Noctua NH-L9i fan compatibility

[Marco Gomez]

Hello there friends.

 

I just bought a Noctua NH-L9i for my CPU cooling as my computer weight and "build simplicity" concerns me due to the fact that I'll have to transport my build more often than I'd like to. NH-L9i seemed to be a perfect fit, as it is lightweight, low-profile, and the TDP of my chosen CPU is perfectly fine to cool with a NH-L9i (the CPU is an Intel i5 8400, 65W TDP, thus, supported as per Noctua's NH-L9i CPU compatibility list). My case will be a NZXT H400i black, so I don't really need the CPU cooler to be THAT low-profile as NH-L9i grants, the choice was made based on the weight of the cooling solution (as much as my PSU choice, which is a Corsair SF-750, which is as lightweight as possible for a relatively strong power-house).

 

My problem is: as many of you my friends, I HATE Noctua's default color-scheme, as it'll make my build to look like an "ok-looking" build, but with a beige half-BRICK inside right in the middle of it.

 

I may have a solution, but I'll need your knowledge to be more confident on doing it. NH-L9i default fan is an Noctua NF-A9x14 PWM (a 92x92x14mm super low-profile fan, highly optimized to the NH-L9i's heat sink). Painting it is out of the question for me, as my painting skills are bad, and it could destabilize / unbalance the fan (besides the danger of having paint on my fan's bearing.

 

BUT, I have another Noctua's standalone 92mm fan, which is a Noctua NF-B9 redux-1600 PWM. It is nor RGB or fancy, but it's plain gray, so it fit's nice with my build color-scheme. NF-B9 is 92x92x25mm, and NH-L9i comes with 25mm fan mounting screws (so it's is compatible concerning the mounting itself). So my understanding by now is: it will mount... but will it cool properly?

 

My knowledge concerning static pressure vs airflow fan's characteristics fall short to let me know if: can I replace the default Noctua NF-A9x14 PWM fan for my Noctua NF-B9 redux-1600 PWM? They're both 92x92mm, they're both PWM, but I'm afraid of trying to replace and making the cooling solution to fall short on my CPU needs (even it's a low TDP one) due to the lost of it's fan optimization. Do you guys think I can do it? Will the NF-B9 improve my cooling or reduce it? I looked over Noctua's specs for both fans (links provided above), and I couldn't even understand if those two fans are air flow or static pressure, and over some Google searches I couldn't either find any documented case of fan replacement on a NH-L9i. (BTW: I know Noctua is planning to add the NH-L9i fan to their Chromax line (black fans with colored anti-vibration corners), but not soon enough as I need this build ready to go ASAP due to my upcoming relocation.

 

Thank you so much in advance for your thoughts and considerations to help me out. I really appreciate your time.

 

My best regards,

 

Marco Gomez 

[Mira Yurizaki]

17 minutes ago, Marco Gomez said:

My knowledge concerning static pressure vs airflow fan's characteristics fall short to let me know if: can I replace the default Noctua NF-A9x14 PWM fan for my Noctua NF-B9 redux-1600 PWM? They're both 92x92mm, they're both PWM, but I'm afraid of trying to replace and making the cooling solution to fall short on my CPU needs (even it's a low TDP one) due to the lost of it's fan optimization. Do you guys think I can do it? Will the NF-B9 improve my cooling or reduce it?

I think the NF-B9 will work better on the virtue it can push more air than the NF-A9.

 

I don't really think there's much of a point at worrying about fan type, especially for the application of computer cooling.

[WoodenMarker]

9 minutes ago, Mira Yurizaki said:

I think the NF-B9 will work better on the virtue it can push more air than the NF-A9.

I don't really think there's much of a point at worrying about fan type, especially for the application of computer cooling.

The NF-A9 performs about the same or worse compared to the stock NF-A9x14 on the NH-L9i. The NF-B9 is worse but should still perform fine.

https://infogram.com/official-sffn-cpu-cooler-chart-1hmr6gyjwkz96nl?live

https://smallformfactor.net/forum/threads/thicker-fan-on-noctua-nh-l9i.6176/

https://www.reddit.com/r/sffpc/comments/92vbqv/s4_mini_with_l9i_heatsink_nfa9x14_vs_nf_b9_redux/

[Marco Gomez]

5 hours ago, WoodenMarker said:

The NF-A9 performs about the same or worse compared to the stock NF-A9x14 on the NH-L9i. The NF-B9 is worse but should still perform fine.

https://infogram.com/official-sffn-cpu-cooler-chart-1hmr6gyjwkz96nl?live

https://smallformfactor.net/forum/threads/thicker-fan-on-noctua-nh-l9i.6176/

https://www.reddit.com/r/sffpc/comments/92vbqv/s4_mini_with_l9i_heatsink_nfa9x14_vs_nf_b9_redux/

Thank you for an answer with such amount of information. In one of those posts I noticed that a guy tested the cooler with a fan replacement and got about 8°C (46,4 °F) more than using the stock fan with full load. As you consider the NF-B9 capable of performing fine anyway, I'll try to find a Be Quiet option that fits the 92mm mount standard, and if I can't find it, I'll go with the NF-B9.

 

I think you're totally right assuming I'll have no problems with a 65W TDP CPU anyway (I use the PC mostly for JavaScript programming, and most of my job stress my RAM (as per multiple virtual machines) and the GPU (WebGL Shaders), and not directly the CPU, keeping a considerable low load most of the time.

 

Once again, thank you for your time. I appreciate it.

[Princess Luna]

Why not the Cryorig C7?

[Marco Gomez]

52 minutes ago, Princess Cadence said:

Why not the Cryorig C7?

Among my possibilities and requirements the C7 was one of the best possibilities (besides the fact that it looks super beautiful IMO), but I got a really good deal on the NH-L9i. I bought from a friend, brand new. He was facing some serious thermal throttling as his brand new build counts with a high TDP CPU which the NH-L9i couldn't handle (one more reason for me to count with you guys to get informed before taking hasty unwise decisions ). Now that I have it, I rather keeping it and just try to get rid of the Noctua's color scheme (which I never understood anyway - of course it's a matter of personal preferences, but I never had the opportunity to find a beautiful build with those colors inside).

[oriol]

The B9 redux will work fine, I don't think you'll loose more than a few degrees as compared to the higher speed stock fan. As you already have the B9, I would suggest you simply give it a shot and check the temps.