Infin8 toxicity - Continued failure under RMA

xscotteex

xscotteex

xscotteex

Associate
Joined
18 Dec 2020
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21
It is with great frustration that I am writing this post today. Apologies in advance for the wall of text, and I will endeavour to fill in any gaps of the story where needed.

Beginning

I have been the owner of a Toxicity Infin8 system for the best part of two and a half years now, with my original order being placed on the 16th August 2018. The system was delivered circa 04th August 2018, and I was the proud owner of a high end system for the first time in my life.

For the next couple of years everthing was well and good. The system performed great and I could really push it to its limits without it slacking. That was until around July 2020, where I began to experience issues with overheating and crashing. I initially put this down to there being an issue with the coolant needing servicing, therefore I ordered some new liquid and flushed the system, refilling it as required. I made sure that I used the 24 pin PSU trip trick to have the pump circulate the liquid for a good half a day before use and to make sure of no cavitation or bubbles in the pump.

1st RMA

However, after a month, the same issues returned with frequent crashing and overheating. This eventually culminated in me organising an RMA on the 01st September, which was picked up on the 7th September (due to address issues), with it being returned to OC on the 8th September.

I waited patiently, understanding that the increase in demand they are under right now has increased SLA, occasionally chasing for updates. Eventually it was determined that a portion of the sponge that OC previously built into their watercooling systems had degraded and contaminated the system, causing blockages and the pump to fail. The system was flushed and cleaned, with CPU block cleaned out and the pump replaced with an EK Quantum Inertia D5.

This was returned to myself on 24th September, and I got the system set back up and working. All was well, and I had been without the PC for 23 days at this point. I ran it through some testing myself and did some clean up. Everything seemed to be working fine and back to normal.

2nd RMA

Then, on the Sunday 22nd November whilst on a Discord call with my friends, the PC crashed again. Hard this time, without me even able to access BIOS without it overheating. So once again I organised an RMA which was picked up Thursday 26th November (initial pallet driver for the 25th didn't have a pallet to be able to pick up secure the PC), which was received Friday 27th November.

I was in communication with the customer service line every other day waiting on an update and even requested they fit a drain valve so that, when the warranty ran out, I could service the device easier myself. This was confirmed and passed to the engineer. On Thursday 10th December I contacted the line again and it was confirmed that all testing had been complete and was ready to be shipped. I queried if they had fitted the valve, and because of a clerical error this had been missed, which resulted in the system needing to be drained and delayed its return to me. Therefore, the system was returned on Monday 14th December, arriving to myself Tuesday 15th December. The RMA was resolved with the pump being replaced again, both radiators and a full system clean including resevoir and GPU blocks this time. This is another 23 days now without the system

3rd RMA

Now to today, whilst booting the PC and logging in to google chrome, I experienced another hard crash and severe overheating again, much like the 10th December. I tried the same tricks to have the pump spool up by tricking the PSU but to no avail. It wasn't working again.

The BIOS recognises that the pump is there and attached to the MOBO, but is not reading any speed or spooling at all, no matter what settings I change.

At this point, I have now set up a third RMA which will be picked upon Monday 21st December. With the holiday period I don't expect to receive this back until roughly the 2nd or 3rd week of the new year. I have been without a very expensive piece of hardware for a total of 46 days (estimated 70 days total after 3rd RMA) now and it is beginning to get tiresome. I understand that there is only one technician that is allowed to work on the Infin8 and 8Pack systems which causes a huge backlog like this.

When asked if this could be expedited or looked into in a more timely manner because of the repeated issues, I am told there is nothing that can be done. I hate to be that kind of guy, but when I have spent over £4000 on a custom system I expect better support. I spoke to the customer service rep today and he suggested posting on here to get some traction
 
Thanks Monty, I will be honest I'm just trying to get some information out there and see if anyone else has had issues with the EK Quantum Inertia D5 failing repeatedly or any other tricks I could do to get it working again
 
D5 pumps are widely used, i would hazard a guess that they are THE most used pump for custom loop water cooling.

So their reliabilty is excellent, but like everything you might get a bad one.

To have 3 fail on the same machine would indicate an issue elsewhere in my opinion.

You've been very patient and i would hope OcUK push this to the top of the list considering its a third RMA.

Good Luck
 
Thanks for the info Brizzles, I should have specified that the first pump was actually an EK xtop revo d5. That was the one that got shredded by the sponge blocking the system.

But yeh, 2x Quantum and this one didn't even last 72 hours.

I'm just incredibly frustrated, and trying not to take it out on the people at overclockers, as they are people at the end of the day. But yeh, I do hope it gets pushed
 
Very odd, three D5s failing sounds rather far-fetched, unless they're doing something very wrong during the drain, refill and bleed. It's a bullet proof pump.

