Question Is an L9i enough to cool an I5-12400 for gaming purposes? Without throttling it?

Toggle sidebar Toggle sidebar
J

Joe_182

Distinguished
Nov 7, 2016
197
20
18,685
Title explains most of it. But basically I am building an ITX gaming build and have the yeston Waifu, So i wanted to show the card off in the case without a giant CPU cooler hanging over it. AIO's cannot fit in the cases I was looking at.

The L9i is nice and small and will barely block the GPU. So if it can cool the 12400 no problem, that would solve my issue.

Thank you so much
 
Sort by date Sort by votes
Phaaze88 said:
https://ncc.noctua.at/cpus/model/Intel-Core-i5-12400-1587

According to Noctua, 'mechanically incompatible'. Check other options from the link.
Click to expand...
Lutfij said:
Make and model of the case you're looking to build in? The L9i is not enough to cool that processor. You should look into a 240mm AIO instead.
Click to expand...

Thank you both. I had a feeling. I am either using the NR200p or the SAMA IM02. I really didn't want to put the GPU vertical, and I wanted the glass window so no side AIO, but i guess i can't have it all with this build. I'm gonna have to compromise somewhere.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
Lutfij said:
Only comes in black and expensive but I can work with that.
Eh...? You can do a custom paint job on either the NR200P Max or the H1 v2, just need spray paint(canned or a garage).
Click to expand...
That's true! I've never had to that before, so it didn't even occur to me. Thank you all for the help, I appreciate it. I've done many builds, but am finding the restrictions of ITX a little bit challenging.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Lutfij
Upvote 0 Downvote
Proper SFF builds are all about compromises. I actually invested in 4x bespoke SFF cases, Compact Splash, and I had to do a lot of calc's before I invested into the case, primarily because a lot of compromises needed to be made, with thoughtful consideration...back in 2013. In 2022, you have a lot of options with regards to tech and cooling, the thing is you just need your wallet to do that part of the talking 😉
 
Upvote 1 Downvote
The stock cooler that comes with the 12400 will do the job up to a point.
It is likely to be more effective than the L9 type of coolers.
You could try that out first and see how you do.
Gaming does not stress all cores, but only a few, so heat may not be a big issue for you.
If you need a stronger cooler, look at the NH-D12L which is only 145mm tall.
Either case supports coolers up to 155mm, but I think that is for a graphics card mounted on the motherboard, and not on a riser.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Joe_182
Upvote 0 Downvote
For what it's worth, I use a NH-U9S on an 11600K inside the Silverstone Grandia which has really wonky air flow and it performs well enough for casual gaming. In this configuration the larger problem I have is keeping a GTX 1080 cool enough, which I found setting 1080/60 settings worked superbly for the higher demand games and temp issue.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Joe_182
Upvote 1 Downvote
Joe_182 said:
Thank you. I'll check it out. Only comes in black and expensive but I can work with that.
Click to expand...
No. It's not expensive. It's the same price. If you buy the case + cooler + psu seperate pieces, it'll roughly total what the NR200P Max is with the included cooler and psu. The only advantage to the non-Max is Choice of cooler and psu, but it's mITX so that can also be a disadvantage because what you want stands a good chance of not fitting well.

MITX is backwards to ATX. With ATX, you buy what you want, then pick the case you think looks good. With mITX, you pick the case, then figure out what fits inside regardless of make/model/vendor.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Joe_182, punkncat and Phaaze88
Upvote 0 Downvote
Karadjgne said:
No. It's not expensive. It's the same price. If you buy the case + cooler + psu seperate pieces, it'll roughly total what the NR200P Max is with the included cooler and psu. The only advantage to the non-Max is Choice of cooler and psu, but it's mITX so that can also be a disadvantage because what you want stands a good chance of not fitting well.

MITX is backwards to ATX. With ATX, you buy what you want, then pick the case you think looks good. With mITX, you pick the case, then figure out what fits inside regardless of make/model/vendor.
Click to expand...

Yeah. I think it just seemed expensive at first because I paid $100 for the case, $120 for a nice AIO, and $140 for an SF600 platinum ($360 total). So it's about $100 more getting the MAX than what I just paid and I lose the choice in parts. BUT you're absolutely right in that, that money is worth knowing it all fits.

