New watercooling loop - some advice please

madindehead · 14 Mar 2017 at 10:08

Hi guys (and girls),

So I am finally returning to custom watercooling. A few years ago I built my first loop on my i7 920. Now I have a 6850k with an AIO cooler on it. However, as I have just purchased a GTX 1080 Ti, I want to put that under water, and the CPU.

I was looking for some advice regarding fans and pumps. I want to use an Aquaero to control fan speeds on the radiators etc.

What fans can people recommend? I want to push the overclocking on my CPU and GPU, but I also want to keep noise down as much as possible. Obviously, PWM fans as I want to use the Aquaero.

And pump: I have read that EK D5 G2 pump is able to be PWM controller by the Aquaero. Can anyone confirm this? If not, I will grab an EK D5 top, and the Aquacomputer D5.

As it's been a while since I last built a waterloop, anything else I should watch out for? Tubing is another concern of mine, what are the benefits/downsides of going with narrower walled tubing? Like 10/16mm vs 10/13mm?

As for radiator etc, I looked at the EK configurator, and it suggested that a single 480 quad rad (120mm fans) would be fine to cool the Ti and my CPU. I would be going for an EK XE radiator (their top one I think).

Hopefully someone can give advice.

VKleita · 14 Mar 2017 at 11:44

First off Welcome back!

I would suggest looking at multi brands, I worry that you mention only using EK for your parts, their are other good people out there, personally I'm swore off EK at this time due to issues with their Block seals and the horrible horror stories regarding the Predator AIO.

This is of course purely my viewpoint, feel free to ignore

A 480 should be able to deal with a 1080Ti and 6850K, personally Ive gone off 120 Rads, I find the noise of a 140 fan less of a buzz and more of a air drone noise, if that makes sense, thou in DB they are not any quieter I find it more easy to filter out in a small office.

I hope that at least helps a little bit.

madindehead · 14 Mar 2017 at 12:37

Thanks. I have used EK in the past (my first build) and never had any issues with them. I also like the look of their blocks (always have done).

Didn't know there had been issues, so I might investigate a bit more. Thanks

Regarding fans, that makes sense yes. I will need to see what fits in the case. I should have mentioned, I have a Corsair 900D, so lots of space. But I was planning on fitting in radiator in the basement, as it has mounting points for a 480 rad

I will probably do push-pull on the bottom, and fans on the other side to push air out the bottom of the case. I can then use the front and back as in-take, and possibly the top for exhaust. I saw Linus do this on a 900D build, and he said it made for positive air pressure, and hopefully less dust build up too.

VKleita · 14 Mar 2017 at 21:39

In my own personal testing I found push pull made almost bugger all difference and slightly more fan noise.
I suppose at extremely low rpms it might help slightly, but when you are coughing up good money for decent fans, it all adds to build costs for little benefit

Again just my 2 pence.

madindehead · 15 Mar 2017 at 12:44

My primary understanding of push-pull, is that you can run lower fan speeds and still achieve better performance. Same with running 2 pumps, at lower RPM, can improve performance and reduce noise (as long as the PWM is low enough).

Dirk Diggler · 16 Mar 2017 at 05:35

In the size of loop you are building, you can run a single D5 pump at the lowest setting without any issue. There's no need for two pumps.

I haven't tested push/pull enough to form an opinion other than that i have used single fans with no issue ( currently using 2*240 rads with single fans that cooled a 5930k and 980ti SLI).

If in doubt regarding push/pull, you could consider building with single fans in a way that you could add the others if you felt the need. Just have the fans at the bottom of your case, with radiator on top of the fans. If you test and aren't happy with noise, then place more fans on top of the radiator.

Aberfala · 16 Mar 2017 at 09:01

VKleita said:
In my own personal testing I found push pull made almost bugger all difference and slightly more fan noise.

Agree 100% based on my own experiences.

Aberfala · 16 Mar 2017 at 09:03

String said:
There's no need for two pumps.

While there is rarely a need for 2 pumps they can still be a good idea if space is no issue for the redundancy they provide.

I have 2 D5's running at setting 3 so I know if one packs up I can just set the other at 5 and still achieve decent flow.

Dirk Diggler · 16 Mar 2017 at 09:08

Mikey C said:
While there is rarely a need for 2 pumps they can still be a good idea if space is no issue for the redundancy they provide.

I have 2 D5's running at setting 3 so I know if one packs up I can just set the other at 5 and still achieve decent flow.

Why would you need a D5 running at 5? I used to set mine between 1 and 2.

D5's are PWM now anyway, so the fan header will control the speed. I have mine set at silent with no issues cooling a loop of CPU, 2*240 rads, 2*GPU.

madindehead · 16 Mar 2017 at 12:29

I am planning to buying an Aquaero to control my fans and D5. Space isn't an issue at all. Regarding the radiator: It is going in the basement of my 900D. Lots of space in the case even for dual-D5, although like you said, not needed. Although, they could run a lot lower RPM to reduce noise?

Can anyone recommend any good, solid PWM fans? For a radiator I want them to be high pressure right? To get the air through?

Smffy · 16 Mar 2017 at 12:32

I've got two EK D5 and they don't respond to change using my Aquaero 6LT - but I'm told you can run the power off the 6LT by wiring those in the molex connector to the PWM connector which would work fine. Depends how many you have spare really with 4 available it's a good plan to use some Splitty 9s to connect the banks of fans in batches.

