Noctua Confirms AM5 Radiator Compatibility
AMD has already confirmed that the CPU cooler for the AM4 platform is compatible with the AM5 platform product. This means that even if users buy a new platform, they can still use the CPU radiator of the original AM4 platform, such as some high-end integrated water-cooling radiators, which will greatly reduce the cost of users migrating to the platform. The mounting hole spacing of the AM5 socket is the same as the current AM4 socket, and AMD also retains the same Z height. Generally speaking, the mounting fasteners of the AM4 platform are compatible.
Image: Noctua
The famous radiator manufacturer Noctua issued an announcement confirming that in addition to the NH-L9a-AM4 thin radiator and the NM-AM4-L9aL9i installation kit, its other AM4 platform CPU coolers and mounting kits are suitable for the AM5 platform. Noctua will have the new NM-AM5-L9aL9i mount kit, available for free from the end of October. Upgrade installation kits for older radiators that do not yet support the AM4 platform will also be provided to customers free of charge.
All SE-AM4 models purchased since January 2019 and all Noctua multi-platform CPU coolers already support the AM5 platform. Before January 2019, purchasing a multi-platform CPU cooler that has been upgraded to the AM4 platform using the NM-AM4 or NM-AM4-UxS mounting kit does not require further upgrades and is also compatible with the AM5 platform. For ease of identification, the NM-AM4 or NM-AM4-UxS kits will be renamed to NM-AM5/4-MP83 (for coolers with 83mm mounting pitch) and NM-AM5/4-MP78 (for coolers with 78mm mounting pitch).
The NH-L9a-AM4 and NM-AM4-L9aL9i are not compatible with the AM5 platform, mainly due to the need to use a custom backplane in place of the standard AMD backplane, which is not feasible on the AM5 platform. Therefore, the NM-AM5-L9aL9i mounting kit is required to upgrade the NH-L9a, NH-L9a-AM4, and NH-L9i coolers to the AM5 platform. The NH-L9i-17xx heatsinks cannot be used because they have been customized for the different height specifications of the LGA 1700 platform. In addition, Noctua plans to launch a new version of the NH-L9a radiator that already includes the AM5 mounting kit in the first quarter of 2023.
