Features:

  • Ultra-compact low-profile cooler with only 39mm total height – ideal for HTPCs, ITX and Small Form Factor builds
  • 100% compatibility RAM- and PCIe-compatibility due to 95x95mm footprint, does not overhang the RAM or PCIe slots
  • Highly optimised NF-A9x14 slim 92mm fan with PWM support and Low-Noise Adaptor for automatic speed control and ultra-quiet operation
  • Includes high-end NT-H1 thermal paste and SecuFirm2 mounting system for easy installation on Intel LGA1150, LGA1151, LGA1155, LGA1156, LGA1200
  • Trusted Noctua quality backed up with 6-year manufacturer's warranty
Comparison vs a Cryorig C7 in SFF

If you're coming from a Cryorig C7 or even considering it in a super ultra tiny PC build: PICK THE NOCTUA!! I recently built my Dr Zaber Sentry, a 7L micro gaming PC build. It houses up to 47mm CPU fans, and the Cryorig was rated for a higher TDP, and I had an i7, so I bought the Cryorig. Turns out the Cryorig is loud, like really really loud, spinning up very very audibly under any load. Admittedly, I wanted to keep the Sentry on my desk, which might be abnormal, but I spent $200 Indiegogo'ing a case because I like how it looks on my desk; what can I say. It was audible over low-volume headphone game audio, even. So I tried this out as well as delidding my processor, and the difference is significant. I can't say clearly how much was the delidding and how much was the Noctua, but I will say this: manually adjusting fan speed to 100%, the Noctua sounds about 25% quieter, but the big deal here is the optional in-line resistor. In building a super-small case, you discover that your BIOS wants to keep your system at temperatures designed around a big open airy case. This just isn't feasible for a case like the Sentry, so I wanted there to be a way to say "hey, the Kaby Lakes run super hot anyway, and my case is small; chill about the temperatures". Connecting the included "quiet mode adapter" essentially does just this, by lowering all voltages running to the fan. This is a great product and is very silent under normal conditions. It's also worth mentioning that the fan is interchangeable for up to a full height fan, whereas the Cryorig's is not.

A fantastic S4 Mini compatible cooler

Fantastic, luxurious, silent, and icy cool. I test dozens of coolers under 40mm for my system integration gigs and custom SFF system, like the NFC-Systems S4 Mini. This is the best bi-directional cooler under 45mm that I have seen by a far margin. It is expensive, but worth it. The fan is very quiet and I am glad because many of my systems are built for small radio and television studios and are unisolated. This works beautifully in the NFC-Systems S4 Mini and I highly recommend it.

This is the real deal. Struggled to pay such a premium, but it was worth it.

Max temps down 10 degrees average. And despite this, the loudness of the CPU fan is dramatically reduced, almost inaudible now, vs stock cooling, which was previously the loudest fan of all in my case + my 4 HDD hard drive bay sitting next to it. I'm using this with an i7-8700 3.2GHz 6-Core Processor in a Cooler Master - Elite 130 Mini ITX Tower Case. This setup sits on my desk, and I have a projector in the same room for the occasional movie (streamed using Plex from the same PC), and so my PC needs to be quiet. Photos included. Check the Max. tump column in the middle for before n after. Can't believe it's silent and cooler at the same time!

High quality, extremely quiet.

Highly recommended. I bought this for the Intel Pentium G4600 which comes with a pretty loud and cheap fan. I should know better by now, but first tried to buy a cheap (< $20 heatsink and fan). I had to send that back. The Noctua (low-profile) CPU cooler is a little pricey, but you get high quality extremely quiet cooling for your money. Installation is a tiny bit of hassle, since it requires access to the back of the motherboard, but once installed and you turn on your PC and listen to the lack of sound, you will be happy you spent the time and money. Remember to go into the BIOS setting and manually set the fan speeds to very low, or choose a "Silent" profile. Check the fan speed with something like HWInfo64. Then install the included adapter cable to make the fan run even slower. I have mine set to 400 RPM or so at 30C CPU temperature. No matter the fan speed though, it's extremely quiet, but of course, at > 1500 RPM there will be a slight whisper from the fan blades.

I'm very happy with this CPU cooler as my Pfsense firewall is ...

I use this cooler as part of a Pfsense firewall setup running an Intel Core i3 Processor in a Mini ITX industrial case. This cooler is absolutely silent. When the system is under load, which is rare, the cooler makes a barely imperceptible hissing noise. I'm very happy with this CPU cooler as my Pfsense firewall is naturally always on. The CPU temperature stays consistent at 28 Celsius. I attribute the consistent temps to the function of this cooler. I highly recommend.

Repurposed 2500K system much quieter now

With remote learning I wanted to build my son a system that was better than his school-provided Surface 3. I had a tiny MI-008 case with power supply, H61N-USB3 motherboard and an older 2500K CPU ready to build. But the stock Intel fan was so loud that it would be disruptive. And there was no extra case ventilation either. As my son was doing schoolwork and not gaming I knew it wouldn’t be stressing the cooling too much, but I wanted to quiet it down some. Having several other Noctua solutions I got the NH-L9i and installed it in less than 20 minutes. Yes, you need to remove the motherboard but it’s not a big deal. I needed to ensure that the heatsink was aligned the right way so it cleared the capacitors next to the CPU socket. Ram clearance wasn’t an issue. The skinny fan was necessary as I had just enough clearance under the power supply (this is a small Mini-ITX case). Even though not strictly recommended for a 95W CPU in a poorly ventilated case, I ran 10 iterations of IBT on the highest setting, which was around 20 minutes of 100% CPU usage. Maximum heat and stress. The CPU got to around 90C but passed. Even then fan noise was less than stock, and then back to “normal” load was barely audible. Another winner from Noctua!

