Zalman CNPS17X Air CPU Cooler Review

How Much Does it Cost?

The Zalman CNPS17X is available to purchase now for a price in the region of £54.99. – Perhaps somewhat surprising for something of a relatively fringe brand, it’s also available from a surprisingly large number of retailers here in the UK, meaning that if you are interested in making this your next cooling solution, you shouldn’t have any difficulties in quickly and conveniently getting yourself one.

Admittedly, the price tag may make some users balk. It is, after all, pushing the upper-mid section of what consumers would usually expect to see from air cooling solutions. However, based on the aesthetics and performance this offers, I would honestly struggle to think of a truly overall better alternative to the Zalman CNPS17X without having to spend a lot more money.

Overview

Zalman has definitely attempted to bring something fresh and unique to the market with the CNPS17X, and in many respects, they have succeeded exceptionally well. Not only does this offer something a little new and interesting in terms of the design and aesthetics, but in terms of performance, this truly is a high-performance cooling solution offering excellent levels of temperature control while barely making a whisper.

And if you fancy a little overclocking, then the results provided in our testing clearly demonstrate that there is certainly more than enough room in that remit with the Zalman CNPS17X for consumers to get some exceptionally decent results. Remember as well, there’s always a compromise to be made in terms of fan noise output and temperature control. On a personal level, if I was going to use this as an overclocking cooling solution, I think a little fiddle with the PWM settings in the BIOS could provide you with some exceptionally impressive levels of performance.

Should I Buy One?

In something of a full disclosure, when our Zalman CNPS17X first arrived, I suspected that this was going to be an exceptionally nice-looking cooler that would perhaps be a little less impressive when it came to the testing. I was half right. – Not only does it look exceptionally impressive, but it offers a level of performance that most consumers would easily associate with a product that would cost at least 30%-40% more.

The success of the Zalman CNPS17X will be driven by consumers who view this as an attractive alternative to the more mainstream cooling solutions. In this regard, though, it has a lot of advantages. In terms of air coolers, this is one of the best-looking products currently available on the market. In terms of performance (both acoustic and temperature), this easily rubs shoulders with some of the best out there. – The biggest advantage the Zalman CNPS17X has, however, is in its price. For this money, I can’t honestly think off the top of my head of any better alternatives I’ve recently encountered.

So, in a nutshell, the Zalman CNPS17X is a triple-whammy of price, performance, and aesthetic attraction. And it doesn’t take a savvy consumer to see that this will, or at least should, always be a winning combination!

Pros

• Amazing levels of CPU temperature control
• Whisper quiet acoustic performance
• A strong and unique aesthetic regardless of whether the ARGB lighting is on or off
• Significantly better in pretty much all regards when compared to alternative air/AIO coolers of a similar price
• A unique quirky design that actually works with unquestionable build quality
• Entirely suitable for moderate levels of overclocking with a lot of potential possible on offer

Cons

• A product name that makes it sound more like a monitor than a cooling solution

Neutral

• You’re not provided with a manual ARGB controller, so for the lighting effects, you will either need your own hub solution or a sync compatible motherboard