Project: Fractal S, dual 360 hardline loop in Blue/White

[DBT85]

Project: Fractal Define S, All EK dual 360 hardline loop in Blue/White

I had my first watercooling loop many years ago, a primochill kit I think. The rad never fit in the case so it just hung out the back though I never had any issues. Since then (over 10 years) I've been on air. Now its time to go back to water but this time a custom hardline loop!

A few weeks ago I jumped from a 2500k in an old Akasa 62 Eclipse case. The upgrade was largely done since I'd had the 2500k since launch, and the new case was with a view to a custom loop later.

The plan is for a dual 360mm rad hardline loop, blue coolant and white fittings with blue and white cable extensions to match.

Existing PC Parts
CPU: 6700k @ 4.7Ghz
Mobo: Gigabyte Z170x-UD3
RAM: 32GB Kingston Fury 2400 DDR4
GPU: Zotac Amp! 980ti @ 1450/2000
Case: Fractal Define S
PSU: Corsair HX520 (many years old!)
SSD: 1x 1TB Samsung Evo 840 1x 512GB Samsung Evo 840

What's being added

Big bits
1x EK-XRES 100 Revo D5 PWM (incl. pump) Arrived
1x EK-RES X3 - TUBE 250 Arrived
2x EK-CoolStream PE 360 (Triple) Arrived
6x EK-Vardar F4-120 (2200rpm) Arrived
1x EK-Supremacy MX - Acetal Arrived
1x EK-FC Titan X - Acetal Arrived
1x EK-FC Titan X Backplate - Black Arrived

Little bits
1x XSPC LCD Temperature Sensor (White) V2 + G1/4" Plug Sensor Arrived
1x EK-AF X-Splitter 4F G14 - Nickel Arrived
1x EK-AF Ball Valve (10mm) G14 - Black Arrived
2x EK-Cable Y-Splitter 3-Fan PWM (10cm) Arrived
2x EEK-HD PETG Clear Tube 1012mm 500mm (2pcs) Arrived
14x EK-HDC Fitting 12mm G1/4 - White Arrived

EK-HD Tube D.I.Y. Kit 10&12mm Arrived
EK Water Blocks EK-Ekoolant Pastel BLUE Arrived
Mayhems Ultra Pure H2O 5Ltr Arrived
Mayhems Blitz Pro cleaning kit Arrived

BitFenix Alchemy 2.0 20cm Blue/White cables made up by myself. Arrived


and for good measure
1x Samsung SM951 512GB M.2 PCI-e 3.0 x 4 NVMe SSD Arrived

Right now by quick lash together of my current parts on air looks like this. I love this Fractal Define S case, it's so roomy and nice to work in with no old 5.25" bays getting in the way. All the cables get well out of the way too.





The build won't be happening for a week or so as I'm working and have a few parts left to get. But it'll give me a chance to look over the stuff I've already ordered and order any missing parts.

 

[DBT85]

Looking forward to seeing how you run the tubes with the two 360s.

You and me both!

I'll probably mount both rads up to have a look at options before I do the full build.

I've seen one build that managed it with a 420 (top) and a 360 (front) but because he didn't check it properly first, he couldn't put the third fan on the top.

If he'd put the front fans on the outside of the chassis (behind the front panel) he could have done it though.

 

[DBT85]

So the majority of the parts have arrived and the OP updated. Just waiting on another 360 rad, bending rubber, new res tube and the remaining fittings.

Rather annoyingly I had ordered the XSPC bending rubber but it doesn't fit the EKWB PTGE pipe! One more thing to add to the list of bits to sell.

Had a quick look at all the bits that are here already, really like the packaging on all the EK stuff, they seem to have taken their time over it all. Also didn;t realise just how small one of the m.2 drives was until I held it in my palm. Crazy!

Might try some rad/res positioning out this week so will have a few pics of that, however I do have a bathroom to rip out first so it might get delayed till next week.

One thing I've noticed is that both the pump and the temp monitor both need a molex for power. Its 2016. Death to molex.

