Noctua NH-U12S Redux, Quiet High-Performance Single Tower CPU Cooler

I've had this cooler since December of 2022, and I just had to come back to sing it's praises. Affordable and it's from noctua, with pretty much every benefit you get with their mainline or chromax coolers: Easy installation, quality thermal paste (pre applied here, but easy to get if you need more), Future conscious service for when and if a new socket generation comes around (which it certainly has with AM5), and best of all it's QUIET. Some tech reviewers (only LTT as far as I know) have said that the older fan bearing system will cause it to be louder, but I can confidently say that this has been the quietest cooler I have ever owned (don't miss the AMD wraith spire one bit). I would buy another one of these for any system I would build in the future without hesitation. My only hope is that Noctua takes this budget friendly cooler idea and make a lineup of redux budget coolers (Imagine a NHD15 redux for like 80 or 90 bucks vs the normal 110/115)

I purchased this along with its second fan kit. Mounted on a ryzen 7 5700G which I then overclocked to 4.5Ghz all core stable at 1.35V. When running heavy benchmark loads, burnin tests, and intense workload programs the max temp was 40°C. Fan noise is negligible at best and the pwm keeps them in a good zone without needing the power limiter. I used to build systems professionally at work and have used most high end components available so I get to test a lot of configurations. Normally my preferred air cooler is the be quiet dark rock pro 4, but this little beast has honestly stolen my affections. In most workloads the performance is near identical to coolers twice its cost so it really is a good value. Downside, its not the nicest looking cooler. It has a decent style with the grey and silver so you can pull of some nice looking builds, but its no head turner and honestly is best for systems that arent showcases. Bottom line, an exceptional cooler for a very reasonable price. I first tested this on intel 12th gen and they did great with non k sku models and a single fan. If you are doing a 12700k, 12600k, or their new 13th gen versions then this guy is a great buy. If, however, you want to oc the intels, then you may want to look into 240mm aio or bigger fan solutions. If you are looking to build a good performance amd 5000 series based system, look no further. The great efficiency of the amd 5000 means this cooler does extremely well with these cpus. I selected the 5700g for both budget and my needs which arent crazy. Im not really into buying the end all be all and tend to lean more into efficiency and capability. This cooler keeps my system stable and running exceptionally well and I still have headroom to work with. No question, while there are cheaper units and some better performing units none have both as well as this. This is the best budget cooler available today.

Purchased this with the optional second fan as an upgrade from the stock cooler that comes with my 5600. I had been looking at purchasing a Noctua cooler, specifically the NH-U12A or the NH-U12S but could not justify pulling the trigger on a $100+ cooler when the stock cooler was doing a good enough job. But then I found this cooler with basically the same performance for half the price, and I knew I had to get it. PROS: -AMAZING cooling! With the stock cooler, my CPU would get to 90+ degrees while performing a 10 minute Cinebench. With this cooler, it barely gets above 60 degrees while performing a 30 minute Cinebench test. While gaming, even under the most CPU stressing game I have (Dead Space Remake) it stays under 65 degrees with PBO enabled. -This thing is QUIET! Like I said, I had purchased the secondary fan for a push/pull configuration on my cooler and even with the second fan, this thing is silent. Really the only noise coming from my PC is from the GPU fans spinning up. Before, my PC was noisy with the stock cooler, but I didn't realize HOW noisy it was until I put this one in. -You cannot overtighten this cooler because of the spring loaded screws on the cooler -Comes with Noctua thermal paste pre applied, so you do not have to worry about paste, but get some just in case. Arctic mx-4 is $5 extra CONS: -It is tough to get the mounting hardware on without help. I managed to do it but it would be 100x easier with someone helping, or by removing the MOBO from the case. But I was lazy and didn't want to deal with that. Plus, some of the standoffs for my board are under where the fans end up sitting, so I still would have had issues with it. -Some people have had issues with motherboard compatibility, but this could be user error. I use a Gigabyte B550M DS3H and had no issues. This cooler uses the backplate that came with the board for AM4. Intel uses the included backplate. -The threads for the screws are on the mounting hardware, and when you loosen the screws on the cooler, they are not free of the screws on the mounting hardware, keeping you from turning the cooler to break the seal from the thermal paste. Since this comes with Noctua paste pre applied, good luck getting this off without a fight. -Attaching the fans is hard as hell, especially if you do it in your case. I found that doing the secondary fan (if you buy one) first, then the front fan is WAY easier than doing it the other way. And the fans might block standoff screws if you put them on outside of the case. I highly recommend this cooler, and its good to see that the Noctua name holds up even on a more budget option.

