Noctua A12 on thin radiators

qbazdz · Thursday at 09:48

Hi,

Do we have anyone here with the A12 fans mounted on thin radiators? What is your experience and are they performing as expected (low noise but high cooling ability)?
Can't quite decide between these and SW 4 Pro, not sure if extra airflow would do much - in fact it could increase noise?

Thanks

iamgigglz · Thursday at 10:08

~~Neither are great on a radiator, but I guess the SilentWings win...just.~~
Sorry, I'm a muppet and mis-read the graphs. Both are pretty good but the Silent Wings seem to edge out the Noctuas.

be quiet! Silent Wings Pro 4 120 mm PWM Fan Review

be quiet! updates its successful Silent Wings 3 lineup of premium PC case and radiator fans with the new Silent Wings 4. Today we examine the Silent Wings Pro 4 120 mm that aims to be a master of all trades, offering multiple RPM operating modes on top of an updated fan design for improved...

www.techpowerup.com

qbazdz · Thursday at 10:55

iamgigglz said:
Neither are great on a radiator, but I guess the SilentWings win...just.

be quiet! Silent Wings Pro 4 120 mm PWM Fan Review

be quiet! updates its successful Silent Wings 3 lineup of premium PC case and radiator fans with the new Silent Wings 4. Today we examine the Silent Wings Pro 4 120 mm that aims to be a master of all trades, offering multiple RPM operating modes on top of an updated fan design for improved...

www.techpowerup.com

Why do you make assumption they are not good for rads? The review you linked shows quite the opposite in my take.

iamgigglz · Thursday at 11:19

Sorry

qbazdz said:
Why do you make assumption they are not good for rads? The review you linked shows quite the opposite in my take.

Sorry, I'm a muppet and mis-read the graphs. Both are pretty good but the Silent Wings seem to edge out the Noctuas.
There are better performers available but they're noisier, along with asthmatic, quieter options. Those Silent Wings are an impressive balance.

Glanza · Thursday at 11:26

Old review now but he does a good test with noise on a smaller setup

ATIorNvidia · Thursday at 14:37

If you mean the newer A12 G2's, they will be better.

qbazdz · Friday at 12:45

If only G2s were available in Chromax. I dont know about others, but this cream/brown color scheme has been putting me off from Noctua since their beginnings and the technical advantage doesnt make me buy it. They did right thing introducing Chromax, but then failed to also offer this without all the bells and whistles of the colourful grommets.

On this discovery I also looked at Corsair RSs and think at lower RPM I may get better outcome compared to SW4 Pros.. anyone has experience here?

Glanza · Friday at 13:47

The RS fans aren't great if your going for quiet

Drumroll · 2025-11-01T08:51:13+0000

Silent Wings 4, T30, Sudokoo Mach (available at 120 and 140mm). If looking for cheaper option, Thermaltight TL-K12 are pretty good, but clearly you’re aiming for premium fans.

jigger · 2025-11-01T17:10:52+0000

It’s going to depends on the fin density, but it’s high static pressure you want ideally. There is no getting around the to performance problem, but I’d lean towards the silent wings myself.

The only other option is to double up the fans in a push pull. That will increase the static pressure and airflow without increasing the noise level by much.