Installation
We installed the Noctua NH-L9i on a different motherboard than the heat and sound performance test motherboards. We wanted to maintain consistency in our tests, so all tests were carried out on the Asus Z170M Plus mATX, but with physical test installation on the EVGA Z170 Stinger motherboard.
This is a good demonstration of how confined an mITX motherboard installation can be. Even with the Noctua NH-L9i’s small and square proportions, it’s still at the limit.
We ran this setup in the Inkubus 300µ mITX HTPC Personal Cube review without any issues. We even used the Intel 6700K CPU and had no overheating or throttling during normal usage. We didn’t game though, there’s no room for a GPU in the Inkubus 300µ.
Noctua NH-L9i L-Type Low-Profile CPU Cooler Review
Package - 9.3
Performance - 8.5
Price - 8
Consumer Experience - 9
8.7
Ok, so putting a dedicated mITX low-profile CPU cooler up against a serious desktop processor is a little out of context, but we managed to squeeze the Noctua NH-L9i L-Type Low-Profile CPU cooler into this window of performance, just. What does this mean? Well, you have your CPU limit for this CPU cooler, any further and you are in real thermal trouble. Any less of a CPU thermal design power (TDP) implementation, and you've got a great cooler.