Question 1

Would this fit an (or a, an is used before a word with a vowel like an apple, a bear, a cat, a dog, an elephant) am3+ socket? I have amd fx series processor

Accepted Answer

I have an AMD3+ board and it definitely fits. The AMD3 and AMD3+ boards share the same heat sink securing method.

Question 2

does the led version of the model come with thermal paste?

Accepted Answer

Mine came with enough to reapply 2 or 3 times. I had to  RMA my motherboard and threw away the thermal paste that came with this CPU cooler. I bought some artic silver and my temps were about 4 degrees cooler across all cores.

Question 3

is thermal paste already applied?

Accepted Answer

Comes with enough to apply yourself. Just rub it on and jam it on the CPU you'll be good to go man

Question 4

do you have to use the external speed controller or can you plug it into the mother board direct?

Accepted Answer

To try and clear this up in case someone else is looking at it...  No, you do not HAVE to use the external controller.  But it is my understanding that this fan is not PWM (some of the very similar Zalman models ARE) which means that if you plug it into your MOBO it'll just run full speed all the time?  I assume so.  The motherboard wouldn't have a way to control its speed based on temps, without the fourth pin for PWM.  You can however use a fan controller of some kind, like one of those front panel modules (I love my old Sunbeam Rheobus), or the one that comes with it, to manually control the speed.  I could be wrong, but that's what my reading on the topic led me to believe.

Question 5

Will fit AMD+3  ???

Accepted Answer

Yes this should fit an AM3+ socket.  It fits my AM3 socket and Phenom II quite nicely. AMD has not changed the mounting bracket between AM3 and AM3+ so Coolers that work for one should work for the other.  One other note, I like this cooler it works well and looks neat but it is quite large so make sure you have the space.

Question 6

Would it be compatible with an AMD socket am3+ ?

Accepted Answer

Yes it does!. Zalman does a very good job of making sure that their heatsinks come with mounting hardware for the most recent and popular CPU's. I also recommend that you not use the ZALMAN thermal paste that is included. Get Arctic Silver 5 thermal paste. it's a little more money but its worth it. Hope this helps.

Question 7

Hey, does this work on AM3+ (specifically FX-6350)?

Accepted Answer

I've got it on an FX-8350 Black edition. It keeps idle temps down around 20c, full load around 40c.

The AMD mounting procedure couldn't be simpler; it's just a simple press-clip. What's better, the bar part of the clip can be positioned not only from front-to-back, but from side-to-side.

Question 8

does this require conductive thermal paste, or can I use non-conductive thermal paste?

Accepted Answer

The heatsink doesn't require an electrical source, it is purely a heat sink, and the fan powered by the cable not through the CPU. Thus assuming your thermal paste is thermally-conductive is all that you need, you don't need electrical conductivity from the paste (although it wouldn't hurt if it was also electrically conductive).

However, if you're talking about non-thermally-conductive paste, then that would be absolutely awful and not work at all, a more appropriate name for such a material might be thermal insulation paste which would be used for very different purposes.

Question 9

It does not say if its compatible with AM3+ 
When they dont say i often find that half the time it is compatible. Please dont say it isnt just because of the discription because i beleive that its misleading. Thank you. If not is their a socket i can buy so it fits?

Accepted Answer

Yes I just pulled one off the shelf and installed it on a Asrock 970 Extreme4, it works fine and took 19 minutes from sides off to power up.
I did this in a m59 case with the rear cutout for easy exchanges. 
Removed a H-50 cooler and the graphics card, and two fans to make space for my extremely clumsy hands.
As always lay the case on it's side with a small towel as counter pressure to relieve the downward pressure from the AMD clip install, if you have a case with the afore mentioned cutout.
   The 955 I'm using has a mild overclock to 3600mhz, and is showing 38C on Piroforms 'Speccy'. It has only been powered on 20 minutes, and has not set the thermal grease.
As far as my exp. ALL amd sockets since AM2 through AM3+, and FM1&2 will interchange as long as it is not a Gateway or other proprietary mounting solution. 
Good luck and keep modding.
My only fear is missing a killer Shell Shocker.......

Question 10

I know its not listed under the compatability section but would this heat sink work with a Fm2/Fm2+  type mobo?  I've read that the Fm2 and Fm2+ socket are similar to Am3 socket type?

Accepted Answer

Another thing i noticed is that there are motherboards that are compatible with FM2/FM2+ Cpu's. Therefore if the zalman CNPS9500A-LED is compatible with FM2 sockets than it must also be compatible for FM2+ motherboards.

Questions & Answers