Zalman is the most well known name when it comes to CPU cooling. Famous for their great cooling at low noise levels and innovative designs, they have been at the forefront of the cooling industry for years. Prior to this review, I had owned heatsink/fans from almost every major company, from Tuniq to Noctua, but never a Zalman product, so I was really excited to try one out.

Today, I'm reviewing the Zalman CNPS8700 NT. This cooler is very similar to its counterpart, the CNPS8700 LED—in fact the only differences are color and fan connector. The LED is pure copper and has a 3-pin fan connector that uses a controller, while the NT is nickel-plated and has a PWM (pulse width modulation) 4-pin fan connector, which means that it can interact with your motherboard to keep the lowest noise level possible for its temperature.


The cooler comes in a sturdy, flashy box that shows off the cooler and its shiny base. Some features and specifications are outlined on the back, which are reproduced below from Zalman's website:


The major selling points of the CNPS8700 NT are its noise levels and its size, making it the ultimate HTPC companion. With these two features at Zalman's focus, will the performance take a hit or stay true to the Zalman name? Continue as we find out…