120.1 Rads

Frozennova

Frozennova

Frozennova

Man of Honour
Joined
13 Nov 2009
Posts
11,662
Location
Northampton
There seems to be a lot of debate as to what rads are actually needed for an efficient loop.

Now I know that a 120.1 rad will be enough for my overclocked Athlon X4 620 @ 3.6(1.45v)
Would this rad handle a GPU as well (8800GT to be specific)

Replys from nath or rjk would be the most helpful
 
It's a lot to be asking from a 120.1. I suppose it depends on the rad really. If it's a Thermochill or XSPC RX then you may get away with it. If it's a slimline or cheap rad then i doubt it. What are your load temps with just the cpu?
 
Last edited:
Will handle it fine it depends on what 120.1 you want to use. Thermochill are the best in this size range.

With CPU and GPU loops, you have to accpet that the GPU is going to warm up the CPU a lot and vice versa.

A black ice Stealth GT 120.1 with 2 low speed fans (sub 1000rpm) in push/pull would suffice more than enough.
 
have to echo Nath on that one really

personally i tend to always advise on the largest rad that fits in the case

watercooling always works out better when you use more than you need to some degree.

eg. you can 'get away' with a 120.1 on that config, but a double/triple would obviously perform better, be quieter and leave you much more headroom for overclocking and upgrades

athlons run fairly cool anyway, what temps are you getting at the moment on the 120.1?

chances are you could run the 8800gt on there but would struggle if you upgrade
 
Im not under water yet, It should be next week or so. Just deciding whether or not it would be worth picking up a block for the 8800GT

A dual rad would mean chopping about my antec 300 thats only a couple of weeks old.

Currently max temp of around 58'c on a titan fenrir with the fan on while running folding@home

EDIT: The Athlon is a deneb based core as well if that makes a great deal of diffrence
 
Last edited:
its going to be hit and miss really

for instance a 4ghz i7 can run fine on a single rad with a good fan

like i say, it will run but you will be cutting it fine i reckon. chances are you would have the same performance & thermal levels just without the noise
 
Go dual rad and make a nice build log for it!

If you want to keep your case intact then obviously 120.1 is the only way to go. A XSPC bay reservoir is a good option awell as space is tight in the 300 and the pump included is more than powerful for a single rad/CPU/GPU configuration.

Good choice of block is vital. Hetakiller and EK make very good CPU blocks, EK and Koolance are the one to go for when choosing a GPU block.
 
Ive got a XSPC Dual bay res combo on its way already and possibly an EK-Supreme LT or XSPC Delta v3 acetal.

Chopping and going for a dual rad is tempting but would leave me nowhere for Hard drives as I'll have an optical drive and dual/bay res combo taking up all 5.25" bays
 
Im not a fan of external rads, they just arent aesthetically pleasing to the eye.

EDIT: Would there be a noticeable difference between 'proper' coolants opposed to demineralised water and anti-freeze?
 
Last edited:
frozennova said:
Im not a fan of external rads, they just arent aesthetically pleasing to the eye.

EDIT: Would there be a noticeable difference between 'proper' coolants opposed to demineralised water and anti-freeze?
Click to expand...

I would always choose a proper watercooling fluid. At the end of the day it is the key component to your WC loop and it is the components thats eliminates the heat, so in my opnion it shouldnt be a component to skimp out on.

Fluid XP, PC pure and Nano Fluid are all very good fluids.
 
Final specs for the loop are

XSPC RS120
XSPC Delta V3
XSPC Dual Bay Resevoir Pump

6x EK 1/2" Stubby Barbs

2 meters XSPC hose 7/16"

Will be using a xilence red wing on the rad.

Look good to you guys?
 
Bravely contradicting the salesmen...

Deionised water with something to kill algae. Tried, tested, known to work well and far cheaper. Doesn't stain the carpet either.

A (60mm thick) 120.1mm radiator will deal with considerable heatload if you're not worried about the water temperature. With a 1600rpm fan it'll offer a C/W value of around 0.06. Multiply the wattage you're dumping into it by 0.06 and that's roughly the water temperature to expect. An 8800gt will be about 10 degrees above water temp, the processor about 20. Whether you want a double radiator or not depends on how cold you want the water to be.

A double will halve the water temps relative to a single, but as the processor temp is a fixed amount above water temp, it wont halve your processor temperatures.
 
You could always stack two 120.1 rads like I've done (link in sig).

It's also worth noting that the loop temps are seriously affected by the air temp flowing through the rad. If you make sure that only cool ambient air, and not warm air from inside the case, the rad will be much more efficient. I've found this to be the most significant factor in loop performance.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom