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View Full Version : Zalman ZM80-HP impressions

tieros
11-25-02, 03:58 PM
I just installed one of these fanless heat pipe babies on my Gainward GF4 4600, and so far I'm extremely impressed by it.

It is SO nice to finally be able to hear myself think again :)

I replaced the HSF on my Athlon 1900+ a couple of months ago with a Zalman copper "seashell" cooler. It definitely dropped the noise down a few decibels, but the whine of the GPU cooling fan was still just too much.

The GPU cooler is a copper heatpipe that when attached to the video card weighs approx. 1 pound. Installation was much easier than some of the review sites make it out to be, but since I read (and saw) the reviews first, I guess I had an unfair advantage :)

The hardest part by far was getting it back into a server case without a forklift :)

I kept the overclock at 310/700, same as when I was using the stock cooler. The only change I had made to the previous GPU was replacing the stock thermal grease with AS3.

I may experiment with a higher OC in a while, but since I leave the computer on 24/7, I don't want to push my luck :)
Bigus Dickus
11-25-02, 04:30 PM
Does it have any supplemental ways of supporting the card, or just the normal AGP slot and lock?
tieros
11-25-02, 04:41 PM
Originally posted by Bigus Dickus
Does it have any supplemental ways of supporting the card, or just the normal AGP slot and lock?


Nope, no additional support structures.

The weight is toward the plug edge of the card, though, and evenly distributed between the front and back of the card.

I don't think I would use it on a portable LAN-party type of machine, unless the AGP card was sitting vertically, though. That's a whole lot of copper to be bouncing around :-)
Bigus Dickus
11-25-02, 05:00 PM
No kidding. I'm using an Alpha Pal15U (I think that's the name of it)... a low profile SS7 cooler with copper insert. Pretty heavy, but nowhere near a pound, and I'm worried about mine!

I think I would rig up some kind of hangar or something for that card. I'm interested in this cooler though for a dedicated audio workstation... you don't want a noisy computer when you are recording. :)