The popular 120 mm fan NF-A12x25 and the associated CPU cooler NH-U12A (test) are now available as black Chromax versions. Noctua had already announced the color variants for the fourth quarter of 2021 by roadmap. In addition, colored radiator covers are included in the range.
The inconspicuous NF-A12x25 was expected for a long time
Since its announcement in May 2018, a Chromax variant of the NF-A12x25, which has been superior in many tests, has been longed for. The 120 mm fan, which has so far been kept in classic Noctua colors, is characterized by high performance at particularly low volume, as ComputerBase was able to confirm in some tests: Noctua's flagship fan emerged as the winner in a comparison of several 120 mm fans; The test on radiators produced an identical picture – here the brown fan could even compete with 140 mm competitors.
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Noctua NF-A12x25 chromax.black (Image: Noctua)
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Noctua NF-A12x25 chromax.black < figure> 
Noctua NF-A12x25 chromax.black
Noctua NF-A12x25 chromax.black 
Noctua NF-A12x25 chromax.black 
Noctua NF-A12x25 chromax.black The only point of criticism listed was, however, always the same: With a recommended retail price of almost 33 euros *, the NF-A12x25 is almost unrivaled in price. Other manufacturers usually only penetrate into comparable price regions with elaborately illuminated RGB fans, whereas Noctua's brown liquid crystal polymer was the second point of criticism for many interested parties. The Austrian manufacturer is now remedying this; the RRP remains unchanged for the chromax.black variant.
Thermaltake had already drawn attention to itself with a black copy of the NF-A12x25 and only a few days ago Phanteks introduced a similarly designed, dark gray fan with the T30-120. The brown Noctua fans, however, were recently the focus of reporting due to the Asus GeForce RTX 3070 Noctua. In view of the almost simultaneous market launch, the question inevitably arises as to why the graphics card was not directly equipped with black NF-A12x25. Ultimately, the brown color scheme is Noctua tradition.
Like the fan, like the cooler
The CPU air cooler NH-U12A equipped with two NF-A12x25 is also given a black paint. In the test, the tower cooler with seven heat pipes was just as convincing as its two fans, but also shared the criticism of the immensely high price: With a recommended retail price of just under 120 euros *, the relatively compact cooler is poaching in the all-in-one segment. Water cooling. The chromax.black variant takes on this price. The manufacturer points out that not only the current sockets AMD AM4 and Intel LGA 1200 are supported, but also compatibility with the expected socket LGA 1700 for Intel's Alder Lake processors.
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Noctua NH- U12A chromax.black (Image: Noctua)
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Noctua NH-U12A chromax.black 
Noctua NH-U12A chromax.black 
Noctua NH-U12A chromax.black 
Noctua NA-HC8 chromax.black 
Noctua NA-HC8 chromax.white 
Noctua NA-HC7 chromax.black.swap 
Noctua NA-HC7 chromax.black.swap Apart from that, Noctua is also introducing cooler covers for the NH-U12A chromax.black. While the NA-HC8 covers are intended for completely black or black-and-white systems, the NA-HC7 cover with interchangeable color inserts in black, blue, green, red, yellow and white should enable more colorful systems. Both systems increase the overall height and width of the cooler by 3 mm. NA-HC8 and NA-HC7 cost around 20 euros * according to the RRP.
Availability and Outlook
According to Noctua, the new color variants of the NF-A12x25 and the NH-U12A as well as the cooler covers are now available from the manufacturer's Amazon store. Further sales partners are currently being supplied.
According to the Noctua roadmap, a 24-volt-to-12-volt voltage converter and an 8-way fan hub are due in the fourth quarter, before further white Chromax variants of existing fan series and a fundamentally new 140- mm fans are planned – probably a larger version of the NF-A12x25. This is to be followed by a new revision of the NH-D15 in the second quarter. In the end, Noctua was often unable to keep to its self-imposed schedule.
Noctua NH-U12A (chromax.black) Design: Tower size (L × W × H): 58 × 125 × 158 mm (without fan)
112 × 125 × 158 mm (with fan) Weight: 760 g (without fan)
1,220 g (with fan) Heat pipes: copper (nickel-plated), 7 × 6 mm (Ø)
(nickel-plated) Fins: aluminum (nickel-plated) Radiator mounting: two-stage bracket with back plate fan (model 1): 2 × 120 × 120 × 25.0 mm
oil pressure bearings
450 – 2,000 rpm and 102.1 m³/h
2,3 H₂O
22,6 dBA
4-pin PWM fan (model 2): - Fan assembly: Attachment: wire bracket
Decoupling: fan frame Compatibility: AMD: Socket FM2 (+ )/FM1/AM3 (+)/AM2 (+)/AM4
Intel: LGA 2011/LGA 1200/115x Price: 119.90 €
(*) The links marked with an asterisk are affiliate links. In the case of an order via such a link, ComputerBase receives a share of the sales proceeds without increasing the price for the customer.