First time watercooling build check.

peahead

peahead

peahead

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2 Nov 2003
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Hi guys

Been seeing all these cool water builds in the forums and thought i would like to give that a go even though thinking about it is a little scary as i have never done this before but i have been watching youtube video and reading up on pros and cons.

My case is a Phanteks Evolv X and the rest of my spec is in my sig.

How does this look and is there anything missing or need to add ? i do have some Corsair fans already for use with the extra radiator so no need to buy those i believe.

My basket at Overclockers UK:
Total: £858.26 (includes shipping: £10.50)​
​

Thanks:)
 
I've recently built pretty much the same assembly using all the corsair kit... A couple of suggestions:

1) Make sure you order fittings to match your tubing. You've got compression fittings in there which you would only use with flexible tubing so not sure you need them. If you're using 14mm OD hardline tubing (which the XH305i kit comes with I believe) then you need consistent tubings. What I did (and guessing you might be) was bought some flexible tubing and compression fittings to make a drain pipe that I can plug into the valve and run to a bucket or whatever.
2) Order a couple of extra end plugs - they come in handy for making the GPU fittings you might not use to look tidy and just finish it off a bit better than the plastic ones they come with if you care...
3) Make sure to think carefully about location of your drain port and the orientation of your rads if you want them to drain well. My first watercool build I didn't have the space to do this but the second one i did and it's so much easier to manage and maintain.
4) I also bought the fill port and drilled a hole in the case to put it in. Not necessary but it does make filling quite easy compared to having to undo / redo the end caps on the top of the reservoir.
5) Think carefully about your planned tubing runs ahead of time - I ended up needing to buy a few 90degree junctions so that I wasn't trying on my first few builds to do multiple bends in the same tube as those I found very hard to get right.. https://www.overclockers.co.uk/cors...itting-twin-pack-cx-9052022-ww-wc-01e-cs.html

Otherwise - I've been very happy with the Corsair kit personally and is keeping things nice and cool under load (280mm deep rad with fans in push / pull and a 420mm rad with fans on exhaust push):
- 3090 FE overclocked +160MHz and idles at coolant temp (26-27c depending on study temp but i have prioritised low noise)
- 5950X overclocked to 4.65GHz all-core and sits in mid 30s idle and low 70s under load.

Good luck with the build.
 
it's your money but that seems an enormous amount to water cool a computer. two blocks, a pump and two 360's and it costs £850? you don't say which 3090 it is by the way

that Corsair stuff is seriously dear and that kit is frankly a ridiculous price already. it's not like Corsair even make their own - it's bought in and has next to no history. it also does not include a heat gun which you will need.

building a setup at ek recommends a 280 in the roof and a 360 at the front and is 525 euros including the gpu block and can all be bought from OCUK of course. it would also need a heat gun and a drain.

I admire your ambition and your bank account but that's not how I would do it.
 
Thank you guys i am taking all your input on board, yes the corsair setup is a higher cost i know but i am open to other options like Ek.

The Corsair GPU block in my basket won't fit my Zotac 3090 i know that it was just for an example of the build but they do have one that is compatible.
 
try putting all this into the ek configurator. also, get a stock side photo of the case with the door open and literally draw on it where you're putting things. a 360 at the front and a 360 at the top is overkill IMO

if I were you and I really wanted to do hardline I'd go with a single 420mm in the front and consider a distro plate from someone like bykski

but for a first time build, really think about soft tubing with something like the ZMT black tube. it will be far simpler, look great, cost less, be quicker to build.
 
Most important thing is, have you planned your route for your runs yet? If you have, post it here so we can confirm if you want us to?
 
also think about a vertical mount? I always think water-cooled gpus are often invisible in traditional horizontal mounts. you must ensure you get a suitable riser cable if you do go that way.
 
MikeTimbers said:
also think about a vertical mount? I always think water-cooled gpus are often invisible in traditional horizontal mounts. you must ensure you get a suitable riser cable if you do go that way.
Click to expand...

Yes i will be using a vertical mount i have a phanteks one already although not currently being used.
 
ok, so think about can you put the pump between the front rad and the 3090 with enough wiggle room to get from the pump to the back of the gpu block and then out of the gpu into the inlet of the cpu block and then to the top rad.

FWIW, I have two builds in the P600S which is the same internal chassis. Mine are both dual gpu so obviously not directly comparable but they do both have dual rads.

One uses a 420mm Monsta in the front and a 280 x-flow in the roof to take the fluid from the back to the front with no piping. Cross-flow rads in the roof are a really nice option but would be tricky with two 360mm I think.
 
What do you guys think about these components anything missing or incorrect ?

My basket at Overclockers UK:
Total: £633.97 (includes shipping: £10.50)
​
 
Have you thought about checking he MM for some good second hand gear before spending that much? When I got back into it at the start of 2020 between the bay and MM I managed to get a full loop for £150 without graphics block. (I have since spent nearly twice that on my GPU block alone but shush don’t tell the missus) :(

if you find you enjoy it you can always upgrade later, you might also learn something that may inform your “new” buying choices :)
 
The cost difference with the Corsair kit is from the bending kit and fans - particularly the fans... If you have enough fans already that's fair enough and you are now looking at flexible tubing but I think if you price up the same stuff in Corsair gear without those bits you'll find the cost ends up pretty similar between them (indeed I think the corsair GPU blocks work out a fair bit cheaper as they already come with the backplate and the compression fittings are cheaper - £25 for 4).
 
davidmul87 said:
The cost difference with the Corsair kit is from the bending kit and fans - particularly the fans... If you have enough fans already that's fair enough and you are now looking at flexible tubing but I think if you price up the same stuff in Corsair gear without those bits you'll find the cost ends up pretty similar between them (indeed I think the corsair GPU blocks work out a fair bit cheaper as they already come with the backplate and the compression fittings are cheaper - £25 for 4).
Click to expand...

Yeah i am looking around and pricing things up but it seems some places are out of stock on certain items and even the Corsair configurator at checkout the radiators are out of stock.

I do like the fact the Corsair GPU block comes with a backplate and thermal pads and thermal past pre applied.

Might just end up getting the kit.
 
I've recently used both a 3080 STRIX block from EK and a 3090 FE block from Corsair and I can say for sure the Corsair was so much easier to use. The EK comes with good instructions but you need to apply all your own thermal pads which is just a pain in terms of cutting everything to size. The Corsair block comes with pretty weak instructions (I used a YouTube video for instructions on taking apart the stock heatsink) but the actual mounting of the block was so much easier and took just a couple of mins (the time it took me to replace the stock paste with some thermal grizzy kryonaut).

I did end up needing to shop around across a few different sites to get stuff in stock. OC was broadly the best but some stuff they didn't have i had to go elsewhere for to avoid having to wait ages.
 
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