The Noctua Redux and Chromax Black U12s: A Comparative Analysis
We have been fortunate enough to get our hands on Noctua's new Redux series of coolers, which has generated significant interest among system builders and enthusiasts. As we delved into our testing process, we discovered that the Redux series is indeed a game-changer in terms of affordability without sacrificing performance. In this article, we'll take a closer look at both the Noctua Redux U12S and the Chromax Black U12S coolers, pitting them against each other to determine which one comes out on top.
We started our testing process by setting up both coolers in our test system, which consists of an Intel Core i7 8700K processor, a Corsair Vengeance LPX 16GB (2x8GB) DDR4 RAM kit, and an ASUS PRIME Z370-PLUS motherboard. The test rig was powered by a EVGA SuperNOVA 650 GA, 80+ Gold 650W power supply unit. We installed the coolers according to Noctua's recommended installation procedures, which proved to be straightforward and easy to follow.
One of the notable features of the Redux series is its redesigned frame structure, which eliminates the need for an inner surface micro-structure. This design change has resulted in a sleeker and more compact cooler that takes up less space in the case. However, this redesign also means that there is no longer an inner surface micro-structure to dissipate heat, which could potentially lead to increased temperatures under load.
Despite this minor drawback, both coolers performed exceptionally well in our testing process. We ran a 20-minute Blender render with a steady 150 watts of load generated by the Core i7 8700K processor, and both coolers managed to maintain an average temperature of around 45°C. This is an impressive feat, considering that we were pushing the cooler to its limits. However, as expected, the Redux's fan speeds did reach higher levels under load, which resulted in a slight increase in noise output.
One of the most interesting aspects of our testing process was the installation experience of both coolers. We've come to expect a certain level of quality and attention to detail from Noctua's products, and the Redux series does not disappoint. The installation procedure is straightforward, and the included mounting hardware makes it easy to secure the cooler in place. However, we did notice that the anti-vibration bumpers on the Redux are extra thick compared to the Chromax Black U12S, which may serve a specific purpose.
In terms of acoustic performance, both coolers performed well during our testing process. The Redux's fan speeds were slightly higher under load, but this resulted in only a 5 decibel increase in noise output. This is a significant improvement over other budget-friendly coolers on the market that often struggle to maintain silence even at low loads. We also tested both coolers with a single and dual fan setup, as well as measuring their performance from both the intake and exhaust sides.
In conclusion, our testing process has revealed that the Noctua Redux U12S is an excellent budget-friendly cooler option that offers impressive performance without sacrificing too much in terms of noise output. While it may not be the quietest cooler on the market, its 30% lower price point compared to the Chromax Black U12S makes it an attractive option for system builders looking to save a buck.
However, if you're planning to upgrade your current system to the latest and greatest in the future, you'll want to take note that Noctua will be sending out new mounting hardware free of charge if your old cooler won't fit your new build. This is a great feature that shows Noctua's commitment to supporting their products over time.
Finally, we'd like to give a shout-out to our sponsor, Privacy.com, which offers a unique virtual credit card service that provides users with greater control and security when shopping online. With features such as military-grade encryption, two-factor authentication, and PCI DSS compliance, Privacy.com is an excellent choice for anyone looking to protect their personal data. As a special offer, new users can sign up using the code LINUS5 and receive $5 in bonus credit.
"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enfor years noctua has sat basically unchallenged as the king of air coolers but as they say cost noise and performance pick two their products have never been well budget-friendly at least until now meet noctua's first foray into a value line of cpu coolers it's a trimmed down version of the excellent nhu 12s called the nhu 12s redux but do the cost savings correspond to a big drop in performance historically noctua has never let us down but just to be sure we did the math just like ridge wallet did the math on a 10 discount and free worldwide shipping using offer code linus for one of their great tradition busting compact and rfid blocking wallets check them out down below if someone were to ask me what's the best bang for the buck cpu cooler i would say well your stock cooler because literally anything over zero is going to be infinite bang for the buck if you ask for best in class however the nhu 12s is a standout and not because i'm some kind of fanboy it's just time and time again it's proven to be reliable quiet and performant there are cheaper options like the ever popular hyper 212 series but if you want the full package this is where it's at and the new redux version definitely makes some compromises giving you just what you need and not a lick more think you might upgrade your cpu down the line be ready to shell out for a tube of thermal paste because the pre-applied nth-1 on the redux is a one-shot deal extra fan clips gone why splitter and low noise adapters they're gone too everything extraneous has gotten the axe and removing parts from the box isn't all they've done in fact the cooler itself is completely different one of the five heat pipes has been dropped out right and the soldering step that bonds those pipes to both the thin stack and to the copper cold plate has been issued to keep costs under control this absolutely will reduce the thermal transfer capacity i mean think about it logically dropping 20 of your heat pipes can't be good for performance and neither can downgrading your fan although that one might not end up being a huge problem when the first redux fans came out my biggest complaint was that while they saved on cost and looked great in a gray on gray color scheme there was no pressure optimized 120 millimeter version fortunately that's been rectified with the new nfp12 redux the p is for pressure and it runs it up to 1700 rpm so that extra 200 rip hims should help make up some ground in terms of performance but will almost definitely come at the cost of