Closer Look / Product Photos
The NH-L9i cooler arrives in a small box which contains everything we need for installation, maybe except the screwdriver.
In the box is a cooler, a sticker with Noctua logo, thermal grease, low-noise adaptor, and an additional set of screws if we wish to install a thicker fan.
Since we want to test the NH-L9i on the AMD Ryzen platform, then we need an additional mounting kit for the AM4 socket – NM-AM4-L9aL9i. The package also contains backplate as on the attached photos.
Replacing the mounting kit shouldn’t cause any problems
Additional notes from Noctua:
The NM-AM4-L9aL9i kit is compatible with the NH-L9a & NH-L9i only (please choose the NM-AM4-UxS kit for the NH-U14S, NH-U12S and NH-U9 and the NM-AM4 kit for all other models). Owners of the NH-L9a and NH-L9i can obtain the NM-AM4-L9aL9i mounting-kit free of charge via this form. Proofs of purchase (photo, scan or screenshot of the invoice) of both an NH-L9a/NH-L9i cooler and either a socket AM4 motherboard or socket AM4 CPU are required.
The NH-L9i should fit every available Intel or AMD (with AMD mounting kit) motherboard. It’s much smaller than the reference AMD cooler for Ryzen 3000 CPU series what makes it perfect for all small form factor computers or HTPC.
I think I don’t have to say much about the quality. We are used to seeing the top quality in all Noctua products. The new version of already well known NH-L9i cooler is covered with black paint, which doesn’t affect cooling but causes that the cooler looks clean, and there are no visible fingerprints. The paint is also quite scratch-resistant, but of course, there are limits.
The fan has 92x14mm, but we can install a thicker fan too. The fan itself is quiet, but of course, at maximum speed, it won’t be silent. As a standard, it’s equipped with rubber pads to reduce vibrations.
Noctua NH-L9i comes with the NT-H1 thermal compound. It spreads well and works great with all coolers, not only the Noctua brand. On the market, there is also available NT-H2, which is slightly better, but in the case of the NH-L9i, it can be an unnecessary cost.
