Once everything is out on the workbench, the mounting system for the NH-U12F is pretty daunting. There are pieces everywhere - from screws to washers – and it's hard to tell where to start. Although the instructions are very clear, the manual's form-factor makes them hard to read.
It's a small glued book that doesn't stay open when you lay it flat, making it tricky to follow the advice within. A big fold-out sheet would have been easier to use and, we guess, cheaper to produce.
The first step is to mount a back plate on and through the motherboard and that can only be done with the motherboard removed from the case. Next up, small cardboard washers are placed over each hole on the motherboard and a mounting plate put in position over the top.
A screw is used to secure everything together but getting the cooler and the two plates well lined up is a right pain and not helped by the fact that one of the plates is under the motherboard. Life would be far easier for the installer if the backing plate already had bolts fixed in place and nuts were used to secure them.
With the plates in place on both sides of the socket, the next thing to do is attach some further plates to the base of the cooler, using four small screws. Again this is just too fiddly and means that the mounting time for the NH-U12F gets ever longer.
After that, the cooler is secured to the motherboard using two sprung screws that go directly into the plates mounted on the motherboard. The biggest headache is the possibility - if you don't think things through before getting started – that you can easily end up with the mounts on the wrong way round and end up having start from the beginning again.
Fitment Time
Unfortunately the fitment time of the NH-U12F was the worst by far of all products on test. It took 1,224 seconds (20 minutes, 24 Seconds) - over 30 per cent longer than its nearest rival.
Blame here lies with an overly complicated design for mounting to an LGA 775 socket, with attachment to the motherboard proving to be the biggest hurdle.
