My first project log...

James J

James J

James J

Soldato
Joined
4 Dec 2002
Posts
14,520
Location
North Lincolnshire
Been sculking this subforum for a while now and I've decided to make some rather big and expensive changes to my PC. Gonna use this thread to show what I do and when I do it :)

Currently, I have the following kit!

-i5 2500k at 4.5ghz
-corsair H60 factory sealed water cooler with 120mm akasa apache black fan
-MSI P67A-C45 mobo
-Kingston 8gb DDR3 1600Mhz RAM
-Crucial M4 64gb SSD
-2xWD caviar blue 500gb HDDs in RAID 0
-Sony optiarc dvdrw
-palit 580GTX 3gb
-coolermaster CM690 II advanced case
-OCZ stealth2extreme 600w PSU
-Dell U2311H 23" IPS panel tft.

Its a pretty good system, but loud and I want to get a bigger monitor at some point in the near future, but to do that I'd need some more grunt out of it to use 1440p to the same standard I use 1080p at!

Upgrades so far since start of thread:

-Second Palit 580GTX 3gb
-Corsair 800D case
-Corsair AX850w professional series gold rated PSU
-Asrock Extreme 4 gen 3 motherboard

Over £500 worth of watercooling also (ETA 2 weeks):


-WC-120-EK EK Supreme LTX CPU Waterblock - Nickel Acetal x1
-WC-084-XS XSPC EX240 120mm Radiator - Black x1
-WC-085-XS XSPC EX360 120mm Radiator - Black x1
-FG-030-SY Scythe Gentle Typhoon 120mm 1850 RPM - 3 Pin x5
-WC-031-XS XSPC 7/16" ID [16/11mm] High Flex Hose - Clear x3
-WC-297-OK OcUK 1/2" Barbed Fitting G1/4 - FatBoy Style - Shiny Silver Finish x14
-WC-064-AC Alphacool Cape Fuzion Core 10 - Acetal - Black x1
-WC-010-OK OcUK Tube Cutter Aluminum 3-14mm x1
-WC-021-OK OcUK Value PSU Bridging Connector (24 Pin) x1
-WC-157-EK SPECIAL ORDER -EK-FC5X0 GTX GW Backplate - Black x2
-WC-156-EK SPECIAL ORDER -EK-FC5X0 GTX GW - Acetal + EN (Nickel) x2
-WC-001-MH Mayhems X1 UV Blue Premixed Watercooling Fluid 1L x2
-WC-060-OE OcUK Tech Lab - D5 Vario Pump & Alphacool HF D5 Top Value Combo x1:
WC-057-AC Alphacool HF D5 TOP - Black Acetal G1/4
WC-055-AC Alphacool Laing D5 Vario Pump 655 - NO TOP
​
My watercooling setup is being delayed by the special order GPU blocks due to my gcard being a non reference design so any major updates will sadly have to wait for those to arrive!

EDIT: pictures

Old case, Coolermaster CM690 II advanced


Messy CM690 II advanced by jjohnson2012, on Flickr

As you can see, a tad messy! Cable management in the case is a nightmare due to the very thin back panel giving you not much room to actually run cables behind the mobo, especially compared to the corsair 800d!


One of two... by jjohnson2012, on Flickr

Still waiting for DPD to deliver the other one :S Looks like its gonna be a failed delivery which I'll have to chase up :(

New motherboard


New Motherboard by jjohnson2012, on Flickr

Really nice looking piece of kit and upon installing it, realised its not just the looks that set it apart.


NIce box by jjohnson2012, on Flickr

Another of the mobo, this time the packaging which is rather nice. Only oddity was the exclusion of motherboard screws which I've not seen before lol.

Inside the corsair 800d with a test layout:


Inside new case by jjohnson2012, on Flickr

Had to mount the H60 rad on the roof for now whilst my watercooling order is still being sorted.

More to come :)
 
Last edited:
Asrock extreme 4 gen 3 ordered, plus another 3gb palit 580GTX card for SLI goodness.

Arrives wednesday :)

Changing my watercooling order to also reflect these changes and bring silence to the new and extremely powerful build!

Pictures to follow!
 
Today is delivery day! If both the motherboard and gcard turn up I'm gonna put it all into the corsair 800D and do some benching if all turns out well. The case is bought pre-modded to accept a 240mm radiator at the bottom of it with proper ventilation, but I do need to buy some dust filters for when I actually use it.