For now, just a pig of the fun bits!

 

[DBT85]

Ohh this is very similar to my own upgrade project! Hope you dont mind if I steal anything you do better than me!!!

I know what you mean about the XSPC bending rubber. I bought the kit and it was only after i ordered it and was reading more about it I found out it was for the 16mm tubes not the 10's i was going for!!!

Sad to see about the pump molex :S I hope my stand alone pump doesnt do that to me!!!!

Ha, no problem at all! Though it could well be the other way around!

Make up my first cable last night from the Alchemy 2.0 wires. Need some combs but they were all out of stock.

The wires are nice and stiff and the braiding is decent. You sure as hell won't be pulling the wires back out of the connectors!

Will get some pics once I've done all of them.

Also plugged up the temperature sensor just to check it works ok. All seems good!

 

[DBT85]

So I had a very brief measure up with the one PE360 rad I have, needless to say its going to be snug in there with 2! The tanks of each will overlap a few mm, but there should be space for the fans to be fitted.

Should just barely fit but it would fit better if the top edge of the existing 140mm rear fan was shaved off about 2mm, or if I just put a 120mm there instead. I'll see properly once the second rad arrives next week.

Another option is to mount the front rad with the fans on the outside of the case but still behind the front shroud. The shroud has an internal depth of 36mm so should allow enough airflow through if needed, though it would mean losing the filter.

I reckon I can make it all fit as standard though.

 

[DBT85]

how have you gone about mounting your pump?

none of the pre drilled spots inside the Define S really fit the EK-XTOP, so i think im gonna fit by drilling 2 holes in like with the leftmost 3.5 bay "line" for lack of a better term.

Not head a measure up for that yet so not sure, but I've got the D5 Revo so the mountings might be different. If I gotta drill, I gotta drill!

 

[DBT85]

slightly scary as that is i feel the same way. Im also wondering if I might put a bulkhead fitting in the back and take the drain section out there. But I dont wanna consider that till i have my rads and can size it all up

It's one of those things. Why be fine with taking a heatsink off a £500 GPU and putting a block on, but not about sticking a few extra holes in a £80 case that I'll probably keep for a decade like the last one!

As for the drain option, I'm going with a 4 way block (EK-AF X-Splitter 4F). Temp sensor on 1, loop on 2 and ball valve for drain on the 4th.

 

[DBT85]

Arrgh why didnt i think of that!!! I couldn't work out where to put a temp sensor without it being inline and slightly unsightly!!! I've went for a EK-AF T splitter and ball valve arrangement.

Ahh, I spent ages working out exactly what I wanted to do while I was bored at work!

All the parts have now arrived bar the new res tube which should have been posted today but for some reason wasn't (OCUK have had stock today).

Anyway, It means that hopefully by Tuesday (working nights this weeked) I'll have some pics of a quick lash up of the rads and pump which will give me a chance to see exactly how to plumb it all up and how well it fits in there.

I can then make a start on getting the first pipes done to join the front rad to the pump and the temp sensor and drain point.

 

[DBT85]

Ok, finally managed to make a start really late last night!

So far just the front rad and pump are in place to help me get an idea of spacing and what I might need to do with the tubing.

The Revo D5 pump mounts do not line up with the holes in the case so I'll have to get my drill out to make 2 new holes. Fortunately the pump comes with a sticky template that you can use to get the right spacing.

Also I found that with the front rad/fans in place and my existing heatsink, it's impossible to get the top rad in place. I am certain it will fit having measured both up though.

Strangely the EK Vardar fans don't seem to have direction indicators anywhere I could see. No major issue though.

My longer res tube finally got posted out very late yesterday so it'll be here in time for actually adding fluid to the loop.

So now I'm going to pop this rad out and run the blitz cleaning system through them both before remounting. Then hopefully later I can get my first bit of bending done to make the piece to connect the front rad to the 4way block, drain point and pump inlet.

Of course, some pics!

The old!





The new!

 

[DBT85]

Yeah I've considered doing that but I'd lose the nice magnetic fan filters and since I'ts just about possible to get both of these 360s in with the fans inside too, that's what I'll be going for.

