The ZM80A-HP is shipped as a do-it-yourself kit and isn’t something you mount onto the videocard in just a few seconds, the ZM80A-HP is a kit that’s not for the weak hearted and demands concentration and a steady hand to get it installed onto the videocard properly. Fortunately Zalman has not cut any corners with this product, like we often see with aftermarket products, and supplies the kit with an excellent manual that details set-by-step how to mount the heatsink properly. And they didn’t stop there, they also provide a plastic bag with spare parts so when you lose a screw or a rubber o-ring you will still be able to mount the heatsink properly, a nice touch and very welcome.





A look at the front and back plate, the back plate is not in contact with the PCB of the videocard.

As mentioned the manual is pretty clear about what goes where and if you follow it step by step and take your time you’ll end up with a properly installed heatsink for your videocard. We used it on a number of cards in our office, including a Radeon 9700 Pro and a GeForce FX 5600. Although the passive heatsink gets pretty hot with the Radeon 9700 Pro, it continues to function properly. However, don’t expect to reach new heights in terms of clockspeed; the ZM80A-HP doesn’t have much reserve built in for overclocking. If you’re looking to push your videocard a bit further than with the original heatsink you can mount a bracket over the heatsink with an 80- or 92-mm fan to create some extra airflow, which will result in much lower temperatures and possibly a higher clockspeed.