Test – Noctua NH-L9x65 – Conseil Config : Specs | CPU | Hashrate | Review | Config

Hi all!

Here we are back at Noctua with the latest addition to the series of coolers for HTPC / Mini-ITX boxes, I named the NH-L9x65! Noctua fills here a small gap between the NH-L9a and NH-L9i of 3.7cm in height and therefore studied for what is done smaller in terms of case and the NH-L12 of 6.6 cm in height equipped with 2 fans which could interfere depending on the type of case and memory modules. With the NH-L9x65 Noctua is determined to offer a small, high performance cooler that is 100% compatible with memory modules and leaves the first PCIe port free, offered at a price of 44.90 € let’s see what the little one has in the belly!

The box is like what is usually done at Noctua, we do not change a winning team! Everything remains very simple, the name of the model on the left as well as a listing of the strengths of the cooler (“low profile”, 100% compatible with memory and the first PCIe port, etc.). At the back a little spiel on the comparison between the NH-L9x64 and the NH-L9, bigger, more efficient, more better and all in 8 different languages!

On the sides there is a listing of the different strengths of the cooler as well as the technical characteristics namely the dimensions, the maximum RPMs of the fans, the sound level, the weight etc. There will be everything you need here, not surprises!

Once the box is open, we fall as usual on the box containing the accessories, with of course a listing printed on it, just in case!

Under the latter we find directly the small NH-L9x65, well protected in its cardboard box, as usual there is very little risk of seeing the cooler arrived damaged.

Here is the beast! With a compact design, we can see a rather thick radiator with the brand’s “slim” format fan, the NF-A9x14 PWM (shown here). The build quality is excellent as usual, everything is very robust, the callpipes are nickel plated, the fins are not twisted and everything really exudes quality. Let’s take a closer look!

From above we can see that the 9cm fan really takes up all the space and that nothing sticks out, this proves that the beast is really very compact and will not interfere with the surrounding components.

On the side the 50 aluminum fins are clearly visible, all crossed by the 4 nickel-plated calloducts.

We can clearly see here that the calloducts are U-shaped and start from the base and end in the fins. The small Noctua logo is of course engraved in the fins, as usual! 🙂

Underneath, everything is of course very clean, the 4 callpipes are clearly visible and the surface in contact with the processor is convex like all the brand’s other coolers.

The finish is once again excellent, the surface in contact with the processor has a mirror effect with grooves in the shape of a circle, becoming smaller and smaller as they get closer to the center.

The bundle consists of:

• 1 venterad Noctua NH-L9x65
• 1 tube of thermal paste
• 1 kit de fixation Intel
• 1 kit de fixation AMD
• 1 LNA adapter
• 1 Phillips screwdriver
• 1 Noctua metal sticker
• The different manuals

We do not redo the bundle at Noctua, we have everything you need to install the NH-L9x65 without problems, screwdriver, thermal paste, adapter to lower the maximum fan RPMs and even a sticker metal logo, for those that they want to play it in society.

The Noctua NH-L9x65 is compatible with the vast majority of sockets on the market, even the 2011-3! Exit however the aging 1366 and 775 which no longer really have it to be these days anyway. In terms of dimensions, Noctua has done its utmost to have something compact, 9.5cm sideways for a height of 6.5cm, which means that it will fit everywhere and will not touch anything around it. For a cooler of this size, however, it is not light, 413g on the scale with the fan and 340g for the radiator.
On the cooling side, we are entitled to 4 calloducts responsible for transferring the heat to the fins, themselves cooled by the NF-A9x14 fan rotating at a maximum speed of 2500 RPM (or 1800 RPM with the LNA adapter).
Offered at a price of 44.90 € it is clear that as usual the NH-L9x65 is not given, but we are entitled to a 6-year warranty accompanied by an MTBF of 150,000 hours for the fan, so a Once purchased, we are relatively safe, especially since Noctua ensures the compatibility of new sockets when they are released by providing free fixing kits if necessary.

The assembly does not change from other Noctua products and turns out to be as usual very simple and fast, let’s go!

To start, you have to put the back plate under the motherboard, being careful to put it in the right direction.

Then put the black plastic spacers as above.

Once done, all you have to do is put on the 2 fixing plates.

Then they must be screwed, and once done pose a grain of rice of thermal paste.

