Arctic Rolls Out the P12 MAX Case Fan

[btarunr]

ARCTIC, a leading manufacturer of low-noise PC coolers and components, extends the P-fan series with the P12 Max, a new high-performance fan. In contrast to the conventional P12 PWM, the P12 Max has a significantly increased speed with revolutions from 200 up to 3300 rpm. This makes it ARCTIC's most powerful 120 mm fan. Without load, it can even be throttled down to standstill if required.

With its high static pressure and high-quality dual ball bearing, the P12 Max is the optimal fan for enthusiasts and professionals who rely on maximum performance and especially long service life. The new fan is suitable for all scenarios and is optimised for use on radiators and mesh. The P12 Max achieves a significant increase in performance on existing air- and water-cooling solutions. The P12 Max features a closed fan wheel design to ensure lower vibration rotation. The rubber pads at the corners absorb possible vibrations.



Availability
The new P12 Max is available from today on Amazon.com, on eBay.com as well as in stores starting at a price of $8,99 (MSRP is $12,99).

For more information, visit the product page.

View at TechPowerUp Main Site

 

[bonehead123]

The P12 Max achieves a significant increase in performance on existing air- and water-cooling solutions

And how exactly does it achieve this magical feat ? Oh do tell please....

And no, the product page does NOT provide any useful explanations either, I already looked

Dual ball bearings & high static pressure aren't exactly a new features after all, so any mfgr making claims like this without providing the facts to back it up seems moar like pure marketying nonsense than anything else, which is about what we have come to accept from these so-called "PR's"

 

[ZeDestructor]

And how exactly does it achieve this magical feat ? Oh do tell please....

And no, the product page does NOT provide any useful explanations either, I already looked

Dual ball bearings & high static pressure aren't exactly a new features after all, so any mfgr making claims like this without providing the facts to back it up seems moar like pure marketying nonsense than anything else, which is about what we have come to accept from these so-called "PR's"

It manages it by raising the max rpm from 1800rpm of the regular P12 to 3300rpm, which has apparently necessitated a new blade design along the way. This is all listed on the spec pages.

Arctic have also detailed the setup they used to do their comparative testing on their product page.

 

[Broken Processor]

And how exactly does it achieve this magical feat ? Oh do tell please....

And no, the product page does NOT provide any useful explanations either, I already looked

Dual ball bearings & high static pressure aren't exactly a new features after all, so any mfgr making claims like this without providing the facts to back it up seems moar like pure marketying nonsense than anything else, which is about what we have come to accept from these so-called "PR's"

It's static is more high

 

[bonehead123]

Merely increasing the rpms by 80% does not in & of itself guarantee increased performance....although the new blade design probably helps somewhat...

And them outlining their testbed set-up/method/conclusions on the product page means absolutely squat to me....

I will wait for actual independent/3rd party reviews/test results, then we'll see if their claims are valid or not

 

[claster17]

This looks like they took the improved P12 RGB, removed the RGB and increased max RPM.

 

[N/A]

The way it goes why not reduce the fins to one spiral fin. And the eternal dilemma of 120 Vs 140mm remain unaddressed Where is my 14cm fam

 

[zmeul]

I will wait for actual independent/3rd party reviews/test results, then we'll see if their claims are valid or not

 

[Raiju]

I need a 140mm version of this because I ain't buying noctua's NF-a14 3000 at 35€ for a single fan..
At least arctic pricing makes sense

​

 

[Leshy]

Merely increasing the rpms by 80% does not in & of itself guarantee increased performance....although the new blade design probably helps somewhat...

And them outlining their testbed set-up/method/conclusions on the product page means absolutely squat to me....

I will wait for actual independent/3rd party reviews/test results, then we'll see if their claims are valid or not

LOL .. if you would increase speed almost 2x even with same blade design it guarantees increase of flow and speed .. not linearly but it ll

 

[MIRTAZAPINE]

That is interesting with it using a "close blade design" where the fan tips have a ring to it versus using exotic material like the phanteks or noctua to have the open fan tips at a shorter distance to the frame.

 

[ZeDestructor]

Merely increasing the rpms by 80% does not in & of itself guarantee increased performance....although the new blade design probably helps somewhat...

And them outlining their testbed set-up/method/conclusions on the product page means absolutely squat to me....

I will wait for actual independent/3rd party reviews/test results, then we'll see if their claims are valid or not

As Leshy pointed out, increased speed always results in more aerodynamic performance. How much improvement is a different question, but still improvement.