There is enough room behind the front panel to not restrict airflow though, its about 36mm deep and with the fans able to pull air in from the sides of the front panel it should be just fine.

One thing I forgot to mention earlier. Little disappointed with EK and the Revo D5 for not braiding the power and PWM cables (they are brightly coloured), and for using a molex connector. Surely they could have used a SATA connector. I'll have to remove the molex so that I can route the cable through an available hole to get it out of the way.

Just rinsed my rads out with tap water before starting the clean. Both emptied and no loose bits fell into the coffee filter so EK get some extra points for that.

Both 360s are now bathing in the Blitz Pro. I calculated that the PE360 radiator takes about round 225ml of fluid to fill to the brim so only made up half of the Stage 1 liquid.

Very pleased with my purchase of a 1000ml wash bottle which is making this far less messy than it otherwise would be!

Couple more pics of the rads.

 

[DBT85]

Ok, last cable made up, the 24pin ATX. I managed to put one wrong lead in the wrong hole so had to fiddle with some sewing needles to get it out but got there in the end! Note to all, just don't get it wrong in the first place!

Also my new res tube arrived and is now fitted and looks much better. Holes are also drilled in the case for the pump mount.

You might want to try that front panel on and see how much gap you have between the panel and the fan - it could overly restrict the amount of air that can get into the fan leading to increased noise and decreased flow. You'll have to - as the saying goes - suck it and see.

The front panel is deep enough that there should be 10mm space from the front of the fan to the back of the panel and lots of room all around for air to flow in.

The filter would be restricting the flow more than that.

 

[DBT85]

Weird, the cables in the bottom don't bother me. Maybe because mine are black and I can neatly file them away through the grommet?

Anyway, time to put the gpu block on!

 

[DBT85]

Ok,

I got the GPU block on last night after some faffing about and my first tube is bent!

Removal of the heatsink one from the Zotac was easy enough, however putting the new one on was a bit of a pain. I did notice that there was no TIM ona chunk of the chip as it came out of the factory. So Interested to see what this change might do for temps and clocks. I was able to hit about 1460 before IIRC.

First up I'd put far too much TIM on the block so redid it, next up I had secured the 4 main screws down to hold the block tight to the GPU as well as the one screw holding the block to the back plane. The problem was for some reason the backplane hole is slightly out of alignment with all the other holes, so with this in I couldn't secure down anything else. So I've gone without that screw so that the backplane and so on can be connected properly.

It's back in the rig now and running fine since at idle with no cooling its happy at 50c.

I also bent my first pipe which connects my 4 way block to my drain ball valve. Its not a perfect bend and there are some scratches on it from the fittings, but it's tiny, in the base of the case and may well end up being redone anyway.

Bending it I found easy enough, however getting the damned thing into the fittings required quite a deal of force. These EK HDC fittings are incredibly tight even without the compression seal. I just hope I can make all the other connections while its all in place, as this one was hard with it in my hand!

Rads are also emptied and washed through 3 times with a PH measure taken after the last. The 1st stage came out a little cloudy but not hugely with a couple of teeny tiny particle in from the rads. So it looks like EK get another point there.

I'll be bending more later to join the front rad, pump and GPU up.

Anyway. More pics.

 

[DBT85]

Yeah that's just a half way pic don't worry

I did chamfer the end and applied a little water. We'll see how the others go.

 

[DBT85]

MotherF.......

I had exactly the same issue. Wish I had noticed this on my first read through! What bending rubber did you use in place?

I bought ek kit that has the small saw, 2 bending rubbers and some sandpaper. I'm guessing you realised at the wrong time!

All working great so far.

Sadly I've run into a problem in that the tubes at 500mm long are about 100mm shorter than the longest run I need. So I'll have to order some kind of coupler to join 2 bits that I've now made up ready. If course I realised this too late to get an order in for delivery tomorrow!

All the pipe bending has gone OK considering its my first time. The only waste peice I have is the little bend I made yesterday, and that's only because I've had to change my plan.

