Visual inspection
The Noctua NH-P1 is the first fully passive CPU cooler designed and produced by Noctua. Sure, while many Noctua CPU coolers could be used as a passive cooler, the NH-P1 is the first model that was designed to be one.
The NH-P1 heatsink has its cooling fins spaced out to allow for an easier passage of the airflow generated by the system. In addition, the cooler uses no less than six copper made heatpipes and has a weight of 1180g. The dimensions of the heatsink are: (H)158mm x (W)154mm x (D)152mm.
The heatsink has a unique shape, it is designed to dissipate as much heat as possible with little to no direct airflow. The NH-P1 has a single tower heatsink design and thanks to its layout, the cooler can be installed in different orientations based on the case configuration.
The cooling fins used on this CPU cooler are thicker than the average air CPU cooler. Each cooling fin has as thickness of around 1.5mm. The NH-P1 uses 13 cooling fins on the main heatsink with six smaller cooling fins making the connection between the heatsink and the baseplate.
In order to dissipate the heat without direct airflow, the cooling fins are spaced out to allow for easy passage of passive airflow. The space between the cooling fins is around 8mm, which is plenty to get a good air circulation and maintain a solid structure for the heatsink.
The NH-P1 has six copper made heatpipes which have their surface nickel-plated for an increased reliability and to enhance the design of the cooler. Opposite to how other air CPU coolers are designed, the NH-P1 has its heatpipes arranged in a C shape. This ensures optimal contact of the heatpipes with all cooling fins.
The endings of the heatpipes are exposed as per usual, however they are machined symmetrically and do not break the look of the heatsink.
The baseplate of the NH-P1 CPU cooler is made from nickel-plated copper and features a smooth contact surface. The baseplate while smooth has a subtle circular pattern which is left from the manufacturing process. This sunburst pattern will not affect the evenness of the thermal compound spread.
As is the case with many Noctua CPU coolers, the heatpipes are soldered directly to the back side of the baseplate. This ensures an optimal heat transfer between the two components.
The NH-P1 does not use any fans in its factory configuration. However, if active airflow is desired, more than likely if the cooler is used with a higher TDP CPU, then Noctua has designed a fan specially for the NH-P1. The fan recommended to be used with this CPU cooler is the Noctua NF-A12x25 LS-PWM.
This fan has the standard 120mm dimension and a maximum speed of 1200RPM. The power is delivered through a standard 4 pin connector. The corners of the frame are covered by rubber pads to dampen any vibration that might be generated by the fan.