Them outlining their test setup and method means that anyone can go out and replicate their test and see if and/or by how much they are lying. That said, given how simple said test is for anyone with the right parts to replicate, I am pretty sure they aren't lying or embellishing the results very much. Waiting for 3rd party is certainly the best way forward, but if you were already very satisfied with the older, slower P12s and just wanted a bit more performance (and noise), there's not that much need to wait for said reviews.

The way it goes why not reduce the fins to one spiral fin. And the eternal dilemma of 120 Vs 140mm remain unaddressed Where is my 14cm fam

You have to keep the forces on the impeller, bearing and motor balanced, so the absolute minimum practical is 2. For noise reasons, you also always want an odd number of blades which moves the usable minimum count to 3. Then given the relatively thin 25mm available to put the blades in, aerodynamic constraints put you up to at least 5 blades if you want decent perf/dB and perf/W

That is interesting with it using a "close blade design" where the fan tips have a ring to it versus using exotic material like the phanteks or noctua to have the open fan tips at a shorter distance to the frame.

Not *that* interesting - it's been done before with other fans, with varying degrees of success. Definitely cheaper than getting exotic LCPs though.

 

[damric]

If these are comparable or slightly in price to the existing P-fans, I may check these out. I use the P-fans a lot on all of my radiators because they come in cheap packs of 5 and perform very well. Hopefully these are also available in bulk.

 

[bobbybluz]

Interesting fans but I wish I could still get the EverFlow R121225BU's. The SilverStone FM121 is that same Everflow fan but in white and comes with a speed controller, grille and screws. Also double ball bearing but 110cfm at full speed. I have ones with 2009 date codes that have been in constant use since back then. Too bad the SilverStone prices doubled recently and my wholesaler I got the Everflows from in Florida retired a few years ago. I ended up switching to different variants of this 120x25 Delta server fan (depending upon the model number 90 to 150 cfm) for less than $10 shipped from China: FFB1212EH.

After watching that YouTube video I called Arctic to see where they'll be sold for the "special $9.00 introductory price" mentioned at the top of the comments. I was told Micro Center may have some soon. The link to Amazon has the full retail price plus there's also a scalper on the Amazon options list too. I'll buy a few to try out if I can get them for $9.00 each.

 

[Chrispy_]

If these are comparable or slightly in price to the existing P-fans, I may check these out. I use the P-fans a lot on all of my radiators because they come in cheap packs of 5 and perform very well. Hopefully these are also available in bulk.

The $25 P12 PWM 5-packs are fantastic value.

Are they the best fans ever? No.
Are they plenty good enough and 1/4 the price of comparable fans, Hell yes.

Realistically, if you need a better fan than a P12 PWM then you should probably be spending $25 per fan. Nothing else in the P12's price bracket comes close...

 

[damric]

The $25 P12 PWM 5-packs are fantastic value.

Are they the best fans ever? No.
Are they plenty good enough and 1/4 the price of comparable fans, Hell yes.

Realistically, if you need a better fan than a P12 PWM then you should probably be spending $25 per fan. Nothing else in the P12's price bracket comes close...

I know they have been my go-to for a while now. Before that I used to love those cheap CM R4 Sickleflows. I just looked at the prices of these high RPM ones, $13 on amazon which is too much for me to care.

 

[Chrispy_]

I know they have been my go-to for a while now. Before that I used to love those cheap CM R4 Sickleflows. I just looked at the prices of these high RPM ones, $13 on amazon which is too much for me to care.

AFAIK some people don't like them because if you use voltage control on the PWM models they exhibit a harmonic resonance at certain frequencies.

I can't really side with these complainers though.

Firstly, why are they controlling a PWM fan with voltage? Arctic do make P12 3-pin voltage-controlled variants (that are even cheaper, lol)

Secondly, harmonic resonance certainly isn't exclusive to Arctic fans - plenty of much pricier fans also have this minor issue.

Lastly, the resonance isn't particularly loud at the noise levels most people run a PC at. Sure, if you're going for an ultra-quiet build with a mix of fully-passive and extremely low-rpm cooling in a very quiet room, then yes - you'll definitely hear it, but maybe you need to get your head checked if you're spending several hundred bucks extra on premium passive/low-noise parts and then inexplicably buying some of the cheapest fans on the market. They don't even have soft-mounts, FFS!

