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Make sure you post up some pics pasty 
Anyone else regret going full water ?
- Thread starter Bolton7935
- Start date
I have some regrets.
At the time, it was new and exciting and the first time I had enough money to throw at a computer and 'waste' some on something not strictly necessary, so I did it.
Fast forward a few years later and I just can't be bothered with the hassle of drains/cleans etc. and want more of a 'just works' experience.
Originally I was after 2 things - low noise and good cooling for an overclock. I never did end up doing the overclock for unrelated stability issues which i'm only now sorting out and in terms of noise, it hasn't been appreciably quieter than air cooling really. I suppose it wouldn't get noisier with loads of extra heat in the mix whereas air cooling would but for 'normal running' it's very much audible still, which is disappointing next to the PC I built my parents last year which is so silent on air cooling that I can't tell if it's on or not by listening for it. Part of this I think is the pump/res combo - an XSPC X2O 750, it's not silent as a pump. A better pump may well be but ultimately the whole lot cost vastly more than air cooling as it was, so it's still disappointing that it makes the noise it does.
Next build will probably be an AIO type unit, though with particular research on the noise of the pumps. Whilst I don't particularly mind air cooling, i'm not really a fan of the huge slabs of metal hanging sideways off the motherboards, backplates or not!
At the time, it was new and exciting and the first time I had enough money to throw at a computer and 'waste' some on something not strictly necessary, so I did it.
Fast forward a few years later and I just can't be bothered with the hassle of drains/cleans etc. and want more of a 'just works' experience.
Originally I was after 2 things - low noise and good cooling for an overclock. I never did end up doing the overclock for unrelated stability issues which i'm only now sorting out and in terms of noise, it hasn't been appreciably quieter than air cooling really. I suppose it wouldn't get noisier with loads of extra heat in the mix whereas air cooling would but for 'normal running' it's very much audible still, which is disappointing next to the PC I built my parents last year which is so silent on air cooling that I can't tell if it's on or not by listening for it. Part of this I think is the pump/res combo - an XSPC X2O 750, it's not silent as a pump. A better pump may well be but ultimately the whole lot cost vastly more than air cooling as it was, so it's still disappointing that it makes the noise it does.
Next build will probably be an AIO type unit, though with particular research on the noise of the pumps. Whilst I don't particularly mind air cooling, i'm not really a fan of the huge slabs of metal hanging sideways off the motherboards, backplates or not!
Had both main rigs under water for a few years now. My 5820k rig has just sprung a leak though from one of the XSPC angled swival fittings on the CPU block. Right PITA as I'll have to drain right down to replace. This has been my only issue too date though, overall very happy.
i used to have custom loops 10+ years ago, back in the day when you had to get special surgical grade hose because manufacturers hadn't started commercialising this stuff fully. I am currently on air and although I am tempted many times to do a water loop again just for the looks and to keep myself busy, I just can't justify the cost. Also, what people say about water being less noisy is not always true in my experience. I've seen water loops noisier than air and I have seen some very quiet ones that perform just as bad as an equally noiseless air cooler. Granted I don't overclock anymore, I am running my system with all fans at minimum and it is barely audible. It only gets noisy from the GPU if I play a game and I rarely do that lately. I also have the advantage of swapping components easily whenever I feel like it and modern GPUs are not that noisy anymore unless you set the fans to max to help them boost more. A nice tower sized air cooler will get the job done just fine provided you are not aiming for a crazy 'show off' overclock with disabled power management and ridiculous overvolts. As an engineer, I have now reached the age where I value efficiency more than 'balls to the wall' antics and it sounds like the OP is reaching this point also. Having said that, once I hit the middle age crisis, I might do a custom loop to serve me until retirement 
Soldato
Given I started the gallery thread, I suspect I'm qualified to comment three out of five rigs are watercooled in my house but it is getting harder for me to justify. I watercool because I fold and GPUs under 24/7 overclocked load can get pretty loud. But the newer cards - 10xx series - are so power efficient they probably don't need water any more. When my current lot of 970s get replaced, I doubt I will do more than I have for the most recent one I bought which was a used H100 from eBay and a Kraken G10 adaptor.