Never used acrylic, but petg seems easy to soften easily to bend and doesn't go manky if you have to soften again for adjustments. There is one bit I might redo from the cpu to the top rad, but it will work just fine as it is if I don't.

Just one more tube to actually bend now. Will get some phone pics later!

Also drilled out the bottom left lug hole that the front panel clips into. Now it's big enough for the tube to go through as my drain point!

 

[DBT85]

That should do a decent job! Good lucky with whatever they send! I know EK do everything in metric where American based companies don't which is why there is some faff getting bits to match sometimes.

Really annoying that I'll have to wait till Friday. I could make the 70 mile trip up to OCUK but I've got other stuff I can be doing! I did call them at 5pm today hoping to squeeze in an emergency order but no help at all

I've had to remove the built in 140mm fan at the rear of the case and use a 120mm I had as it was the only way of getting the top rad in place and be able to get the fans on. With the 140mm fan there I had to make do with random holes in the vent at the top and I couldn't get the last fan in place as it interfered with the front rad.

Anyway, here are the two pics of it as it sits right now. I need a coupler and 2 fittings to join between the CPU and front rad, and then a couple of elbow fittings to squeeze the ball valve in where I want it. Pic quality is going to be pants until I get it running again!

 

[DBT85]

With no parts arriving today (due tomorrow) I bent the last bit of pipe I needed to do (4way block to pump inlet) and also took a moment to do the one for the drain that I can disconnect when not needed.

I also spent a while sorting out the cables on the back and stuff to neaten it up ready. Right now I just need to fit the ordered fittings and the whole machine is good to go. Hopefully Mr DPD will be early tomorrow.

I've also had what is probably a mad idea to try and bend a bit of PETG to look like a filament from a bulb, maybe to go between the pump and GPU. Would be easier with a longer bit of pipe and bending rubber but the EK one is quite short. Maybe it's something I'll tinker with.

Until tomorrow!

 

[DBT85]

Thanks

They are PE 360 rads, so 38mm thick. But if you're trying to get two 360s in there do check the dimensions. The only way these would fit was to remove the rear 140 fan and replace it with a 120. Had the radiator been about 2mm shorter at the fitting end it would have fit fine!

I'm also happy to say that the principal of my coil idea is ok. Though removing the rubber is...tricky!

 

[DBT85]

Success!

The fittings arrived this morning and I've finally put them in. The pipework I'd done for the join just needed a trim as expected.

Now the system is full and running leak free!

I've shaken the case around a a fair bit to remove air and then brimmed the reservoir and needed very close to 1000ml to fill the loop. It may be a shade under or over. That 1l wash bottle really proved useful for preventing any drips at all.

It's been going about 20 minutes now and no leaks. I'll be draining a bit out soon to add the stage 2 of the Mayhems cleaner.

In the meantime I'll fit the last 3 fans to the top radiator.

Finished pipeowrk


Fluid!

 

[DBT85]

I think the answer is a Bitspower coupler. https://www.overclockers.co.uk/bitspower-multi-adapter-female-1-4-inch-deluxe-white-wc-460-bp.html

It's one of those and then just 2 normal EK HDC fittings.

Still no leaks as of yet and I'm now posting this from the machine so proper pics to follow. The drain works perfectly which is good. Stage 2 of the Blitz is in but its not foaming at all which apparently it does a lot of. Not sure if that's just because I just drained half the res and added the stage 2 or not. Had a slight blue tint to it though.

An annoyance I found was that I couldn't use the Sys_Fan3 for the pump. The motherboard just says run at full power. Moved it to the CPU header and its variable as required.

Another is that it seems while using the Gigabyte System Information Viewer software to set fan curves, the system fans react to case temp, not cpu temp. So when the CPU is getting toasty the fans aren't moving as the system temp isn't changing. Will do some more digging though.

Really annoying that speedfan just doesn't work. Grr Gigabyte!

Also one of my Vardar fans is busted. Feels like the fan is rubbing on something under the shroud so its very stiff.