As with all my previous reviews the first thing to consider is that the dB rating doesn't tell the whole story. Tone, resonance and other factors can be more important than pure sound levels.

Motor wine and rhythmic speed related clicking may not show up on the sound meter but when present I can confirm that they are very apparent and can be annoyingly intrusive. On the flip side you could have a fan that made no discernible whining or clicking but was 'showing' as rating high on decibels!


The Arctic F12 Pro.

Unlike the recently tested Föhn 120 Wing Boost the Arctic F12 Pro returned a consistently louder dB score. However, just like my warning in the previous paragraph states it’s more the type of noise than the actual volume that seems most important. In this respect the Arctic F12 Pro was much better.

The fan returned a very smooth presentation with no clicking or buzzing evident at any voltage. Another very positive observation was the presence of a decent amount of static pressure. Much more than the Föhn 120 Wing Boost and a similar amount to the best I’ve tested in the past.

I assume the higher dB ratings tally somewhat with the static pressure I noted – it just seemed much quieter due to the complete lack of resonance or vibration related noise.