Selecting your best 120mm case fans is as easy as it can go. Nevertheless, it is even easier to get it all wrong considering the fact that there are so many in the market that are competing for your attention at almost a similar price range.
Because of this, most people find themselves throwing their money straight the window. I literally did same when I was a starter in the whole thing and I watched 7 bucks just leave me for nothing.
All grown now, I have come to understand a lot better. Also, like every serious gamer, I have come to know how priceless it is to play your game knowing you are well covered. That is what a good case fan does.
See Also: AIO Water Cooler (All-In-One) – Top Performing And Noiseless
That said, there are many questions you must answer before getting a cooling fan; how quiet is it? How much overclocking can it take? How cool can it get your CPU? Does it have a LED Light? There are many to ask, and fortunately, I have answered almost all.
Here are the best 120mm case fans available today
Best 120mm Case Fans
Corsair ML120 Pro LED Case Fan
There is one company that hardly fails when you are looking for any kind of cooling functionality for your CPU and that it Corsair. With the ML120 Pro Led, the company has delivered a cooling fan that is of high performance and at the same time very beautiful.
What Corsair is out to achieve with the cooler fan is something that is long lasting, good with cooling, and as silent performing as possible. Yes, it has achieved that, and that is thanks to the magnetic levitation technology it has made use of.
You get to choose between three Led lighting; red, white, and blue. For the performance, the fan gives you RPM performance that rises up to 2000 RMP. You get to set it at the lowest voltage and achieve as low as 400 RMP. This means great airflow at a dead silent noise.
The airflow that you get with the fan is from 12 to 75 CFM. More so, for the noise, you get a minimum of 16dBA, which can rise to 37 dBA. That is still good if you look at the speed that will get you to 37 dBA.
Putting everything in context, this is a piece that comes complete in almost every way possible.
Pros
- Amazing quality
- Great features
- Top notch aesthetics.
- Good cooling performance.
- Very low noise.
Cons
- Not the cheapest on the list.
Verdict
This is the one for a gamer that has a plan of good overclocking as it is designed to take you to the extremes. The flesh is that even as it delivers great cooling performance, it doesn’t go making noise about it.
Noctua NF-F12 PWM 120 mm Cooling Fan
I will admit if you say Noctua hasn’t always given the sexiest one on the runway. That is very true even with the NF-F12 PWN cooling fan, but when it comes to cooling performance and intelligent technology, your competition cannot start without a Noctua.
The Nf-F12 is one of the most favorite among gamers because of its cooling performance and the silence it offers.
The technology in the build of the fan enables it to run at 1500 RMP, and at this rate, you will get very little noise. Going lower in speed, the noise will drop considerably.
There is an adapter (Low Noise Adapter) that comes with the 120 mm case fan to make the maximum speed to hit at 1200 RPM. The good news here is that the cooling performance is still great but the noise drops almost completely.
With the LNA, the noise level can drop to 18.6 dBA, while without the adapter, you can have a max noise of 22.4 dBA.
Apart from the LNA, it also features Anti-Vibration Pads and other interesting features towards improving performance and efficiency.
A place where it beats many others again is as regards power consumption which stands at 0.6W. This is nearly only half of what many others consume.
6 years warranty is what the cooler fan offers.
Pros
- Intelligent cooling performance.
- It comes with good
- Designed to give low noise.
- Great features for efficiency.
- Good warranty.
Cons
- It is not very cheap.
Verdict
The Nf-F12 is one of those cooler fans that we don’t get to see every day. It is the one for someone who hates noise completely, as it gets to control the noise extremely and still ensure you get that speed.
Corsair Air Series SP120 High Performance Edition Case Fan
The Corsair Air Series SP120 High Performance Edition doesn’t come as one of those with much efforts in either design or performance. The 120 mm case fan is has a very simple design and a performance that is effortless as well.
Also, the fan comes with various options including the SP120 High Pressure and SP120 Low noise.
The fan speed of the cooler is 2350 RPM. It only makes sense that where it beats among other things is looking at the airflow. This is because of its air pressure which goes a max of 3.1 mm H2O. This and the entire build of the fan delivers a generous 62 CFM airflow. You can trust me that there are hardly a handful others that would beat this.
With that airflow, the big question that comes is on how silent it is. I didn’t find this to be the most silent on the list when what it gives is a maximum of 35 dBA. Nevertheless, I believe the performance is enough compensation.
Pros
- Simple design.
- Very good when it comes to airflow
- The build is quite sturdy.
- It is valuable in price.
Cons
- This may not be the most noiseless one.
