The NH-L9i-17xx chromax.black is an all-black version of Noctua’s award-winning NH-L9i-17xx low-profile quiet CPU cooler for Intel LGA1700 (LGA17xx family) based HTPCs and Small Form Factor (SFF) builds. Thanks to the same proven heatsink design and NF-A9x14 PWM fan, it stays true to the NH-L9i-17xx’s successful formula of fusing a height of only 37mm with strong performance and excellent quietness of operation, as well as 100% RAM and PCIe compatibility. At the same time, the chromax.black version with its black fan and black coated heatsink combines these assets with a sleek stealth look. Topped off with the renowned SecuFirm2™ low-profile mounting system for Intel LGA1700 (LGA17xx family), Noctua’s enthusiast-grade NT-H1 thermal compound and a full 6-year manufacturer’s warranty, the NH-L9i-17xx chromax.black is a premium choice for customers who seek an ultra-compact heatsink that looks just as great as it cools.
The NH-L9i is a highly compact, quiet low-profile cooler designed for use in small form factor cases and HTPC environments. While it provides first-rate performance in its class, it is not suitable for overclocking and or CPUs that create high heat loads. Please consult our CPU compatibility list to find out whether the NH-L9i is recommended for your CPU.
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Details
New revision for Intel’s LGA1700 (LGA17xx family) socket
Since the original NH-L9i for LGA1200 and LGA115x has received more than 200 awards and recommendations from international hardware websites and magazines, the new 17xx revision builds on the same proven heatsink design to provide excellent low-profile cooling performance for LGA1700 (LGA17xx family) CPUs.
Award-winning NH-L9i cooler
Tens of thousands of enthusiast users all over the world swear by the NH-L9i’s quality and performance. Recommended by more than 150 international hardware websites and magazines, it is renowned as being one of the best low-profile coolers on the market.
chromax.black design
The NH-L9i-17xx chromax.black is black from head to toe: Featuring a black coated heatsink, a black fan with black anti-vibration pads, black fan screws and black mounting parts, it’s right at home in all-black builds and easy to integrate with other colour schemes.
37mm low profile
Due to the slim 23mm heatsink and the NF-A9x14 low profile fan that measures only 14mm in thickness, the NH-L9 stands a mere 37mm tall, which makes it ideal for use in compact HTPCs or Small Form Factor cases that offer minimum clearance for CPU coolers.
100% RAM compatibility
The NH-L9i has a 95x95mm footprint that complies exactly with the Intel LGA1700 (LGA17xx family) socket keep-out zone. This means that it won't cause issues with VRM heatsinks and doesn't overhang the RAM slots, so it's fully compatible with tall memory modules.
100% compatibility with PCIe cards on mini-ITX
Some mini-ITX motherboards have the PCIe slot sitting close to the 95x95mm socket zone. While larger coolers that exceed this zone are likely to block the PCIe slot, the 95x95mm sized NH-L9i provides full compatibility with PCIe cards.
Easy access to near-socket connectors
Many low-profile coolers use larger fans or heatsinks in order to achieve sufficient performance, but by protruding over the socket zone, they make it difficult or even impossible to reach near-socket connectors on tightly packed ITX motherboards. Thanks to its compact footprint, the NH-L9i-17xx provides easy access to all connectors and components.
NF-A9x14 PWM premium fan
The highly optimised NF-A9x14 premium fan features Noctua's proprietary AAO frame as well as sophisticated aerodynamic design measures. Supporting PWM for fully automatic speed control, the NF-A9x14 allows the NH-L9i to stay remarkably quiet.
Low-Noise Adaptor
Allowing the maximum speed of the NF-A9x14 PWM fan to be reduced from 2500 to 1800rpm, the included Low-Noise Adaptor (LNA) makes it possible to achieve near-silent setups with suitable CPUs that only create smaller heat loads.
Custom-designed SecuFirm2™ mounting for LGA1700 (LGA17xx family)
The NH-L9i-17xx bundles a custom-designed, backplate-less SecuFirm2™ mounting system for LGA17xx family sockets that offers extended compatibility with mini-ITX boards and makes installation easier than ever, all while maintaining the trusted SecuFirm2™ quality.
