Noctua NH-L9a-AM5, Quiet High-Performance Low-Profile CPU Cooler

I am using this cooler with an AMD 7900X CPU. Performance wise, it seems to be doing an excellent job. I do not overclock so I am certain I am not stress testing the maximum cooling abilities. However, for my needs, this CPU cooler fan work quite well. It is quiet during normal operation. My only issue came during installation. It was initially unclear to me how this fan mounts since the AM5 socket had threaded inserts. The provided screws did not go into the inserts but then I noticed smaller, longer screws that fed through the threaded inserts. That allowed to me to attach the cooler perfectly. I am quite satisfied with my purchase.

So I got a good deal on an 8700G but it was not exactly the PC I wanted & I needed to source the rest of the parts. This cooler can handle the 8700G at stock speeds (maybe even a slight over-clock), but I decided to not use the quiet mode cable, because I feared it might run hot more than loud. Just because the most low-profile PC requires getting everything in “low profile” the cooler needs to be compact. Installation was very simple, not very different than AM4 socket coolers, & based on product description measurements alone I was going to have a lot of extra room. I tried a compact PC before with the stock Wraith Stealth cooler, but I still needed to remove the outer-shroud. The great news is that removal/modification wasn’t necessary with this cooler, because it’s probably the flattest cooler I’ve ever used. One of my fears was when I 1st installed Windows 11, the CPU fan ramped up, to full speed, but I didn’t yet have any monitoring software installed, so I don’t know how close it got to max heat. Based on everything I’m seeing & hearing in gaming, workloads, & projects (so far) this cooler works really well. I imagine higher (more powerful/faster) CPUs may be too much, because the 8700G’s TDP is only 65w, any more than that might be a problem. Since I’m not using a graphics card (for low profile), thanks to the 780M (8700G’s integrated graphics) which means this cooler is pulling double duty for me. I 1st verified part compatibility via PC-Part-Picker, to ensure PC case, 8700G, motherboard, & RAM were all compatible with this cooler. This cooler only got loud when I installed Windows 11, but nothing else seems to have caused that, so I’m going to wait and see. But so far, I really like how this CPU cooler performs, it suits my needs, and I would say it good value for the price I paid. Warning: Don’t just look at socket, check 1st if the cooler you want has the thermal capacity for the CPU you’re planning to pair it with, AM5 is a strange place.

Put in a micro ATX case running a ryzen 5 9600. Silent and cool under heavy workloads. Noctua has been known for many many years as making the absolute top quality products and this is just like all of them: Top Quality and worth the price and piece of mind.

I have always been a big Noctua fan. Great company, great product. My one beef with this is that the mounting is awkward and I had to take apart my whole computer to get it in. Works great.

Very solid fan. No issues with cooling. It could be a little quieter though.

This is replacing a low profile cooler that was much larger, but weighed less. This thing feels like a brick and cools my 8700g pulling 87 watts in cinebench just fine for how small the cooler is. No mater what power level you chose in the bios you can end up thermal throttling at 100% cpu load but I expected that from such a tiny cpu cooler. Gaming and daily use it keeps temps in check and never throttles. Very happy with my purchase. if you need a cooler that is no taller than your ram, chose this.

What's missing here? A fourth mounting screw for the heat sink. I can't build now. This is outrageously bad quality control. 1 star.

Adequate cooling and the fan is nice and quiet, but man is this a pain to install. It uses it's own back plate so you can't use the aftermarket AM5 retention brackets that make applying thermal paste easier. The cooler also requires you remove the stock retention bracket so there's nothing holding your CPU in place while trying to install this. Turns it in a real hassle that requires 3 hands and poses a real risk of ending up with a CPU that's not seated properly or a damaged socket.

Ich verwende diesen Lüfter für den Selbstbau-Mini-PC aus dem c't Magazin, Ausgabe 17/24. Er tut nun seit etwa zwei Jahren seinen Dienst, ist unauffällig leise, im Normalbetrieb (ohne große CPU-Last) praktisch nicht zu hören, und selbst unter Last hält sich die Geräuschentwicklung im Rahmen. Ich bin äußerst zufrieden!

Cannot recommend highly enough. Very easy to install, comes with all the mounting hardware and even thermal paste. RAM clearance is not an issue and will fit in even the smallest ITX cases, including my Jonsbo NV10. Nearly silent at idle, and only just audible during stress tests; with headphones on, you will not hear it at all even at full whack. Temperatures are outstanding, maintaining ~60°C under full load for an undervolted Ryzen 5 9600X. Everything feels premium, both the cooler itself and the packaging. Highly recommended!!

This is a cool item! Works great with my Ryzen 9

Bra kvalitet, lätt att montera, tyst. Lite stel kabel precis vid kontakten, men det är nog Noctua generellt.

Un buon dissipatore silenzioso per il gaming medio.