Performance Testing

Please refer to the dedicated test setup page as it applies to this review as well and I did not want to go over it separately to save on review space.


First up, let's take a look at the RPM profile for the fans with and without the provided low noise cable (LNC). Looking at the two lines here might make you think a single sample was tested but it's the case of all three randomly chosen samples testing extremely similar to each other! This bodes well for sample variability, or lack thereof, and then there's the part where the standard RPM response is as straight a line as any I've ever measured! Without the LNC, the TOUGHFAN 12 Pro is rated for 500–2000 RPM and we see these samples hit an average of 2016 RPM at 100% PWM and go down to 402 RPM at 20% PWM duty cycle before remaining there all the way to 1%. This is even better than specified, so far so good. With the LNC, Thermaltake rates the RPM range at 500–1500 RPM, and my samples went from an average of 1538 to the same 402 RPM at 20% duty cycle—once again faring well. The interesting thing is the LNC here doesn't seem to be a resister in series as I originally suspected since that would have resulted in a lower fan speed across the board compared to the measurements without the LNC. Instead, we see it only affecting the 70-100% PWM range wherein it effectively plateus the RPM response to the max value. All three samples exhibited the same behaviour so I'd say the only reason to use the LNC is if you wanted to simply set and forget to max speed. I'd personally stick to the stock configuration and use a custom fan curve or preset fan profile from your motherboard or external fan controller.


This is also why I chose to test these fans in the default out-of-the-box experience without the LNC, this allows people to get more data at higher fan speeds if they choose to run these fans as much. At each PWM duty cycle point chosen, I also measured the noise level and airflow through the radiator and the graph above shows the average values for the three fans. There is a small standard deviation here accounting for sample variation in the produced noise levels as well as the precision of the sound probe itself but otherwise we see a similar linear trend as with the fan RPM itself and more context is needed to put these numbers into perspective.


The charts above help compare the Thermaltake TOUGHFAN 12 Pro against other such fans tested and at specifically chosen RPM values reflecting usage scenarios most popular with watercooling, although some fans go higher as is the case here. The charts are to be considered for comparison within this result set only and are not to be compared with results from another test elsewhere, owing to different testing conditions. Note that these are average values for all samples of each fan and do not reflect any sample variation either but overall it's quite evident that Thermaltake has a high performance fan on its hands here. This is not a surprise given the predecessor TOUGHFAN 12 was similar, and we see how the newer fan is better at pure performance at lower fan speeds, with the gap narrowing down at higher fan speeds. This is ideal given most people would want to see good performance at lower RPMs (lower noise levels). The TOUGHFAN 12 Pro is louder than the older TOUGHFAN 12 slightly, but that's a given considering it pushes more air through. In fact, from a performance/noise basis, the newer TOUGHFAN 12 Pro bests the older TOUGHFAN 12 at every single point.


Given we already know this is better than the older version, I chose to skip it for comparisons in favor of the other three LCP fans I've tested in the form of the Lian Li UNI FAN P28. the Phanteks T30-120, and the Noctua NF-A12x25 that manages to still be in the discussion years after its release. Two of these fans are 25 mm thick, the Lian Li contender is 28 mm thick, and the Phanteks offering is 30 mm thick. Despite the inherent physics advantage of the latter two, the TOUGHFAN 12 not only holds up quite well but also bests these at the lower fan speeds. It's once again Noctua that carves out a niche for itself but overall I am quite impressed with how well the Thermaltake TOUGHFAN 12 Pro does, especially for those prioritizing performance foremost. There are also other fans such as the be quiet! Silent Wings Pro 4 which land similarly from a performance/noise basis but do so by optimizing noise over performance to give you a different option depending on your needs.