Cooling Alpenföhn Blackridge Observations

[Mark13]

When used with Noctua A12x15 & A9x14 fans in dual downdraft mode I noted:

Issues
Cooler with bottom mounted fan will not clear Gigabyte X570 I Aorus Pro Wi-Fi Motherboard chipset fan
(The taller L12 Ghost Edition bottom mounted A9x25mm fan has no clearance issues on either of the Gigabyte X570 or B550 ITX motherboards.)

Noctua back plate mounting kit NM-AM4-L9aL9i ($8 US) is required for firm CPU contact.
Longer mounting screws with Noctua back plate may be required for the paranoid.

Cooler mounting requires access to rear of motherboard (might not be an issue for all users).

When mounted on a motherboard with "high" CPU socket(such as the Gigabyte B550I Aorus Pro AX) the cooler overhangs the motherboard when faced away from the PCI slot - leaving only one direction to mount the cooler - with the heat pipes in a "U" facing down towards the PCI slot - Not a recommended heat pipe orientation on a vertical motherboard. This requires either a horizontal motherboard, or an inverted case option with the GPU top mounting such as the Sliger S610, S620 or Streacom DA2.
See: https://noctua.at/en/in-which-orientation-should-top-flow-coolers-nh-c-series-nh-l12-be-installed

Bottom mounted A9x14 fan creates considerable noise at higher RPM (above 1600 RPM) through the dense fin array of the cooler.

Positive points

Lovely blued finish on the cooler & heat pipes in version 2 - bluing is the method, the color is black.

Top fan mounting clips included for both 15mm & 25mm thick fans - Yes!

Matches perfectly with the top mounted Noctua A12x15 Cromax fan - looks like it was made for it.

Last photo shows Black Ridge cooler with A12x15 mounted in 678 case. Enough spacing between fan & PSU.
This case has almost the same dimensions and configuration as the Lazer LZ7 - should work well in that case.

Here are links to photo's:

 

[APSinc]

I hadn't seen that recommendation from Noctua about their NH-L12S cooler.
I am running a Blackridge cooler with a slim 120mm fan mounted under the finstack. I will have to try inverting my PC and see if that affects the temps measurably.

 

[tinyitx]

Some of us talked about this heatpipe orientation in a few threads. Here is one that might be of interest.

Cooling - Test - does heatpipe orientation have a noticeable influence on thermals?

Some time ago in one of my threads the question came up if the orientation of the Heatpipes on modern CPU and GPU coolers does have an impact on thermals or not (due to gravity)...

smallformfactor.net

I surely like to see how the BR performs in different orientations. @APSinc , if you have the result, please do post and share with us. Thanks.

 

[Ameubius]

I would like to know that too. The heat pipe orientation on the Noctua NH-C14S is critical, but the BR is designed to be mounted with heat pipe bends upwards.

I have a BR and have tested it in my NR200 on a 10600K, and it topped out at +/-80°C in Cinebench. The much more beefy NH-C14S hits 100°C with the upward bends, but only 68°C when oriented the recommended way.

I can reinstall the BR, and tip the case on its nose and record any difference?

 

[Quango]

A fan wouldn't fit under the BR on an Asrock H470M-STX, otherwise I could have closed the the lid of the Akasa Cypher ST V2 I placed this into:

But the 25mm fan does a good job, it is very quiet, but due to some vibrations I have to put the case onto a foam mat:

 

[tinyitx]

A fand wouldn't fit under the BR on an Asrock H470M-STX, otherwise I could have closed the the lid of the Akasa Cypher ST V2 I placed this into:

An off topic question:- is that Asrock H470M-STX mobo for some specific usage? I mean, it still has the now 'obsolete' D-sub video output port. It has to serve a purpose. I cannot accept the manufacturer puts it there for no target usage at all. What is it for? Any particular reason why one would still use a monitor via the D-sub?

 

[Quango]

An off topic question:- is that Asrock H470M-STX mobo for some specific usage? I mean, it still has the now 'obsolete' D-sub video output port. It has to serve a purpose. I cannot accept the manufacturer puts it there for no target usage at all. What is it for? Any particular reason why one would still use a monitor via the D-sub?

I hate that D-Sub port too. It takes away valuable space from possible USB or audio/optical ports. Mini-STX boards are still among the set of mini computer sizes which the industry considers "industrial" or "corporate", required for some mythical antique machines with displays which still have analog inputs.

But don't despair, the H470M-STX has still a HDMI 1.4 port, a full size DP 1.4 port and another DP 1.4 through the rear USB-C port.