Tuesday, November 7th 2023
Noctua Presents chromax.black Versions of NH-D9L and NH-L9x65 Coolers
Noctua today expanded its chromax.black line with all-black versions of the award-winning NH-D9L and NH-L9x65 CPU coolers: Staying true to the successful formula of the original models, the new chromax.black versions with their black fans and black coated heatsinks combine the same signature quiet cooling performance with a sleek stealth look. "Many users who build Small Form Factor systems value build-aesthetics just as much as performance and quietness of operation", says Roland Mossig (Noctua CEO). "Our NH-D9L and NH-L9x65 are highly popular among Small Form Factor builders, so we're excited to introduce them in all-black chromax versions!"
The new NH-D9L chromax.black and NH-L9x65 chromax.black are identical to the award-winning regular models except for the colour: Featuring black coated heatsinks, black fans with black anti-vibration-pads, black fan clips and black mounting parts, they are literally black from head to toe. Thanks to thoroughgoing optimisations of the coating material and process, the chromax.black models provide the same, renowned quiet cooling performance as their regular, non-coated counterparts.
The NH-D9L has been designed to provide excellent efficiency at a height of only 110 mm. Its comparably low profile (15 mm lower than classic 9 cm tower coolers such as the NH-U9S) doesn't only guarantee full 3U compliance but also makes the NH-D9L ideal for compact Mini-ITX and Small Form Factor cases that have airflow paths parallel to the motherboard. Thanks to its 95x95mm footprint, the NH-D9L always clears the RAM and PCIe slots, even on ITX motherboards.
The NH-L9x65 covers a middle ground between the larger NH-L12 series and the ultra-compact NH-L9i and NH-L9a series. With 65 instead of 37 mm height and four instead of two heatpipes, the NH-L9x65 is more powerful than its smaller siblings yet retains the NH-L9i's 95x95mm footprint, which, like with the D9L, not only guarantees 100% RAM and PCIe compatibility on current motherboards but also makes the cooler more convenient to work with as it doesn't overhang near-socket connectors.
Thanks to their highly optimised NF-A9 and NF-A9x14 premium fans that support fully automatic speed control via PWM, both coolers run remarkably quiet. Topped off with the professional SecuFirm2 multi-socket mounting system for Intel and AMD (including the new offset mounting bars for better performance on AM5), Noctua's renowned NT-H1 thermal compound and a 6 year manufacturer's warranty, they fuse everything users have come to expect from Noctua's larger coolers into compact premium packages for space restricted systems.
Suggested retail prices
The manufacturer's suggested retail prices are as follows:
The new NH-D9L chromax.black and NH-L9x65 chromax.black are identical to the award-winning regular models except for the colour: Featuring black coated heatsinks, black fans with black anti-vibration-pads, black fan clips and black mounting parts, they are literally black from head to toe. Thanks to thoroughgoing optimisations of the coating material and process, the chromax.black models provide the same, renowned quiet cooling performance as their regular, non-coated counterparts.
The NH-L9x65 covers a middle ground between the larger NH-L12 series and the ultra-compact NH-L9i and NH-L9a series. With 65 instead of 37 mm height and four instead of two heatpipes, the NH-L9x65 is more powerful than its smaller siblings yet retains the NH-L9i's 95x95mm footprint, which, like with the D9L, not only guarantees 100% RAM and PCIe compatibility on current motherboards but also makes the cooler more convenient to work with as it doesn't overhang near-socket connectors.
Thanks to their highly optimised NF-A9 and NF-A9x14 premium fans that support fully automatic speed control via PWM, both coolers run remarkably quiet. Topped off with the professional SecuFirm2 multi-socket mounting system for Intel and AMD (including the new offset mounting bars for better performance on AM5), Noctua's renowned NT-H1 thermal compound and a 6 year manufacturer's warranty, they fuse everything users have come to expect from Noctua's larger coolers into compact premium packages for space restricted systems.
Suggested retail prices
The manufacturer's suggested retail prices are as follows:
- NH-D9L chromax.black: EUR 74.90 / USD 74.90
- NH-L9x65 chromax.black: EUR 69.90 / USD 69.90
13 Comments on Noctua Presents chromax.black Versions of NH-D9L and NH-L9x65 Coolers
I do have the old 'Noctua NH-L9x65' (90mm) CPU cooler now and might buy a better CPU cooler later if I can find one that is better. It also has to fit on an 'Asus ROG Strix B650E-I Gaming WiFi' motherboard and my Mini-ITX case I have (supports up to 72mm cooler height) with the limited space it has. It also has to fit on the motherboard with RAM modules that are 44mm in height. The 'Thermalright AXP120-X67' just barely fits here with 45mm RAM clearance and 5mm more in height to go for the Mini-ITX case.
Mine's cooling a 5800X3D without issues, though I changed the fan to a T30 and set the curve to run at about 1400rpm when the CPU is at 90C, it mostly sits at under 85C under a full all-core load with the fan somewhere around 1200 RPM.Edit: Whoops, I'm full of shit; I'm using a larger Thermalright SI-100, which is 50% taller than the L9X65!The 5800X3D doesn't kick out a huge amount of total heat, but it is fussy about the contact patch and seems to overwhelm any direct-contact heatpipe coolers I've tried.
I'm a huge fan of Noctua's build quality, performance, and support - but their prices/value have always been a negative aspect and the market for low(er) profile cooling is far more competitive than it used to be.
Because if I don't really need that much of a cooling, I will rather save that space for a smaller air cooler instead then.
All of the temperatures on the GPU, motherboard, M.2 SSD's and so on are all fine in the case though. So, I do not have any heating issues overall even if the CPU temp can go up to 95 degree celcius sometimes (haven't set a temperature limit on it) under the most intense tasks (like running Cinebench R23 & 2024).
So, if the 'Thermalright AXP120-X67' CPU cooler is that much better over the 'Noctua NH-L9x65' CPU cooler as someone says, then I will rather go for the 'Thermalright AXP120-X67' CPU cooler over an AIO then.
I'm not convinced low-profile air coolers are a dying breed either. I can find more choice than I ever remember having last time I was building an SFF (ryzen 3000-series) and most of them seem very reasonably priced, too.
Personally, if I was going to go proper ITX I'd get one of those cases that acts as a giant heatsink for the CPU. But that's just me.