• Welcome to TechPowerUp Forums, Guest! Please check out our forum guidelines for info related to our community.

Noctua NH-U12S

crazyeyesreaper

Not a Moderator
Staff member
Joined
Mar 25, 2009
Messages
9,752 (1.78/day)
Location
04578
System Name Old reliable
Processor Intel 8700K @ 4.8 GHz
Motherboard MSI Z370 Gaming Pro Carbon AC
Cooling Custom Water
Memory 32 GB Crucial Ballistix 3666 MHz
Video Card(s) MSI GTX 1080 Ti Gaming X
Storage 3x SSDs 2x HDDs
Display(s) Dell U2412M + Samsung TA350
Case Thermaltake Core P3 TG
Audio Device(s) Samson Meteor Mic / Generic 2.1 / KRK KNS 6400 headset
Power Supply Zalman EBT-1000
Mouse Mionix NAOS 7000
Keyboard Mionix
Noctua seems to have a mantra of silence, quality, and excellent support, and this mantra is enjoyed by enthusiasts the world over. Today, we put this mantra to the test again as we review their latest cooler the NH-U12S. This single tower design offers ultra low noise levels and 100% RAM compatibility.

Show full review
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Joined
Aug 31, 2010
Messages
274 (0.06/day)
Location
Unknown
System Name ASAS
Processor Intel Core i5 2500K @ 4.2 GHz
Motherboard Gigabyte GA-Z68A-D3-B3
Cooling Scythe Ashura
Memory Patriot 2x4GB DDR3 1600MHz 9-9-9-24 T1 @ 1.5V
Video Card(s) MSI GeForce GTX 770 2GB Gaming
Storage Samsung 830 256GB + Samsung Spinpoint T133 HD400LJ 400GB
Display(s) Samsung SyncMaster EX1920
Case Bitfenix Ghost
Audio Device(s) Realtek ALC889
Power Supply Seasonic S12II-620 Bronze 620W
Software Windows 7 Ultimate 64-bit SP1
How come AR03 doesn't have "Can mount a second fan" in its pros?
 

Frick

Fishfaced Nincompoop
Joined
Feb 27, 2006
Messages
18,914 (2.86/day)
Location
Piteå
System Name Black MC in Tokyo
Processor Ryzen 5 5600
Motherboard Asrock B450M-HDV
Cooling Be Quiet! Pure Rock 2
Memory 2 x 16GB Kingston Fury 3400mhz
Video Card(s) XFX 6950XT Speedster MERC 319
Storage Kingston A400 240GB | WD Black SN750 2TB |WD Blue 1TB x 2 | Toshiba P300 2TB | Seagate Expansion 8TB
Display(s) Samsung U32J590U 4K + BenQ GL2450HT 1080p
Case Fractal Design Define R4
Audio Device(s) Line6 UX1 + some headphones, Nektar SE61 keyboard
Power Supply Corsair RM850x v3
Mouse Logitech G602
Keyboard Cherry MX Board 1.0 TKL Brown
VR HMD Acer Mixed Reality Headset
Software Windows 10 Pro
Benchmark Scores Rimworld 4K ready!
I like it and all, but it's twice as much as the CM Hyper 212 EVO, and I can't really stomach that. I've had a bunch of Noctua fans in the past, and while they are top notch the price is pricey..
 
Joined
Oct 29, 2012
Messages
1,926 (0.46/day)
Location
UK
System Name TITAN Slayer / CPUCannon / MassFX
Processor i7 5960X @ 4.6Ghz / i7 3960x @5.0Ghz / FX6350 @ 4.?Ghz
Motherboard Rampage V Extreme / Rampage IV Extreme / MSI 970 Gaming
Cooling Phanteks PHTC14PE 2.5K 145mm TRs / Custom waterloop / Phanteks PHTC14PE + 3K 140mm Noctuas
Memory Crucial 2666 11-13-13-25 1.45V / G.skill RipjawsX 2400 10-12-12-34 1.7V / Crucial 2133 9-9-9-27 1.7V
Video Card(s) 3 Fury X in CF / R9 Fury 3840 cores 1145/570 1.3V / Nothing ATM
Storage 500GB Crucial SSD and 3TB WD Black / WD 1TB Black(OS) + WD 3TB Green / WD 1TB Blue
Display(s) LG 29UM67 80Hz/Asus mx299q 2560x1080 @ 84Hz / Asus VX239 1920x1080 @60hz
Case Dismatech easy v3.0 / Xigmatek Alfar (Open side panel)
Audio Device(s) M-audio M-track / realtek ALC 1150
Power Supply EVGA G2 1600W / CoolerMaster V1000 / Seasonic 620 M12-II
Mouse Mouse in review process/Razer Naga Epic 2011/Razer Naga 2014
Keyboard Keyboard in review process / Razer Blackwidow Ultimate 2014/Razer Blackwidow Ultimate 2011
Software Windows 7 Ultimate / Windows 7 ultimate / Windows 7 ultimate
Benchmark Scores cinebench 15.41 3960x @ 5.3ghz Wprime32m 3.352 3960x @ 5.25ghz Super PI 32m: 6m 42s 472ms @5.25ghz
yeah but the noctua beat the 212 in the prime95 test by 19°C so I can kind of see why the price is doubled also noctua fans are incredibly expensive if they sold it without the fan it be 27$ cheaper.
 
