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ARCTIC Liquid Freezer III 420 vs Noctua NH-U9S: Comparison

ARCTIC Liquid Freezer III 420 and Noctua NH-U9S separate most on fan count: ARCTIC Liquid Freezer III 420 at 3, Noctua NH-U9S at 1, 67% in favour of ARCTIC Liquid Freezer III 420. Airflow splits them by another 36%, again favouring ARCTIC Liquid Freezer III 420. They match on 4 other specifications, including rgb lighting, pwm control and lighting.

ARCTIC Liquid Freezer III 420 (420mm AIO Liquid/Integrated VRM Fan/PWM Pump/Excellent Value Flagship)
ARCTICARCTIC Liquid Freezer III 420
Noctua NH-U9S (Compact Single-Tower Air/4 Heatpipes/92mm Fan/125mm Height/mATX-Friendly)
NoctuaNoctua NH-U9S

Specs

Specification
ARCTIC Liquid Freezer III 420 (420mm AIO Liquid/Integrated VRM Fan/PWM Pump/Excellent Value Flagship)
ARCTIC Liquid Freezer III 420
Noctua NH-U9S (Compact Single-Tower Air/4 Heatpipes/92mm Fan/125mm Height/mATX-Friendly)
Noctua NH-U9S
BrandARCTICNoctua
Cooler TypeAIO LiquidAir Tower
SeriesARCTIC Liquid Freezer III 420Noctua NH-U9S
Model NumberACFRE00137ANH-U9S
Socket CompatibilityAMD AM4/AM5, Intel LGA1851/1700AMD AM5/AM4, Intel LGA1954/1851/1700/1200/115X
Tower LayoutNot ApplicableSingle-Tower
Fan Count31-67%
RGB LightingNoNo
Cooler Weight2235 g618 g
Fan Size140 mm92 mm
Max Speed1700 RPM-15%2000 RPM
Airflow72.8 CFM46.44 CFM-36%
Static Pressure2.4 mmH2O2.28 mmH2O-5%
PWM ControlYesYes
LightingNoneNone
Warranty6 years6 years
Fans3x P14 PWM, 140mm1x NF-A9 PWM, 92mm
Source URLhttps://www.arctic.de/us/Liquid-Freezer-III-420/ACFRE00137Ahttps://www.noctua.at/en/products/nh-u9s/specifications

Verdict

ARCTIC Liquid Freezer III 420

9 / 10 Expert Rating

One of the best value-per-degree AIOs available at any radiator size, now in its largest non-Pro form.

Noctua NH-U9S

8 / 10 Expert Rating

A sensible, well-built compact cooler for mATX builds that don't need flagship-level thermal headroom.

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