Zalman CNPS9900 LED
Posted 04/07/09 at 10:00:00 AM by Nathan Edwards
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When Zalman told us its new CNPS9900 LED was the best CPU air cooler ever, we took the news with a grain of salt. For more than a year, the company’s CNPS9700 LED had been our top air cooler, until Thermaltake’s DuOrb usurped Zalman’s place at the top of the heap in our July 2008 issue. Can the CNPS9900 retake the cooling throne for Zalman?
In a word, yes. This copper-finned monster outperforms the Thermaltake DuOrb across the board, keeping our test bed’s CPU an average of three degrees cooler than the DuOrb was able to at both idle and full burn, making it the best CPU air cooler we’ve ever tested.
Each of Zalman’s CNPS9000 series coolers has been larger than the last, and the CNPS9900 is no exception—at 3.7”x5.5”x6.24”, it’s about half an inch wider than the 9700 and almost three-quarters of an inch taller. That’s big, all right, but still not the largest air cooler we’ve tested—not by a long shot. The CNPS9900 is instantly recognizable as kin to the rest of the CNPS9000 series, although this time its trademark copper radial-finned heatsinks are on either side of the 120mm blue LED fan, with two in the front and one in the rear. A plastic shroud surrounds the fan and gives your fingers a safe place to grasp, but it can be removed for better performance, though doing so increases the risk of chopping up errant cables or fingers. The CNPS9900 is slightly louder than the CNPS9700 at full bore, but certainly not deafening.
Installation is easier than it was with the CNPS9700, although if you’re on a Socket 775 or 1366 board you’ll still have to remove your motherboard to install the back plate.
Be warned, however: Like its predecessors, the CNPS9900’s fins are apt to draw blood from the careless installer. But given this cooler’s performance, we figure maybe the CNPS9900 simply requires a blood sacrifice to kick-start whatever unholy deal it made in exchange for ultimate cooling power. And we’re OK with spilling a little blood to get top-notch performance.
Zalman CNPS9900 LED
Heinz
Powerful performance, slightly easier install. Includes Socket 1366 bracket.
Hunt's
Intel install still requires mobo removal; fins
may draw blood from careless users.
Benchmarks
| Zalman CNPS9900 | Themaltake DuOrb | Stock Cooler | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Idle (C) | 29.8 | 33 | 37 |
| 100% Burn (C) | 46.8 | 49 | 68 |
Best scores are bolded. Idle temperatures were measured after an hour of inactivity; load temperatures were measured after an hour’s worth of CPU Burn-In (four instances). Test system consists of a stock-clock Q6700 processor on an EVGA 680i motherboard.
Prolimatech Megahalems
Submitted by Pureoverclocking on Thu, 06/11/2009 - 1:16pm
FTW Prolimatech Megahalems King.
Yay or Nay?
Submitted by AntiHero on Tue, 04/07/2009 - 7:14am
Are these really worth it? I mean I don't know much about this stuff(learning for my next major build), but don't you have to modify the case just to house it? I mean it's cool and all that you could decorate it and when times may get tough, clone yourself from the neat decoration on it, i mean look at those,all the thin copper pieces, you won't feel the cuts until the next day, and as was stated above, bleed profusely. I've been cut by sheet metal and some pc parts, you really can't feel it, it's not even the feel of a needle or anything. Right or wrong on the case thing...is 3 degees really worth 80 bucks? There are cheaper, more efficient solutions. I mean how many people run 100% burn nowadays? I never do on my gaming laptop...it never goes over 50 celcius with a 320gb 7200rpm drive, 9500m gs, 2.0ghz centrino duo, and 4 gigs of ram, and it barely reaches 50 on most days when i run stuff on full.I understand a PC is worse, but i've never seen a temperature go over 57 celcius. With adequate blowers and fans, inside a case with sensible cooling, does this actually prove to be efficient? or wasteful.
I don't like Microsoft, I associate with it.
Submitted by kiaghi7 on Tue, 04/07/2009 - 2:31pm
It is a good cooler, no doubt about that, however go to places like Frostytech.com and the like for real indepth reviews, explainations of their methodology, and even numerous links to other independent sites with their own reviews.
Keep in mind, high end coolers are for overclocking purposes mostly. If you're running at stock speeds, then spending 50-60-70 or more dollars on a high-end heat sink, fans, thermal grease/paste, possibly fan filters (to keep all the grills clean of dust) and other accessories simply isn't worth while to you, and you very likely don't need it to begin with.
If you are either obsessive about silence from your CPU heatsink there are numerous high-end solutions (air and liquid) that can satisfy that demand, or if you intend to over clock, then a high end cooler may also be ideal for you.
