120mm cooler comparison: Which Noctua cooler should I choose?
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- čas přidán 25. 07. 2024
- Trying to decide which 120mm-class Noctua cooler is the right choice for you?
With 6 different models to choose from, each of our 120mm-class coolers are designed with different needs in mind. This video compares each of these coolers in detail, looking at factors such as height, noise level and performance, to help you choose the best solution for your system.
For further information on which Noctua coolers are compatible with your motherboard, CPU, case and RAM, visit the NCC now at: ncc.noctua.at
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Timestamps
00:00 - Introduction
00:26 - NH-U12S
00:55 - NH-U12S chromax.black
01:13 - NH-U12S redux
01:59 - NH-U12A
02:36 - NH-U12A chromax.black
02:50 - NH-D12L
03:43 - Spec Overview - 120mm Cooler Comparison
04:07 - Conclusion & General Compatibility
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Resources
Further reading: noctua.at/en/120mm-cpu-cooler...
NCC video guide: • NCC Guide - How to use...
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Where to buy
Buy NH-U12S: noctua.at/en/nh-u12s/buy
Buy NH-U12S chromax.black: noctua.at/en/nh-u12s-chromax-...
Buy NH-U12S redux: noctua.at/en/nh-u12s-redux/buy
Buy NH-U12A: noctua.at/en/nh-u12a/buy
Buy NH-U12A chromax.black: noctua.at/en/nh-u12a-chromax-...
Buy NH-D12L: noctua.at/en/nh-d12l/buy
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Instagram: / noctua_at
Twitter: / noctua_at - Věda a technologie
This guy's voice sounds like the A.I. cab service Delamain in Cyberpunk 2077. Please keep this guy, Noctua.
Lol
Hes prolly A.i voiced
a local builder helped me source components for a new ride... I complained my old computer was too loud and he turned me on to the NH-U12S redux. WOW it's sooo quiet and wasn't very expensive. Thanks guys :) keep up the good work!
Thanks for your great feedback, it means a lot to us and we're glad to hear that you have been so satisfied with the cooler. If you'd like to help spreading the word, please consider leaving a customer review where you bought it, we'd greatly appreciate it!
Great video keeping the length perfect and packing the video with reliable and useful information
In this AIO era in one of the less stuck with the air coolers from noctua. They are so Reliable. Yeah maybe with a high end AIO i can reach 10-15 degrees less but im still in love with air coolers.
Actually on my 5600x im still topping the noctua U9S with a second fan, Inherited from the 2600x and maybe im starting to have some little higher temps.
So Im planning on getting a U12A chromax Black.
I love the fact they started the chromax series to give us performance with a neutral color.
Thank you for being awesome Noctua
Just got first Noctua cooler 12S redux wit additional fan for push pull and lower rpm. Excellent cooler, keep up a good work.
Just got one also. Very quiet and good cooling. To bad that they don't provide a splitter for a second fan in the box
@@RazvanMGH I got a splitter in additional fan box for 12S redux
@@RazvanMGH
Noctua had instead included that in a separately purchasable extra fan kit, at least according to some info I read.
The NH-D12L is just what I need.
This is the kind of video I need
that U12S Redux just looks so slick 😍
Fantastic as always, I wouldn't mind testing this but the noctua nh-d15 dominates any other cooler I've been thinking on getting.
Noctua has a new revision of the D15 on their roadmap btw. Something to think about. You'll find it on their website.
@@voxelfusion9894 I might of seen it but I could be wrong. Could only imagine how good it is
@@voxelfusion9894 we'll see cus other brand is catching up with their D15
@@voxelfusion9894 They keep delaying it though. 😢
The U12A is my favorite cooler!
I just build my new open air itx PC in the Xtia XprotoL and the NH-U12A chromax black is perfekt for my Build. Everything feels so high Quality and is very easy to install. Its so quiet but has a lot of cooling Performance.
Thanks for your great feedback, it means a lot to us and we're glad to hear that you have been so satisfied with the cooler. If you'd like to help spreading the word, please consider leaving a customer review where you bought it, we'd greatly appreciate it!