I am gonna try and mod the NR200p to fit either the MSI MAG 240r or h100i capellix, with 15mm fans. Hoping I can get it to work.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
No. Not the MSI. Please not that. The Arctic liquid is good, but has a thicker rad, so stick with Fractal, Evga, EK, Deepcool, CoolerMaster MR or Corsair.

I have the SF600 Platinum, love that diminutive psu 👍. It's a breeze to work with those braided cables vs the ribbons.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Joe_182
Upvote 1 Downvote
Karadjgne said:
No. Not the MSI. Please not that. The Arctic liquid is good, but has a thicker rad, so stick with Fractal, Evga, EK, Deepcool, CoolerMaster MR or Corsair.

I have the SF600 Platinum, love that diminutive psu 👍. It's a breeze to work with those braided cables vs the ribbons.
Click to expand...
Ha you're the second person. I looked quick and I thought it had good reviews on first glance, but you guys must see a ton of issues I'm guessing on here for it.

Yeah the SF600 seemed like a really solid choice. I am excited to get everything assembled. Just gotta get this AIO to fit. Hopefully......fingers crossed lol Or an ugly air cooler it is.

Side note, if anyone wants a free set of NR200p style feet 3d printed for a SAMA IM02 that I sent back, they can have the ones I just printed for free.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
Oh, the msi does have good reviews. But, that's quick reviews when the unit is new. It's like an Amazon review of 5stars for 'it works, fast shipping' but you don't see ppl coming back after 6months and saying it's a POS because it suddenly failed.

Even the pro reviews have very little bad to say about them, but again, that's initial reviews not anything 6months± of usage. Most ppl do have decent luck with things, they work as intended for the duration, it's just the % of failures that's rather larger than normal.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Joe_182
Upvote 0 Downvote
Karadjgne said:
Oh, the msi does have good reviews. But, that's quick reviews when the unit is new. It's like an Amazon review of 5stars for 'it works, fast shipping' but you don't see ppl coming back after 6months and saying it's a POS because it suddenly failed.

Even the pro reviews have very little bad to say about them, but again, that's initial reviews not anything 6months± of usage. Most ppl do have decent luck with things, they work as intended for the duration, it's just the % of failures that's rather larger than normal.
Click to expand...

Very true. That exact scenario is what kept me away from the ASrock ITX mobo I was looking at. Has good reviews so far, but who knows how long the board will hold up? As it looks cheap. I had never seen anyone ever use MSI AIO's, so that already was kind of a red flag, it's always corsair, CM, and NZXT. Thanks for steering me away.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
Fractal has pulled all inventory that they can find, and are reprinting boxes to show fixed versions, so if you get a Lumen from someplace like Amazon or newegg, it should be one of the fixed, whereas that might not be the case with a little mom-n-pop store Fractal hasn't reached.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Joe_182
Upvote 0 Downvote
Phaaze88 said:
https://ncc.noctua.at/cpus/model/Intel-Core-i5-12400-1587

According to Noctua, 'mechanically incompatible'. Check other options from the link.
Click to expand...
So interestingly enough, I found this test by HWcooling. It actually tests the 12400 with the L9i. By the looks of the results, If i am understanding them correctly. It seems to cool the 12400 good enough? 77c in cinebench23 @ No PL. I was a bit confused when it started getting into the PL stuff though. What do you make of the results, despite noctua saying the cooler is not compatible? Thanks again for all the advice.

Edit- I actually see part of the issue. It says mechanically incompatible because the actual L9i is a couple below that called the L9i-17xx (For the 1700 chips) So i guess it's compatible, but it seems to have a low score for boosting.

www.hwcooling.net

Noctua NH-L9i-17xx: Only 37 mm tall and 65 W in silence - Page 2 of 10 - HWCooling.net

Results: Maximum performanceVery low profile, high cooling performance and Intel LGA 1700 support. These are demanding requirements that Noctua NH-L9i-17xx meets as one of the few coolers (maybe the only one?). The first two requirements could probably be argued about in others, but in the end...
www.hwcooling.net www.hwcooling.net
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
Joe_182 said:
So interestingly enough, I found this test by HWcooling. It actually tests the 12400 with the L9i. By the looks of the results, If i am understanding them correctly. It seems to cool the 12400 good enough? 77c in cinebench23 @ No PL. I was a bit confused when it started getting into the PL stuff though. What do you make of the results, despite noctua saying the cooler is not compatible? Thanks again for all the advice.