Now this isn't a knock against MaximumPC nor Zalman coolers, but there are several coolers out right now that blow anything in the Zalman lineup clear out of the water. If you want silence, Scythe holds 7 of the top 10 quietest coolers on FrostyTech's list (so there's something to be said for that alone), and if you simply want to make it cold and keep it that way, there's several manufacturers all within a few degrees of eachother in the performance top-10, but not a single one of them is a Zalman (anything). Don't of course take FrostyTech as gospel either, research at least three or four completely seperate reviews (yes, this requires reading... I'm sorry) and you will be much richer for the experience than you were before.
Now granted, many of these alternatives aren't "mainstream" heatsinks, and you won't find them at BestBuy I'd figure, but if you're planning to do some enthusiast modification, then you should use enthusiast parts. Also, keep in mind that many of the solutions that completely eclipse this product, are actually CHEAPER than the Zalman alternative that is, in the end, less impressive.
So, to MaximumPC, open up to the wider market of Heatsinks out there that trounce the "magazine favorites" royally and compare them side-by-side. To potential buyers, caveat emptor, quite often a rosy article only willing to look at one, maybe two other alternatives is likely not telling you the whole story and there is almost certainly more to be had at the mere click of a mouse should you investigate independently of any one singular source.
This or TRUE 120?
Submitted by bandeezee on Thu, 04/09/2009 - 2:47pm
I thought the TRUE 120 was the best in the business, no? Many people don't like to test the TRUE 120 because it doesn't come with a fan, but that's the beauty of it, you can pair it with any fan you want. At the very least use a similar fan to whatever HSF you're comparing it to, that way people won't think it's unfair. I would just make sure it's lapped first because it comes with a convex base.
*sigh* MPC need to check it's verbage
Submitted by Gailim on Tue, 04/07/2009 - 6:46am
this is not the "best cooler in the world". this is the "best cooler MPC has tested" and let's be honest, they dont test many. the Zalman 9700 was never the best cooler, it wasnt on the day that it launched. neither was the DuoOrb, and this certainly isnt either. if MPC would test more than 3 a year they might know this.
where is the the V10 review? where is the the TRUE review? where is the Noctua review? all three of these coolers outclass the Zalman featured here
I strongly agree. The Zalman
Submitted by MAXPCreader07 on Tue, 04/07/2009 - 11:19am
I strongly agree. The Zalman is far far away from being the best cooler.
Ref: V10
Submitted by CTskifreak on Tue, 04/07/2009 - 10:59am
V10 is terrible. Just an FYI, as a subscriber to the magazine.
the V10 was reviews in the
Submitted by nekollx on Tue, 04/07/2009 - 8:32am
the V10 was reviews in the previous (print) issue, its just not up online from what i can tell. So your argument falls half flat.
Submitted by reaper on Tue, 04/07/2009 - 6:33am
read about all these people cutting themselves on Newegg' reviews so I was prepared. lol Had on a pair of rubber gloves and didn't cut anything in the process. :D Can't wait to use the 9900 on my next build.
Submitted by rayatwork05 on Tue, 04/07/2009 - 5:52am
thats neat because my freezer7 idles my q9450 at 29C...i cant justify $80 for this, good review or not. hell im happy w/stock coolers.
Submitted by Zoomer on Mon, 04/06/2009 - 10:26pm
Thermaltake's coolers are excellent. Still running the 9500 in my older system, and as it was my first time messing with the guts of any system, I ended up cutting my knuckles on three fingers. You have to be attentive, as the cuts are unlikley to be felt, and will just bleed profusely regardless.
Anyway, like I said, awesome coolers are just the name of the game for Thermaltake. :)
Um.. You mean Zalman right?
Submitted by Keith E. Whisman on Mon, 04/06/2009 - 11:24pm
Um.. You mean Zalman right? The Zalman 9500? Because Thermaltake doesn't have a 9500 anything. :)
I do indeed love this
Submitted by nedwards on Mon, 04/06/2009 - 9:05pm
I do indeed love this cooler, but I manage to cut my fingers nearly every time I install it. BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD
Submitted by GBH on Mon, 04/06/2009 - 8:21pm
I want :) but Im running a C2D with a Freezer7 Pro so I'll wait till i go to a quad or =O i7
Submitted by Keith E. Whisman on Mon, 04/06/2009 - 7:57pm
I love this cooler. Too bad I have the Thermaltake V1. But I did check out this cooler and I think you install the HSF and then remove the Plastic shroud. I think that plastic shroud is to make it safer to install without cutting yourself and is intended to operate with the shroud off.
Submitted by shdwdragon7 on Tue, 04/07/2009 - 2:58pm
How hard is it to read the instructions? ;-) You are correct the plastic shroud is for protection during shipping only. It's ment to be removed prior to install (MPC "A plastic shroud surrounds the fan and gives your fingers a safe place to grasp, but it can be removed for better performance,").
Submitted by elahti on Mon, 04/06/2009 - 8:21pm
It demands your blooddddddddddd
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