Phanteks PH-TC14CS CPU Cooler Review

[nextpage title=”Introduction”]

Let’s test the Phanteks PH-TC14CS, a CPU cooler with a horizontal heatsink, five heatpipes and two 140 mm fans. Check it out!

The PH-TC14CS comes in four models: the standard one that we are showing here, and red (PH-TC14CS_RD), blue (PH-TC14CS_BL), and black (PH-TC14CS_BK) models, where the heatsink fins and the fan blades come in the respective color.

The big box of the PH-TC14CS is shown in Figure 1.

Figure 1: Package

Figure 2 shows the contents of the box: the cooler heatsink, fans, a syringe of thermal compound, manual, and installation hardware.

Figure 2: Accessories

Figure 3 displays the Phanteks PH-TC14CS unsassembled.

Figure 3: The Phanteks PH-TC14CS unsassembled

This cooler is discussed in detail in the following pages.

[nextpage title=”The Phanteks PH-TC14CS”]

Figure 4 illustrates the front of the cooler, where you can see a cover (it is not actually a fin) with the name of the manufacturer.

Figure 4: Front view

Figure 5 reveals the side of the cooler, with the “C” shaped heatpipes and the horizontal heatsink.

Figure 5: Side view

Figure 6 shows the rear of the cooler, where you can see the five 8 mm heatpipes.

Figure 6: Rear view

In Figure 7, you can see the top of the heatsink.

Figure 7: Top view

[nextpage title=”The Phanteks PH-TC14CS (Cont’d)”]

The bottom of the cooler is visible in Figure 8. You can also see that the five 8 mm heatpipes are soldered to the base of the cooler.

Figure 8: Heatpipes

Figure 9 illustrates the base of the cooler. It is a nickel-plated copper plate with near mirror-like finishing.

Figure 9: Base

Figure 10 reveals the PH-TC14CS with the fans installed.

Figure 10: Fans installed

Figure 11 shows the 140 mm fans that come with the cooler, with the wire holders. The fans have three-pin connectors, which means they are not PWM-compatible, but the product comes with an adapter to allow the speed of the fans to be contolled according to the PWM signal from the motherboard. Note the fins on the surface of the blades; they help to reduce the air turbulence.

Figure 11: Fans

[nextpage title=”Installation”]

Figure 12 shows the backplate for installing the PH-TC14CS on Intel sockets 775, 1155, 1156, and 1366 CPUs. AMD and socket LGA2011 systems use the stock backplate.

Figure 12: Backplate

Figure 12 shows the pair of holders for sockets 775, 1155, 1156, and 1366 installed on our motherboard.

Figure 13: Holders installed

The next step is to put the cooler in place and hold it there using the two screws on the base of the cooler. Those screws are hard to reach; we had to remove our video card in order to reach one of them.

Figure 14: Heatsink installed

The last step is to install the fans, both of them blowing in the direction of the motherboard, which helps to cool the components around the CPU, mainly the memory modules.

Figure 15: Installation finished

[nextpage title=”How We Tested”]

We tested the cooler with a Core i5-2500K CPU (quad-core, 3.3 GHz), which is a socket LGA1155 processor with a 95 W TDP (Thermal Design Power). In order to get higher thermal dissipation, we overclocked it to 4.0 GHz (100 MHz base clock and x40 multiplier), with 1.3 V core voltage (Vcore). This CPU was able to reach 4.8 GHz with its default core voltage, but at this setting, the processor enters thermal throttling when using mainstream coolers, reducing the clock and thus the thermal dissipation. This could interfere with the temperature readings, so we chose to maintain a moderate overclocking.

We measured noise and temperature with the CPU under full load. In order to get 100% CPU usage in all cores, we ran Prime 95 25.11 with the “In-place Large FFTs&
rdquo; option. (In this version, the software uses all available threads.)

We compared the tested cooler to other coolers we already tested, and to the stock cooler that comes with the Core i5-2500K CPU. Note that the results cannot be compared to measures taken on a different hardware configuration, so we retested some “old” coolers with this new methodology. This means you can find different values in older reviews than the values you will read on the next page. Every cooler was tested with the thermal compound that comes with it.

Room temperature measurements were taken with a digital thermometer. The core temperature was read with the SpeedFan program (available from the CPU thermal sensors), using an arithmetic average of the core temperature readings.

During the tests, the panels of the computer case were closed. The front and rear case fans were spinning at minimum speed in order to simulate the “normal” cooler use on a well-ventilated case. We assume that is the common setup used by a cooling enthusiast or overclocker.

The sound pressure level (SPL) was measured with a digital noise meter, with its sensor placed near the top opening of the case. This measurement is only for comparison purposes, because a precise SPL measurement needs to be made inside an acoustically insulated room with no other noise sources, which is not the case here.

Hardware Configuration

• Processor: Core i5-2500K
• Motherboard: ASUS Maximus IV Extreme-Z
• Memory: 6 GB OCZ (DDR3-1600/PC3-12800), configured at 1,600 MHz and 8-8-8-18 timings
• Hard disk: Seagate Barracuda XT 2 TB
• Video card: Point of View GeForce GTX 460 1 GB
• Video resolution: 1920×1080
• Video monitor: Samsung SyncMaster P2470HN
• Power supply: Seventeam ST-550P-AM
• Case:  Cooler Master HAF 922

Operating System Configuration

• Windows 7 Home Premium 64 bit SP1

Software Used

• Prime95
• SpeedFan

Error Margin

We adopted a 2°C error margin, meaning temperature differences below 2°C are considered irrelevant.