Inexpensive Air Cooler That Stuns!

I bought this cooler for my build which was compromised of parts generating bang for the buck. I originally bought a liquid cooler for my system but at the last minute had a change of heart. I had always read great things about Noctua brand coolers therefore I gave this little guy a shot. The processor purchased for the system is a Intel Core i5-9400F, and it came with the standard garbage cooler. When you turn a system on with that stock cooler, it sounds like a swarm of angry bees trying to raid your living quarters! With the Noctua cooler...it's like its not even there. The system turns on almost without a peep. I may not have the temperature readouts or system information readouts to bear out my statement, but I'm really impressed with this cooler. My only complaint truly is the brown color. Mounting the screws on the underbelly maybe a pain, but also consider most cases nowadays allow you direct access to that part of the system without much hassle. For me installation was easy on a Rosewill Challenger S case. For roughly $10 or so more than a Hyper 212 cooler, this is truly among the elite of air coolers!

Not enough for an i7-10700, especially in a Node 202 case

This cooler isn't big enough for an i7-10700. At stock settings it cannot keep the CPU from thermal throttling when under full turbo boost. Even the non-k 10700 will boost up to 220W and quickly hit 100c. I was able to mitigate this with the Intel XTU utility by setting the max turbo boost power to 115W and using a voltage offset of -0.100V. Five stars, though, with a less power hungry processor like the i5, this is a great cooler. As with all things Noctua, this thing is well made and quiet. It's performance is pretty much the same as the OEM Intel cooler, but it's much quieter.

Keeps an i7-9700K cool in SFF PC! (Dan A4-SFX)

I've had this heat sink for about 7 months, and it continues to blow me away! Originally, I was using it on an i5-9400F processor in my Dan A4-SFX small form factor case. I thought that was the perfect setup, since the CPU is only rated for 65W TDP. With some undervolting, it is more like a 45W processor, which the NH-L9i can easily handle. One thing that may help a lot, in this SFF case, the sides are perforated, so the CPU has direct access to fresh air. This is especially true with the 3D printed fan scoop (the black thing covering the brown fan in pic), which forces it to draw only air from outside the case. I rarely ever hear the fan from the CPU, and it keeps it plenty cool in the process. However, with AMD producing some really great CPUs, Intel was forced to slash prices on their 9th gen chips, and I got a huge deal on the 9700K... so I figured, let's see if my setup can handle it. To my huge surprise, the NH-L9i is up to the task! Of course, I am running the CPU at stock clocks and undervolting it by -0.08V, but even in these circumstances it's drawing about 100W during a heavy synthetic load (OCCT Large data set). The result? It's keeping the CPU in the low 80s Celsius. During some parts of the test, it ramped up to 120W, which did cause the CPU to hit mid-90s. So I would say that 120W is probably too much load for the NH-L9i to handle, but anything under that is doable if it has direct access to fresh air. Considering that the heat sink is only rated to 65W TDP, that's pretty amazing! Also, while its fan was running at full blast 2400 RPM, it was audible, but definitely not loud by any means.

Hear That? Neither Do I...

I purchased this cooler to replace a low-profile Zalman CPU cooler, which started off perfectly fine but, after about 20 months of continuous duty, started making rattling noises. Everyone loves to make fun of Noctua's iconic color scheme (some odd shades of brown), but none would dispute that Noctua's coolers are A) very effective, and B) very quiet. Since the machine in question is a self-built NAS with a windowless metal cover, I was more concerned about temps and noise than about appearance. And I've had good experience with Noctua before -- my main PC has a Noctua cooler on it that has remained virtually silent during its four years of service. The cooler is well-packaged, and includes very clear instructions, mounting screws, extended screws if you want to swap the low-profile fan with a full-profile fan, a speed-reducing extension cable (for people who want _very_ quiet machines), a tube of thermal grease, and a vanity badge. My only complaint is that the heat sink face did not have a protective cover on it, leaving it free to pick up dust prior to installation. Though it probably wasn't necessary, I wiped it down with isopropyl alcohol just before clamping it down. Cooler installation is almost disquietingly easy, as it is essentially screwed directly to the motherboard. Apply a thin, even layer of thermal grease to the CPU. Place the cooler upside down on the table, heat sink facing up. Then turn the motherboard upside down and gently lower the CPU on top of the heat sink, sighting through the mounting holes to line up with the cooler bracket on the other side. Insert mounting screws and gently but firmly tighten. Plug the fan cable into the appropriate header on the mobo. When I powered the NAS back up, even with the cover off, the Noctua was _silent_. I could _see_ it spinning, but I couldn't hear a thing. CPU temperatures also seem to be a hair lower than they were with the Zalman. It will be interesting to see how easy it is to clean the dust out of it in a few months but, for now, I'm quite happy with it.

Full Reviews