- Review -

03.06.2013 techPowerUp.com

The Noctua NH-U12S simply blows me away when it comes to noise levels. At lower fan speeds, this cooler will be impossible to hear over other parts in the average user's case. This cooler is insanely quiet in its default single-fan setup. Noise levels are extremely low even with a second fan. Users can, should they be able to justify the price of a second Noctua fan, look forward to great cooling at nearly silent noise levels. The Noctua NH-U12S is an exceptional cooler. It might not be the best in terms of pure cooling performance, but it still gets the job done. At stock clocks, the cooler is simply fantastic for its size, doing extremely well against much more expensive competitors, such as the Corsair H90. The fact that it performs as well as it does is astonishing when you look at the noise it creates, or the lack thereof. This cooler is for the most part utterly silent. If a user needs a traditional cooler that keeps noise levels down, the NH-U12S is the best choice. It simply dominates the noise-level charts, being the quietest cooler I have tested thus far. Noctua is mostly competing against itself in that category. The ability to add a second fan to improve cooling performance is also a welcome sight as another fan increases the NH-U12S's cooling ability even more. Best yet, noise levels hardly suffer with a second fan, increasing by just 1-2 dBA at worst. The easy-to-use mounting hardware makes for an easy install, and the exceptional build quality really gives the cooler some extra value. The quality itself is something pictures cannot convey—holding the cooler in your hands and seeing it for yourself is the only way to really grasp the difference between a Noctua NH-U12S and its competition. The warranty is a nice treat as well.

"The Noctua NH-U12S is ultimately an exceptionally quiet cooler with performance that is great for its size. If you are in the market for a cooler that needs to perform well while being quiet, this is the choice for you." (Raymond Lemar, techPowerUp.com)