ZM80A-HP Concerns

MGP · Post by **MGP** » Fri Feb 07, 2003 2:54 pm

Hi everyone. I recently bought a ZALMAN ZM80A-HP heatpipe cooling system for my geforce 4 ti 4600 graphics card from sharkacorp.com (a company that I believe is very closely tied with Zalman). however, i noticed that some of the pins in the upper corner of one of the heatsinks are bent and a little of the gold plating has worn off to show the aluminum underneath. I believe that the review at Adrian's Rojak Pot also had a similar situation with the sample that he reviewed. Has anyone who owns the zm80a-hp run into this situation? would it be considered a defect that would hurt the product's cooling capability, or is it not even a problem? i would really appreciate some input. thanks!

jhh · Post by **jhh** » Fri Feb 07, 2003 3:34 pm

The heatpipe is gold plated, if it is the part in contact with the sink then I suppose that could damage heat transfer.

I doubt a fin being bent will hurt cooling much, <1% maybe. Then again, I'd be unhappy to pay full price for product in imperfect condition just as matter of principle so I say send it back!

Badashmods · Post by **Badashmods** » Fri Feb 07, 2003 10:39 pm

Sounds like it was dropped maybe in shipping. Unlikely it would cause any probs except if its on the contact points where you put thermal paste. But if you have a case window and want it to look good return it. They say be real careful with the heatpipe itself if it is damaged at all it can cause serious probs.

Mike Sae · Post by **Mike Sae** » Fri Feb 07, 2003 11:50 pm

2-3 fins on mine were slightly bent and some of the anodized finish was scuffed. They're easily bent back with a flat head screwdriver. The anodizing on the heatsink is just for aesthetics and some scuffing won't harm performance. If it truly bugs you, then I'm sure they'll exchange it.

jinu117 · Post by **jinu117** » Sat Feb 08, 2003 12:49 am

I didn't have that problem at all... but... retail package is such that you can actually see the condition of unit... maybe one thing to keep in mind before getting too excited to buying it.

Riffer · Post by **Riffer** » Sat Feb 08, 2003 6:03 am

Thanks for the 'heads up'.

Probably may require me to actually attend a retail establishment if I want to get one.

jinu117 · Post by **jinu117** » Sun Feb 09, 2003 4:36 pm

Riffer wrote:Thanks for the 'heads up'.

Probably may require me to actually attend a retail establishment if I want to get one.

I would recommend local Fry's electronics if you have one. They have it at about $30 pop which is decent pricing in my opinion

rpc180 · Post by **rpc180** » Sun Feb 09, 2003 8:11 pm

I just got one too and I wanted to know if this other behavior is normal. After install I ran a few loops of 3Dmark2k and felt the heatsinks. The bottom one was warm, the top was so-so, but the card PCB is hot to the touch. Under normal running both heatsinks seem to be around the same temperature so for now I'm ruling out the possibility of a problem with the heatpipe (it is liquid based so it takes a while to physically transfer heat right?) and maybe the installation (I checked it twice once last night and once this morning).

With stock fan coolers, does the fan make enough sideway circulation to cool the PCB? I never noticed hot PCBs before, but I wasn't looking really. Anyone else's experience with the zalman seem similar?

jhh · Post by **jhh** » Mon Feb 10, 2003 4:55 am

I noticed this a while ago, also my video RAM chips were very hot, maybe becasue of radiated heat from the sink, Put 5v 92mm fans above the back side of the sink, fitted some sinks on the ram, now everything is nice&cool.

ZM80A-HP Concerns

ZM80A-HP Concerns

zm80a Concerns