more noise and here's why to hit this lower price point not to cut some corners primarily by using their older sso bearing design instead of the current sso2 sso stands for self-stabilizing oil pressure bearing which essentially means that the fan center shaft rotates in pressurized oil with that pressure being generated by the rotation of the fan itself so fundamentally it's an oil supported sleeve bearing with some bonus magnetic axial support sso2 is an evolution that mostly improves the startup characteristics of the fan which happens to be where most of the wear occurs because the oil hasn't had time to pressurize yet once they're up and running though the differences should be minimal also absent is the inner surface micro structure in the frame although the trailing edges of the blades do get their vortex control notches which is great because while they don't actually reduce the amount of noise the fan makes they shift the pitch someone that isn't as annoying to the year thankfully the install experience of the redux is exactly what i've come to expect from noctua secufirm still makes everything else feel cheap and confusing by comparison and another bonus that you might not actually know about is that if you want to upgrade your current system to the latest and greatest in the future you can you'll probably have to cover shipping costs but noctua will send out new mounting hardware free of charge if your old knock to a cooler won't fit your new build which by the way is going to be a lot of their customers with both intel and amd set to change sockets for the next generation but which one should you buy to find out we pitted a chromax black u12s against one of the new redux units over a 20 minute blender render with a steady 150 watts of load generated by a core i7 8700k and surprisingly both of them performed essentially the same with our results falling into our margin of error of one to two degrees when we added a second fan to each cooler the temps dropped two to three degrees as we expected because we're good boys and red knocked to his literature ahead of time as a wee aside by the way the anti-vibration bumpers in the kit are extra thick for some reason this spaces the fan off of the fins by about five millimeters and we don't know exactly why at first we thought it could be something to increase flow through the cooler but our performance numbers didn't give us any conclusive answer so i suspect that it's an acoustic choice speaking of acoustics that is where the meat of this comparison lies we tested every possible permutation of fans single and dual as well as measuring from both the intake and exhaust sides and the results at idle show both coolers performing the same within .1 decibels wow noctua's quiet reputation holds up perfectly as expected however when the going gets tough the redux's fan's higher speed makes its presence known with a 5 decibel increase in output now if you watched our previous chromax black video check that out if you haven't by the way we explained that decibels are a logarithmic value not a linear one which means that five decibels equates to about a forty percent increase in perceived volume so it is definitely noticeable but in low to moderate workloads you probably wouldn't be able to tell the difference perhaps you could use the savings to invest in a gaming headset with excellent noise isolation or if you already have one of those some sweet tech gear from lttstore.com where does that leave us then for noise a little worse that's definitely the low light of this product but it only shows up when you're really pushing things to the limit and with nearly a 30 savings in cost for almost the same performance it is pretty easy to recommend that is as long as you're not overvolting your cpu so in conclusion we don't review coolers very often these days but we felt that this one was both important and interesting enough to get the full treatment and i'm glad we did because it's going to make a lot of bang for the buck system builders extremely happy just like our sponsors going to make me and you both happy privacy lets you shop online with virtual credit cards that offer way more security and control than conventional cards like if you ever signed up for a free trial because realistically all you wanted was the free trial and then forgotten about it only to find charges on your account for a subscription service you never really wanted well with privacy.com you can create a new card just for that trial all you gotta do is designate the card to be single use and set the monthly spending limit to one dollar so that companies actually cannot charge you again even if you forget privacy.com is pci dss compliant uses military-grade encryption to secure your information and they offer two-factor authentication and since they make their money for merchants there is no cost to you at their free tier so sign up today at privacy.com forward slash linus and you will get five bucks in bonus credit that's privacy.com forward slash linus well that's it for this look at noctua's first budget conscious cooler uh finally there's a cheap option to get their excellent hardware into your system if you guys enjoyed this video and you're looking for something else to watch let's go to the polar opposite end of the spectrum where we did a build guide in a case that has an integrated phase change cooler so here's your budget that's your not so budget but a sub-zero sub-zero winsfor years noctua has sat basically unchallenged as the king of air coolers but as they say cost noise and performance pick two their products have never been well budget-friendly at least until now meet noctua's first foray into a value line of cpu coolers it's a trimmed down version of the excellent nhu 12s called the nhu 12s redux but do the cost savings correspond to a big drop in performance historically noctua has never let us down but just to be sure we did the math just like ridge wallet did the math on a 10 discount and free worldwide shipping using offer code linus for one of their great tradition busting compact and rfid blocking wallets check them out down below if someone were to ask me what's the best bang for the buck cpu cooler i would say well your stock cooler because literally anything over zero is going to be infinite bang for the buck if you ask for best in class however the nhu 12s is a standout and not because i'm some kind of fanboy it's just time and time again it's proven to be reliable quiet and performant there are cheaper options like the ever popular hyper 212 series but if you want the full package this is where it's at and the new redux version definitely makes some compromises giving you just what you need and not