Dual loop or one bigger single loop?

Steven_RW · 18 Feb 2018 at 11:03

Hi all,

When adding a watercool GPU (waterblock and extra radiator) to a PC that already has a CPU waterloop, is there any benefit to giving the GPU its own loop rather than adding to the existing CPU loop?

CPU: 8700k @ 4.9ghz running an external Alphacool Eiswand (360mm XT45 on push pull). Will delid next month and try 5.0ghz.

GPU: Zotac 1080 GTX mini overclocked. Aboout to add waterblock, 240mm NexXos XT45 and a dc-lt 3600 pump.

I feel that the Eiswand has plenty in reserve for the current CPU cooling. Will the 240mm radiator look after the GPU cooling well enough on its own or should I try and loop in some of the extra cooling available from the 360 Eiswand?

To be clear, I already have all the parts. Any views welcomed.

Cheers,
Steven_RW

Steven_RW · 18 Feb 2018 at 20:40

Hi all,

Thanks for the input. I am not sure if anyone looked at what I am currently running for my CPU? It is an Eiswand 360 which is an external radiator with built in 2x 2600rpm DC-LT pumps in series, push pull fans and a reservoir.

Option 1 would be to just add the GPU water-block and the 240mm radiator and let the current 2x DC-LT pumps that are built into the Eiswand take care of all of the pumping. According to Alphacool this should work fine.
Option 2, add the third pump into the current loop circuit along with the 240mm radiator and the GPU block. Extra pumping force to take care of extra complexity and keep reasonable flow. Keeping in mind the DC-LT pumps are hardly that powerful to start with?
Option 3, run a stand alone GPU circuit. (this is where everyone is saying pointless and extra pump noise etc. which I do understand.)

Cheers,
Steven_RW

Steven_RW · 20 Feb 2018 at 00:23

I think the point he is making is the basic DC-LT pumps rather than a Alphacool D5 vs any other D5.

I am currently (though maybe naively) believing that my Eiswand doesn't have any bubbles in it. I can move the pc and the whole Eiswand around and so believe from that have all the bubbles out.

SO it will just be about getting the bubbles from the GPU and the extra radiator. Not too complex a system.

I hear what everyone is saying. Is a D5 pump a bit overkill for a simple single 240mm 45mm rad and a gpu block or should I just get one?

Cheers,
Steven RW

Steven_RW · 20 Feb 2018 at 13:47

Hi,

Alphacool doesn't do an AIO for my GPU or a waterblock with an integrated pump. I have a MINI 1080 by Zotac.

I already have the 240mm radiator and I already have corsair 120mm high performance SP PWM fans.

The only GPU block available is the Alphacool M14 block that is passive and doesn't have a pump.

All that leaves is an option for the pump/reservoir combo or whether to just link it all in with the Eiswand.

:-)

Steven_RW

Steven_RW · 5 Mar 2018 at 11:56

orbitalwalsh said:
link it to the eiswand- try without the extra 240 to be honest - 45mm thick 30 should be fine to handle all of that! if our not happy with temps or sound, add the 240 in .
you'll notice when you add the GPX in that the res level will drop- just top it up

***********

you absolutely sure you cant find GPX Pro/eiswolf models. as i can see them

Alphacool Eiswolf GPX Pro - Nvidia Geforce GTX 1080 Pro M14

Strangely that Pro doesn't make it clear it is for Mini (though you are entirely correct it is). I also have an e-mail from Dajana Maurer @ Aquatuning.de saying they don't have a version with a built in pump for the Mini. Reality is that the M14 designation means it IS designed for the Mini and that I can order with or without pump. Just like you linked. It is just an admin error on the website, though it was backed up by their e-mail. I will reply back to point out the error.

I have ordered the Pro and it will arrive today. I will link it all in to the loop when my Meshify C case arrives (should also be today, now the snow has cleared..).

Thanks for the help everyone.

Steven_RW

Steven_RW · 6 Mar 2018 at 11:27

Hi OrbitalW - So what part did you fit and to what card? A chap is asking me if he could use the non pro (no pump) option that is designed for 1080 Mini on his 1080 Ti Mini. The only option listed on the site for him is the Pro with pump.

Regarding my build at the moment - detailed yawn update below :-)

.

I bought this base PC, upgraded the GPU to 1080, upgraded the PSU to modular 750w and since then have been messing with the cooling. https://www.chillblast.com/chillblast-fusion-adamantium-4-gaming-pc.html

The case itself isn't really very good. No cut out for the back of the Mobo, so the Alphacool X3 CPU block backing plate that came with the Eiswand didn't seat and I needed to empty the case and drill the mobo platform. The water cooling options were very limited (thus why I bought an Eiswand) and the fact it has a single 200mm fan option for the front (I upgraded to the Noctua 200mm) where half of the airflow is blocked by going under the mobo (which lays flat not vertical..) and stops by hitting the HDD trays and so on. All in the case isn't ideal so I wanted to upgrade it. I also chopped the living daylights out of it to aid airflow, so all filtration is gone and all the metal mesh that goes in front of fans have been chopped out.

