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Netherlands, Amsterdam
1 Level
703 Review
62 Karma

Review on Noctua NF F12 PWM 4 Pin Premium by Alif Eagle

Revainrating 4 out of 5

Not exactly as advertised, it's about sound signature, not DB

It's not as quiet as advertised. Especially at top speed. But they look solid and high quality. Before that I had Corsair ml120. The ML120s could run at much higher RPMs, so they ran much better, but they were very noisy when running at maximum RPM. I have 4ml120, I've been using it for over a year. One of them started rattling too much, I had to remove it and use a regular fan. But it was only after a few months that the other one started to rattle a bit at low revs, which annoyed me. They were great when I first got them and there was no rattling noise at the time. If they worked, they were better than the nf-f12. I like to use my computer when it is idle and under light loads (web browsing, etc.). But I want them to work really well when I'm playing, although the sound is high pitched but not annoying. Now let's come to the comparison of nf-f12 with ml120. Nf-f12 don't make a rattling noise at low rpm, but they do have bearing noise. At low revs it's not annoying, but at max revs it's really annoying. However, I prefer the NF-F12 ML120 because I hate rattling more because it's annoying. At the same low rpm (e.g. when both are at 800 rpm) the nf-f12 performs much better. It's like 800 rpm for nf-f12 corresponds to 1000-1100 rpm for ml120. Therefore, Noctuas works much better at low speeds. But when I compare the max 1500rpm of the nf-f12 to the 1500rpm of the ml120, the nf-f12 is still much better. But at such speeds, the noise of the nf-f12 bearings is too strong, while the ml120 has no such sound. If the ml120 didn't have that rattle they would be excellent. Quiet when you want it, powerful when you need it. But they seem to have a low lifespan as I haven't even used them for 2 years. However, the nf-f12's sound signature is better than most fans at low speeds (no better than the ml120 when it's not rattling). Most fans make annoying noises at low speeds. It's not always the db sound. Nf-f12 is good for this, but not ideal due to bearing noise.

Pros
  • Includes anti-vibration mounts, fan screws, low-noise adapter, extension cable, and Y-cable for connecting two PWM fans to one port
Cons
  • Faulty