360° View - Zalman CNPS10X Extreme Heatsink Information on Frostytech's test methodology is available here.
A single 120mm fan ships with the Zalman CNPS10X Extreme heatsink. The PWM fan rotates at 1000-2150RPM, power is supplied by a 4-pin PWM motherboard fan header via the integrated fan speed controller. Five 6mm copper heatpipes are packed closely at the base, rising up to the full 110mm height of the aluminum fin section. Mounting brackets fit over the nub of the cast aluminum base cap, or onto either edge.
The nickel plated aluminum fins measure 0.3mm thick and spaced 1.5mm apart, there is 37mm clearance at the base for adjacent motherboard components. The copper base block measures 6mm thick, the entire base 10mm. With the 120mm PWM fan removed you can see the unique bracket Zalman have incorporated into the CNPS10X Extreme design for the specially made ZF1125BTH fan that slots in place.
The nickel plated copper base of the Zalman CNPS10X Extreme heatsink measures 40x38mm in size, and is a minimum 3mm thick. The surface is highly polished, and all heatpipes are soldered in place to decrease thermal joint resistance. At left is the top of the heatsink, the PWM fan speed controller immediately visible dead center.

Base Finish and Flatness

Flipping a heatsink over to inspect the business end is often a simple indicator of overall cooler quality. More practically speaking, a heatsink is in many ways only as effective as the contact it makes with the processor - the flatter and smoother the better. Base finish is one of the criteria that Frostytech measure in the course of evaluating heatsinks, and it involves two distinct aspects. Surface Finish is the first; calculated with the aid of Surface Roughness Comparator that has a cross section of common machine surface finishes and their numerical surface roughness equivalents in microinches. The second is Surface Flatness. This is tested with an engineers straight edge or proven flat surface, in two axis.

The base of the Zalman CNPS10X Extreme heatsink is perfectly flat in both axis. The copper base itself has a glossy nickel plated surface finish which is perfectly smooth. Surface roughness is at or better than ~8 microinches, which is excellent.

Next up, sound level measurements and then AMD and Intel thermal test results!