Theres still no ETA on my watercooling stuff with OcUK so I'm gonna put everything into the new case first and use it properly before my better cooling shows up. Well thats the plan anyway. Gonna take some pictures in the next 30 mins so I'll upload them then for those that are interested.

I do have a problem though with the current case and mobo, as I can't seem to remove the motherboard from the standoffs due to them all being threaded... This is gonna be an issue as the H60 I own for my CPU has a backplate and the backplate hold is very small indeed, so that'll be interesting to remove later today... -.-
 
rjkoneill said:
subbed, looking forward to seeing your custom loop installed :)
Click to expand...

I'm really looking forward to actually building the loop. Watched so many videos now I'm started to dream about watercooling. My girlfriend just thinks I'm going mental and shes probably right lol!

iB CoMpL3XiTy said:
Try using an adjustable wrench to grip the mobo standoff and then use a screwdriver to take care of the screw, usually works for me.

Looking forward to the pics, nice spec list btw :)
Click to expand...

Thanks :) Might see if my dad has one and lend it so thanks for the tip. I've tried 2 sets of pliers and all they are doing is destroying the standoffs even more. I was advised in another thread to use a hairdryer on them to soften the metal and quite literally pull the motherboard off, yet that seems inherantly risky to me...
 
motherboard has arrived so thankyou ocuk for that. i've taken some photos of the old setup and what ive built so far. I'll upload them when im up and running again as im typing from a nintendo 3ds atm whilst taking a snort break!
 
Just got confirmation that my second 580GTX 3gb card is turning up before 11am today, which is a nice load off of my mind. RJ if you are reading this can you take a look at my customer service thread please as I'm definitely ordering some better watercooling gear, plus need another block for the new card mate!

One big thing I have noticed using a corsair 800D over a coolermaster CM690II advanced is the temps of my graphics card have gone down by 10C under load and I have sod all system fans in the 800d :S Must be due to the fact it has vastly more breathing room and the cables are pretty much hidden away so not obstructing airflow etc!
 
mike gunnz said:
Subbed. This is gonna be a beauty, I can feel it. :)

Let me know if you need to borrow any tools when your wc gear arrives. I have some decent torx screwdrivers which are ace for removing the GPU screws and just about anything else you could possibly need.
Click to expand...

Thanks, might have to lend a screwdriver off you as I can't for the life of me find my set :S

Still no ETA on when it all arrives yet though so no rush lol. Probably gonna be early to mid january at the earliest tbh.
 
Updated the OP with the new and finalised watercooling list which is a shade over £500 (:O) and also updated what I've actually got running at the moment with the list of upgrades I've done since starting the thread.
 
Small update:

My watercooling order is delayed by at least 2 weeks due to the GPU blocks being made to order and due to my exams, I probably won't actually assemble the loop until the last week of january. However, I still need to plan my loop! Any suggestions on that would be most greatful!
 
spenncerr said:
How much has this cost you so far?
Click to expand...

Spent a good £1200 on just the watercooling and the upgrades without even counting the stuff I owned before lol.

Cleeecooo said:
Where are youmounting the res and rads?
Click to expand...

Res will probably be mounted on the side of the motherboard tray as there is plenty of room. The 360 RAD will fit natively at the top and the 240 natively at the bottom after the mod thats been done on it (already done to accept a 240 rad at the bottom). Theres tubing holes already in the divider between the bottom and mobo section of the case so no further mods are needed.
 
Mini update:

Bought myself a nice mechanical keyboard which fits my gaming needs and also matches all of my other kit :D


New keyboard by jjohnson2012, on Flickr

Say hello to the corsair K90 mechanical (red switches) keyboard. Sorry about the crap pic but its from my phone -.-

The colour of the keyboard matches my speakers, case (including LED colour) and monitor (including LED colour) perfectly :D
 
Been thinking about my loop setup this afternoon and came up with this:


watercooling layout thing by jjohnson2012, on Flickr

This way its setup for pump > 360 rad > cpu > gpu1 > gpu2 > 240 rad > res > pump

Any issues with this setup at all I need to be aware of? Is it optimal? I understand that rad placement isn't exactly a big issue as the temp homogenises over the loop regardless of their placement anyway?
 
Cleeecooo said:
Basically, There's a T junction in the middle of the tube. You can then use the sticky outy T bit to add water to the pump when filling. You then plug the T later on so that it doesn't leak and then you can use it to supply the pump with water anytime.

It's hard to explain, ill draw a pic. gimme a sec...
Click to expand...

Legend, sounds promising.
 
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