This replaced a Scythe Shuriken, in Silverstone ITX case, socket 1155, with a second generation i5 rated at 77 watts.
The Scythe is also low profile but was large enough to touch the memory on one side, and it blocked the PCI slot at the other, thus making it impossible to install a graphics card.
This comes in exemplary packaging, a sort of double box, which makes damage in transit just about impossible. It also includes a long screwdriver and thermal paste. There are two separate packages of materials, for AMD and for Intel.
It turned out to be harder than expected to release the Scythe, which made me wonder how on earth I had managed to get it installed in the first place. You have to turn the usual plastic Intel rods anti-clockwise, and in the tiny space available this is quite awkward. The contrast with the Noctua system of fastening is very striking, and I will never use a cooler with the plastic push rod system again. I was thinking of using the Scythe on another build, but after seeing the contrast with the Noctua mounting system am having second thoughts and may drop it off at a charity shop instead!
To install, you have to take everything out and lift up the main board enough to be able to fit the backplate. This is very simple, you just push the bolts up through the main board holes, then drop it back and attach the mounting strips on the top side using some knurled nuts, which you tighten up fairly gently with a cross head screwdriver. The result is a very solid mounting base.
The instructions are very clear. The mounting strips can be installed on either pair of sides, and depending which way you do it, the heat sink will be differently oriented. The difference is that the heat pipes project a few mm on two of the sides, so if space is very crowded you might need to choose one way rather than the other. It is however so compact that at least on my own installation it comfortably cleared the memory and the PCI socket whichever way it was oriented.
In terms of vertical clearance, my own installation is in a Sugo5 case, using a Silverstone power supply. This is a little larger than a standard ITX supply and projects out over the cpu. The Noctual fits with a couple of centimeters clearance under the PSU. The PSU is mounted with the fan at the top, so it vents externally through the top of the case. It also is just about silent. On the front of the case there is a large Noctua case fan, also very low noise.
I cleaned off the old thermal paste from the processor using cotton buds and surgical spirit, then finished off with paper towel dipped in surgical spirit. Apply a small heap of the Noctual thermal past in the center of the processor, then remove the plastic cover on the contact plate and drop it onto the processor.
The backplate and mounting strips are very robust, and the method of attaching the heat sink matches. There are two threaded rods which project upwards from the mounting strips. Two spring loaded sockets project downwards from the heat sink, and you attach these to the rods using a cross head screwdriver. It is not necessary to remove the fan for this, you can reach through the fan blades.
To connect, you can use the low noise adaptor. I did not bother and doubt it will be necessary for many people. The reason I didn't is that the processor is a little out of spec for this cooler, high by about 12 watts.
Its now mounted with plenty of space around it for access to the rest of the board, and the questions are noise and temperature.
In terms of noise, its just about inaudible. I am not doing any very demanding graphics work or anything that will really stress the processor, but in normal use of office or home media applications its inaudible. So far its never risen to any audible level.
Cooling is exemplary. Its at least as good as the Scythe, and quieter with it. Temps at idle are in the high thirties, rising to the low forties on one or two cores in use, and as I say, in just about complete silence. Writing this for instance the hottest cores are 38 and the cpu fan is at zero.
If I were assembling an ITX today, I'd, get a Silverstone 13 case, mount the biggest Noctua fan it will take in the front, use a 35 watt processor, a smaller power supply, and cool it with one of these. It will be silent and low power and will last forever.
Reservations? None. There is a comment in these reviews that the supplied screwdriver is chromed down to the tip, and that small bits peel off in use. It is indeed chromed, and just to be safe I used a standard cross head screwdriver with bare metal tip in most of the installation, but I used the supplied on on a couple of the heads with no problem. To anyone considering this I would say just get it. Its a real quality item, does exactly what its supposed to, well designed and built and great performance.
| Brand | Noctua |
|---|---|
| Product Dimensions | 9.5 x 9.5 x 6.5 cm; 413 g |
| Item model number | NH-L9x65 |
| Manufacturer | Noctua |
| Series | NH-L9x65 |
| Colour | Brown |
| Processor Socket | Socket AM2, Socket AM3, Socket AM3, Socket AM3+, Socket FM1, Socket FM2, Socket FM2+, Socket H (LGA 1156), Socket H2 (LGA 1155), Socket H3 (LGA 1150), Socket R (LGA 2011) |
| Computer Memory Type | Unknown |
| Voltage | 12 Volts |
| Are Batteries Included | No |
| Item Weight | 413 g |
| Guaranteed software updates until | unknown |
