Zalman VF1000 LED Graphics Card Cooler
Submitted by Mike Chin on Sun, 2007-11-04 23:51.
Cooling
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C. Comparative: Zalman VF900 CU
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Zalman VF900-CU installed on the X1950XTX.
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Zalman VF900-CU Test Results
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State
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Fan Speed
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GPU Temp
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VGA Ambient
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CPU Temp
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AC Power
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System Noise @ 1m
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ATI Tool
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12V
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97°C
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59°C
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48°C
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249W
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30 dBA
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ATI Tool
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9V
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99°C
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61°C
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48°C
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248W
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28 dBA
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ATI Tool
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7V
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100°C
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62°C
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48°C
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248W
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24 dBA
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ATI Tool
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5V
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101°C
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62°C
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48°C
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249W
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21 dBA
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Idle
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5V
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47°C
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41°C
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27°C
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123W
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21 dBA
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Note: the included Zalman memory heatsinks
were used.
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Wow, a bit of a surprise here — the VF900-CU seemed inadequate to cool
the X1950XTX! Not only did the GPU temperature break the 100°C level at
lower fan voltages, the heat radiating off the back of the card rose and increased
the CPU temperature as well. We were on the edge of our seats half expecting
to see smoke billowing out of the case but ATI Tool continued to plug away
without any artifacts or instability noted. Still, we did not feel comfortable
with such a GPU high temperature. It may have be paranoia on our part, but
we were relieved when testing was over.
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ATI Tool: VF1000 LED vs. VF900-CU Comparison
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Fan Speed
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Zalman VF1000 LED
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Zalman VF900-CU
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System Noise @1m
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GPU Temp
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VGA Ambient
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GPU Temp
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VGA Ambient
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12V
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73°C
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54°C
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97°C
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59°C
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30 dBA
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9V
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76°C
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56°C
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99°C
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61°C
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28 dBA
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7V
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78°C
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57°C
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100°C
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62°C
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24 dBA
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5V
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79°C
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58°C
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101°C
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62°C
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21 dBA
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Compared side-by-side with the VF1000, it's clear that the VF900 is not
in the same league — we're not even sure they're playing the same
sport. Even at 5V, the VF1000 walks all over its predecessor at 12V by
a staggering 18°C. At all speeds, the respective fans were very similar
to each other, and our sound meter corroborated our opinion. There's not
much else to discuss here as the numbers say it all.
NOISE RECORDINGS IN MP3 FORMAT
These recording starts with a short stretch of "silence" to let you
hear the ambient sound of the room, followed by a stretch of the test product
noise at a specified fan speed, voltage or setting. There's a few seconds of
"silence" inserted between stretch of noise to help you remember the
reference ambient.
HOW TO LISTEN & COMPARE
These recordings were made
with a high resolution, studio quality, digital recording system, then
converted to LAME 128kbps encoded MP3s. We've listened long and hard
to ensure there is no audible degradation from the original WAV files
to these MP3s. They represent a quick snapshot of what we heard during
the review. Two recordings of each noise level were made, one from a
distance of one meter, and another from one foot
away.
The one meter recording
is intended to give you an idea of how the subject of this review sound
in actual use — one meter is a reasonable typical distance between
a computer or computer component and your ear. The recording contains
stretches of ambient noise that you can use to judge the relative loudness
of the subject. For best results, set your volume control so that
the ambient noise is just barely audible. Be aware that very
quiet subjects may not be audible — if we couldn't hear it from
one meter, chances are we couldn't record it either!
The one foot recording is
designed to bring out the fine details of the noise. Use this recording
with caution! Although more detailed, it may not represent how the subject
sounds in actual use. It is best to listen to this recording after you
have listened to the one meter recording.
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FINAL CONCLUSIONS
From a design standpoint, there is only one flaw in the Zalman
VF1000 LED graphics card cooler, and that is the stock fan. It is fairly
loud at full speed, but this is mitigated by the fact that it does undervolt
well. By including a Fan Mate 2 manual fan speed controller, users can adjust
the noise output to their own level of tolerance — we recommend 5V.
Compatibility is good — the VF1000 will fit on almost
any modern desktop graphics card with a few notable exceptions: The ATI
HD2900 series and nVidia Geforce 8800 series (the Geforce 8800GTS/GTX/Ultra
is compatible if you use the VF1000 in conjunction with Zalman's ZM-RHS88
heatsink package). These cards have additional components (mostly VRMs)
on the PCB which require separate heatsinks for cooling. You can of course
use your own memory or MOSFET heatsinks to cool these components.
Lastly and most importantly, the VF1000 is the best graphics
card cooler we've ever tested. It absolutely dominated the VF900-CU and
the X1950XTX stock cooler with ease. The design is simple and beautiful
as are so many of Zalman's products, and it doesn't use up a lot of real
estate. The price is high, but if you want quiet, superb VGA cooling without
taking up a massive amount of space, put the VF1000 LED at the top of your
list.
Pros
* Top notch performance
(even with the fan running at 5V)
* Fan undervolts well
* Incredibly easy to install
* Good compatibility
* Only takes up one extra slot
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Cons
* Stock fan loud at full speed
* Somewhat expensive
* Lacks extra heatsinks necessary for some cards
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Thanks to Zalman
Tech Co. for the VF1000 LED sample.
* * *
SPCR Articles of Related Interest:
Sytrin KuFormula VF1
Plus graphics card cooler
VGA Cooler Roundup:
A Thermalright, two Zalmans, and an Arctic Cooling
* * *
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