Then nothing could be simpler, you have to put the radiator (without the fan) on the processor and screw at both ends!

Once screwed, simply put the fan back in place and you’re done!

PCIe and memory compatibility

As usual the big fear when buying a cooler is compatibility with the motherboard, by that I mean the memory as well as the PCIe port which can be stuck to the socket. Let’s see what this gives for the first PCIe port first:

No problem there, there is enough space not to have to worry about a possible incompatibility with the first PCIe port. Now let’s remember:

There again there is really nothing to say, the cooler will not interfere with the installation of the memory, whatever its height!

The test platform

The Noctua NH-L9x65 has been tested on the configuration below:

• Processor: Intel Core i7 875K @ 3,2 Ghz
• Motherboard: Asus P7P55D
• Memory: Kingston HyperX 4 x 2 Go 1600Mhz
• Hard disk: WD Raptor 150 Go
• Graphic card: Sapphire Toxic 5850
• Food: Seasonic X650

The test protocol

The core i7 875K has been slightly overclocked to 3.2Ghz. The temperatures under load are an average of all the cores for 3 tests of 30 minutes on OCCT, the temperatures at rest were taken after 15mins on the desk (still an average of the 4 cores). All the tests will be done with a 5V, 12V and PWM fan managed by the motherboard.

The cooler has been tested against:

• be quiet! Pure Rock (tested here)
• Noctua NH-L9i (tested here)
• Noctua NH-L12 (tested here)
• Noctua NH-U9S (tested here)
• Noctua NH-U12S (tested here)
• Noctua NH-D15 (tested here)
• Silverstone AR06 (tested here)

The choice of coolers is not random, given the small size of the beast I tested it against the small and big brother of the NH-L9x65 as well as the Silverstone AR06, the be quiet! Pure Rock being an entry-level cooler it will also be there to see the difference in performance. Likewise, the monstrous NH-D15 being the most efficient cooler, it is interesting to put it in the comparison.

The temperatures

The small NH-L9x65 manages without problems to cool the slightly overclocked Core i7 with a maximum of 68 °, whether in PWM or in 12V. As we can see it is more efficient by a few degrees than its little brother the NH-L9i and less efficient than its big brother the NH-L12 which is already much more imposing. It is interesting to see that the Silverstone AR06 is very close to the NH-L9x65, the design being quite similar so are the performance.
Of course it is no match for the “tower” type cooler in the comparison, but it is quite normal they are only here as an indication, the most important being that the Noctua manages to contain the heat perfectly. of the test processor.
On the other hand, and like other coolers of this size, it does not manage to sufficiently cool the processor in 5V, so it will have to be left in PWM under penalty of having excessive temperatures quickly.

Noise pollution

Attention : Part to be taken with a grain of salt, unfortunately not having access to the appropriate equipment and using an android application to take the readings the measurements below are only indicative! The readings were taken 15cm from the cooler. The ambient sound level recorded is 31 dB.

As with other coolers of this size, the NH-L9x65 unfortunately does not manage to be quiet under load, which is again quite normal given the small dissipation surface. With 47dB in load it is very widely heard but the noise is rather neutral and reflects the quality of the fan, point of motor noise, clicking or whatnot that can be found on entry-level fans.
At rest, of course, it is perfectly silent in PWM with a sound level close to the ambient level of 32 dB, which is very appreciable.

Here we are at the end of this test, what about the NH-L9x65 from Noctua?
Particularly suitable for very thin mini-ITX / HTPC boxes with its 6.5 cm height it will be able to cool a processor up to 140 Watts unlike its little brother the NH-L9i which will be satisfied with a maximum of 65 Watts (see a little more if the ventilation of the box is suitable). The noise pollution is very correct for a product of this type with a very appreciable silence at rest but will be heard under load, everything will depend on the processor it will have to cool, an Intel Core i5 (or i3, pentium G) will be completely made suitable for NH-L9x65.
The build quality is irreproachable as usual with Noctua, the bundle provides everything you need to mount the cooler without problems and the assembly is done very quickly.

Offered at a price of € 42.90, the Noctua NH-L9x65 will undoubtedly be an excellent choice for cooling a processor installed in a mini-ITX office configuration or even a small HTPC.

A big thank you to Jakob from Noctua who allowed me to do this test.

Where to find the Noctua NH-L9x65?

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