Zalman CNPS7X-LED V-Shaped Dual Heat Sink CPU Cooler

For the application in which I’ve used this (a storage array running a low-power CPU), its small form factor is ideal, and I can also keep it very quiet. Installation is very simple, and the result feels sturdy.In a year or two, as the fan ages, I may replace it with a Noctua NF-B9 PWM for an even quieter set-up.

Upgrade the processor in my HP DX2250 to the 5600+ processor and the stock heat sink couldn’t keep the chip cool, running 60c+. This heatsink was easy to install, and the PWM fan means is super quiet too. The temps have dropped by 15c to 45c, which is more like it!!

I’m thinking of getting another one for my other PC, what more do I need to say?

I bought the CNPS7X LED to replace my tired old scythe ninja 2 which had no pwm on the fan just the standard 3pin connector and was struggling to cope with my 3.42ghz oc on my Q6600 GO; an old chip by today’s standards which I’m squeezing some more life out of before the next gen hits the shops. 70 degrees isn’t bad but left no room for a 3.8ghz oc I’ve been playing with. @ 3.8ghz it was hitting 78plus degrees and this chip is apparently happiest @ 71 or less according to the guides. Anyway I have an MSI P7N Sli Platinum mobo and the northbridge just about destroys any chance of fitting a high end cooler there simply isn’t the space around the chip. I was planning on spending fifty pounds or more and was sceptical when this showed up on my doorstep retailing at a good deal less than thirty pounds. Anyway it took me about twenty minutes to fit and well……..

For the money I challenge anyone to find a more efficient cooler. It lowered my 3.42Ghz overclock temperatures by ten degrees on fresh thermal compound. It never went over 60 degrees on torture test which was quite a shock. Now to try 3.8ghz ! If your looking for a good cooler to overclock a cpu on a mobo that hasn’t got much space around the cpu this just maybe the one ! Its quiet too and was set on performance mode with no noticeable sound increase above that of my other Antec 900 case fans.(it has a whisper mode too but hey I’m overclocking!).

Two things the clips are fiddly if you have big hands like me and the thermal paste is hard to apply to the base as it is made up of pipes and not a flat copper plate like I’m used to. Use a credit card and make sure to fill the dips between the copper pipes with the paste to stop air pockets forming. Apart from those two minor things its tiptop and a bargain out performing heat sinks costing twice as much.