Installation and Operation:
The
Zalman CNPS9900 LED CPU cooler was installed in a system with the following components for this review:
» Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 Dual Core processor
» ASUS P5KC P35 ATX motherboard
»
Western Digital Caviar SE16 WD7500AAKS 750GB hard drive
»
Aeneon XTUNE 2GB DDR3 1333MHz dual channel memory
»
Nesteq EECS 700 Watt power supply
» Windows Vista Home Premium, 64-Bit
Zalman uses a mounting design that bolts through the motherboard to a backplate, so you have to plan for the extra steps of removing your board during installation. While this may take more time than the push pin design, it does make for a more secure installation that can seat the cooler against the processor much better.
There were a few issues I encountered during installation that are worth mentioning. The first is that the whole process is a bit of a balancing act, as you have to manage the backplate, motherboard, cooler, two piece cooler retention bracket, screws, and screwdriver all separately. With many coolers, the retention bracket bolts to the cooler, but here it is like a loose press fit. I found that just bumping or tipping the board slightly before the screws were engaged would make the whole cooler tip over and the bracket would pop off. I had to reapply thermal paste and line things up a couple times before I got it right.
The images below show the cooler mounted on the P5KC motherboard, and you can see that while it is big, it isn't that big.
