- Review -

03.04.2019 Vortez.net

Now, onto the performance; this is where the Noctua takes the crown for the quietest cooler, thanks largely to those NF-A12x25 fans, once again they’re almost unbelievable in how quietly they operate, we saw idle noise levels as low as 25.5dB(A) and an average of 26. Even with the CPU overclocked to 4.4GHz, with an idle CPU power draw of roughly 70w, the fans didn’t nudge up by more than a single dB. While making a quiet cooler can be seen as relatively easy, you could just turn down the fan speed or reduce its size; maintaining decent CPU temperatures at the same time is what requires real expertise. Our Core i7 3930K didn’t peak any further than 63°C with our 4.4GHz overclock applied and stayed well below 60°C at stock clocks. Considering the 135W TDP, at stock, of this CPU, that result cannot be dismissed; there are coolers that are slightly better, but they all produce more noise in doing so. Pricing is somewhat of an Achilles heel of the Noctua NH-U12A, at currently around £20 more than the be quiet! Dark Rock Pro 4, which we feel is this heatsink’s biggest rival. The be quiet! Is a little louder but just as capable at keeping our i7 cool. However, things like memory compatibility will likely suffer with the Dark Rock. If quietness is paramount, then an extra £20 shouldn’t be too big of a hurdle.

"If you absolutely must have a quiet system, this cooler is 100% for you; we can’t think of anything we’d recommend instead." (Matthew Hodgson, Vortez.net)