Spec me an ideal case/loop combo

Jediben · 12 Feb 2017 at 00:47

Hi guys,

Since getting my pair of 1080 GTXs I have struggled to keep the interior temperature and fan speeds acceptable. I am frequently seeing 85c on the upper card and fans hittin 75%+ - it's noisy.

I am also working with a pretty old case which really wasn't designed to house 2 GTXs, 4 hdds, 4 SSDs and an H100 AIO.

My budget is pretty much £500, but I would like to get a new case, a 240mm reservoir minimum and blocks for CPU and GPUs. I would prefer to have flexible pipes because I don't have access to a heatgun to do any moulding. I think it might be a tough ask given current prices.

Please could you throuw me some wisdom about where to look first? This is my first attempt so the more 'dummy' the better

thanks.

Jediben · 12 Feb 2017 at 13:30

On reflection, I think I am going above and beyond what I need to do - the CPU heat is under control with the H100, so a loop for the GPUs by themselves is all I really need. The real query is whether any waterblock are designed for my particular card model

I am looking at a Phanteks Entoo in orange and black as it will match the card scheme (and the colour the H100 turns most of the time

) until I get a loop in, and then I'll get some matching coolant.
Apparently the EK block for G1s will fit this, so I am going to nab a pair of blocks and backplates as soon as stock is in. From the reading I have been doing, 10/16 fittings (four of which I will need to 2 cards) would be appropriate? I can then find a radiator, pump and tubes at a later date?

Jediben · 12 Feb 2017 at 15:25

Ok I have ordered the case and the water blocks + back plates for the 2 GPUs. Came out at £445 so that is pretty much my budget chewed up and spat out!
Next up will be deciding the best pump/reservoir combo and a radiator - I was looking at an EK D5 with 10/16 soft tubing - would this be a reasonable set up?
Just realised I will also need to get the fittings for the waterblocks - does EK fittings have a standard that is unlikely to be time-limited? I won't suddenly find no fittings available for the waterblocks will I? :eek:

Disco_P · 12 Feb 2017 at 17:12

Right so I am right in saying you currently have the Phanteks Enthoo, 2 blocks and backplates?

The D5 is an excellent pump, the EK Pump Res combo units are very compact and convenient.

Pretty much every block, pump, res, rad or anything that you put in a loop uses G1/4" screw in fittings. You current choice of blocks uses this standard so you are fine.

For tubing I'd recommend this stuff: https://www.overclockers.co.uk/mayh...ling-tubing-3-8-5-8-16-10mm-1m-wc-114-mh.html

Cheap and mayhems are very well renowned.

For fittings I use a mix of barbs and compression fittings. Barbs are cheap and still very reliable so use them for out of sight sections of my loop. Then compression fittings for visible parts (or any section that is going to be under a lot of stress).

Remember that some companies use 3/8" ID 5/8" OD sizing rather that 10mm ID 16mm OD cause easy numbers confused Americans.

Disco_P · 12 Feb 2017 at 17:18

You'll also have to think how you are going to connect the two cards together. You can manually bodge some tubing between them or use an EK terminal. I'd recommend parallel over serial as it quarters flow restriction compared to serial. Less flow restriction -> lower pump speeds -> lower noise.

EK-FC Terminal DUAL Parallel 3-Slot would fit your board and matches the style of your blocks.

Jediben · 12 Feb 2017 at 20:27

Hi Disco P!
I have ordered the case, 2 gpu waterblocks and 2 backplates. Thise are bits that i figure are not going to be around forever so I need to buy them before the next gen of cards arrive!

I'm going to be fitting the h100i into the top of the case, so i expect i will be putting the gpu radiator into the bottom of the case. I was almost wondering if i shoukd get 2 rads (240s), one bottom and one front, and arrange it as:

Reservoir/pump - gpu1 - rad1 - gpu2 - rad2 - back to reservoir

This would hopefully give me scope to add the cpu to the loop at some point.

Jediben · 13 Feb 2017 at 18:50

Thank you for bringing that Terminal to my attention as well - I was thinking about haveing short tubing between them but an enclosed unit seems to be a safer and more elegant solution.

Jediben · 13 Feb 2017 at 21:41

I have read a lot of people's 'first watercool' threads and it seems universally recognised that a model or mock up is a good idea. I am therefore trying to build a CAD model of the Entoo and then start filling bits in, however it's really had to find the technical diagram of the case. Does anyone know if such thing is available?

Jediben · 13 Feb 2017 at 23:40

I was thinking I will utilise 2 280mm Rads (EK-CoolStream CE 280 (Dual)) at the bottom and the top.

