Zalman NBF47

[RallyMaster]

Should I try it again? Last time I burned out an Abit KN8 Ultra (nForce4 Ultra) because I didn't mount that mess correctly and it was just wiggling around (and broke contact with the nForce4 chip). I know for sure the mounting is more stable this time after testing on my dead board. Well, the replacement board is a noisy little bitch and the fan is obviously gonna kick the bucket real soon as well as the one in my non-Ultra Abit KN8. I've purchased two NBF47s to go on the boards but my questions are 1. should I try using it again 2. if I do try it again, should I immediately ghetto mount a fan of some sort on there? and 3. If I don't, what's a cheap, quiet, LONG-LASTING solution to this problem besides shelling out $40 for two HR-05s?

I've read what aigomorla has said on the Zalman sinks but I'm not so convinced because there are people running P965s and P35s with that NBF47 and I've ran the earlier, blocky revision of that sink on an Abit NF7-S and it was very quiet. My other NBF47 is still in the packaging unopened, so I guess at this point I still may sell both of them somehow. What should I do?

EDIT: And by quiet, I mean nearly dead silent. I have a video card and a CPU both running passively in this thing and I don't want it to make nary a peep. All voltages will be stock.

 

[RallyMaster]

Well, I just tried the ghetto fan mount method using some 60x10mm fan I had on my NB previously. Seems to run cool enough so far.

 

[dawza]

You should be OK depending on the airflow around the heatsink and the degree to which you are stressing/overclocking the system. In my experience, the older NB-32 and NB-47 alone are barely adequate in a low-airflow, OCd system. However, even a tiny bit of direct airflow (i.e. from a <3500 RPM 40mm fan mounted with double-sided tape) drops the temps to comfortable levels.

My IR thermometer registered ~70C on load with the NB-32K on a NF4 mobo sans fan, and ~50-55C with a Scythe mini-kaze running at 5-7V. The NBF-47 should give even lower temps, by 5-10% at the very least.

I believe the NF4 chips are rated for up to 90C, but I have read reports of general system instability when temps exceed 75C. Considering the vast majority of NF4-equipped mobos do not have direct temp sensors, a 75C reading at the base of the heatsink might very well translate to significantly higher actual chipset temperatures.

 

[RallyMaster]

Well, unlike last time, my board isn't dead yet so I'm assuming it's doing fine. The chipset cooler only gets slightly warm to the touch.