[nextpage title=”Our Tests”]

The table below presents the results of our measurements. We repeated the same test on all coolers listed below. Each measurement was taken with the CPU at full load. In the models with a fan supporting PWM, the motherboard controlled the fan speed according to core load and temperature. On coolers with an integrated fan controller, the fan was set at the full speed.

Cooler	Room Temp.	Noise	Speed	Core Temp.	Temp. Diff.
Cooler Master Hyper TX3	18 °C	50 dBA	2850 rpm	69 °C	51 °C
Corsair A70	23 °C	51 dBA	2000 rpm	66 °C	43 °C
Corsair H100	26 °C	62 dBA	2000 rpm	64 °C	38 °C
EVGA Superclock	26 °C	57 dBA	2550 rpm	67 °C	41 °C
NZXT HAVIK 140	20 °C	46 dBA	1250 rpm	65 °C	45 °C
Thermalright True Spirit 120	26 °C	42 dBA	1500 rpm	82 °C	56 °C
Zalman CNPS12X	26 °C	43 dBA	1200 rpm	71 °C	45 °C
Zalman CNPS9900 Max	20 °C	51 dBA	1700 rpm	62 °C	42 °C
Titan Fenrir Siberia Edition	22 °C	50 dBA	2400 rpm	65 °C	43 °C
SilenX EFZ-120HA5	18 °C	44 dBA	1500 rpm	70 °C	52 °C
Noctua NH-L12	20 °C	44 dBA	1450 rpm	70 °C	50 °C
Zalman CNPS8900 Extreme	21 °C	53 dBA	2550 rpm	71 °C	50 °C
Gamer Storm Assassin	15 °C	48 dBA	1450 rpm	58 °C	43 °C
Deepcool Gammaxx 400	15 °C	44 dBA	1500 rpm	60 °C	45 °C
Cooler Master TPC 812	23 °C	51 dBA	2350 rpm	66 °C	43 °C
Deepcool Gammaxx 300	18 °C	43 dBA	1650 rpm	74 °C	56 °C
Intel stock cooler	18 °C	41 dBA	2000 rpm	97 °C	79 °C
Xigmatek Praeton	19 °C	52 dBA	2900 rpm	83 °C	64 °C
Noctua NH-U12P SE2	18 °C	42 dBA	1300 rpm	69 °C	51 °C
Deepcool Frostwin	24 °C	46 dBA	1650 rpm	78 °C	54 °C
Thermaltake Frio Advanced	13 °C	56 dBA	2000 rpm	62 °C	49 °C
Xigmatek Dark Knight Night Hawk Edition	9 °C	48 dBA	2100 rpm	53 °C	44 °C
Thermaltake Frio Extreme	21 °C	53 dBA	1750 rpm	59 °C	38 °C
Noctua NH-U9B SE2	12 °C	44 dBA	1700 rpm	64 °C	52 °C
Thermaltake WATER2.0 Pro	15 °C	54 dBA	2000 rpm	52 °C	37 °C
Deepcool Fiend Shark	18 °C	45 dBA	1500 rpm	74 °C	56 °C
Arctic Freezer i30	13 °C	42 dBA	1350 rpm	63 °C	50 °C
Spire TME III	8 °C	46 dBA	1700 rpm	70 °C	62 °C
Thermaltake WATER2.0 Performer	11 °C	54 dBA	2000 rpm	49 °C	38 °C
Arctic Alpine 11 PLUS	11 °C	45 dBA	2000 rpm	82 °C	71 °C
be quiet! Dark Rock 2	10 °C	41 dBA	1300 rpm	58 °C	48 °C
Phanteks PH-TC14CS	16 °C	47 dBA	1300 rpm	58 °C	42 °C

In the graph below, you can see how many degrees Celsius hotter the CPU core is than the air outside the case. The lower this difference, the better is the performance of the cooler.

 

In the graph below, you can see how many decibels of noise each cooler makes.

[nextpage title=”Main Specifications”]

The main specifications for the Phanteks PH-TC14CS CPU cooler include:

• Application: Sockets 775, 1155, 1156, 1366, 2011, AM2(+), AM3(+), and FM1 processors
• Dimensions: 5.9 x 6.3 x 5.5 inches (151 x 160 x 140.5 mm) (W x L x H)
• Maximum TDP: Not informed
• Fins: Aluminum
• Base: Nickel-plated copper
• Heat-pipes: Five 8-mm nickel-plated copper heatpipes
• Fan: 2x 140 mm
• Nominal fan speed: 1,300 rpm
• Fan air flow: 88.6 cfm
• Power consumption: 2 x 2.8 W
• Nominal noise level: 19.6 dBA
• Weight: 1.98 lbs (900 g)
• More information: https://phanteks.com
• Average price in the U.S.*: USD 80.00

* Researched at Newegg.com on the day we published this review.

[nextpage title=”Conclusions”]

The Phanteks PH-TC14CS surprised us. It is a wonderfully manufactured CPU cooler, with the advantage (over the tower coolers) of helping to cool all the components around the CPU, including the memory modules. It is not, however, a “slim” cooler, since it is 5.5” (140 mm) tall, but you can install it with only the lower fan, making it only 4.4” (112 mm) tall. Obviously, the performance of this cooler may be lower, in this case.

The real surprise was the cooling performance, which was on the same level as the best air coolers we have tested so far. The noise level was acceptable for such a good performer.

Being a CPU cooler with a great performance and a beautiful look, the Phanteks PH-TC14CS receives our Golden Award.