Layout, design and features …
Features NZXT F360 RGB Core …
NZXT’s F-series single-frame fans are available with two or three 120mm fans or two 140mm fans and you can choose between black and white for the color of the sleek and sturdy frame. With a thickness of 26mm, the F360 RGB Core Single-Frame Fan is only 1mm thicker than most standard 120mm fans and can therefore be used without hesitation wherever three 120mm fans fit. Fortunately, the manufacturer’s small logo in the corner doesn’t push itself too much into the foreground, creating an elegant and simple impression. With transparent white inlays in the black frame, the light from the LEDs in the rotors is further distributed and thus the luminosity is optimally emitted in all directions. In addition, the milky, 9-blade fans have a textured surface, which further maximizes light diffusion.
Inside each of the 41 mm fan hubs are eight RGB LEDs and a powerful motor that accelerates the fans to between 500 and 2400 rpm. If desired, the fans can also be brought to a standstill if the fan controller supports this. Thanks to high-quality fluid bearings and balancing quality, the gap between the clearly curved rotor blades and the frame has also been reduced to a minimum. These characteristics help the fans to achieve excellent values for air flow and static pressure, which makes the F series a good choice for case fans, but they are also ideal for use on a radiator. In order to transfer the few vibrations that occur to the PC case as little as possible, the corners are fitted with rubber elements on both sides.
The four sturdy mounting struts on the back of each fan are curved in the opposite direction to the fan blades, which is intended to reduce shock vibrations in the airflow. The four small rubber inserts between the fans, on the other hand, are more well-intentioned than practical, as they do not protrude beyond the plastic frame and therefore have no damping effect.
The 60 cm long connection cable has 8 wires and ends in a proprietary flat connector, which drastically reduces cable clutter compared to three conventional RGB fans.
Various options are available for connecting the fan unit. The enclosed adapter cable splits the 8-core cable into a total of three connectors. It ends in a standard PWM fan connector, a standard A-RGB connector and an NZXT RGB connector. This enables connection to a mainboard or the “old” NZXT Fan & RGB Controller, which we will look at in more detail in a moment. A new RGB & fan controller will also be released with the F-series single-frame fans, which is unfortunately not available to us for this test. The 8-pin plug can then be connected directly to the new controller, which reduces the cabling effort to an absolute minimum. Thanks to a latching nose on the plug, you no longer need to worry about a plug coming loose, which can sometimes happen with standard fan and RGB plugs if you are not careful when wiring in the PC case.
Features NZXT RGB & FAN Controller …
The RGB & FAN controller from 2022, which was also provided to us for this test, can be used without restriction to operate the NZXT Core fans. Measuring 100x70x16.5mm, it provides the necessary PWM fan connection 3x and NZXT RGB connection 6x, which is sufficient for approx. 10 fans and up to 120 LEDs. All connections are located on the two long sides of the controller.
There are 2 threaded sockets on the back to attach the controller instead of a 2.5″ SSD in the PC case. If this method is not desired or not possible, the controller can also be attached to any flat spot in the housing thanks to the integrated magnets, provided the sheet metal is made of steel, which is usually the case. A free USB 2.0 header on the mainboard and Windows 10 or 11 are required for operation. Power must be supplied via a SATA connector.
The control unit is operated via the NZXT CAM software, which we will look at in detail later in the test.
NZXT F360 RGB Core and RGB & FAN Controller Installation …