It might sound different from others who mock the brown color, But I don't even consider it brown. I consider it Milk chocolate and White chocolate and it doesn't look bad.
Es cierto! Pero tampoco es chocolate, y tampoco es café .. es una mezcla entre vino tinto y terracota, es hermoso 😍 cuando los ves en persona, dices wow! Así no se ven en CZcams
Try giving the NH-U14S a chromax heatsink :(
I love it when I see squared numbers.
169 is 13²
Cool accent. I can not stop listening to his voice.
I really L❤️VE it 🌞😍❤️👌
Perfect! The Chromax in black will fit well in my black ITX build. Does the NH-L12S come in a Chromax.black version please? Thank you.
There's no chromax version of the NH-L12S but you could replace the fan with the NF-A12x15 chromax.black.swap.
Even noctua's presenter is whisper quiet
Can a noctua fan (model: nf-a9x14 pwm dc12v / 2.52w / 0.21a) be replaced with this one that shows same voltage but lower w & a?
Which one? Which application? Really hard to tell without knowing more details. Also, why would you want to replace the NF-A9x14?
Bro will the NH-U12A chromax which i already purchased. But have option to return and buy nh-d15 chromax.
Is it good for 12700k ?
My work is 3d modeling and rendering.
Thank u
Yes, of course your NH-U12A will work fine: ncc.noctua.at/cpus/model/Intel-Core-i7-12700K-1579
hahah... estou com uma dúvida grande qual fan comprar... amo os produtos da Noctua.
i love you noctua
Best air cooling systems on the market
I have a smaller case with an option of maximum CPU cooler height of 155mm so I can't use most of your products because most of them are at 158mm height. Do you think Noctua NH-D12L is a good choice for AMD Ryzen 7 5700G?
Absolutely, the NH-D12L is plenty for the 5700G. Having an even more powerful cooler wouldn't give much of a benefit: ncc.noctua.at/cpus/model/Ryzen-7-5700G-cpu-1303
Have a redux cooler, debating upgrading it. Since I now own a ryzen 7 5800x3D and I see higher temps that aren’t bad but not to my liking. 83c in certain work loads.
A higher performing model like NH-U12A or NH-D15 should give you a few degrees less, but honestly, 83°C is entirely fine.
Hello I've a question for you, I've the U12s Redux on a 5600x and NGL this cooler is a beast, It peaks 70c but then it cool down to 60~62c max temp when I'm gaming and it 's max peak temp when benchmarking is 62c in 30c ambient room, Will adding a second fan on that cooler make a difference, also if that's possible how could it be done like how am I supposed to do the cable and socket thing?
Great to hear you're happy with the cooler! Adding a second fan should usually drop your temps by around 1-3°C. All you need is the NA-FK1 kit: noctua.at/en/na-fk1 It contains a splitter cable so that you can run both fans from the same header.
@@NoctuaVideos Oh, Very nice that you have that kit already, I wasn't able to find it in my country 'Egypt' stores so I had to look on the mentioned amazon URLs in the page you gave me but I found out that the shipping fees is duplicating the price by 5 times 😂
Please also try Newegg.com, hopefully the fees should be lower.
I need a hint, please. :)
On a double fan set over the cpu cooler (one fan on each side of the cooler), shall the fans blow over the cooler simultaneously or shall one of the fans blow over the cooler and the other one extract the air out of it?
Thanks!
Definitely the latter, both fans should blow into the same direction in order to create a so called push-pull-setup (one fan pushes air through the heatsink, the other pulls air through the heatsink). If both fans push air onto the cooler from opposite sides, they would work against each other rather than working in tandem to move as much air as possible through the heatsink fins.
i got a micro ATX motherboard (GIGABYTE B550M DS3H AC) with two Corsair vengeance PRO RGB. Will the U12S REDUX, and D15S not cause any conflicts? I seen such coolers but on typical ATX motherboards, but mine is micro and the RAM slots are much closer to the CPU
Yes, both coolers will fit fine with yout motherboard and RAM:
ncc.noctua.at/motherboards/model/B550M-DS3H-AC-motherboard-4933
ncc.noctua.at/ram/model/-ram-43/7
Hey noctua, what is the shelf life of a tube of thermal paste? Assuming in the tube and in a regular room temperature closet?