 

[kapone32]

I have never seen a case fan offer that range of speed. Even the Noctua 3000 does not spin anywhere near 200 RPM. I have always liked Arctic for the price/performance advantage they offered. Glad to see that they are back. I definitely will be getting a few of these.

The $25 P12 PWM 5-packs are fantastic value.

Are they the best fans ever? No.
Are they plenty good enough and 1/4 the price of comparable fans, Hell yes.

Realistically, if you need a better fan than a P12 PWM then you should probably be spending $25 per fan. Nothing else in the P12's price bracket comes close...

Much better than the fans that Cooler Master and Corsair offered. Arctic was only supplanted by Phanteks in the noise and of course Noctua makes you a believer when you use one of their fans, especially around that time, but the Arctic 5 packs were a God send when I started building rigs to sell. Every customer raved about how quiet and cool their fans were and are. I also like the Cooler Master Sickle Flow fans as well. For looks the Phanteks SK140s cannot be beat for looks.

 

[claster17]

Lastly, the resonance isn't particularly loud at the noise levels most people run a PC at. Sure, if you're going for an ultra-quiet build with a mix of fully-passive and extremely low-rpm cooling in a very quiet room, then yes - you'll definitely hear it

For these fans, resonance only becomes a problem above 1000 RPM at which point they are far from silent. For ultra-quiet builds (500 RPM or lower), resonance is a non-issue.

 

[NRANM]

I appreciate the "0dB mode". It's a great feature for sure. But... 3300 RPM? Seriously? Who needs 3300 RPM? It makes fine control more difficult, and, honestly, if you need to have your fans spinning at 3300 RPM, then something is very wrong with your cooling setup.

 

[InVasMani]

The new ring structure support for the blades looks nice, but is there a good reason for one solid chunk of plastic for the ring structure versus a more of a mesh design with a good bit less plastic and lighter at the same time. I still like the fan blade structural support, but it certainly looks like a good amount of added plastic waste.

 

[Icon Charlie]

No. As a professional who has done a hell of a lot of testing, I've come to the conclusion that there is only so much you can do with a fan set up.
As I do like Artic products, I will not buy this thing. So they slightly tweak this and that and then give the ability to go balls to the walls in rpm.

A slight increase in temperature performance is not worth my time in using tried and true fans and CPU Air Coolers.

 

[trsttte]

They don't even have soft-mounts, FFS!

This ones have a piece of soft ruber next to the screw mount to help dampen vibrations, not much but something

I appreciate the "0dB mode". It's a great feature for sure. But... 3300 RPM? Seriously? Who needs 3300 RPM? It makes fine control more difficult, and, honestly, if you need to have your fans spinning at 3300 RPM, then something is very wrong with your cooling setup.

Any fan has a variance of around plus or minus 10% of the rated rpm = 330. From 0-100% pwm (or even 10%-100%, ballpark is about the same) the fans can be controlled in 33rpm steps (vs. around 15rpm for a regular fan), much lower than their tolerance is or anyone could discern, so no, you don't loose any meaningfull granularity with such a high speed fan.

A 3300rpm fan is not something I'd want to have screaming next to me but some people have their computers hidden in small cabinets or whatever, better have it and not need it than the opposite.

On the artic website they have this fan under both the case fans and server fans sections so home user is not the only market this thing is targetting

 

[Chrispy_]

This ones have a piece of soft ruber next to the screw mount to help dampen vibrations, not much but something

Pure placebo; The self-tapping screws that make an utterly rigid lock mechanical lock between the case panel and the fan frame do not care for decorative rubber pads. If the rubber pad is like suspension coil on a car, the metal screw is like a 100% locked-out shock/damper that allows zero movement - rendering the suspension coil useless, and making the car behave exactly like it had no suspension at all.

The rubber only serves any value whatsoever if the fan is used on a heatsink and supported solely by relatively loose and flexible wire clips.

 

[damric]

I appreciate the "0dB mode". It's a great feature for sure. But... 3300 RPM? Seriously? Who needs 3300 RPM? It makes fine control more difficult, and, honestly, if you need to have your fans spinning at 3300 RPM, then something is very wrong with your cooling setup.

I would definitely use them for one of my water cooled folding rigs to cool radiators when things are going full bore. For my main rig I would consider them too when I'm benching. These are enthusiast parts, not for someone's gaming rig.