Zalman CNPS7000-Cu with ZM-CS1 Retention Mechanism: Former Champ Gets New Duty

First Glance

Zalman’s CNPS7000-Cu is a previous-generation model from Zalman intended strictly for Intel Pentium 4 processors in mPGA478 form-factor as well as AMD Athlon 64 chips in PGA754 packaging. It gives the same good impression as the current high-end model CNPS7700-Cu with its packaging that contains everything you may need. The main question for owners of the CNPS7000-Cu today is whether they should upgrade to the larger CNPS7700-Cu when upgrading their CPUs or not. We’ll find out later.

Unlike Zalman’s coolers, the ZM-CS1 comes in a rather unpretentious packaging that contains necessary bolts and nipples besides the bracket itself, which is made of anodized aluminum.

The original FanMate bundled with Zalman CNPS7000-Cu is a nice little device, but which cannot be mounted outside the PC case. As a consequence, whenever you want to adjust your fan’s speed, you need to open the case, which id definitely a job you wouldn’t like to do even one time a day.

Specifications

Installation Procedure

The model CNPS7000-Cu should be installed on Socket 478 and Socket 754 platforms and does not require any backplates unlike the newer cooler from Zalman. Therefore, typical installation process does not take a long time and hardly requires a lot of skills. However, if you plan to use the CNPS7000-Cu with a new Socket T mainboard along with ZM-CS1 clip, you’ll have to go through the same difficulties as you would have with the CNPS7700-Cu: before installing the ZM-CS1 retention mechanism you will have to remove your mainboard from the case, which is a relatively long process.

We would also like to note that installation of the ZM-CS1 clip requires very high precision when installing: it took us some time to find the right position for the bracket when installing it.

In spite of possible issues, the ZM-CS1 does what it is meant for: it gives the CNPS7000-Cu a new life and duty: to cool down LGA775 central processing units.