Performance
The performance of the NH-U12S redux cooler has been tested on the high-end gaming rig. Its most important is the Ryzen 9 5900X processor. It’s very popular in the last few months, and that’s why we decided to use it in our tests.
Our comparison includes three tests. The idle mode is a PC left without any load besides standard Windows services running in the background. The mixed-mode base on a PCMark 10 extended test that uses popular applications and simple games. The max load is a CPU+FPU AIDA64 stability test. Shows about maximum CPU load during the most demanding work on all CPU cores.
Tests also include one and two fan setups of the NH-U12S cooler. A second fan is an option, but I’m sure that readers wish to see if it’s worth spending additional money.
The results of the NH-U12S are great. Actually, they are as great as those of the previous NH-U12S coolers. The above table shows the real performance as it includes results at automatic CPU settings, and the CPU tries to balance between optimal temperature and frequency. As an effect, under full load, Ryzen 9 5900X could run at about 4.2-4.3GHz, so about its typical frequency. On the NH-U9S, you can expect about 100-200MHz lower average frequency and, as you can see in the table, also higher temperature.
The NH-U12S redux performs about as well as AIO coolers with 140/240mm radiators. At the same time, it takes less space and is less problematic during the longer usage. Its price is also lower, so it’s not hard to figure out which option is better for most users.
The second fan is improving the performance by about 2°C under the high CPU load. We can also expect about the same noise, even though two fans are spinning a bit slower than one. During two-fan tests, fans were balancing at about 1000-1400 RPM. A single fan was going up to about 1600RPM during the highest CPU load. Overall results were about 2-3dB above the ambient, so around 35dB during the higher load tests. We had a problem registering additional noise generated by the Noctua cooler during a typical, average load.
Because of the Ryzen 9 5900X behavior, overclocking isn’t possible, and we can only go up with all cores to about 4.4-4.6GHz. During work at automatic settings, the CPU had no problems boosting up to 4.95GHz, slightly above the expected maximum frequency.
Our results are showing the high performance of Noctua NH-U12S redux. I’m sure that all who decide on this cooler will be fully satisfied. It’s a perfect mix of high performance, quite small size and a reasonable price.
