CONCLUSION

   Even though the original NH-L9i CPU Cooler by Noctua didn’t blow me us with its cooling efficiency it’s compact size, low profile, very good build quality and relatively good noise levels did make up for that, partially at least. 8 years later the new NH-L9i Chromax.Black doesn’t only look a lot better compared to its predecessor but its build quality is set at even higher levels and also produced better cooling efficiency (alas small) something which I honestly didn’t expect. Noise levels seem to also be improved slightly but that could just be due to the variable RPM of each model (the usual +-10% we see in terms of RPM).

   Currently the NH-L9i Chromax.Black Low-Profile CPU Cooler by Noctua retails for USD49.95 inside the USA (Amazon.com) and for 49Euros inside the EU (Amazon.de) a price tag which is set roughly 20% over the “regular” NH-L9i model. At the end of the day it’s clear that the NH-L9i Chromax.Black improves on many aspects of its predecessor and even though it’s cooling efficiency is not quite the best out there (still good for the size) it scores very high on everything else which is why it certainly deserves our Golden Award.

PROS

- Excellent Build Quality
- All Black Model
- Low Profile (37mm)
- Zero Interference (RAM)
- Noise Levels
- 6 Year Warranty

CONS

- Cooling Efficiency Levels (Overall)