Neil - Yes, the MSI backplate has threaded 'holes' that stick up about 1/4" above the surface of the mobo. I tried fitting the Zalman on top but it looked pretty shaky to me - that was just my impression from eyeballing it. It's a big heatsink, and I was worried that if the screw pressure wasn't cor...

I just built a new A64 2800+ system using the MSI K8N Neo Platinum and so far am very happy with both. Word of warning, though: MSI uses a glued-on backplate that is not compatible with the Zalman 7000 (as I discovered too late). If you search the forums (both here and at MSI) you will find more inf...

Too much trouble to swap the motherboard out, unless I encounter more issues...I really wanted a nForce 250gB board for the native SATA, and it's working perfectly on that front...Has anyone heard of a safe method for removing the MSI backplate? I have seen in another forum that this can apparently ...

Tyrdium, can you or anyone else give me some specifics on how you removed the MSI backplate? My K8N Neo Platinum has the incompatible type that appears to be glued on, but I haven't tried removing it for fear of ruining a $130 motherboard. Therefore, I am currently running the stock AMD cooler while...

I am in the process of rebuilding my computer and bought a MSI K8N Neo Platinum motherboard and got a Zalman CNPS7000-AlCu to go with it. I discovered that the backplate that comes mounted on the MSI board doesn't seem to work with the Zalman mount. The Zalman comes with a backplate that would work,...

Thanks, everyone, for all the input. I have taken the plunge and placed my order at NewEgg which includes a 160 Gb Samsung SATA, so I'll see how quiet they really are. The extra 40 Gb I could get with a Seagate was awfully tempting, though. Hopefully the entire system (new MSI motherboard with Cool ...

New SPCR member! I'm in the same quandry. Due to my motherboard recently going up in smoke in my main computer (never buying iWill again), I'm looking to rebuild with a quieter HD than my current WD 120Gb. I recently discovered SPCR for advice, but my head has been spinning over all the opinions on ...