I've got way to much radiator so 17 fans across 3 splittys, right now I just joined my pump signal connectors and am running that off the pump header on my Asus board. Regarding the speed you will find the pumps are not noticeable even up to 60% really.

Fans I've got Corsair MLs but plenty of good alternatives.

madindehead · 16 Mar 2017 at 13:27

Which version of the EK D5s do you have? The G2 versions? Because I have read that they work correctly? Otherwise I will just buy the Aquacomputer D5s which do work.

Would I need a PowerAdjust for the Aquaero to run 1/2 pumps? Or can I run them directly off the Aquaero?

VKleita · 16 Mar 2017 at 18:48

madindehead said:
My primary understanding of push-pull, is that you can run lower fan speeds and still achieve better performance. Same with running 2 pumps, at lower RPM, can improve performance and reduce noise (as long as the PWM is low enough).

The laws of physics say otherwise "You never get anything for free"

Regarding pumps, I found running two pumps at lower RPM still created more noise due to the vibrations between the two pumps.

I also found even with one pump stopped, I didn't really have to run the other pump at any higher speed still to get good flow, them D5's have decent enough pressure anyway, the second pump just free wheeled in the water

I also am pretty sure the D5's as they use water as "Bearings" push heat into the water at high speed... Wish I had a way to find out really, could be interesting.

For the idea of redundancy, I kind of get the idea...But surely you have some form of protection system that if it gets hot it shuts itself down anyway ... right ?

Aberfala · 16 Mar 2017 at 18:54

String said:
Why would you need a D5 running at 5? I used to set mine between 1 and 2.

D5's are PWM now anyway, so the fan header will control the speed. I have mine set at silent with no issues cooling a loop of CPU, 2*240 rads, 2*GPU.

I suppose it depends how much flow rate you're happy with. Personally I try and get somewhere near what is considered optimum which is between 1 - 1.5 GPM and to do that with my loop I need both pumps running at setting 3.

Aberfala · 16 Mar 2017 at 19:03

VKleita said:
For the idea of redundancy, I kind of get the idea...But surely you have some form of protection system that if it gets hot it shuts itself down anyway ... right ?

That doesn't help if you're in the middle of doing something and would rather not shut your PC down.

VKleita · 16 Mar 2017 at 19:19

Mikey C said:
That doesn't help if you're in the middle of doing something and would rather not shut your PC down.

Doing what exactly that's mission critical?

We are talking about a forum for overclocking and game playing, yes there are exceptions but as I said I get the idea... but I think for a lot of people its overkill, your viewpoint might differ, I still say it's a lot of money sitting in a pump, making noise, burning electric for 99% of its time very little benefit.

Anyway I've said my piece, OP can take what they want from it, I'm not arguing.

Dirk Diggler · 16 Mar 2017 at 19:24

Mikey C said:
I suppose it depends how much flow rate you're happy with. Personally I try and get somewhere near what is considered optimum which is between 1 - 1.5 GPM and to do that with my loop I need both pumps running at setting 3.

I understand your logic, but my logic revolves around one thing... the temperature of my components. It doesn't matter if it's pushing 2 GPM or 0.2 GPM, if the components are cool then I'm happy.

Aberfala · 16 Mar 2017 at 19:50

VKleita said:
Doing what exactly that's mission critical?

We are talking about a forum for overclocking and game playing, yes there are exceptions but as I said I get the idea... but I think for a lot of people its overkill, your viewpoint might differ, I still say it's a lot of money sitting in a pump, making noise, burning electric for 99% of its time very little benefit.

Anyway I've said my piece, OP can take what they want from it, I'm not arguing.

Overkill is exactly what it is, I can't disagree. To me though watercooling has always been about going over the top and doing stuff just because you can, that's all part of the fun.

What's mission critical is of course subjective but having to quit a competitive multiplayer game or leave a raid is what I'd consider important enough reasons to add redundancy but again I'm sure most people would consider that overkill.

Aberfala · 16 Mar 2017 at 19:52

String said:
I understand your logic, but my logic revolves around one thing... the temperature of my components. It doesn't matter if it's pushing 2 GPM or 0.2 GPM, if the components are cool then I'm happy.

I totally agree, component temps are really all that matters...well they were until I bought a flow meter

madindehead · 22 Mar 2017 at 09:43

Getting back on track:

Probably going to go for some of these parts:

My basket at Overclockers UK:

1 x EK Water Blocks EK-CoolStream XE 480 (Quad)= £114.95
1 x Aqua Computer D5 Pump Motor with USB and Aquabus Interface= £84.95
1 x EK Water Blocks EK-XRES 140 Revo D5 PWM (incl. pump)= £115.99
4 x Corsair SP120 PWM Low Noise High Pressure Fan 4 pin, Dual Pack (CO-9050012-WW)= £32.99
4 x Corsair SP120 PWM High Pressure Fan 4 pin, Dual Pack (CO-9050014-WW)= £32.99

Total: £590.31
(includes shipping: £10.50)

Regarding the fans: Are the low noise ones likely to be sufficient for airflow on the radiator in push-pull? As they have lower airflow than the standard variant.

Pump wise, I can't decide between the EK waterblocks all-in-one setup. Or going for an Aquacomputer D5, and perhaps a nice Aquacomputer reservoir.

Tubing size: Not decided. I did read that because of the G1/4 fitting, most loops are restricted to 10mm at input/output of blocks etc, so I think I'll go for 10/13mm or 10/16mm. Not sure if there are any benefits besides ease of routing the tubing?