Joined
Aug 13, 2009
Messages
3,187 (0.60/day)
Location
Czech republic
Processor Ryzen 5800X
Motherboard Asus TUF-Gaming B550-Plus
Cooling Noctua NH-U14S
Memory 32GB G.Skill Trident Z Neo F4-3600C16D-32GTZNC
Video Card(s) Sapphire Radeon Rx 580 Nitro+ 8GB
Storage HP EX950 512GB + Samsung 970 PRO 1TB
Display(s) HP Z Display Z24i G2
Case Fractal Design Define R6 Black
Audio Device(s) Creative Sound Blaster AE-5
Power Supply Seasonic PRIME Ultra 650W Gold
Mouse Roccat Kone AIMO Remastered
Software Windows 10 x64
I am a bit disappointed the tests were performed on Sandy Bridge CPU rather than IB.

It would be very interesting to compare it to the Hyper 212+ EVO with the same fan.
 

crazyeyesreaper

Not a Moderator
Staff member
Joined
Mar 25, 2009
Messages
9,752 (1.78/day)
Location
04578
System Name Old reliable
Processor Intel 8700K @ 4.8 GHz
Motherboard MSI Z370 Gaming Pro Carbon AC
Cooling Custom Water
Memory 32 GB Crucial Ballistix 3666 MHz
Video Card(s) MSI GTX 1080 Ti Gaming X
Storage 3x SSDs 2x HDDs
Display(s) Dell U2412M + Samsung TA350
Case Thermaltake Core P3 TG
Audio Device(s) Samson Meteor Mic / Generic 2.1 / KRK KNS 6400 headset
Power Supply Zalman EBT-1000
Mouse Mionix NAOS 7000
Keyboard Mionix
As has been said before Ivy Bridge has alot of variation due to the IHS + TIM issue,

with a variance as bad as 15'C between CPUs Ivy really isnt the best test bed,

SB-E using solder is more stable testing platform. That said I do feel that for some this is an Issue as few run SB-E but then if variance between Ivy CPUs can be as bad as mentioned above that makes heatsink testing rather moot as what is seen from CPU to CPU can be dramatically different. That said all feed back is appreciated :toast:

How come AR03 doesn't have "Can mount a second fan" in its pros?
as for that, I missed it thanks for the heads up Ill fix it immediately. Lol wouldn't you know I had it in the very first rough draft but then removed it for some reason oh well its been fixed.
 
Last edited:
Joined
Aug 13, 2009
Messages
3,187 (0.60/day)
Location
Czech republic
Processor Ryzen 5800X
Motherboard Asus TUF-Gaming B550-Plus
Cooling Noctua NH-U14S
Memory 32GB G.Skill Trident Z Neo F4-3600C16D-32GTZNC
Video Card(s) Sapphire Radeon Rx 580 Nitro+ 8GB
Storage HP EX950 512GB + Samsung 970 PRO 1TB
Display(s) HP Z Display Z24i G2
Case Fractal Design Define R6 Black
Audio Device(s) Creative Sound Blaster AE-5
Power Supply Seasonic PRIME Ultra 650W Gold
Mouse Roccat Kone AIMO Remastered
Software Windows 10 x64
Oh, I see what you mean. True.
 
Joined
Apr 23, 2007
Messages
11 (0.00/day)
System Name My Home Built All Purpose Rig
Processor I7 3770 @ 4.4 gigs
Motherboard ASRock Z77 Extreme6
Cooling Noctua NH-D14 Heatsink
Memory 16 Gigs Corsair DDR3 1600
Video Card(s) EVGA GTX 680 Signature 2
Storage 2 WD 640 gig, WD 1 TB Black, WD 750 gig (eSATA)
Display(s) Acer P236H 23" (1920x1080)
Case HSPC Top Deck Tech Station
Audio Device(s) X-Fi Xtreme Gamer Pro
Power Supply Corsair TX750
Software Windows 7 Pro x64
Benchmark Scores Benchmarks are for insecure sissies. I'd rather eat a carrot.
I bought this heatsink for my daughter's I7 920 (which was passed down from me). One thing that needs to be mentioned is that out of the box this heatsink will not fit a 1366 cpu socket. I found that out the hard way from not reading enough and when I tried to put it in I discovered my blunder. Noctua will ship out an adapter kit to fit 1366 for free when you send them your proof of purchase of this heatsink. So if you have the 1366 socket (for example the I7 920) then send them the POP as soon as you buy it so you don't have to wait as long as I did.

Anyway I ended up using a Noctua NF-S12A fan I had to push and the included NF-F12 as pull. I chose this because the NF-S12A is completely silent at it's 1200 rpm full speed where the NF-F12 has a little hum at full speed. The NF-S12A also pushes a little more air. I used the Low Noise adapter to bring the NF-F12 down to 1200 rpm and now the whole thing is silent and moves a good bit of air.

Completely happy with the result and the old saying you get what you pay for holds true here. I still can't wrap my brain around the water stuff, I'm an air breather and so is my cpu.
 
Last edited:
Joined
Apr 26, 2013
Messages
46 (0.01/day)
Location
Madison, WI
This is really just like a NH-U12P rev.2 TBH. They keep the price similar to a P by including only one fan to justify the added heat pipe (5 vs 4) and other small improvements if any. With a second fan the S should beat the P. I for one don't need that kind of extreme cooling efficiency so I went with the S to keep noise down. I'm just using it as a temporary solution before I move to my new place where I'll start my watercooling project.
 
Top