Noctua showcases one of its 'custom-built torture-test rigs' that it uses to test its fans

Q: What specific tests did Noctua run on the NF-A4x10 when validating it for the Pulsar Feinmann F01 Noctua Edition mouse?

Noctua built a custom “torture-test rig” that shakes the fan to replicate horizontal in-plane movements along the x and y axes, including about 20g acceleration, and integrated an accelerometer into a mouse sample for that test. They also built a secondary vertical validation machine to perform drop testing; the horizontal test ran 280,000 cycles (one failure of 12 fans due to a loose cable) and the vertical test ran 20,000 drops with all eight fans surviving before further drops caused failures after the rig's foam padding shattered.

Q: Based on Noctua's test results, what longevity or usage expectations did they claim for the NF-A4x10 inside a gaming mouse?

Noctua reported that the NF-A4x10 tolerated acceleration forces well and "can not only tolerate acceleration forces that go way beyond what can happen even in the most extreme gaming situations, but they can also withstand these forces for a number of repetitions that even the most avid gamers are unlikely to reach within a decade." In testing the fan survived 280,000 horizontal movement cycles with only one of 12 failures (caused by a loose cable) and all eight fans survived 20,000 drops on the vertical test before fixture damage increased impact forces.

Q: Will the Pulsar Feinmann F01 Noctua Edition review include additional stress or durability testing results beyond Noctua’s validation?

The primary article states we will be reviewing the Pulsar Feinmann F01 Noctua Edition gaming mouse in the coming weeks. It does not say whether that review will include additional stress or durability testing results beyond Noctua’s validation.

With Noctua's NF-A4x10 fan integrated into the Pulsar Feinmann F01 Noctua Edition gaming mouse, the company went to great lengths to test its performance.

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Kosta Andreadis

Senior Editor

Published Aug 4, 2026 3:01 AM CDT

1 minute & 30 seconds read time

TL;DR: Noctua built custom "torture-test rigs" to validate the NF-A4x10 fan used in the Pulsar Feinmann F01 Noctua Edition gaming mouse, performing horizontal 20g shaking and vertical drop tests. Fans largely survived extensive cycles, showing durability beyond expected gaming stresses, with the only failures due to cable loosening and shattered padding.

Voice: Kosta AndreadisSpeed

0:00 / 3:41

Noctua's fans and various cooling solutions are notable not only for their unique brown and tan colorways, but also for consistently delivering industry-leading performance and durability. Recently, the company partnered with Pulsar to release its first gaming mouse with active cooling, powered by the Noctua NF-A4x10 fan.

Noctua showcases one of its 'custom-built torture-test rigs' that it uses to test its fans 3

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According to the company, adding a fan to the Pulsar Feinmann F01 Noctua Edition gaming mouse isn't as simple as it seems - at least not for a company that builds what it calls "custom-built torture-test rigs" to ensure that their fans perform as expected, without any issues.

To demonstrate the detail and rigorous testing that went into validating the Noctua NF-A4x10 fan for the Pulsar Feinmann F01 Noctua Edition gaming mouse, the company has posted a detailed article outlining its process. As a gaming mouse is a peripheral that is, more or less, in constant movement when in use, this led to the development of a custom machine to stress test horizontal in-plane movement with an asynchronous motor, gears, and other bits and pieces. Yes, it's a "custom-built torture-test rig" that essentially shakes the fan to replicate 20g acceleration force.

Read more: Modders create quieter RTX 5090, 5080 cards with 3D printed shrouds and Noctua, Phanteks fans

Noctua showcases one of its 'custom-built torture-test rigs' that it uses to test its fans 1

And to properly test the various forces, this required integrating an accelerometer into one of the mouse samples.

"With gaming mice, there are two basic types of movement that can create acceleration forces which could potentially be problematic for fans," Noctua explains. "Horizontal in-plane movements along the x and y axis, where the mouse is moved sideways, forward or backward, and vertical or z-axis movements that occur when the mouse is lifted from the table and brought back down, hitting the table surface."

And with that, the team at Noctua developed a secondary vertical validation machine for drop testing. And if you're wondering how the Noctua NF-A4x10 fan held up with these demanding tests, the answer is surprisingly well. After 280,000 cycles of the horizontal movement test, only one of 12 test fans failed; but that was due to one of the cables becoming loose. After 20,000 drops on the vertical movement machine, all eight fans survived unscathed; another 5,000 drops caused all fans to fail because the foam padding at the base of the "custom-built torture-test rig" shattered, dramatically increasing the impact force.

"When analyzing the test results, it quickly became clear that our initial concern whether the NF-A4x10 would be able to withstand the acceleration forces that can occur inside a gaming mouse was unfounded," Noctua concludes. "Thanks to our custom-built validation setups, we can now confidently say that the fans can not only tolerate acceleration forces that go way beyond what can happen even in the most extreme gaming situations, but they can also withstand these forces for a number of repetitions that even the most avid gamers are unlikely to reach within a decade."

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