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Looking for the Best Cooler For Intel Core i7 14700k?
In this guide I have done an extensive review and cherry picked the top 3 CPU coolers for the 14700K that strike a balance between performance, noise levels, and value.
So let’s start!
Number 3. Thermalright Peerless Assassin 120 SE – Best Budget Cooler For Intel Core i7 14700k
The Thermalright Peerless Assassin 120 SE is an affordable air cooler that packs a lot of cooling prowess. For me, it has become the spiritual successor to the ever-popular CoolerMaster Hyper 212 as the new king of budget air coolers.
It has plenty of cooling room thanks to 6 copper heat pipes and 2 120 mm fans. At stock settings, it can dissipate 120 Watts of heat which means that a CPU like the i7 14700k will never heat to more than 40 to 50 degrees Celcius during gaming and other workloads. At its peak, it can dissipate 250 Watts of heat, which is significantly more than the i7 14700’s all-core maximum load. It stays silent even at max load because the fans only spin at 1500 RPM which results in about 25 decibels.
The cooler supports all the mainstream desktop CPU sockets from the past decade including the Intel Core i7 14700’s LGA 1700 along with the 115X and 1200. It also natively supports the AMD AM4 and AM5 sockets.
The direct competition to the Peerless Assassin is the “be quiet! Pure Rock 2” which is overall a much better air cooler in terms of aesthetics. It is slightly narrower in size as well which gives it the advantage of fitting better with other cases. However, the Pure Rock 2 is rated at only 150 Watts of heat, unlike the 250 Watts of the Peerless Assassin which is also cheaper and this adds to its value even more.
The only other cooler I would consider is the CoolerMaster Hyper 212. However, this is designed to sustain a maximum heat output of 125 Watts which is half of what the Peerless Assassin can do. The Peerless Assassin is also compatible with many more CPU sockets.
Overall, Thermalright Peerless Assassin 120 SE is one of the most affordable air coolers that offer a lot of cooling performance for an incredibly low price. It is hard to overlook it as an option even when looking for a low-cost cooler for very power-hungry CPUs.
RATINGS:
Design and Aesthetics: 5.5/10
Cooling Performance: 9/10
Noise: 9.5/10
Features: 7/10
Value for Money: 9.5/10
Overall Rating: 8/10
Number 2. Corsair iCUE H150i Elite LCD XT – Best Premium Cooler For Intel Core i7 14700k
The Corsair iCUE H150i Elite LCD XT is currently Corsair’s flagship cooler that offers premium heat dissipation and plenty of customization that fits well for anyone.
Corsair has used the H150 model name for their 360 mm AIOs for a very long time and as the name implies, the CPU cooling block has an LCD display.
The lighting and the LCD can be controlled through the iCUE application. The coolest feature of the display is that it can be used to display important information at a glance. If, say, the temperature is getting too hot, you can configure the LCD to glow red with the temperature being displayed either in Celcius or Fahrenheit. I like that because it can even display GIFs, the possibilities are endless since you can customize it to your liking.
The display is a vibrant 2.1” IPS LCD screen with a 480×480 resolution that can produce an ultra-bright 600 nits backlight. The color reproduction is amazing thanks to the 24-bit color depth, it is without a doubt one of the most vivid screens I’ve seen. However the refresh rate is only 30 Hz which can feel choppy at times, but it is more than enough in 99% of cases.
Corsair has also upgraded the fans on the new H150i which now uses 3 120 mm ML120 RGB Elite fans. They are essentially the same fans as the previous model with the same motor and blades but the airflow has been improved.
This is because Instead of the usual 4-blade air vanes that are typically found in almost all fans, Corsair redesigned and added 12 blades that they call “Air Guide Vanes”. These vanes are much narrower and unlike the thicker vanes of the older version, they prevent air from being blocked and cause any disturbance in the airflow.
Compared to the older fans, these fans are much more efficient and can offer the same level of cooling at 1900-2000 RPM that the older ones could at 2200 RPM.
Being a 360 mm AIO means that it can only fit in ATX cases. Despite that, the compatibility is great and the cooler fits on just about every socket available. The included brackets are for Intel’s LGA 115X, 1200, 1700, and 2066, and AMD’s AM4 and AM5, as well as AMD Threadripper sTRX4 sockets.
