Next-generation performance

Noctua’s 120mm fans such as the NF-F12 and NF-S12A are renowned for being among the best on the market and have received more than 400 awards and recommendations from the international press. With its further improved efficiency and novel, state-of-the-art engineering, the NF-A12x25 represents another step up in performance and manufacturing.

Award-winning NF-A12x25 design

First introduced in 2018, the NF-A12x25 has taken the hearts of quiet cooling enthusiasts around the world by storm and reshaped the common perception of what 120mm fans can do. With more than 100 awards and recommendations from the international press, it’s widely considered to be the best 120mm fan on the market.

Highly optimized P/Q curve for all applications

The NF-A12x25’s sophisticated aerodynamic design allows for a pressure to airflow (P/Q) curve that is extremely strong in the critical mid-section. This means that the NF-A12x25 is a true jack-of-all-trades with excellent performance in both static pressure demanding and airflow demanding applications.

Ultra-tight tip clearance

The NF-A12x25 has a record tight tip clearance (distance between the blade tips and the inside of the frame) of only 0.5mm. This highly ambitious design sets a new benchmark for 120mm fans and helps the NF-A12x25 to work more efficiently against back pressure, such as on heatsinks or radiators, by reducing leak flows through the gap between the impeller and frame.

Excellent on-application acoustics

While many fans produce unpleasant, high-pitched noises when installed in typical applications such as on heatsinks or radiators, the NF-A12x25 has been carefully fine-tuned for optimal on-application acoustics. It produces a smooth, pleasant frequency profile and surprisingly low sound pressure levels (SPL) when working against backpressure.

Flow Acceleration Channels

The NF-A12x25 impeller features suction side Flow Acceleration Channels. By speeding up the airflow at the crucial outer blade regions, this measure reduces suction side flow separation and thus leads to better efficiency and lower vortex noise.

AAO frame

Noctua's AAO (Advanced Acoustic Optimisation) frames feature integrated anti-vibration pads as well as Noctua's proprietary Stepped Inlet Design and Inner Surface Microstructures, both of which further refine the fan's performance/noise efficiency.

Metal-reinforced motor hub

The centerpiece of the NF-A12x25’s motor hub is made entirely from steel and the axle mount is reinforced with an additional brass structure. In combination, both measures ensure ultimate precision and increased stability in the critical hub area.

Sterrox® liquid-crystal polymer compound

The NF-A12x25’s impeller is made from Noctua’s novel Sterrox® liquid-crystal polymer (LCP) compound that features extreme tensile strength, an exceptionally low thermal expansion coefficient, and damping characteristics that are ideal for reducing resonance and vibration phenomena in advanced fan-blade designs.

Inner Surface Microstructures

With the tips of the fan blades plowing through the boundary layer created by the Inner Surface Microstructures, flow separation from the suction side of the blades is significantly suppressed, which results in reduced blade passing noise and improved airflow and pressure efficiency.

Stepped Inlet Design

Noctua's Stepped Inlet Design adds turbulence to the influx in order to facilitate the transition from laminar flow to turbulent flow, which reduces tonal intake noise, improves flow attachment, and increases suction capacity, especially in space-restricted environments.

Anti-vibration gasket for watercooling radiators

The NF-A12x25 includes a silicone gasket that can be used when installing the fan on watercooling radiators or other applications that benefit from a tighter seal with the fan. The gasket helps to damp minute vibrations and to reduce air loss between the fan and the radiator for optimal cooling performance.

Optional adaptor for 140mm watercooling radiators