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As that timeless adage goes "Beauty is only skin deep", and the CNPS9500 fits the bill. First, the better parts of its design and display.
The most striking feature of the CNPS9500 AM2 CPU cooler from Zalman is the cooling fins. The decidedly different star burst pattern is very appealing and is somewhat reminiscent of a stock Intel 775 cooler. I almost found myself wanting to call it "The Sunflower" for some peculiar reason.
Frome left to right...
- Noctua NH-U 12
- Zalman CNPS9500 AM2
- Gigabyte G-Power Cooler Pro
- Stock AMD Socket 939 cooler
- Stoack Intel LGA 775 cooler
The Zalman CNPS9500 does stand out in a crowd and will have some people wanting to take a closer look. The coolers size is quite competitive in relation to other cooling solutions.
| Length | Width | Height | |
| Inches | 3.35 | 4.41 | 4.92 |
| Millimeters | 85 | 112 | 125 |
Zalman is more than thorough in advising users as to the specifications of their product. Their site is awash in technical information and instructions. They even has videos of the assembly procedure. Here's a few more features of the Zalman CNPS9500 AM2 cooler, right from the side of the box.
| Heat sink Materials | Pure Copper Base |
| Pure Copper Fins | |
| Pure Copper Heat pipes | |
| Weight | 530 grams |
| 18.69 ounces | |
| Dissipation Area | 3698 cm2 |
| 542.19 inches2 | |
| Fan Size | 92 x 92 x 25 millimeters |
| 3.62 x 3.62 x .98 inches | |
| Bearing Type | Dual Ball Bearing |
| Fan Speed | 1350rpm ±10% to 2650rpm ±10% |
| Noise Level | 18.0dB ±10% to 27.5dB ±10% |
| Fan Operating Voltage | 5 to 12 volts |
There is one significant consideration for these figures however. Zalman states that this particular hear sink is constructed of pure 100% copper. It does appear that this cooler is constructed from Stainless Steel, but really it isn't. Apparently, this entire cooler has been plated in Nickel. That's right, plated to make it pretty. But incase you really like the sheen and shine of Copper, they actually do make one from bare Copper. Take a look...
As for the Nickel plate on the Zalman cooler, it won't have any dramatic affect on cooling. And for added bonus, the Nickel plating won't tarnish either. We would have liked to play with the shiny Copper model, but the CNPS9500 itself is near flawless. Perhaps the most obvious aspect of this cooler is the fins. These fins are stamped from .21mm(.010”) thick polished Nickel plated Copper. With these 90 ultra thin fins, the CNPS9500 absorbs all that heat dissipates all of those unwanted BTUs (British Thermal Units), wisping them away.
The 6.35mm (1/4") heat pipes run from the coolers base up into an elegant circular arc, giving the CNPS9500 that almost floral appearance. The Nickel plating upon these Copper pipes and fins shouldn't impact thermal performance too much, but bare Copper would have looked great.
As for how a heat pipes works, it is very simple. A liquid, most likely an inexpensive solvent such Isopropal Alcohol, is contained within the heat pipes. As the liquid at the bottom of the heat pipes picks up the heat produced by a loaded processor, it will evaporate. That vapor will then travel through the heat pipes, condensing back into a liquid at the coldest point. That condensed liquid will then trickle back down to the base of the heat pipes and the cycle repeats itself. In some instances, a fabric gauze is used to help collect the liquid through capillary action. This gauze is usually something simple, like cotton batting. It acts much in the same regards as a paper towel wicking up water.
The heat spreader surface of the CNPS9500 is incredibly well machined. You can see in the following picture how reflective the surface is.
The machining of this base imparts a great number of small arched valleys. These little crevices provide a sort of Fresnel lens effect, almost doubling the image. But these small depressions do help to trap some thermal paste and aide in heat transference.
One aspect of the CNPS9500 AM2 CPU cooler from Zalman that really caught my attention was the fan and how it passes air across the cooling fins. By having the fins evenly spaced and arranged in a circular fashion, it help to reduce wind turbulence. By reducing wind turbulence, you reduce noise. So, everything stays cool and quiet.
The fan itself is one of Zalmans own creations. It is pretty much your standard 83mm case fan without the external housing. Now, if you have a windowed PC case, you'll probably like the two bright green LEDs. They give the entire cooler an almost eerie glow during those late night frag fest's. The fan moves a lot of air for its size and spins at a pretty good clip. Thankfully, it is also very quiet.
So far, the CNPS9500 AM2 CPU cooler from Zalman is putting on a fine show. It is built well with both function and form in mind. Now, let's get onto the testing, shall we?
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