Compare: NH-D12L vs Assassin IV

Design and Aesthetics:

NH-D12L

The NH-D12L features a dual-tower design with two moderate aluminum heatsinks and a single Noctua 120mm NF-A12x25r PWM fan. The cooler's design allows for superior heat dissipation, making it capable of handling even the most demanding processors. Aesthetically, the NH-D12L maintains Noctua's signature beige and brown color scheme, reflecting the brand's reputation for quality and performance.

Assassin IV

This cooler boasts a clean and modern design that sets it apart from other air CPU coolers available today. The entire cooler is tightly put together, which can make it a bit tricky to figure out how to take it apart into its different parts. The middle fan is hidden seamlessly without any visible gaps around it. It comes in an all-black design with DeepCool's signature textured radiator, adding a stylish and modern touch to any setup.

Install Notes:

NH-D12L

The NH-C14S features Noctua's SecuFirm2 mounting system, ensuring compatibility with a wide range of Intel and AMD sockets and offering a straightforward installation process, typical of Noctua coolers. Clear instructions, high-quality components, and a tube of their premium NT-H1 thermal compound make it an easy and user-friendly experience, even for beginners. The cooler uses the original AMD backplate for AMD installations. However, one downside is that the cooler may stick to your CPU, and due to the screw setup, you can't slide the cooler off the CPU like with some other brands. Overall, the NH-C14S offers a relatively hassle-free installation process.

Assassin IV

Installing the Assassin IV is made easier with its smooth setup process. However, because it's small and designed with a lot of details, getting it installed correctly might be a bit tricky if you don't follow the instructions they give you. This cooler uses a bracket that's almost the same as premium coolers and attaches to the motherboard in a way that's like the AK620 model. Figuring out how to put the cooler onto the brackets might be a bit puzzling because its design is so seamless and neat. The top metal mesh that covers the fan sticks on with a magnet, so you can easily access and remove the middle fan during installation. Then, you can attach the cooler to a two-point system and put the middle fan back in place. However, this cooler doesn't put it's fan in the front like most other coolers, so the exposed fan faces the rear. One neat thing is that the fans are already connected, so you only need one plug to turn on both fans and the cooler's LED DeepCool logo. There are additional brackets to potentially add a third fan to the front of the cooler.