Zalman ZM-NBF47 Northbridge Cooler on ECS KV2 Extreme Mobo

[hedgehog1965uk]

I want to replace the noisy fan-based northbridge cooler on my ECS KV2 Extreme motherboard with a silent passive cooler. I bought a Zalman ZM-NBF47 "flower" cooler from Quiet PC, cos it said in the spec that it was compatible with "all northbridge chipsets with pushpin holes and hooks". My current cooler is fixed to the motherboard with two hooks, so I assumed this would be fine. However, when I received the new heatsink, I found that it was only compatible with chipsets that are fixed with FOUR hooks (one in each corner). Although the ZM-NBF47 only uses two of these four hooks (in opposite corners), the two hooks on my motherboard are positioned and oriented differently, so the clips supplied are useless.

My question is this: Can you suggest another method of fixing the ZM-NBF47 to my motherboard? Would using semi-permanent thermal paste/glue to bond it to the northbridge chip be sufficient for a heatsink of this size and weight (57g). If not, can you recommend an alternative passive cooler that CAN be fitted using my two hooks?

Thanks

[WR304]

You could attach it easily using thermal epoxy:

http://www.quietpc.com/produc ... r-adhesive

The downside of thermal epoxy is that it makes a very strong bond and there's a good chance the heatsink won't come off again.

You can weaken the bond by diluting the thermal epoxy with normal thermal paste. That way it's not stuck on as strongly and you can remove the heatsink later.

Another option that works well is to put normal thermal paste over most of the heatsink base, and then a few drops of superglue on the corners to hold it in place. So long as you don't use too much superglue the heatsink will stay in place but still come off easily when needed.

[hedgehog1965uk]

Thanks for your suggestions. I emailed Andy Ford at Quiet PC technical support about this problem and got the following reply ...

"Sorry to hear about the problem.

I do get a similar enquiry like this about once a year and I always recommend using sticky thermal pads. I use a thermal pad on my own Southbridge and it's the next best thing to having it clipped onto the chip.

We don't sell them but I get one from Kustom PC's, who are a very reputable supplier - http://www.kustompcs.co.uk/acatalog/info_3769.html

Hope that helps!"

I have ordered the thermal pad that Andy suggested. I will give that a try, and if the bond does not seem strong enough, I will try the thermal adhesive that you have suggested. I don't have any problem with the bond being permanent, as I don't expect to have to remove the heatsink again for any reason.

Thanks again

[WR304]

The 3M tape bond should be fairly strong.

With a thermal pad the trick is to attach it, and then firmly press down on the heatsink for 30 seconds or so until it's attached securely. That should be enough to keep it in place.

[hedgehog1965uk]

Thanks for your advice. I used the thermal pad today to fix the Zalman heatsink and applied pressure to it as you suggested. It feels as though it has made a pretty strong bond and should be fine. I am glad that I remembered to buy some TIM cleaner to remove the old TIM properly, as this was pretty waxy. I also bought the thermal adhesive that you recommended, so I have that on standby to form a stronger bond if it looks as though the thermal pad is failing to hold this large heatsink in place.