Meshify C is here, Alphacool GPX Pro arrives today with other fittings, hoses, fluid etc. Dr Delid 2.0 tool arrives today from Caseking.de and I am waiting for a replacement copper IHS sent from Rockit (spl?) in Texas that is on the way for about a week now, so all should be here soon.

I have already started working on the radiator position and fan solution for the case (front = 3 x 120mm corsair fans. 2 of which are high performance static pressure jobs to push through the 240mm radiator and the bottom one is an airflow 120mm as it just feeds into the case not a radiator but that may get removed). I have push pulled the back of the radiator using two spare 120mm fractal high static pressure fans I have from a Fractal t12 AIO. The roof of the case can handle a 140mm towards the back (fractal x2) and a 120mm (fractal x2) towards the front as the radiator end tank extends high to the point I cannot fit a second 140mm in the roof.

So all in all, I have been working on it last night but not butchering my current pc to the point it is out of commission. I want to do that final step in one go so I am at the minimum downtime when all the parts have arrived.

I like the Meshify case. It is quite small but seems to me, very well thought out (especially compared to the case I current have).

I am starting to think that I may remove the bottom front 120mm fan and put back in the panel that needs to be removed from the power supply shroud as at the same time as removing the shroud I removed the 3.5" hdd holder (I was planning on putting an intake fan on the floor of the case pointing up but that is only possible with NO 3.5" drives, in the caddy or using the alternative location of attached to the floor) and really I think I will have way more than enough flow of air for a basically watercooled PC.

I think I am aiming towards 4 fans at the front (two push, two pull through the 240mm xt45 rad). Two out on the roof and one out at the standard exhaust area. I will also point a fan directly at the VRMs which helped keep them to 80c when under full prime 95 v26.6 small stress test. Without the fan the VRM temps spiral towards 100c.

Fun times building it all :-)

.

I will take photos of fitting the GPU block etc.

Steven_RW · 20 Mar 2018 at 00:55

Update: I have the Eiswand 360 and now I have the Eiswolf GPU waterblock and backing plate with the built in pump. I looped this all together with an extra 240mm NexXxos 45mm radiator I had. I have Corsair 120mm SP High Performance on the 240mm, push and pull. It all works great. At the same time I intalled the GPU waterblock and the 240mm, I delid my CPU and replaced the paste with liquid metal and also added a Rockit larger copper IHS.

It is impossible to get my overclocked (2050mhz gpu, holds 2037 in all monitoring software and 5613mhz ram) 1080GTX anything more than +10c on ambient. The room sits around 22c on my temp gauge and the card doesn't see more than 32. Be that hours of PubG or hours of Valley or hours of anything else.

My 87000k CPU is running 4.9GHZ and 1.32v. On Prime 95 version 26.6 the cores sit between 58 and 63 after an hour of small stress test. SO that is about +36ambient to plus 41c on ambient.

I have a 120mm noctua fan sitting over my VRM heat sinks (Gigabyte Z370m D3h rev 1.0 mobo) and when running Prime 95 26.6 the VRMS go up to but then hold 83c.

If I run the latest Prime 95 small stress test, the heat is higher. The CPU can handle it and goes to about 65 to max of 70 but the VRMs climb. On the basis of 22c ambient, the VRMs climb over 100c in 3 mins and I usually shut it down.

I had a very cold day here and chilled the room to 12c ambient and the VRMs held a constant 103c on the latest prime 95 smalls stress test.

I am thinking about having some fun watercooling my VRMs but I don't see any specific waterblocks for my mobo VRMs so I may need to look at what is available and whether I can make it fit.

I'd love someone else to put forward their temps as nobody seems to discuss VRM temps properly, so I don't know how much worse my Mobo really is than the preferred Z370 style mobo that people would have recommended had I chose specifically.

Open to any feedback.

The final point is that if I turn all the fans right down and the Eiswand to it's 7v option, the GPU temp maybe creeps up +1 max +2c on ambient. This to me shows it is all running rather effectively.

Thanks for all help and to be clear I am running one big joined up loop with the 360mm Eiswand, the two pumps built in and the pump in the GPU block.

I am thinking of running a dedicated loop for the VRMs purely for fun. I have a spare 30mm thick 120mmm radiator here so it shouldn't be too hard if I can find waterblocks.

Cheers,
Steven RW

Steven_RW · 21 Mar 2018 at 10:44

Hi,

I will write to them as well and ask.

Where do you buy better thermal pads? De8auer said the same thing when he looked at my mobo. The heat sinks look "okay" but maybe use thinner and better thermal pads.

Thanks,
Steven

Steven_RW · 21 Mar 2018 at 15:52

Thanks. I have a fractal Meshify C case. Triple 120mm fans blowing in to the case. I have 2x 140mm exhaust fans on the case roof. I also have a dedicated noctua 120mm fan directly over the VRM heat sink blasting them. Fan curve at 100% from 50c CPU temp. So all in all, I think I have plenty of airflow and on the basis the rest of the items in the case are watercooled, then very little other heat sources are in the case.

I will look in to better pads. Thanks

Steven RW