Wonder if it's something wrong with the mobo? Tried a different controller? Say a QUADRO or Commander Pro?
 
See this is what I keep saying, I find it incredibly suspect that three pumps would fail.

They admitted the first was caused because of an old style filter they used that they've now discontinued. The second was apparently a remnant of the same blockage causing the pump to fail.

But the third to have failed after just two days is insane.

For reference the mobo is a Gigabyte z370
 
xscotteex said:
See this is what I keep saying, I find it incredibly suspect that three pumps would fail.

They admitted the first was caused because of an old style filter they used that they've now discontinued. The second was apparently a remnant of the same blockage causing the pump to fail.

But the third to have failed after just two days is insane.

For reference the mobo is a Gigabyte z370
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I'm of the opinion that the loop needs proper investigation. Blocks disassembled, all new tubing, and the rads need to be either replaced, or at the very least Blitzed.

Just in case I'd suggest checking the pump on another controller, or at least a different header & power connector.

It's possible they screwed the pooch with this filter material, some may be trapped in the radiator, and they don't want to spend the money to replace the rads on a 'just in case' scenario.

I've never run a filter, properly prepped and maintained loop doesn't need one.
 
Well its 2nd RMA included 2 new radiators too. At this point the only parts not swapped on the watercooling is the piping, the resevoir and the blocks.

Theyve apparently thoroughly cleaned the blocks each time too.
 
xscotteex said:
Well its 2nd RMA included 2 new radiators too. At this point the only parts not swapped on the watercooling is the piping, the resevoir and the blocks.

Theyve apparently thoroughly cleaned the blocks each time too.
Click to expand...

If it's new rads and stripped blocks then there should be nothing left, assuming they also stripped the Res which is an easy job.

Why they didn't replace the tubing I've no clue, should be done in every rebuild imo.

Next step for me would be ensuring that the pump is being properly driven; connect it to different ports and /or a fan controller.

Very, very strange. D5s as I've said, are incredibly robust, we all run them.
 
Thanks for the info Wanton. J have enough knowledge to get by when it comes to computing etc, but will be first to admit I'm not too knowledgeable on the water cooling side.

I had the thought last night that perhaps it is something to do with the PSU connection as my PSU only comes with 1x 4 way molex connector. So it doesn't look like that's been changed at all. Perhaps there could be an issue there
 
xscotteex said:
Thanks for the info Wanton. J have enough knowledge to get by when it comes to computing etc, but will be first to admit I'm not too knowledgeable on the water cooling side.

I had the thought last night that perhaps it is something to do with the PSU connection as my PSU only comes with 1x 4 way molex connector. So it doesn't look like that's been changed at all. Perhaps there could be an issue there
Click to expand...
It's not like a pump is going to be drawing crazy power, but have you got any other components powered from that molex rail? If you have anything like an old school fan (or fan power adapter) that you could try on it? At the very least, a multimeter would confirm that there's 12v making it to the pins you're using.
 
im gonna hazard a guess the blocks, rads were not cleaned properly and remnants of the sponge is still floating around causing pump failure. But im also gonna say that a sponge like material is very unlikely to damage a D5, i've had plastic/acrylic from bits of tubing go through the pump and the pump smashed through just fine. Theres either something really overheating it or theres an electrical problem somewhere causing it. If you're competent enough i would take it apart and investigate first before sending it back.
 
SirConfused said:
It's not like a pump is going to be drawing crazy power, but have you got any other components powered from that molex rail? If you have anything like an old school fan (or fan power adapter) that you could try on it? At the very least, a multimeter would confirm that there's 12v making it to the pins you're using.
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The PSU is a 1200 watt GOLD super flower modular, and the pump is the only thing on the MOLEX. I ran a multimeter on it before sending off, and right you are 12 volts outputting nicely.

Jay85 said:
im gonna hazard a guess the blocks, rads were not cleaned properly and remnants of the sponge is still floating around causing pump failure. But im also gonna say that a sponge like material is very unlikely to damage a D5, i've had plastic/acrylic from bits of tubing go through the pump and the pump smashed through just fine. Theres either something really overheating it or theres an electrical problem somewhere causing it. If you're competent enough i would take it apart and investigate first before sending it back.
Click to expand...

I have a feeling that there is remnants in the block, but this will be determined soon hopefully. I have a good enough knowledge to understand flow rate, power consumption etc etc, but wouldn't trust myself with taking apart a unit. Especially as it is still covered under warranty, I definitely wouldn't want to jepordise that.


Either way guys, I've got a little progress with my RMA apparently being escalated to the technical manager who is aiming to expedite the repair. I'll keep you informed
 
I hope you get this resolved soon. I once managed to kill an EK D5 by letting it run dry as I was filling it. A few days after, it just stopped. Perhaps someone at OCUK is letting the pump run dry? Only a thought.
 
xscotteex said:
Thanks for the info Wanton. J have enough knowledge to get by when it comes to computing etc, but will be first to admit I'm not too knowledgeable on the water cooling side.

I had the thought last night that perhaps it is something to do with the PSU connection as my PSU only comes with 1x 4 way molex connector. So it doesn't look like that's been changed at all. Perhaps there could be an issue there
Click to expand...

You're very welcome mate. If you're under RMA then make use of the service, I'm not judging! Just want to get you up and running.

xscotteex said:
The PSU is a 1200 watt GOLD super flower modular, and the pump is the only thing on the MOLEX. I ran a multimeter on it before sending off, and right you are 12 volts outputting nicely.

I have a feeling that there is remnants in the block, but this will be determined soon hopefully. I have a good enough knowledge to understand flow rate, power consumption etc etc, but wouldn't trust myself with taking apart a unit.
Click to expand...

Just so we're clear, if two clean outs haven't removed all foreign bodies then they're doing an absolutely appalling job. I do not think that's the case thoigh; if I absolutely had to have someone else work on my PC, it would be OCUK.

For information only : Taking off the pumps top and removing the impeller is a ridiculously simple job.

It's just a metal rounded peice fused to a plastic impeller, that sits on a ceramic bearing. The little round bearing is a common fault cause, which a clean usually solves.

If the sponge gunked up the impeller, and the motor continued spinning, working against the magnetic force of the impeller assembly with no water running through, I'd wager that could kill it. But they really are bullet proof.

Without looking at it, it's very hard to tell, but I still have a strong feeling the cause is the motherboard header. This is the part that sends a PWM signal to the pump, as well as monitoring it's signal out for speed.

It's either that, gunk in the system or another faulty D5 which I genuinely don't believe. If it's gunk you're well within your rights to be annoyed, and I'd expect compensation. Filters aren't really necessary, especially with clear fluid, and using a sponge is just silly.

I suppose the I my other option is a crappy loop design, but the D5s really are flow beasts.

When it's out of warranty don't be afraid to get stuck in. Everything is fixable or at the very worst replaceable, and watercooling and overclocking is the most fun part of owning a PC for me these days.

Cases and component standards are so good that everything else is basically grown up Lego.

Let us know how you get on mate. Good luck.
 
Okay so got an update now

The RMA was dealt with in good time over the festive period, which I am thankful for and I have the below responses

"The Pump had failed due to a small amount of debris making it's way into the Pump bearing.

It seems that the small amount of particles managed to seize the pump impeller enough to stop it completely.
The GPU and CPU blocks are still fine and all the temperatures are perfect. We have had the system on test for 48 hours straight and the temperatures were good for the overclock on the system.

I think as the pump is at one of the lowest points in the loop, any particles that were still present have collected near the pump and when the system is switched off the have built up inside the bearing area.

We are just finishing the repair now and arranging to ship the system back to you.
The shipment will most likely be next week."

and

"We have fitted a In-line filter to the water cooling loop. This should catch any debris before it gets caught in the Pump.

We have also flushed the system through with fresh fluid again and could not see any more particles in the fluid.

We do not have photo's of the Pump as we were still trying to determine what had caused the fault when we found out it was the pump, by this time we had cleaned the parts in search of what was causing the issue.

The pump was brand new from the last repair, this really is a first for us as these pumps can go for ever it seems.

We have also changed more tubing over to new tubing just in case it was that causing the trouble."


However, to compound the issue; the system was dispatched yesterday afternoon, and they only went and sent it to the address I lived at 3 years ago, despite me confirming multiple times I have a new address and having the RMA picked up from my new address (and dropped off) on previous RMAs.

All faith has been lost now, and frankly I don't see it being long before it fails again.
 
How very strange. As I said in a previous post, if that ceramic bearing gets gunged it will fail, which sounds like what's happened. Either that or there was enough debris to interfere with the impeller fins and the side wall, which would be a bit bonkers; that's not a small amount!

What I don't get is why; it's fresh fluid and it's apparently been cleaned by 'professionals' several times. I am absolutely blown away that there was still debris in the system. All of us run our loops for yonks, no issues; where is all this 'debris' coming from?

I'd wager most of us don't run filters either.

Glad they changed the tubing, as I mentioned in an earlier post, this should have been done the first time; I change tubes every maintenance drain.

Either the flushing is poor and it's that sponge stuff, it's debris from the rads as they've not been blitzed properly, it's plasticiser leached from crappy tubing, or it's biological.

Interesting that they didn't provide a photograph either.....

Not surprised you're frustrated mate. I'd be sick to the back teeth at this point.
 
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