HOWEVER!

My H100i is a 240mm rad, and has only got 11.5 inches of tube. This means I am unlikely to be able to fit the H100i in the 'side' HDD bay and definitely not in the front. It also renders my rear 140mm unusable as it won't fit there (curse my greed for upgrading from the H80 2 years ago!).
This means I am going to have to install the H100i in the top, and that knackers my plan to have two 280 rads. This sucks because the standard fans that come with the case are 140mm and would be the natural progression. Maybe I go 480 in the bottom? but then I have to wonder about the pressure...

The only alternative is to get the cpu block as well, fit the 280s and loop all three components. the budget is a distant memory if I do that.

Jediben · 15 Feb 2017 at 00:06

So the case arrived and my God I am impressed. I knew it would be bigger than the Antec but I am overwhelmed by how well it is made. The orange and black is gorgeous too and looking at how the case appears in real life I might even be able to get that h100i in the front bay after all.
I also received the waterblocks and backplates but I will be waiting for a precision screwdriver and nut driver kit to arrive before I even think about fitting those.
The parallel gpu block connector thing is arriving from a third party on Friday.

I am thinking I will get some white UV tubing and just use distilled water. Am I right to think I need to get a silver kill coil and place it in the tube between pump and the first block/rad?

I wanted to stick with EK for all the kit, and have been looking at X3 250 , but simplicity of the Photon 270 is really appealing.

Disco_P · 15 Feb 2017 at 01:01

This was my mockup. Not exactly a CAD model...

I mostly just googled dimensions of various products and then measured the case to see if it would fit.

Don't be afraid to mix manufacturers, especially when some charge ludicrous amounts over others. I cheaped out massively on rads and have no regrets - more rads = more better.

I also initially planned to use my current CPU cooler and just have the loop for the GPU but for the sake of £35 for a block and the space it saved it became worth it to do a CPU + GPU loop.

For coolant I think you need a corrosion inhibitor and anti bacterial - don't quote me on that though cause I just use mayhems pastel + deionised water.

Jediben · 16 Feb 2017 at 13:52

Nice diagram, simple and effective

I think I will go for it properly - 480 rad up top (https://www.overclockers.co.uk/xspc-ex560-quad-fan-radiator-wc-090-xs.html)
and a 360 in bottom (https://www.overclockers.co.uk/xspc-ex420-triple-fan-radiator-wc-089-xs.html) to match all the existing case fans for size, and abandon the H100i.
A https://www.overclockers.co.uk/ek-water-blocks-ek-supremacy-evo-acetal-nickel-wc-647-ek.html would fit my 4970K right?

Thekwango · 16 Feb 2017 at 14:16

Jediben said:
A https://www.overclockers.co.uk/ek-water-blocks-ek-supremacy-evo-acetal-nickel-wc-647-ek.html would fit my 4970K right?

yup, supports socket 1150 so you're good

BriT · 16 Feb 2017 at 15:18

FYI your links and too ex560 and ex420.

Jediben · 16 Feb 2017 at 16:30

Slowly making decisions, quickly becoming poor!

Thekwango · 16 Feb 2017 at 16:34

Jediben said:
Slowly making decisions, quickly becoming poor!

lol, yup pc gaming will do that to you!

Jediben · 16 Feb 2017 at 18:59

It's ok, I just received notice of my annual payrise so I can justify it

I have now realised that the Primo top rad slot is not going to acept every radiator I throw at it, so I nould use a little help from fellow users - from the range OCuk have available, am I going to find one that supports 3 or 4 140mm fans and fits top and bottom?

Panos · 16 Feb 2017 at 20:41

Damn bit late on this thread.
Jediben I was going to propose the TT P5 for your purpose. Half the price than the Entoo, with a lot of options and space to do what ever you want with it.

Jediben · 16 Feb 2017 at 20:55

Ah never mind - I think I am in love with the Entoo already, and it's still empty

Jediben · 16 Feb 2017 at 21:47

Ok I have decided to stop trying to squeeze in more than will comfortably fit, and will put a 420 in top (https://www.overclockers.co.uk/ek-water-blocks-ek-coolstream-ce-420-triple-wc-99i-ek.html) and a 240 (https://www.overclockers.co.uk/ek-water-blocks-ek-coolstream-ce-280-dual-wc-99h-ek.html) in bottom.
Pump/Res is going to be https://www.overclockers.co.uk/xspc-d5-photon-270-reservoir-pump-combo-wc-273-xs.html
CPU block is https://www.overclockers.co.uk/ek-water-blocks-ek-supremacy-evo-acetal-nickel-wc-647-ek.html