The recommended storage time from date of purchase is up to 3 years: noctua.at/en/nt-h1-3-5g/specification Usually, you will keep seeing excellent results even after many years of storage though, we've seen customers using it without issues for more than twice as long.
@@NoctuaVideos best I get a new tube then just to play it safe, thanks for your time.
which is best for an i7 12700k, u12s or u12a, or maybe dh15?
only for gaming and working (but just use google chrome to work)
All of them would work well and you won't see big benefits of going for the bigger models in this case: ncc.noctua.at/cpus/model/Intel-Core-i7-12700K-1579 We would therefore recommend the U12S or U12A depending on your budget.
How does NH-U12S with 2 fans compare to NH-D12L with single fan?
NH-D12L with a single fan does slightly better (NSPR 148) than NH-U12S with 2x NF-F12 (NSPR 145). Note that the difference is very small though, so you will usually end up with roughly the same results.
My u12a is godly.I went from my cooler being so bad that my room was too hot to my room being so cooled that now even in the summer it doesnt feel hot
I'm thinking of replacing a old worn out AIO with one of these excellent coolers. My AIO has a LED on the water block which blinks red to let me know when my CPU temps are high. Is there a noctua cooler that has a included thermometer like that? If not is there a solution anyone can recommend?
You can monitor CPU temps in a lot of software, and I think even the task manager now.
Noctua no tiene, porque no lo necesita 😅
I got a z690 f but the D15 is not compatible and I am not willing to turn it around nor making any mofication to the VRM, which top tier air cooler can be recomended for this board?
Sadly most larger high-end coolers do not fit the Z690-F boards due to the height of the plastic cover on the VRMs. The problem is just the plastic part that sits on top of the heatsink, which is for design purpose only. There is no risk of damaging the motherboard or VRM heatsink if you cut this off, so honestly, if you already have the NH-D15, we would recommend going this route.
If you prefer to use a different cooler, we would recommend the NH-D15S and turning it by 180° so that it is shifted away from the VRMs, which will make it clear the cover:
ncc.noctua.at/motherboards/model/ROG-Strix-Z690-F-Gaming-D4-motherboard-5409
ncc.noctua.at/motherboards/model/ROG-Strix-Z690-F-Gaming-WiFi-motherboard-5374
You can also use add the second fan from the NH-D15 you already have.
Your next best bet would be the NH-U9S but this is much smaller, so it can't compete with NH-D15 or NH-D15S.
Hope this helps!
@@NoctuaVideos one last question, will I have enough room for a 4070ti with those components We are talking about? thank You so much for your quick response. ( NH-D15S and turned 180°)
Yes, the cooler will still clear the PCIe by a few Millimetres!
Which Noctua air cooler cools better for the ryzen 7800x3d?
Of the 120mm coolers covered in this video, NH-U12A will perform best but all of these models will work fine: ncc.noctua.at/cpus/model/Ryzen-7-7800X3D-cpu-1649
I have an Iceberg Spider case with a height clearance of 158mm, would the U12A fit inside or should a buy the 12L? I really want the extra performance of the 12A but can't find anyone with this case to confirm so better ask here.
If the clearance is 158mm, the NH-U12A should definitely fit!
@@NoctuaVideos Thank you. No doubt then, U12A it's.
D12L Chromax please!
What's the NSPR of a U12S with two A12x25 fans?
157.
@@NoctuaVideos Do you have a recommended NSPR for the i7 12700k?
FINALLY BLACK
Can the nh-u12s chromax. black handle the i7 11700k when overclocked?
Yes: ncc.noctua.at/cpus/model/Core-i7-11700K-cpu-1284
@@NoctuaVideosthanks for the answer. I bought it and i couldn’t be happier. Looks very good, is very quiet and it can definitely handle the i7 11700k even overclocked.