Of course, none of this would matter if the performance of the cooler was subpar. The cooler can remove 200 Watts worth of heat if the fans are allowed to spin at 2100 RPM which however introduces a bit of noise at around 55 decibels. This is still acceptable as long as the case has good noise isolation, but is quite loud in an open bench. Under normal load, the fans spin at just 550 RPM which is practically silent at 15 decibels so pushing a CPU like the 14700k is no issue for this cooler.
If we look at other 360 mm coolers that offer a great design, customizable LCD display, and top-notch performance, then the only other cooler I could think of is the NZXT Kraken Elite 360 RGB. The only advantage the Kraken has over the iCUE is that the screen refreshes at 60 Hz instead of 30 Hz. Other than that, there isn’t any significant feature of the Kraken that would make me recommend it over the iCUE H150i.
If you decide to go with the Kraken, you do need to pay a hefty premium over the H150i which may not be justifiable for everyone.
All in all, if you are looking for one of the best CPU coolers for the intel core i7 14700k and budget is not an issue, then the Corsair iCUE H150i Elite LCD XT is a great premium AIO cooler.
RATINGS:
Design and Aesthetics: 9/10
Cooling Performance: 9/10
Noise: 8/10
Features: 9.5/10
Value for Money: 7.5/10
Overall Rating: 8.5/10
Number 1. Noctua NH-U12A chromax.black – Our Top Choice
If you’re someone who doesn’t want to worry about pump failure in water coolers and wants the reliability of an air cooler, the NH-U12A is an excellent choice, to pair with the 14700k. It delivers exceptional performance in a compact package with respectable noise levels.
It is by no means a direct successor, but it does build upon the excellence of the company’s highly popular NH-D15. Instead of the dual-tower design seen on the NH-D15, this cooler uses a single-tower design with two 120mm fans.
Also despite the more compact design, it uses a revised seven heat pipe design that helps it match the performance of beefier dual-tower coolers.
This means it’s one of the most high-performance single-tower coolers out there, without however the hard-to-manage size of a dual-tower one.
The chromax.black version gives the NH-U12A the usual all-black treatment. This is great to see as a lot of people don’t like Noctua’s classic beige and brown color scheme, even if it is iconic. Unfortunately, there is no A-RGB lighting here, a common complaint with most Noctua coolers.
In terms of performance, the Noctua NH-U12A is on par with coolers like the DeepCool AK620, the Cryorig R1, and the NH-D15. However what’s impressive is the fact that the NH-U12 manages to achieve this performance with a single-tower design, rather than the bulkier dual tower-design of the other coolers.
Additionally it performs better if you are planning to play with overclocking the 14700k.
For CPUs like the Core i7 14700k and Ryzen 7, Noctua NH-U12A gets the job done very well. On top of that, the NF-A12 120mm fans never get too loud, which is great if you care about noise levels. Even at max load, you won’t get annoyed by the fan noise.
The best part about this cooler is the fact that it comes with Noctua’s SecuFirm 2 mounting system. This mounting hardware makes the cooler incredibly easy to install, and other manufacturers have not been able to replicate this ease of use yet.
There’s just one flaw with this cooler: the price. As this is a high-end air cooler from Noctua, you’ll be paying considerably more than coolers that perform similarly to it. For example, the Thermalright Peerless Assassin SE and the DeepCool AK620 offer the same performance at a lower price.
However, you’re paying that extra for the included low fan noise adapters, the NT-H1 thermal paste, the SecuFirm 2 mounting system, and the compact size. While other coolers might offer similar performance, they’re also dual-tower coolers that are harder to install.
To sum up, what I like is…
Fantastic performance
Low noise levels
SecuFirm 2 installation system is very simple
Sleek all-black aesthetic
On the downside…
Quite Expensive
No RGB lighting
RATINGS:
Design and Aesthetics: 8.5/10
Cooling Performance: 8.5/10
Noise: 9/10
Installation: 9/10
Value for Money: 8/10
Overall Rating: 8.5/10
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