NT-H1 thermal compound
Noctua's much-acclaimed NT-H1 is a pro-grade TIM solution that provides minimum thermal resistance, excellent ease-of-use and outstanding reliability.
Soldered interface between heatpipes and fins
With many heatsinks, the fins are press-fitted to the heatpipes. Due to the different thermal expansion coefficients of copper and aluminium, this fit can loosen over years of thermal cycling, which may lead to reduced performance. By contrast, the NH-L9i’s fins are soldered to the heatpipes in order to guarantee a superior thermal interface that doesn’t deteriorate even after many years of usage.
6-year manufacturer’s warranty
Noctua products are renowned for their impeccable quality and outstanding longevity. Like all Noctua fans, the supplied NF-A9x14 features an MTTF rating of more than 150.000 hours and the entire NH-L9i package comes with a full 6-year manufacturer's warranty.
The NH-L9i is a highly compact, quiet low-profile cooler designed for use in small form factor cases and HTPC environments. While it provides first-rate performance in its class, it is not suitable for overclocking and or CPUs that create high heat loads. Please consult our CPU compatibility list to find out whether the NH-L9i is recommended for your CPU.
Disclaimer: We create and update our compatibility lists with the utmost care. Unfortunately, mainboard manufacturers tend to change certain components and heatsinks without pointing it out by using corresponding revision names. If you run into problems while installing our coolers on one of the mainboards listed as being compatible, please don't hesitate to contact our support team at support@noctua.at.
Please also keep in mind that other components such as narrow or small cases as well as memory modules with special (higher) heat-spreaders can cause compatibility-issues.
For use in systems from Dell, HP or Lenovo, please note this FAQ.
Can't find the motherboard you're looking for? Please don't hesitate to contact our support team at support@noctua.at in order to obtain compatibility information for motherboards that aren't listed below.
Our case compatibility list helps you to quickly identify which PC cases offer sufficient clearance for which Noctua CPU coolers. The compatibility indication is based on the height of the coolers (including fans) as well as the maximum CPU cooler height specification given by the chassis manufacturer.
Caution: Please note that the fans of some tower coolers (especially larger models with 140mm fans, e.g. NH-D15 or NH-U14S TR4-SP3) may overhang the RAM slots and that this can cause compatibility issues if RAM modules taller than 32mm are used. While the fans can be moved upwards to increase RAM clearance, this will increase the total height of the cooler and thus requires additional clearance inside the chassis. As a rule of thumb, if the fan overhangs the RAM, the maximum CPU cooler height specification of the case must be at least the size of the fan plus the height of the RAM minus 7mm (accounting for the height of the socket and CPU). For example, if a cooler uses a 140mm fan that overhangs the RAM and 46mm tall RAM modules are used, the max. CPU cooler height specification should be at least 179mm (140+46-7=179). For further information and instructions on how to move up the fan for each cooler model, please click the height specification link.
Disclaimer: We create and update our compatibility lists with utmost care. However, case manufacturers sometimes change parts or details of their products without prior notice or explicitly indicating a revision. Therefore, Noctua cannot accept any liability, nor in any other way be held responsible, for the following compatibility information.
Can't find the case you're looking for? Please don't hesitate to contact our support team at support@noctua.at in order to obtain compatibility information for cases that aren't listed above.
When modern CPUs use their turbo modes, they can (depending on the configuration of the UEFI BIOS) dissipate much more heat than indicated by the manufacturer’s TDP (Thermal Design Power) specification. Just like manual overclocking, this puts higher demands on the cooling solution. Our CPU compatibility list helps you to choose the cooler model that is best suited for a given CPU and your individual requirements as far as turbo and overclocking headroom are concerned. We classify our coolers according to the following categories:
best turbo/overclocking headroom
medium turbo/overclocking headroom
low turbo/overclocking headroom
compatible without turbo/overclocking headroom
compatible with certain restrictions (see comment)
incompatible (see comment)
For further information on CPUs exceeding their TDP ratings and how to configure the UEFI BIOS in order to avoid excessively high temperatures, please see this FAQ.
Can't find the CPU you're looking for? Please don't hesitate to contact our support team at support@noctua.at in order to obtain compatibility information for CPUs that aren't listed here.
