cm 690 ii for large watercooling loop or should i get new case?

Soldato
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hey guys,

im looking to spend quite a lot of money on my machine this xmas or around that time, and im interested in SLIing two GTX480's as well as watercooling them as well if they get toasty in my case

i had a problem with my antec 620 h20 cooler :( so i scrapped it.
i really liked my cpu when watercooled and would like to do this again, but thinking about proper watercooling this time with a 240 rad.

this is were the case comes in, im going to be watercooling my cpu with a 240 rad, now i know yu can mount a 240 rad at the top as well as the bottom, BUT if im going to have a i5 760 clocked a 4ghz and two gtx480's overclocked as well as watercooled im going to need more than two 240 rads right? so is it worth upgrading the case to something bigger like the HAF X ??

i also want a sound card in there as well so space is needed

so do i upgrade to a larger case for this reason or do i try two 240 rads for both gpus and a cpu

cheers
 
With a pair of 480s you'd need a bigger rad than 240. I have seen 360 rads in your case but they've been modded.

Maybe look at the Corsair 700D or 650D. How much are you looking to spend?

I have a HAF X and i love it but I'd wouldn't recommend it for w/c
 
well i was looking at the £150 mark for a case, i was looking at the HAF X as the reviews and the features it has a really good.

i will deffo be water cooling the cpu at least, but if i get a HAF X then the 200m side fan and i can get a 120m fan for the vga cooler, that should keep the 480's cool shouldn't it ?? i also want the case to be future proof, so i can have it for years and not need to change
 
Depends what you classify as cool. If you fold then that air cooling won't be enough for 2 480s. If you just game then you might just get away with it but 480s are one of the hottest cards around.
 
yeh it will be for gaming, is there any more space for more rads inside the case without modding ?? as im interested in putting a 360 at the top, if there is room then i can add another rad into the loop.

i will most properly have the 360 rad for the cpu and leave both gpus at default speeds and have them cooled by the 200m fan and the vga cooler
 
A 360 rad for an i5 760 is overkill so i'd suggest using w/c for the 480s as they are going to pump out more heat.

With a 360 rad in the top it will be a close fit getting a 120 in there as well. Even a H70 would be a tight squeeze. Aesthetically it would look odd having w/c graphics cards and an air cooled cpu.

Maybe consider the Xigmatek Elysium or Coolermaster Cosmos/Cosmos S
 
i only buy from ocuk, is there any more cases i should look at ?

i dont want to have rads outside the case at all, i like everything to be inside and protected.

what other ways are their of doing this ? if i get a top mounted 360 rad and add a 240 at the bottom if possible, as going to have a 1000w psu so its going to be longer than a normal atx
 
Why are you going to get a 1000w PSU?

A 360 at the top and a 240 at the bottom is possible, case dependent though. Keep at look out and see if OCUK list the cases i've mentioned soon. ** The mentioning or hinting name of competitors is strictly prohibited - Please read FAQs regarding rules **
 
to run SLI 480's and for the rest of my system, and then makes upgrading easier in the future

can the HAF X have bottom mounted rads ??
 
With a pair of 480s you'd need a bigger rad than 240. I have seen 360 rads in your case but they've been modded.

Maybe look at the Corsair 700D or 650D. How much are you looking to spend?

I have a HAF X and i love it but I'd wouldn't recommend it for w/c

I love my CM 690II, brilliant at keeping my air cooled system cool.
Especially with reasonably high frequencies.
I5 2500K at 4.4GHz (50C gaming)
2x 6950 Toxics unlocked.
An a cable maze.

But I couldn't see you getting a 240Rad an water cooling loop in it with all the bits that go with WC setup.
 
the cm 690 ii is fine for cpu cooling, but i just dont think it could handle a cpu and two 480s in SLI being watercooled

i mite just have to sacrifice the 480's being watercooled and just watercool the cpu and run the 480's on air and hope for the best (unless i get a HAF X and use the vga air duct etc
 
I haven't checked but I'm pretty sure our 750w can handle an i5 and 480s. My old 850w coped with my i7 920 (with heavy oc) and quad sli gtx295s. All w/c.

There is no room for bottom mounted rad on the haf x
 
just played bf3 online and had the on-screen temp monitor for my 480 using msi afterburner, the card is not overclocked and the graphic settings are on ultra with shadows low and no AA or any of that stuff and i was getting 87 degrees, thats air cooled on its own in a cm690 ii case with a 120mm front intake fan 120mm rear exaugst fan and another 120mm exaughst fan at the top

if i add another 480 in there the temps are going to be off the scale! so again is this a good reason to get the HAF X for better gpu cooling and just gives more space for future upgrads
 
Yes i do recommend the haf x for air cooling, in your case if you had another 480 it would have hit over 100 degrees and shut down.

If you going air cooling in might be worthwhile investing in some aftermarket cooling for those 480s

EDIT: but ocuk don't stock any good ones :\
 
will a 360 rad do 2 480s on its own ?? if i do that then that could be mounted at the top then have a corsair h70 or alike mounted were the exhaust fan is for the cpu.

mite look odd if i dont have blue hoses like the corsair cooler lol
 
will a 360 rad do 2 480s on its own ?? if i do that then that could be mounted at the top then have a corsair h70 or alike mounted were the exhaust fan is for the cpu.

mite look odd if i dont have blue hoses like the corsair cooler lol

Yes that will work but im thinking the clearance between the H70 and the rad will be very close. The barbs being near the cpu will be the issue.
 
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