Noctua NT-H1 Pro Grade Thermal Compound Review

Conclusion

We have to say Kudos to Noctua for designing a great thermal compound. It seems that the NT-H1 came in with a bang and seated itself into a very comfortable 2nd position overall in our testing. Since we have used averages, the temperature differences are a bit less pronounced so a difference of half a degree is quite impressive to say the least. Is that half a degree useful? Well if you are pushing to reach the top overclock on your CPU/GPU, you are going to need it one way or another.

As we have said before, while we do not like to bring the names of competitors into our conclusions, it is extremely hard not to draw parallels between the top three compounds in these tests. Even though the MX-2 stays at the top of the heap in terms of overall performance, the Noctua NT-H1 keeps up very well. Performance wise, it is quite comparable to OCZ's Freeze compound and can be found for about the same price as well.

So, are there any negatives about the NT-H1? The only one that we can really think of is the fact that its availability here in Canada is a bit sketchy. Where the OCZ Freeze and the MX-2 can be found at almost every retailer, like all of Noctua's products this compound is a bit hard to find.

As we mentioned in the beginning of this review, some people were very skeptical regarding the new Noctua TIM but now that we have seen this compound with our own eyes, there is nothing left to do for us but to praise every one of its facets. Its ease of use and the fact that it is a non-curing, non conductive paste, is exactly what we want in a compound. An even better aspect is that this paste is quite inexpensive for the amount of compound you get.

It seems like lately, all of the newer thermal compounds we have tested perform extremely close to one another. The NT-H1 is no different since it performs well but what really stands out with this product is how easy it can be cleaned from your processor. This is just another in a long line of high-performance Noctua products and once again we have to say that Noctua really should be proud of themselves.


Pros:

• Excellent Performance
• Very inexpensive at some locations
• Not electrically conductive
• Easy to clean off
• Suitable for Compressor Cooling
• No Curing Time

Cons:

• Packaging should be designed a little better, security wise that is
• Availability