- Only 2 years warranty.
Verdict
Some of us don’t really care about the noise we get from fan because we are either always on headsets or the speakers are always on. All we want is for the damn thing to give us the best in airflow and cooling performance. That is when this becomes the pick.
Thermaltake Riing 12 Series High Static Pressure 120mm Circular LED Ring Case Fan
The Thermaltake Riing 12 is another that shouldn’t take long for one to fall in love with. It offers different variety in terms of color for those who have a unique taste.
With a solid build, the fan comes very beautiful and designed with LED lighting that makes it all unique. The performance of the case cannot be washed under the bridge easily as it meets the good airflow target, as well as low noise production.
The maximum fan speed is placed at 1500/1400RPM while the airflow is 12/14 40.6/51.1CFM. When it comes to the noise, you can have it moved from 24.6dBA to 18.7dBA by using the Low-Noise Cable it features.
At the noise level, there is no way you can hear the cooler working once you have your game on and get a little volume.
One of the few things that may get a handful of people murmuring is the fact that the fan only gives 3 years of warranty even as others like Corsair and Noctua give 5 or 6.
Pros
- Excellent airflow.
- The noise is very low.
- Nicely attractive
Cons
- It cannot be controlled from the motherboard since it is not PWM
- Doesn’t have the best LEDs.
Verdict
This may just be the winning pick for someone who has a particular taste when it comes to LED lighting as this offers different color. Beyond that, you get very good performance in both airflow and silence. In fact, you cannot go wrong with this if your emphasis is on airflow above everything else.
Cooler Master JetFlo 120 R4-JFDP-20PB-R1 High Performance 120mm LED Case Fan
The problem most times with building a small gaming computer is that you are limited when it comes to components such as cooler fans because most of them are designed for bigger computers.
The Cooler Master JetFlo 120 is one of the few that come to the rescue in such situations. What makes it even better is that it doesn’t leave out performance in the name of saving space or giving a fit to your small gaming computer.
From one of the best bets in the cooler fan market, the Jetflo has seven ultra-slim fans that move between 800 to 2,000 RPM, ensuring that the airflow you get reaches up to 95 CFM.
For the noise, the fan has 2 low noise adapters that are able to get the noise at 28 dBA at 1,600 RPM or 1,200 RPM (19 dBA). This is even as the maximum noise is approximated to be 36 dBA.
Features are some of the things most people ignore with cooler fans in general, but you can’t help but notice that this piece from these cooler masters has. It comes with different LED lights including red, blue, and white. It also has the POM (polyoxymethylene) bearing which gives the fan a longer life span of up to 18 years.
Somehow, the fan comes with some little noise even at a low level. The thing though is that the noise is not overwhelming enough to spoil your game.
Pros
- Excellent performance.
- Good features.
- It makes use of the POM bearing.
- Comes with LED.
- It is a durable fan.
Cons
- It has a little noise.
Verdict
With intelligent design and good performance, this is actually a cooling master for smaller gaming computers or for people who want to save space.
ASIAHORSE Solar Eclipse 120mm Case Fan
I can’t afford not to point out, first of all, the beauty of the Solar Eclipse. It is uniquely designed with LED lights that make the beauty well pronounced and still not overwhelming in a bad way. But beauty isn’t what gave it a space on the list.
Looking at the performance of this young blood, it has done good for itself in both silence and good airflow.
The fan has a speed of up to 1800 RPM, which you can easily adjust. With that speed, the airflow you get is a max of 48.6CFM. What this means is that although it is quite good, it may not be the best for a very demanding gamer.
Nevertheless, with the noise, you get a noise level of 24.6 dBA. That is one thing that is good with the fan as it manages to beat many others that are in its class.
Finally, the build is very sturdy, hence it is obvious that you will have something that is enduring to keep your CPU cool.
Pros
- May just be the most beautiful sight to behold.
- It comes with different color options.
- The noise level is good.
- Very powerful and enduring.
Cons
- Not the strongest airflow.
Verdict
I don’t know if I am allowed to call this the beauty with brains, but that is what I just called it. No, it will not cause the rain, but it will surely get you out of it. Hence, it is for someone who wants silent performance better than everything else.
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Conclusion
What I have taken the time out to do here is pull out some of the very best 120mm case fans in the market that will not only give you fantastic cooling performance but at a very low noise.
More so, I have ensured that all the fans on the list are durable and all going, since getting the CPU cool is a serious business for every gamer even as mediocre gamers ignore it. No matter what cooler fan you decide to go with, the result will still be worth it.
