Review: noctua nh-l9i & nh

Noctua is the specialist in excellence in PC air cooling. This time we bring you an interesting analysis on their low-profile models: Noctua NH-L9 for Intel and AMD platforms.

Product ceded by:

NIGHT CHARACTERISTICS NH-L9i and NH-L9a
Compatibility	NH-L9i: LGA1150, LGA1155, LGA1156 NH-L9a: AM2 (+), AM3 (+), FM1, FM2
Height	NH-L9i: 23 x 95 x 95mm NH-L9a: 23 x 114 x 92mm
Material	Copper (base and heat-pipes), aluminum (cooling fins), soldered joints, nickel-plated.
Fan size	92 x 92 x 14 mm, 92 x 92 x 25 mm.
Package content.	NF-A9x14 PWM Premium Fan Noise Reduction Adapter (LNA) NT-H1 Thermal Compound SecuFirm2 ™ mounting system Screws for fans 92x92x25mm Noctua Case-Badge in metal
Warranty	6 years.
NF-A9x14PWM fan	1 x NF-A9x14 PWM.
Bearings	SSO2
Maximum speed	2500 RPM
Airflow	57.5 m / h.
Sonority	23.6 db (A).
Voltage	12V and 2.52w of power.
MTBF	+ 150000h

The heatsink is protected in a small box, an excellent presentation and protection.

The bundles are identical, the only thing that changes is the hardware.

• Heatsink Noctua NH-L9i / a Reducing cable. NT-H1 thermal paste. Noctua sticker. Screws and adapters. Quick installation guide.

View of the fantastic Noctua NT-H1 thermal paste and LNA fan reducer

The heatsink has a fantastic view. Its height of 37 mm allows us to install it in low profile equipment.

Its nickel-plated copper base has a protector installed to prevent any scratches before installation. Once we remove the protector, we can see that it has a rough surface.

Noctua has decided to use a 92mm fan to avoid high revolutions and excellent dissipation. Specifically, it provides us with the NF-A9x14 PWM: it has Noctua's exclusive AAO frame as well as sophisticated aerodynamic design measures.

The fan includes rubber stops to prevent vibration and easy installation / removal for quick and safe maintenance.

The cable is meshed and has a 4-pin plug.

The installation is identical for both platforms. Only in AMD we will use the backplate that Noctua includes.

In the following image I have marked you with a circle where we must install the 4 screws that the heatsink includes.

We will also need the thermal paste and optionally the fan reducer.

The first thing we do is apply a thin layer or a line to the heatsink and place the heatsink.

On the back of the motherboard, we screw in the 4 screws, thus remaining.

To complete the installation, we connect the fan to the motherboard. Being a PWM fan it will be self-regulated by the motherboard itself.

Final view of the heatsink installation.

As we can see in the following image, the heatsink does not hinder either the heatsinks on the motherboard or the graphics. Also, it allows us to install memories with high heatsinks.

TESTING BENCH
Processor:	Intel 3570k / A10-5800k
Base plate:	Gigabyte Sniper 3 / Gigabyte F2A85X-UP4
Memory:	16GB Kingston Hyperx Predator 2133mhz
Heatsink	Noctua NH-L9i / Noctua NH-L9a
HDD	Kingston Hyperx 120gb
Graphic card	NVIDIA GTX680 / Dedicated in APU.
Power supply	Antec HCP850

Our analyzes have always been characterized by the use of high-end material. We have caught up to this heatsink with a nice i5 3570k and a Gigabyte Sniper 3 board. All tests have been in stock on both platforms. We have to pay special attention that the tests have been carried out at 19ºC of ambient temperature.

WE RECOMMEND YOU Google Pixel 3 comes with 6 months free to Youtube Music Premium

Our CPU stress test is Prime95 1792k for 24 hours straight.

The Noctua NH-L9 is a low profile heatsink with dimensions 9.5 × 9.5 × 3.7cm, an excellent aluminum cooling base and two copper heatpipes. It is available in the NH-L9i version for Intel and the NH-L9a for AMD.

We really liked the “glamor” presentation of the product and the excellent bundle: 92 cm fan, NT-H1 thermal paste and its easy SecuFirm2 anchoring system.

In our test bench we have seen that both the Intel i5 3570k and the AMD A-10 5800k have offered us excellent temperatures in stock. It even allows us to slightly overclock the processor.

The small size of the heatsink allows us to install it on any ITX box and motherboard without worrying about the motherboard chipset, the graphics card or the memory installation with a large heatsink. The only thing I would not have liked is the creation of a single product. This decision would have allowed us to reuse the heatsink on any platform.

In short, if we are an excellent heatsink for our small ITX / Matx PC, with quality components, a quiet fan and easy assembly. The Noctua NH-L9 should be your heatsink.

Already available in Spanish stores for an approximate price of € 39.

ADVANTAGE	DISADVANTAGES
+ HEIGHT OF 37 MM.	- AVAILABLE IN DIFFERENT VERSIONS FOR INTEL AND AMD.
+ SILENT FAN.
+ VERY GOOD PERFORMANCE.
+ EASY INSTALLATION WITH SECUFIRM2.
+ THERMAL PASTE NT-H1 AND LNA REDUCER CABLE
+ ALLOWS US TO INSTALL DDR3 MEMORY WITH HIGH HEATSINKS.

The Professional Review team awards you the recommended product badge and a well deserved gold medal: