First time Watercooling Build

blitz_911

blitz_911

blitz_911

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5 Nov 2012
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Hi, I'm planning my first watercooling build and would like to see what people here would recommend re my planned setup. Im starting kinda from scratch and Im looking at building a nice little media pc to run the odd game. I know water cooling is probably overkill but I just want to Water cool it! Parts list:

Intel Core i5 2500K
Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 1600Mhz
Fractal Design Define Mini Case
Asus P8Z77-M Z77 or similar budget atx board
Be Quiet Pure Power 430W PSU
Sapphire Radeon HD 5770 (my old card)

As Im new to this, Ive been looking at the Kits from over clockers, Id like a 2x120 radiator system so the ones Ive been looking at are:

XSPC RayStorm 750 RS240 WaterCooling Kit
XSPC RayStorm 750 RX240 WaterCooling Kit
OcUK Tech Lab - V8 Watercooling Kit 240 [OCUKV8-1]

I'd like to try and keep the cost down if poss so I was wondering whether there would really be that much difference between the kits? Is the EK- Supremacy much better than the Raystorm CPU block? And is there much difference between the cooling ability of the three radiators? IS the EK-KIT H3O 240 LTX worth a look?

Ive realised that the Fractal Design Mini only has 1 space for an exhaust fan so would that limit me to a 1 fan radiator? If so I might get the R3 instead. Are there any other similar cases that would work well? Ive had a look at some silver stone ones but they dont have the water cooling holes.

Ive got other questions about the best layout for the components etc but I think a should nail down components first!

Thanks
 
gcaster said:
CPU Block Comparison. Not much in it but the Raystorm seems to be a better block that the EK.
Click to expand...

Thanks gcaster, thats excellent, there's lots of info there but basically there is only 1c of difference between the the ray storm and ek supremacy on average and their performance varies about te same with flow rate so either or really.

Is there something similar to that test for radiators and pumps? Do pumps make that much difference? And how do separate pumps and cylinder reservoirs work?

I'll check out the difference between th r3 and r4 cases tommorrow. Ek no longer sell the full water block for the hd5770, is a generic VGA block any good? Do you need to use the back plate and does it some with ram sinks and will it need a fan anyway?

Full of questions, I know.

Thanks
 
Looks the r4 is just the new version of the r3 just slightly bigger. Would prov have to mount a 120.2 rad internally on the roof which I'm not keen on. Was thinking of mounting the radiator externally on the back initially but looks like there isn't enough space for that and reading around most people mount internally anyway, is this right? Seems a shame to go to that effort and not be able to see my water cooling. Fractal did a window panel side of te r3/r4 but can't seem to find it anywhere. Does anybody know if any of the panels sold on here would fit? I've seen some self mod window kits on the web too.
 
I've gone for the r3 case as the r4 was just out of my budget, it does leave me wih a slight problem though. Both kits that I like have a dual bay pump reservoir, but the r3 only has 2 optical bays and I need a DVD drive. Could I swap out the pump and reservoir for an xspc single bay reservoir and separate pump?

Would a single bay reservoir be enough for a CPU and gpu loop in the future? The other option would be to mod the case slightly, cut out the top of the hdd cage and remove the top front fan and see if I can get it in there with poss a 5.25" bracket. My case arrives early next week I think so il check it out to see what I can do
 
blitz_911 said:
I've gone for the r3 case as the r4 was just out of my budget, it does leave me wih a slight problem though. Both kits that I like have a dual bay pump reservoir, but the r3 only has 2 optical bays and I need a DVD drive. Could I swap out the pump and reservoir for an xspc single bay reservoir and separate pump?

Would a single bay reservoir be enough for a CPU and gpu loop in the future? The other option would be to mod the case slightly, cut out the top of the hdd cage and remove the top front fan and see if I can get it in there with poss a 5.25" bracket. My case arrives early next week I think so il check it out to see what I can do
Click to expand...

I didn't notice a difference
In temps when I halved the size of my res.

You could always get an external optical drive. I did this when I got a new case as I rarely use the drive other than the odd install
 
I've looked at an external optical drive and il prop go for that if the mods might look messy. I burn quite a few DVDs tho, dunno if I could live with x8 write speed! Ive had a look for some USB 3.0 ones but there aren't many and it doesn't seem to result in an increased write speed. Def an option but I feel it is a compromise.
 
I don't believe the size of the res makes any difference to temps, they're all too small to make a difference - you need a large external fish tank or something if the aim is to have a large reservoir of cool water...
 
I was hoping my case would be here this weekend so i could play about with the front fans to see how easy it would be to mod it to take the x20 750 + an optical drive but it hasn't come yet, should be here tommorrow tho.

In the mean time ive had a look around and found an icy box dvd enclosure for internal dvd drives which should solve any isues about poor write speeds from slim line externals, but i'd rather have everything inside the box if i could.

I think im going to go for the XSPC Raystorm 750 rx240 kit as it seems to have all the best bits, will need to check head room to mount the rad internally on the top first. Once i've decided on whats going in i'll get it over the next month or so put it together over christmas week when i'm off.

Having real trouble finding a full coverage water block for my existing hd5770. EK used to make one but they're long gone and ebay is empty. No-body knows anyone whos looking to sell one do they? The other option would be a universal gpu block with seperate cooling for the ram etc, but that looks messier to me. Question is, does it make a big difference temp wise? im not going to cook my card am I?

