 on Amazon: https://geni.us/cA4wXFg
Lian Li Galahad 360 on Amazon: https://geni.us/L54S
Arctic Liquid Freezer II 280 on Amazon: https://geni.us/RJBy
EK AIO Basic on Amazon: https://geni.us/d7wGzW

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TIMESTAMPS

00:00 - Noctua NH-P1 Massive Passive Mass of Copper
04:47 - Mechanical Features of the NH-P1
09:00 - Schlieren Imaging of Noctua NH-P1 (Active vs. Passive)
11:52 - Installation Guide for AMD & Intel
13:33 - Compatibility Challenges with Cases & CPUs (NH-P1)
15:11 - Pressure Map & Analysis
16:15 - Surface Flatness
16:44 - 200W Heat Load
17:45 - 120W Heat Load
19:02 - AMD R5 68W Heat Load (New Cooler Benchmark)
21:34 - Time-to-Max & Steady State
22:01 - VRM Thermals
22:40 - Conclusion

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Writing, Test Lead, Host: Steve Burke
Testing: Mike Gaglione
Video, Schlierenmeister: Andrew Coleman
Video Production: Keegan Gallick