The Basics:
Computing enthusiasts should recognize the design as a Zalman product with ease, even if their logo wasn't featured on the hub of the fan. They have been using this "basket of copper" fin design for years, but have managed to improve on it with every new release. The major innovation in the VF-900Cu is a pair of heatpipes that draw heat away from the base of the cooler straight to the very edge of the fins.
In the images below we see the tight array of copper fins surrounding an 11-bladed fan. If you take a close look, especially in the below right image, you can see the heatpipe circling the cooler just a few millimeters from the outer edge.
Flipping the cooler over provides a better understanding of how the heatpipe is routed. The heatpipes are sandwiched between the copper base and an aluminum plate, and then snake their way out to the perimeter. So, instead of heat being drawn away by the fins attached directly to the base, the heatpipes do all the work. That is right, the fins do not touch the base for thermal conductivity, heat transfer is accomplished via the heatpipes alone.
There are a few other things to note in the above images. One is just how perfectly finished the base of the cooler is. It is extremely flat and has a mirror finish. Another interesting feature is the array of aluminum brackets with small holes in them. All of these holes allow the VF-900Cu to be compatible with the large list of video cards listed previously. And the final thing worth noting in these views is the fan lead... Nothing fancy, but it is quite long which will help with routing it and the fan controller so that they can be tucked out of site.
The image below takes a side view at the area where a heatpipe mounts to the base, and where it reaches the edge of the cooler fins. Screws hold the pipes to the base, and a bit of brazing holds the pipes to each other and to the fins. .
In addition to the attractive styling, one of the first things I actually noticed was just how light the whole thing was. I picked it up and was surprised at how much 185g translated to in the palm of my hand. Many recent VGA coolers have concerned me with their excessive weights, but the VF-900Cu won't be one to test the PCI Express slot strength.