Will make a build log when i finally get started, cant wait to get started!
 
I went for the xspc kit with a D5 pump in a double res, high quality pump that will last and have great pressure, it's also as good as silent on low power and a not uncomfortable at full whack, it's worth the premium.
 
the d5 ex240 kit? it does look good but im already stretching my budget to get to the the one with the combo resevoir pump. I tried to make a kit up out of single parts but price wise i couldnt get close to the kits.

I there much difference between the rs240, ex240, and rx240 rads in view of the temp loads with a cpu+gpu loop? because apart from the rads there arent much diference between the kits priced £140-£190.
 
R3 Case finally arrived today, Unpacked it last night and Ive had a good look around. Looks wise its spot on for me but a quick inspection showed that its quite restrictive in term of water cooling.

IMG_4272.jpg


Theres only about 40mm of clearance in the roof above the motherboard so it looks like even a slim line rad and fan combo in the roof is a no go.

Its possible to put one in the front if you take out the hard drive cages but I use mine so thats not an option either. Why is such a nice case so awkward to watercool?!

I have come up with a few ways to do this so I'll post them below
 
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One of my main stipulations for being allowed to do this build was that the final result does not looks messy, like a computer or horrible, hence such a clean looking case.

Option 1 2x120 Rad in roof
There is just space in the roof for a 35mm rad like the ex240, but this would mean mounting the fans externally. Given my build restrictions id have to buy something like the koolance 2x140 fan shroud to bolt on over the top so it doesnt look messy.
Pros - all components inside case, no tubing on show (although i would quite like some tubing on show, the Boss says no)
Cons - not sure how neat the rads + shroud will look on the top

2x120topsetup1.jpg
 
Option 2
Similoar to option one but the fans are internal and the rad sit on the top. Tubing through the holes in the back with some 90 degree connectors. fans push air through the mesh fan holes in the top. I think the rad will prob look neater on the top than fans and a shroud, and it may also allow the thicker rx240 rad on the top although that may yet be vetoed.

2x120topsetup2.jpg
[/IMG]
 
Option 3
The least visually offensive: 2 separate 120 rads, with nothing on the top of the case, and there are 2 poss loop options:

double120radsetup.jpg
[/IMG]

1 rad mounted externally on the back and 1 internally where the floor fan would go.
Could run the loop
Pump+Res > CPU > rad > GPU > rad > Pump (blue)
or
Pump+Res > rad> CPU > GPU > rad > pump (yellow)

would it be better to run the 2 rads either side of the pump to minimise the temp goin into the cpu, or to cool it between the cpu and gpu? A bit of quick reading around suggests it wont make much difference.

The thing I am worried about is if 2 seperate rads in the loop would restrict flow a lot more than a single 240, esp either side of the pump.

This is the option the wife prefers, but I feel that 2 seperate 120 rads is kinda bottling it a bit.

What do you think?
 
My motherboard came last night so i bolted it in and whipped out the tape measure to see if I can squeeze the rad and fans into the roof. Depth clearance is kinda irrelevant since with fans On even the thinner rs radiator would overlap the ram. I wanted the corsair vengeance ram with the spreader heats sinks but theyre about 48mm tall and there isn't enough width to get the rad in without hitting this. I've come across a low profile vengeance memory which is 27mm tall and with this there is enough clearance but I would have to offset the rad about 1.5cm.

So I thought I was good to go but then I realised that the case is recessed where the back plate goes and this was about the same height as the tall ram and would stop the rad being able to go in. If I Offset the rad from the back however I should clear it.

Hopefully having part of the rad covered up won't affect cooling performance too much esp if I get the rx240.

I do need a few questions answering before I order the kit tho.
1 does the x20 750 bay res pump extend beyond the back of the 5.25 tray?
2 is some coolant and kill coil all I need on top of the kit to set it up?
3 I am Planning to add my gfx card into the loop, I'll need extra connectors but will the amount of tubing supplied be enough
4 although there is just clearance for the rx240 rad, te rs240 is thinner and not as wide and would give me more room to play with, should I err in the side of caution and just get the rs240 kit?

Thanks for the advice guys!
 
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1 unknown
2 if you get a premix such as mayhems you don't need a killcoil
3 that depends on your tube routing and if you waste any. imo theres no point shelling out for a core only block for a 5770 though.
4 id look for any R3 watercooled build logs for info if I were you for this
 
Pretty much every r3 build has the radiator in the front with the hard drive cages removed, I havnt come across one yet with the radiator internally at the top. That's probably telling me something but I was pretty meticulous with my measuring, made litte cardboard boxes the size of the rads and cut outs for the ram etc.

In truth there's no real need for me to water cool at all, it's just going to play media and surf the net, but I'm water cooling it for the crack and I figure I might as well cool the block, job half done and all that.

The dimensions for the bay res pump only go part way back so I'm hoping that te pump doesn't extend out the back of the bay as with the Offsett the radiator will be about 1cm from the 5.25 cage.

Also what does everyone use to cut the tubing? I've got a scalpel.
 
R3 windowed side panel and psu arrived today! Picked up a be quiet 580 modular psu on the cheap! The only variation I've seen on the internal radiator situation is some guy who mounted a 240 against the back of the hard drive cages. Il have to check clearance between the psu, gfx and the cages but it might be another option
 
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