Edit- I actually see part of the issue. It says mechanically incompatible because the actual L9i is a couple below that called the L9i-17xx (For the 1700 chips) So i guess it's compatible, but it seems to have a low score for boosting.

www.hwcooling.net

Noctua NH-L9i-17xx: Only 37 mm tall and 65 W in silence - Page 2 of 10 - HWCooling.net

Results: Maximum performanceVery low profile, high cooling performance and Intel LGA 1700 support. These are demanding requirements that Noctua NH-L9i-17xx meets as one of the few coolers (maybe the only one?). The first two requirements could probably be argued about in others, but in the end...
www.hwcooling.net www.hwcooling.net
Click to expand...
Dang, I missed that.
Even then, it's still not great, and Cinebench doesn't accurately represent the system under a gaming load either, as they can be worse than Cinebench.
Downdraft coolers don't do as well as they could in cases that have no ventilation over them, in the side panel they face.
In ATX cases, they do ok, until the gpu is active; in most PCs today, those gpu's use open air coolers dumping their waste heat inside the PC. The gpu is the closest ventilation to the downdrafts - not the front fans, and not the fans above or at the rear.
ITX cases have some variance, including the above scenario: a vertical gpu, gpu AIO or custom loop, glass or other solid panel may be in front of the cooler.

www.overclock.net

* * Ways to Better Cooling; Airflow, Cooler & Fan...

www.overclock.net www.overclock.net
Going by this old thread over on overclock.net, changing the fan position may actually be better for it than what the default does.
[Some of the images on there are indeed broken from the last site platform change, and I suppose the author never bothered to fix the broken ones.]
Downflow / Pancake Cooler Fan Orientation for Better Cooling
"I've found more often than not, using the fan to pull air up from cooler give significantly lower temps than pushing air into cooler.

Reason is, pushing air in through cooler means hot air coming out toward motherboard turns out, hits RAM, GPU, I/O housings etc. turning up past cooler & fan and is sucked back into fan.

With fan pulling out of cooler, air flows over motherboard, up into cooler, fan and out side vents.

Even on open bench testing just turning the fan often lowers mobo and CPU temps by 5-8c."
 
  • Like
Reactions: Lutfij and Joe_182
Upvote 1 Downvote
Phaaze88 said:
Dang, I missed that.
Even then, it's still not great, and Cinebench doesn't accurately represent the system under a gaming load either, as they can be worse than Cinebench.
Downdraft coolers don't do as well as they could in cases that have no ventilation over them, in the side panel they face.
In ATX cases, they do ok, until the gpu is active; in most PCs today, those gpu's use open air coolers dumping their waste heat inside the PC. The gpu is the closest ventilation to the downdrafts - not the front fans, and not the fans above or at the rear.
ITX cases have some variance, including the above scenario: a vertical gpu, gpu AIO or custom loop, glass or other solid panel may be in front of the cooler.
Click to expand...
Thank you for that incredibly detailed response. That makes a lot of sense. With these glass panel cases it definitely doesn't help my situation at all as far as thermals I'll just move on from the L9i, by the sounds of the multiple people chiming in, it's just not up to the task. I thought "Maybe" the L9i-17xx would have been different. Which means I am gonna attempt cramming an AIO in here on top. The H100i.......It's doable but kind of a pain.

As a side note, I am coming from multiple mATX/ATX builds that use a Noctua D15 lol So I have been spoiled with not worrying about CPU temps. I've never had an issue because I was always equipped. I definitely have a new respect for SFF builders. It's also not helping I'm trying to show off a GPU backplate in an SFF case which might be a fools errand. If i wasn't trying to do that, i would just put the Big Shuriken 3 and call it a day, or even a fuma.

I have the SAMA IM02 as well, so whichever I can fit an AIO on top is what I'm going with. Thanks again, and to everyone else, I appreciate it.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
You must log in or register to reply here.

TRENDING THREADS

Latest posts

Moderators online

Share this page

COMPANY
RESOURCES
FOLLOW
Top Bottom