Let me begin with some clarification. I have not yet used my pc with this cooler in practical applications yet. However, I have ran the Heaven benchmark and Cinebench R23 with this cooler installed. I’m running a Ryzen 7 5000 series and there is about a 25 degree difference in running those two benchmarks between the Noctua cooler and the AMD Waith stock cooler. The Noctua cooler definitely comes out ahead, which I knew it would, by a 25 degree difference. The idle temp is about 5 degrees cooler. I’d love to say the fan is quieter, but I don’t know. The fan on the Noctua cooler hasn’t had to ramp up like the AMD Wraith cooler fan had to. For the temps I was at, 53 degrees under load, I couldn’t hear the fan. While this Noctua cooler is a “budget” cooler, it has performed wonderfully thus far. Installation is very straight forward, with clear instructions for the inexperienced. Noctua makes great products and is well established in the PC cooling business.

Solid cooling and pre installed thermal paste

I installed this heatsink on an LGA 1700 motherboard and encountered no problems with it. The instructions offered clear graphics on how to mount and construct the heatsink for the relevant chipset I was using. Temperature monitoring shows that CPU maintains an average temperature of around 25-30C when not under load, and rarely goes too far above 40C when it is under load. This is a stark improvement over my previous computer with its stock cooler that would idle around 40C and go up to 60C when under load. The item did arrive with some minor cosmetic damage, as the mounting brackets of the fan bent some of the aluminum fins of the heat sink slightly. While this doesn't bother me and isn't noticeable inside the case, nor did it affect the ability of the fan to be secured on that side, it may be of concern to others and due to the way this item is packaged and transported it could be hard to completely avoid cosmetic damage of any kind. Finally, I recommend everyone double and triple check that this item can fit in their case and on their motherboard. While its orientation and fan placement are both flexible, the width and height of it is definitely much larger than your typical stock cooler and you may need to compromise on a placement that can reach your motherboard's fan ports or even fit on your motherboard in the first place, to say nothing of making sure your case is wide enough to close the side panel.

Mine came with some bent fins but was easy to remedy. Fit is true to size. Noise levels snd quietness are good. I personally think the look of block fans are ugly/bully but the price of AIO vs performance and cooling isnt worth it for a casual gamer. If you are a min/maxer hardcore builder id go liquid cooling otherwise this works fantastic for casual cooling. I dont OC anything on this build.

This heatsink is cooling my AMD 7900 non x and does a great job. You can feel the quality. They made me a customer for life. I hope they keep up the good work. Silent.

Cooler intermediário para cpu de bom desempenho e fácil instalação!

Noctua è un marchio noto per la sua qualità e le sue prestazioni, e il dissipatore NH-U12S Redux non fa eccezione. Si tratta di un dissipatore ad aria di dimensioni compatte che offre prestazioni eccellenti e un livello di rumore molto contenuto. L'NH-U12S Redux è in grado di tenere sotto controllo le temperature di processori anche di fascia alta. Utilizzato con un Intel i5 13600k che non dispone del dissipatore di serie. Cercavo un qualcosa ad aria non molto costoso ma con buone performance. La ventola Noctua NF-P12 redux-1700 PWM che accompagna il dissipatore è molto silenziosa. Nel mio caso ho acquistato anche il kit con la seconda ventola venduta a parte. Il montaggio del dissipatore è abbastanza semplice. Il kit di montaggio è completo e fornito di istruzioni chiare. Il montaggio può essere completato in pochi minuti. Fate attenzione a non stringere troppo le viti! C'è anche il QR per seguire video guide. In conclusione, è un dissipatore ad aria silenzioso e performante che offre un ottimo rapporto qualità-prezzo. È una scelta ideale per chi cerca un dissipatore che mantenga le temperature sotto controllo senza produrre troppo rumore e senza spendere troppi soldi. MOLTO IMPORTANTE: Controllate se il vostro case può contenere questo dissipatore! Occupa 158mm in altezza!

Best Cooler

Excelente disipador. No hace prácticamente nada de ruido y cumple muy bien su función de enfriar. Lo uso con un i7 de 13ª generación y me ha funcionado sin problemas. Muy buena compra.

I bought this because I was hitting peak temperatures of 82c on my Ryzen 5 5600x under full load with the stock cooler on stock bios config for the cpu. I chose this unit because I gad a great experience previously with the NH-u12P on my old core i7 920 and decided to stick to a brand I know even if it cost a bit more than the competing deepcool and cooler master units. I definitely don't regret this decision. Core Tempuratures with the Noctua dropped to 55c under full load. A pretty substantial drop. As a bonus, the better thermals allow the CPU to boost better: my Cinebench scores went up from 10600 to 11200. Pros: -Easy and very solid installation/mounting process and overall setup. Easily the best in the business. -Quieter than the stock Wraith cooler even at full fan speed. The Noctua fan doesn't even end up spinning at max rpm under the stock fan speed curve of the motherboard and temps are still excellent. -27c temp drop for my own personal setup under full load. -Noctua build quality and performance for a more reasonable price. Cons: -Still expensive compared to the Deepcool Gammaxx 400 and Cooler Master Hyper 212 for likely similar performance. You definitely pay premium for the better mounting system and brand recognition. -The redux fan is quiet but still noisier and not as efficient as the regular Noctua fans.