Can I use an LGA 1156/1155 heatsink on an LGA 1150 motherboard?

I'm considering moving to Haswell from Nehalem by just getting a new mobo and CPU, but I'm not sure if I can keep my current heatsink.

Can an LGA 1156 heatsink be mounted on to an LGA 1150 motherboard?

Edit: I just read 1156 heatsinks fit 1155 motherboards, so I guess the question is also can I go from 1155 to 1150?

1 Answer

While I can't find an authoritative reference (ie. from manufacturers), there is a definitive "yes" around the internet.

There are many posts on many forums confirming that 1156/1155/1150 are compatible. Examples at: overclock.net, Tom's Hardware, guru3d.

What I noticed myself when Haswell first came out: existing coolers (such as the Noctua NH-D14, as an example) had their specification details updated to include 1150, but they're still the same cooler.

And, if you accept an unreferenced statement on Wikipedia as a reference :o, the socket 1150 entry says:

Cooling systems for LGA 1155 and LGA 1156 sockets are compatible with LGA 1150, due to them having the same distance of 75 mm between each screw hole.