| Noctua NH-U9 and NH-U12 CPU Coolers
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Installation:
Installation is simple for both coolers (and requires the exact same steps). I will be using the Noctua NH-U12 for the installation examples. Probably the worst aspect of the install is that you will most likely have to have access to the back side of your motherboard. Unless you are installing this on a new motherboard, that step is going to add some time to the install.
After you are ready to install this, the first step is to attach the proper bracket onto the cooler. There are two models of brackets. The bracket on the left is designed for Intel CPUs. The bracket on the right is designed for AMD CPUs. As you can see there is a little difference in them.
 
After you have the brackets and the motherboard support installed, installation should only take a few minutes. For Intel CPUs there is a support brace that you will need to attach. This will give the bracket a place to rest and be secured to. Finally, you can secure the cooler to the support braces. In the pictures below you can see the configuration for the Intel 478 (left picture) and Intel 775 (right picture).
 
Installing the coolers on a AMD CPU is quite similar with one difference. You do not need a support brace, the coolers mounting brackets will attach directly to the motherboard support. As you can see here, you use the heavy spring on the screws.
After removing my previous cooler, the Thermalright HR-01, I immediately noticed there was a difference in their size. In this picture, you can see the size difference between the two coolers. The Thermalright HR-01 is taller than the NH-U12, however the NH-U12 has longer fins. The width of the fins are identical at their widest points, except the NH-U12 is not square and are cut differently.
Here you can see the final installation of the coolers on two different CPUs. The picture on the left shows the NH-U9 cooler installed on an Intel P4 2.8 GHz socket 478. While the picture on the right shows the NH-U12 cooler installed on an AMD Athlon-64 3500+.
 
One word of warning, be sure this cooler will fit prior to purchasing it. I wanted to install this on my newest motherboard, the DFI Lanparty NF4 SLI-DR Expert, however the configuration of the socket and the location of the ram made it impossible to install. Using bare RAM, the cooler rested on the RAM chips, and I could tell it was scraping the RAM prior to install. This is not a unique situation to this cooler and the DFI Expert motherboard, as I have had this issue with many coolers. Likewise, on my Gigabyte K8NXP-SLI, the NH-U12 covers one of the RAM slots
A final word of advice when installing this cooler is to install the fans after you install the cooler. Getting to the screws below the fans is a little difficult to do. Installing the fans is very simple and can be done without accessing the bottom of the cooling fins.
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