Is NH-12A compatible with 1700 chipset and i5 13600 out of the box, or i need to buy also the NM-i20xx "gadget" ?
Yes, the NH-U12A is compatible with LGA1700 and the i5 13600 out of the box since 01/2022: ncc.noctua.at/cpus/model/INTEL-Core-i5-13600-1656
The NM-i20xx is for LGA2011/2066. Customers who require this kit don't need to buy it, we provide it free of charge.
I mean if the aluminium looking model provides it within the package?Too late anyway. I got the black NH-U12A cromium product that i know it includes it in the package. It seems that this other silver color model it needs to get the NM-i20xx as an extra@@NoctuaVideos
No, as we've said, the NM-i20xx is not required (and it is for LGA20xx, not LGA1700!), both the silver and the black version of NH-U12A include LGA1700 mountings when purchased today.
When i got my first Noctua 15 years back , i never looked anything else. Its not only about performance ita about Elegance , and Respect to their Customers . AND PLEASE NO RGB or ARGB lighting
Nunca! Por favor nunca! lo hagan 😍
I feel like GPU`s should also have a radiator that pushes air towards the rear of the case, just like the CPU cooler.
Better case temps, also better cooling for the GPU.
2 intakes on the front, 2 on the rear.
Windforce generally design their heatsinks to take air from underneath and ventilate it out the bracket on the back of the case.
The thing is that the air could have to magically pass through the actual gpu board for that to be possible.
@@Criiies It`s a tower cooler
where do I get one of those killer hoodies?!
Please follow the buy links on our website:
noctua.at/en/np-h1-brown/buy
noctua.at/en/np-h1-grey/buy
Guys I’ve been waiting on your next generation 140mm fans for a while and it’s sad to see the road map keep changing. Please release them soon:(
Thank you for your message. We understand that customers are waiting for this fan and we can assure you that we are working hard to get it out asap. Unfortunately, the current environment with shortage issues on various components and materials as well as severe restrictions in logistics makes it even more difficult to stick to schedules for the introduction of new products.
🔺 The NH-U12S can cool an i5 12600K very well?
Yes, absolutely: ncc.noctua.at/cpus/model/Core-i5-12600K-cpu-1581
NH-U12S VS NH-U12A for a 5900x??? What are the differences?
You will see slightly more turbo headroom with the NH-U12A: ncc.noctua.at/cpus/model/Ryzen-9-5900X-cpu-1045
i have a 12700k @ 4.9 and playing spiderman remastered it barely hits 65c. Its that good.
NSPR is the same as TDP ?????
No! Please see here for what NSPR means and why TDP specifications are useless: noctua.at/en/noctua-standardised-performance-rating
Which one would be the best one to cool a 14900k?
For the 14900K, we would definitely recommend the NH-U12A since it's the most powerful.
@@NoctuaVideos thank you!
Scythe Fuma 2 Rev. B, because it comes with 2 fans.
NH-D12L needs to be chromax black... Otherwise its 90mm cooler or AIO for anyone looking for low profile with decent looks
is this only about CPU fans?
Yes. Please see here for our fan buying guide: noctua.at/en/products/fan/buying-guide
For 120mm fans in particular, please see this guide: noctua.at/en/which_fan_is_right_for_me?
Eschtreicha, widdo amol die Beschtn!
so where do we buy that hoodie
and will there be an IPPC Hoodie
You can buy our hoodies here: noctua.at/en/products/merchandise
Buy NH-U12A chromax.black typo
Thank you, fixed!
You sound like a Crestfallen Warrior-npc from Dark Souls))
I'm waiting if Noctua will release ARGB fans.
Be Quiet already have one.
I'm a user of Noctua NH-U12A Chromax Black.
I play this video to make my baby sleep
Which Noctua air cooler cools better for the i5 13600k?
For the best possible performance, we'd recommend NH-U12A, NH-D15 and NH-D15S: ncc.noctua.at/cpus/model/Core-i5-13600K-cpu-1638
1 fan NH-U12S gets 129 NSPR what about 2 Fan NH-U12S ??
