D5 Pump vibrations when mounted to case

im4gine3

im4gine3

im4gine3

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Have some time to finally build my rig with new components (since the in-laws were about so had no space), and am designing how the watercooling should fit.

I am noticing a lot of vibrations happening when mounting my Alphacool FLT and D5 (watercool) to the side of the Evo XL case (behind mobo tray), and wondering what i can use to dampen the sound. It is very noticeable when i increase the speed of the D5 from setting 2.5 and upwards - think high pitched vibration, and when i set it to the lowest speed, it's like a very deep hum.

Originally i thought it was a pump issue, so ordered another D5 (Alphacool 655) and the same hum occurs.. so it's either pot luck of getting a quiet D5 or vibrations elsewhere.

Would a shoggy sandwich work between the case and reservoir, as i have only seen these with it rested directly against a pump? I've tried those rubber grommets, and they don't help much and i don't have the clearance using decouplers.

At this point, for reference, whilst the DDC is known to be noisier than the D5, i feel the DDC was a lot quieter than the D5 i'm running
 
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Yeah shoggy sandwich will work
Usually I just use rubber washers
Or cut up some of that aerofoam packing material
Or whatever the proper name for it is
If its not a pwm you have less control
Over the rpm and vibration and resonance
With my pwm pump the noise stops at certain speeds
A bit like some cars the steering wheel vibrates at a certain speed
But change speed and it stops
 
yeah.. it seems to dissapate around the 1900rpm mark, but reappears everytime the machine is cold booted. Only went with the Varios as it offers more control when filling/bleeding the loop. PWM doesn't spin at max speed when you start it which is a pain.
 
Yeah pwm pumps are weird
Some default to minimum rpm
Some to max rpm
If its minimum usually I disconnect the pwm wire
Which makes some default to max rpm
Not heard shoggy sandwich in a long time lol
 
I used them rubber mounts with the screws in it when I ran a d5 many moons ago, never had any problems with it.
 
if the vibration is caused because the panel (motherboard tray) is too thin, you can increase its mass by using something like silent coat. You can test spreading your hands and applying some little pressure and see if the vibration goes away, but I tend to believe is more widespread than a single panel. I prefer using the bottom of the case as a mounting place as it is less likely to be thin metal or have much movement to it. Otherwise, as others have suggested, some decoupling solution.
 
will have to measure the thickness of the metal.. i have a feeling it's the same thickness as the mobo tray.. as the FLT is screwed directly to the case separation panel so to speak.. not directly to the tray itself... together with a few rubber grommets - https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/51SP0o3Pf0L._AC_SL1100_.jpg

Given the way the FLT is machined and the brackets it comes with, that may be possible if i run the res sideways.

Will run the pump/rads etc separate, just to make sure the humming is not pump specific.. (wonders if a EK FLT DDC will work with a D5 pump, or are their FLT's pump specific)
 
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im4gine3 said:
will have to measure the thickness of the metal.. i have a feeling it's the same thickness as the mobo tray.. as the FLT is screwed directly to the case separation panel so to speak.. not directly to the tray itself... together with a few rubber grommets - https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/51SP0o3Pf0L._AC_SL1100_.jpg

Given the way the FLT is machined and the brackets it comes with, that may be possible if i run the res sideways.

Will run the pump/rads etc separate, just to make sure the humming is not pump specific.. (wonders if a EK FLT DDC will work with a D5 pump, or are their FLT's pump specific)
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The EK have two variants. One for DDC and one for D5, which I believe can’t be adapted without any heavy mod.
When I mentioned about increasing mass, it’s the same concept that many bequiet cases tackle noise. You won’t see a Corsair 7000D side panel vibrating either (the heaviest and thickest panel case that I’ve ever come across).
Before doing any expensive or drastic changes, just try do apply some pressure on the panel where the pump is installed. I suggest spreading your hand as you’ll increase the area of pressure and stop any vibration if that is the case.
Just to give one idea, I had some noise issues with a gym machine at home. The canopy, which surrounds (or hide) the column where the weights are, is made of a relatively thin metal sheet. Adding few patches of some remaining Silent Coat from a previous project totally eliminated the vibrating noise.
On another scenario, ages ago when I was using a Fractal XL R2, the top panel of the case somehow bowed, and would vibrate badly if installing a fan there. As the case was very limited for case positions, applying the same approach, the vibration was gone. Luckily back then anything inside the case was hidden and forgotten.
 
I'll give that a go tomorrow. Not heard of silent coat either, so will get some small sheets and test with that too.

Edit: looked at prices.. Silent coat ain't cheap :o
 
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Only advice if you decide to use silent coat, an A4 size sheet should be enough. Doesn’t have to cover the whole surface, just near the pump and spread around. Also, be very careful to not cut yourself. Is a 3mm thick butyl with a back foil that must stay in, but can cut you easily if not careful. The plus side is that it can be easily removed later, and any remaining material residue removed using isopropyl alcohol.
 
Drumroll said:
Only advice if you decide to use silent coat, an A4 size sheet should be enough. Doesn’t have to cover the whole surface, just near the pump and spread around. Also, be very careful to not cut yourself. Is a 3mm thick butyl with a back foil that must stay in, but can cut you easily if not careful. The plus side is that it can be easily removed later, and any remaining material residue removed using isopropyl alcohol.
Click to expand...
thanks for the heads up.. if i do use it, was planning on sandwiching it between the center chamber panel and the reservoir.. as the res i'm using is Alphacools FLT, where the pump is front face mounting, rather then EK back mounted.
 
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SpudMaster said:
In the time it took to type all this you could have put the soggy sandwich between res and case and found your answer. Just saying :p
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haha true.. but in order for me to do that, i would need to dismantle the whole case including mobo tray etc.. as it's currently bolted down.. i was planning on doing that over the weekend but other priorities took over, so i need to try find time doing this...

I did try putting pressure on the res but the noise still persists... can't try putting pressure on the panel as the mobo is in the way.

I was also planning on running the loop separate to see if noise occurs outside the case, but i have an FLT DDC so a D5 won't attach to it so i can't test with a spare rad.. eugh.

PS i only have a naked D5, so no ring/top to run it separate
 
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Do you have room to decouple the pump? If you search "Watercool universal decoupling kit" you'll see what I mean - you can also find similar rubber decouple mounts on ali express for drones (they are m3 though).
 
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pre said:
Do you have room to decouple the pump? If you search "Watercool universal decoupling kit" you'll see what I mean - you can also find similar rubber decouple mounts on ali express for drones (they are m3 though).
Click to expand...
no. I have been looking at decouplers.. like the ones you mentioned with different thicknesses/lengths and with the amount of space i have, it will not fit.

Even using this shortest decoupler i can find, or even taking a hacksaw to one, will be difficult.. given the FLT with pump is around 87mm front to back, i'm barely touching the side panel with it all connected. This is using m4 screws to trough the center panel into the FLT mounting bracket..even the screns had to be shaved and countersunk to ensure a flush fit, else it would be difficult to attach the motherboard tray back in place.

Next best thing is some sort of sound proof.. like the Silent Coat mentioned which i will try.. or thicker rubber grommets which i can plug into the screw holes.
 
Suspend it is the way to go if vibrations drive you mad. Can either suspend it from the tubing from Res if your set up allows or bungee it.
 
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