LENGTH OF TIME: 1-2 hours
DIFFICULTY: Medium
So then, with parts justified, let’s talk shop. On the surface, this is a relatively simple build. Last time we used this Hydra chassis, we weren’t entirely satisfied with the resulting build. There were a few foibles that arose after using the Hydra ITX, and during the build process that proved to be frustrating. Some of those issues stemmed from the design decisions made with the chassis, so those are two things we’ve adjusted and remedied from the get-go. On top of that, it’s starting to age as a chassis a little, so we’re going to need to do some minor cable upgrades just to keep up with the times, but more on that later.
The real focal point of this build is that Intel Core i7-14700K, and whether it can handle being cooled by a 65mm-high air cooler, because let’s be clear, Noctua is very good at air cooling. They’ve long been our go to for the best air coolers and fans around—second to none in the industry—but it’s still a tall order to cool one of the hottest chips around with nothing more than a slim 95mm fan, four copper heat pipes, and a whole assortment of aluminum cooling fins on an open air bench with nothing around it. Still, we’re hopeful, and according to Noctua’s own CPU compatibility list, it should be fully compatible, albeit with low turbo/overclocking headroom. Interestingly, Noctua actually has the 12600K on that list, with a high ranking for turbo/overclocking headroom, but jumping up the next-gen and its refresh sees that support plummet, which is a pretty good indicator of just how hard Intel is pushing this architecture.
That’s something we’ve repeatedly seen with this series. It doesn’t matter if you’ve got an Intel Core i5-14600K under a 420mm radiator, under load—it’s still going to push its clock speeds and volts all the way up until it hits 100 C and its TJMax before throttling. On the one hand, that’s darn impressive, and leads to some