I do marvel at the hardline and copper-tubed rigs being added to the gallery but I also have to wonder about how anyone can justify the time and money those rigs represent. As others on here have said, we used to just buy heatercores and garden pond pumps. The only expensive bits were the blocks. I still have an original Cathar block somewhere.
I get the OP's point but don't see why he had to make it in here.
three out of five rigs are watercooled in my house but it is getting harder for me to justify. I watercool because I fold and GPUs under 24/7 overclocked load can get pretty loud. But the newer cards - 10xx series - are so power efficient they probably don't need water any more. When my current lot of 970s get replaced, I doubt I will do more than I have for the most recent one I bought which was a used H100 from eBay and a Kraken G10 adaptor.I do marvel at the hardline and copper-tubed rigs being added to the gallery but I also have to wonder about how anyone can justify the time and money those rigs represent. As others on here have said, we used to just buy heatercores and garden pond pumps. The only expensive bits were the blocks. I still have an original Cathar block somewhere.
I get the OP's point but don't see why he had to make it in here.
Associate
i have 2 rigs,1 Aio on cpu and gpu no issues at all and this EK-WB rig,that is less than a week old and already drained 4x with ongoing concerns and issues,wish i never started this 1 tbh.Guess i need sleep.
It's a pain in the ass to build, fill, bleed, drain, clean, flush repeat etc. But once you have it done its a nice sense of satisfaction and i went from hearing my computer turning on to wtf why isn't my pc turning on... ohh wait theres the lights i just couldn't hear it haha.
But it helps with big overclocks and keeping it cool vastly better than what AIO or air can with vastly better lower noise margins.
But it helps with big overclocks and keeping it cool vastly better than what AIO or air can with vastly better lower noise margins.
These days 90% of GPU-s coilwhine like crazy wich defeats the silence aspect of watercooling, and dont come telling me about change your psu or whatnot, it doesn`t work. The loudest part of my loop is fans @ 600rpm, and then I installed the 1080ti that I can hear squeling from the other room...
For those who have the time and money to buy 10 GPU-s every time they upgrade, they might get a coilwhine free experience, the other 90% of people must enjoy whining coils. Or spend a few months RMAing countless cards to get an actual usable one, and by then their GPU is old and it`s time to buy a new one and repeat the whole process.
For those who have the time and money to buy 10 GPU-s every time they upgrade, they might get a coilwhine free experience, the other 90% of people must enjoy whining coils. Or spend a few months RMAing countless cards to get an actual usable one, and by then their GPU is old and it`s time to buy a new one and repeat the whole process.
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Soldato
Is it possible that it's not the GPU to blame? Have you installed all these cards into the same system?
Soldato
Fair enough. I've experienced coil whine on a 980ti that I had to RMA as it was far too loud. However, my success rate has been pretty good and I've been through a lot of cards.
Sounds like you've been very unlucky.
Associate
just never add colour to your water .. rots the blocks or blocks them had a night mare of a time trying to clean it off .. now just use water and a silver coil .....
..or cheap tubing took my gpu full cover apart to find like melted plastic covering the fins .. this is after it started leaking ..
you live and learn ..
..or cheap tubing took my gpu full cover apart to find like melted plastic covering the fins .. this is after it started leaking ..
you live and learn ..
Soldato
Absolutely not, i regret going back to AIO.
I'm back under water again, I'm glad i went back, my bank balance not so much but hey thats what credit is for!!!
I had Mayhems pastel white on the go for over 4 years with no change, literally over 4 years with the same fluid, there was an ever so slight build up of plastisier on the block fins but in the end it was the thermal paste that gave up first, Mayhems pastel white was still doing its job albeit with a slight "off" colouring.
I'm back under water again, I'm glad i went back, my bank balance not so much but hey thats what credit is for!!!
I had Mayhems pastel white on the go for over 4 years with no change, literally over 4 years with the same fluid, there was an ever so slight build up of plastisier on the block fins but in the end it was the thermal paste that gave up first, Mayhems pastel white was still doing its job albeit with a slight "off" colouring.
I agree. I've only had about a years experience with pastel coolant but so far other than the extra effort to ensure the loop is the right ph before adding it it's behaved exactly the same as clear coolant. I'm very happy with it so far.