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Zalman opened up shop in 1999 with a focus on bringing peace to the computer world - in the form of silent computing. They became well known for their quiet and unique (if not bizarre at times) cooling products. Nearly a decade later, Zalman's product line has expanded, but their philosophy of producing unique and quiet products has continued. That philosophy can be seen in the Zalman HP power supply line. The Zalman HP line of supplies are designed for silent performance and utilize a heat pipe system in pursuit of that. It's unique, and it's oh so "Zalman."
Today we have the 750 watt unit from Zalman's HP line (ZM750-HP). It's a modular unit that purports to have high efficiency, cool aesthetics, and, of course, a quiet heat pipe assisted cooling system. Is it all that and a bag of chips? We're gonna find out!
Contents and Features
Removed from it's shinny packaging, the ZM750-HP package includes a foldout manual, main power cord, mounting screws, modular wire harnesses, a 4-pin to floppy adapter and a 4-pin to fan/controller adaptor. To our delight, the wiring harnesses were all bundled up with five re-usable Velcro straps! These will come in handy for wire management upon install. A feature that doesn't come in the box is the down-loadable manual so that when a certain Editor misplaces the original, a replacement is just a few clicks away!
As mentioned above, the ZM750-HP is a modular unit. This allows one to really manage the wiring in a case by only using what is needed. Better wire management means better cooling. Better cooling means quieter operation. Add them all up and they can equate to more officiant operation overall. Follow that philosophy throughout a computer build, and you can can have a very quiet, cool, and efficient system. That's not just a philosophy we think is sound (please note pun), it's the philosophy behind Zalman's "CNPS" (computer noise prevention system) which is a line of computer accessories (including the ZM750-HP) designed with silence in mind. We like that, a good system should be seen and not heard!
Speaking of seen, Zalman didn't skimp on the bling. The inside of this PSU is blue LED back-lit which really sets off the chrome 120mm fan grill on the matte black finish of the unit. The side of the housing is also metal stamped with "ZALMAN" (in case you forget who made your PSU). If you are using a case with a side window that shows the PSU, the ZALMAN logo should be seen pretty clearly.
As you might have gathered from the mention of the 120mm chrome fan grill, this is a single 120mm fan design. This design has become pretty common and the use of the large fan means more circulation at lower RPM - and thus lower noise level. The heat pipes Zalman designed into this unit should also help with cooling and, in case someone doesn't believe you have heat pipes in your PSU, the pipes can be easily seen during operation through the rear exhaust grill of the unit. Nice!
Voltage distribution on the ZM750-HP is pretty typical of modern PSU's in this size class. The 5V and 3.3V rails can each hit a max of 30A with a combined limit of 160W (~39A under a proportional load). That's in the typical range of 150-180 watts we see on most modern PSUs. This unit also sports quad 12V rails, each with a maximum load of 20A independently and the four combined can produce 720W (60A). How is it that four 12V rails rated at 20A each can only produce 60A? Well, the 12V rails are not typically all fully independent but usually one or two large 12V rails "split" into to smaller ones using current limiters. Geek speak aside, an advantage to doing this means that the unit can be built to give a 12V rail a bit more head room if another 12V rail is being under utilized. So, if your nifty videocard needs a bit more juice on the "12V2" rail and the the "12V1" rail is being under used, the 12V2 can up the ante and give a bit more wattage. It's also less expensive. Of course, a disadvantage to "splitting" rails is that a problem with one of the 12V rails may be translated to all of the 12V rails. It's a trade off.
Which rails go to which connectors? For folks like us who have to hook the units up to testing equipment, this is an important question that PSU vendors don't always answer for us. We have also come to realize that the information can also be very useful to end users. For example, if you only have one PCI-E card but the PSU has two PCI-E connectors on separate rails, knowing that one of those rails also powers the hard drives could be pretty useful. Zalman didn't leave us or you guessing. The 12V output distribution is clearly listed on the side of the PSU (and in the image above).
Lastly, Zalman backs up their product with a nice 3-year warranty with standard language. Three year warranties are what we like to see. While a PSU can last for more than 10 years without failing, the typical useful life time is some place around three to five years. Think of it as the "prime" lifespan of the product before new PC technology features push for a replacement. It's nice to know Zalman has you covered for such a long period.
Cables, Connections, Dimensions
The ZM750-HP is a modular unit so you, the end user, will decide which wiring harnesses are needed and which are not. This is a boon for cable management and cooling. Of course, Zalman did direct solder some of the harnesses. Many folks who make modular PSUs tend to direct solder harness they feel you are going to need for certain. In the case of the ZM750-HP, Zalman figured the end user will need the mainboard connector, a set of SATA connectors, the 12V CPU connector and at least one PCI-E connector. It's not a bad guess for a modern system. The rest of the harnesses are modular. Zalman didn't stop at "just modular" though. All of the harnesses (modular or not) are sleeved from tip to toe and in between connectors if they have more than one. That's another plus toward cable management!
| Harness | Connectors and Lengths |
| 1 | ATX 24/20 Pin mainboard connector. 19" long. (direct soldered) |
| 2 | SATA power cable with connectors at 20”, 26” and 31" (direct soldered) |
| 3 | 12V/P4 cable with 4/8 pin connector at 19.5” long. (direct soldered) |
| 4 | PCI-E 6 pin connector. 19.5" long (direct soldered). |
| 5 | PCI-E 6/8 pin connector. 19" long (modular) |
| 6 | Peripheral power cable with 4 pin molex connectors at 19.5”, 25", and 30.5" (modular). |
| 7 | Peripheral power cable with 4 pin molex connectors at 19.5”, 25", and 30.5" (modular). |
| 8 | Peripheral power cable with 4 pin molex connectors at 19”, 24", and 30" (modular). |
| 9 | SATA power cable with connectors at 19.5”, 25", and 30.5" (modular). |
| 10 | SATA power cable with connectors at 19.”, 24", and 30" (modular). |
| Harness | Extender / Adapter Connectors and Lengths |
| 1 | 4-pin molex peripheral type to two 4 pin floppy connectors at 6" (adapter). |
| 2 | 4-pin molex type peripheral to fan/fan controller (adapter) |
The harness/cable lengths in the ZM750-HP are all adequate, and there are plenty of them. You won't be able to hook up all 10 harnesses at once, there isn't room and the PSU isn't powerful enough. But, they are included as configuration options. The unit also comes with two adapters. One is for powering a floppy (or two). The other adapter is for powering a fan, and/or a fan controller. It's a nice touch that may save you a trip to the electronics store should you decide to install extra cooling. Speaking of adapters, the mainboard adapter is either 20 or 24 pin, the 12V CPU connector (aka, EPS/P4) can be used in 4 or 8 pin systems, and one of the PCI-E connectors is an 8-pin to 6-pin breakaway connector. Now those are options!
Dimension wise, the Zalman manual states that the ZM750-HP meets the ATX v2.2 specification. We've learned that when companies say this they often forget about the physical dimensions listed in the ATX specification. The ZM750-HP is about an inch longer (or deeper) than the ATX specification calls far. If you are using a large ATX case, it may not matter. But, folks with smaller ATX cases may find getting the ZM750-HP into a case requires moving optical drives down a few bays. We've harped on other companies for this faux pas (Zalman is far from alone here), and we can't make an exception for Zalman. If a PSU doesn't meet the ATX v2.2 specification in full, then companies shouldn't say it does. Or, at a minimum, at least make the dimension information available on the box or at the website so an end user can measure their system before purchase. We didn't see it in either place, so we'll post it here; 6.5" deep x 5.9" wide x 3.4" high. If you decide to pick up one of these units, be sure to measure your case (especially the depth)!