NH-U12S with two fans is 145.
@@NoctuaVideoswow 145
@@NoctuaVideosif two fan, what is max fan noise will be ? Give me the number please
I actually love the tan color scheme of Noctua. I can't stand the RGB craze most consumers fall for.
Also, does the NH-U12S come with a heatsink cover like the 12A does?
None of the coolers are shipped with a cover, but there are optional ones available for the NH-U12A and NH-U12S (non-redux). You need the NA-HC1 and NA-HC2 for the NH-U12S: noctua.at/en/products/accessories/heatsink-covers
Me too, I also like Noctua's standard line colour scheme.
I remember reading CZcams video comments from people who liked Noctua products but not the colour scheme, and I think those comments were what led them to create their Chromax series where they then went further by having different colour options for the anti-vibration pads and mounts.
Based on what I've read online, I think the RGB stuff has to do with PC gaming and seem to have evolved from the CCFL single colour lighting effects of 2000s custom-built gaming PCs. A lot of manufacturers who have RGB LED lighting effects in their products rarely make it such that the lighting settings, as well as other settings, get programmed into a chip on the device, and instead depend on Windows software running all of the time and consuming system resources.
I actually have a keyboard that has RGB lighting and I turn it off because of my use case for it and choice of key caps that aren't backlight compatible, but I can tell if the keyboard had lost all of my custom settings and reset back to factory defaults as it defaults to being extremely showy with its lighting and I have to manually turn it off, though I think it's because the keyboard itself runs on a chip originally made for off-brand PC gaming keyboards.
I am even more confused than before watching the video. I'm not sure it's a great idea to make so many different models.
Thank you for your feedback, we're sorry to hear that you're confused. We can gladly assist you in selecting the right model and walk you through the process.
Firstly, do you know your case and motherboard yet? This may make it easier to make a selection because it may rule out certain models. For example, if your case only offers 150mm clearance, only the NH-D12L would fit. Motherboard compatibility usually shouldn't be an issue for any of these models, but it's still good to double check. You can check motherboard and case compatibility in the Noctua Compatibility Centre:
ncc.noctua.at/motherboards
ncc.noctua.at/cases
Secondly, do you know your CPU yet? NH-U12A and NH-D12L offer the best performance, so if you use a highly demanding CPU, these will give the best results. For most CPUs, any of these models will work great though. You can check our recommendations for individual CPUs in the NCC as well: ncc.noctua.at/cpus
If all of the models work well with your CPU, motherboard and case, it really comes down to price and aesthetics. For example, if you want to keep the cost down, go for NH-U12S redux. If cost doesn't matter so much, go for NH-U12A, and if it should be black, go for the chromax.black version. If you want to go black and keep the cost reasonable, go for NH-U12S chromax.black.
Hope this helps! Please let us know if you need any further guidance or if there any other questions!
Here at 17,807 views.
no RGB ok 👍
Weak fans I don't mind if fans are loud that just means they're doing what they're supposed to be doing evacuating hot air really fast like a jet engine I don't think a fighter pilot will ever complain how loud their jet sounds kind like a mustang owner with MagnaFlow exhaust although I will say the fin stacks are pretty sick the fans are just weak not to mention most people have some kind of gaming headset on so really who cares if fans are a little on the loud side
Noctua NH-U12S Chromax shouldn’t cost $100, especially with much better price to performance options out there.
내 기준으로는, Nh-D15로 발열이 제어되지 않는 CPU는 완전한 실패작이다.
Stop fucking around, release the NH-D16 already
Agreed, more heat pipes and denser fins, all copper and same fan design as NH/U12A, except scaled up.
NH-D12L gets my vote, mainly as you cant see much of the awful colour scheme!
Why the brown color? Thankfully you guys have the black version.
well it's basically their thing now. it'd be like asking Coca Cola to change to blue.
Same reason Ferrari's are red
I am sure this guy is an android manufactured by Weyland Yutani.
Awful brown.
Im so glad i decided to cancel my aio cooler