INTRODUCTION

   Every industry in the world rates manufacturers according to specific criteria and the same is of course true for the CPU cooling segment of the computer industry. In the last decade or so several manufacturers have released high-performance and even innovative CPU coolers (both air and liquid ones) but a single name has consistently led all CPU air cooler charts not just in terms of cooling efficiency but also build quality. We are of course talking about Noctua and although they've yet to expand their product lines to something other than fans and air based CPU coolers what has really let some gamers and enthusiasts down is the very "common" design/looks of their products. With the Chromax line of colorful accessories which was launched last year Noctua has tried to change that and today we'll be transforming a regular NH-D15 CPU cooler to see if they've succeeded in doing so.

   Designed in Austria, Noctua’s premium cooling components are internationally renowned for their superb quietness, exceptional performance and thoroughgoing quality. Having received more than 6000 awards and recommendations from leading hardware websites and magazines, Noctua’s fans and heatsinks are serving hundreds of thousands of satisfied customers around the globe.

   The Chromax line of accessories by Noctua currently includes several all-black fan models (NF-A15 HS-PWM, NF-A14 PWM, NF-F12 PWM and NF-S12A PWM) bundled with colored anti-vibration rubber pads (red, blue, yellow, green, white and black), aluminum heatsink covers for their 3 most popular CPU cooler models (NH-U12S, NH-D15 and NH-D15S) available in black and white colors (some also feature swappable inlays in black, white, red, blue, green and yellow colors), 4-pin fan y-cables and 4-pin fan 30cm extension cables (just like with the rubber pads and swappable inlays all cables are available in black, white, red, green, yellow and blue colors). Unfortunately these accessories have no effect in the cooling efficiency of the CPU cooler you choose to use them on (the all-black fans for good or bad share the same specifications with their normal versions) so appearance and size (just slightly) are the only two things which will change. So let's see how you can use the Chromax accessories to change the appearance of the massive NH-D15 CPU Air Cooler by Noctua.

SPECIFICATIONS AND FEATURES

PACKAGING AND CONTENTS

For this review Noctua send over all of their heatsink covers for the NH-D15, both fans and all available cables (a brand new NH-D15 was used).

Although the NA-HC4 black and white heatsink covers are bundled just with their mounting clips and the installation instructions the NA-HC3 model is bundled with three swappable inlays (different color on each side), mounting clips and the installation instructions.

The NF-A15 HS-PWM 150mm fan comes ready with red, blue, yellow, green, white and black rubber pads (8 total for each color), 4 mounting screws and an extension cable.

We also received y-cables and 30cm extension cables in black, white and red colors.

THE CHROMAX ACCESSORIES

Here we see the NH-D15 ready with both NF-A15 stock fans prior to mounting the Chromax accessories on it.

 Starting with the NA-HC4 heatsink covers in order to mount them you will need to remove the plastic base seen above.

After that you have to attach both bases onto the two heatsinks with the metal clips as seen above.

It's easier to attach the NF-A15 HS-PWM fans prior to mounting the aluminum covers so that should be your next step.

Now place the aluminum covers over the plastic bases and push them downwards (Easy right? Do keep in mind that the covers increase the height of the heatsink by 6mm and the width by 3mm).

You may choose to go with the white heatsink instead but we feel black looks better (Noctua should had made white NF-A15 HS-PWM fans as well).

With the NA-HC3 heatsink covers things are slightly different since you will need to place the swappable inlays in the covers prior to mounting them onto their bases.

The black and red color combination is probably the best one for the NH-D15 but if red is not your color you can change the inlays and the rubber pads to blue, green or yellow instead.

The above before and after picture shows what you can expect from the Chromax accessories at a glance.

CONCLUSION

   Once again since we're all about total transparency i need to point out that Noctua send us their Chromax accessories many months back but due to several changes in the layout of the lab and our sample storage area they got misplaced (fell behind several PC tower samples) and honestly it's not hard to forget a sample when it's nowhere to be seen. With that out of the way we all feel that the Chromax line is a step towards the right direction by Noctua but in a market filled with RGB illuminated products it just might not be enough to attract gamers and enthusiasts alike. We are perfectly aware that RGB illuminated fans may not be able to perform on par with the standards Noctua has (and they may not look "professional" enough) but at the same time we feel that they can and should make it happen (as for professionals there's no need for them to change their industrial fan line). We also would like to see higher performance all-black fans added in the Chromax line since it makes very little sense to ask from any consumer to spend extra money (and by no means a tiny amount) only to get the same fans as the ones bundled with the CPU cooler but in black. Finally you should all keep in mind that by adding the Chromax aluminum covers not only does the height of the heatsink increase by 6mm (from 158 to 164mm) but also does the total width by 3mm (from 125mm to 128mm).

   Noctua products are known for three things high performance, build quality and price so and the Chromax line of accessories is not an exception since currently the NF-A15 HS-PWM fan retails for USD26.90/26.7Euros, the NA-HC3 heatsink cover retails for USD29.90/30Euros and the NA-HC4 retails for USD29.90/31Euros (the y-cables and the 30cm extension cables each retail for USD9.90/10Euros). With that in mind in order to completely equip the NH-D15 with all of these accessories you will have to pay almost as much as the cooler itself and to some people that will sound as a bit extreme. Still according to internet “chatter” the Chromax line by Noctua is quite successful and although we do feel that they should eventually also join the RGB lighting wagon we do recommend the Chromax line of accessories to people who are looking to match their Noctua CPU cooler to their case or desk theme in general (or for something different than the regular Noctua color theme).

PROS

- Large Selection of Accessories
- Available Colors
- High Build Quality
- Easy To Mount

CONS

- Price (For Some)
- Identical Fan Specifications With Normal Models
- Slight Increase In CPU Cooler Size