a lick more think you might upgrade your cpu down the line be ready to shell out for a tube of thermal paste because the pre-applied nth-1 on the redux is a one-shot deal extra fan clips gone why splitter and low noise adapters they're gone too everything extraneous has gotten the axe and removing parts from the box isn't all they've done in fact the cooler itself is completely different one of the five heat pipes has been dropped out right and the soldering step that bonds those pipes to both the thin stack and to the copper cold plate has been issued to keep costs under control this absolutely will reduce the thermal transfer capacity i mean think about it logically dropping 20 of your heat pipes can't be good for performance and neither can downgrading your fan although that one might not end up being a huge problem when the first redux fans came out my biggest complaint was that while they saved on cost and looked great in a gray on gray color scheme there was no pressure optimized 120 millimeter version fortunately that's been rectified with the new nfp12 redux the p is for pressure and it runs it up to 1700 rpm so that extra 200 rip hims should help make up some ground in terms of performance but will almost definitely come at the cost of more noise and here's why to hit this lower price point not to cut some corners primarily by using their older sso bearing design instead of the current sso2 sso stands for self-stabilizing oil pressure bearing which essentially means that the fan center shaft rotates in pressurized oil with that pressure being generated by the rotation of the fan itself so fundamentally it's an oil supported sleeve bearing with some bonus magnetic axial support sso2 is an evolution that mostly improves the startup characteristics of the fan which happens to be where most of the wear occurs because the oil hasn't had time to pressurize yet once they're up and running though the differences should be minimal also absent is the inner surface micro structure in the frame although the trailing edges of the blades do get their vortex control notches which is great because while they don't actually reduce the amount of noise the fan makes they shift the pitch someone that isn't as annoying to the year thankfully the install experience of the redux is exactly what i've come to expect from noctua secufirm still makes everything else feel cheap and confusing by comparison and another bonus that you might not actually know about is that if you want to upgrade your current system to the latest and greatest in the future you can you'll probably have to cover shipping costs but noctua will send out new mounting hardware free of charge if your old knock to a cooler won't fit your new build which by the way is going to be a lot of their customers with both intel and amd set to change sockets for the next generation but which one should you buy to find out we pitted a chromax black u12s against one of the new redux units over a 20 minute blender render with a steady 150 watts of load generated by a core i7 8700k and surprisingly both of them performed essentially the same with our results falling into our margin of error of one to two degrees when we added a second fan to each cooler the temps dropped two to three degrees as we expected because we're good boys and red knocked to his literature ahead of time as a wee aside by the way the anti-vibration bumpers in the kit are extra thick for some reason this spaces the fan off of the fins by about five millimeters and we don't know exactly why at first we thought it could be something to increase flow through the cooler but our performance numbers didn't give us any conclusive answer so i suspect that it's an acoustic choice speaking of acoustics that is where the meat of this comparison lies we tested every possible permutation of fans single and dual as well as measuring from both the intake and exhaust sides and the results at idle show both coolers performing the same within .1 decibels wow noctua's quiet reputation holds up perfectly as expected however when the going gets tough the redux's fan's higher speed makes its presence known with a 5 decibel increase in output now if you watched our previous chromax black video check that out if you haven't by the way we explained that decibels are a logarithmic value not a linear one which means that five decibels equates to about a forty percent increase in perceived volume so it is definitely noticeable but in low to moderate workloads you probably wouldn't be able to tell the difference perhaps you could use the savings to invest in a gaming headset with excellent noise isolation or if you already have one of those some sweet tech gear from lttstore.com where does that leave us then for noise a little worse that's definitely the low light of this product but it only shows up when you're really pushing things to the limit and with nearly a 30 savings in cost for almost the same performance it is pretty easy to recommend that is as long as you're not overvolting your cpu so in conclusion we don't review coolers very often these days but we felt that this one was both important and interesting enough to get the full treatment and i'm glad we did because it's going to make a lot of bang for the buck system builders extremely happy just like our sponsors going to make me and you both happy privacy lets you shop online with virtual credit cards that offer way more security and control than conventional cards like if you ever signed up for a free trial because realistically all you wanted was the free trial and then forgotten about it only to find charges on your account for a subscription service you never really wanted well with privacy.com you can create a new card just for that trial all you gotta do is designate the card to be single use and set the monthly spending limit to one dollar so that companies actually cannot charge you again even if you forget privacy.com is pci dss compliant uses military-grade encryption to secure your information and they offer two-factor authentication and since they make their money for merchants there is no cost to you at their free tier so sign up today at privacy.com forward slash linus and you will get five bucks in bonus credit that's privacy.com forward slash linus well that's it for this look at noctua's first budget conscious cooler uh finally there's a cheap option to get their excellent hardware into your system if you guys enjoyed this video and you're looking for something else to watch let's go to the polar opposite end of the spectrum where we did a build guide in a case that has an integrated phase change cooler so here's your budget that's your not so budget but a sub-zero sub-zero wins\n"
