Spec Me: Custom WC Loop

[snips86x]

I've seen some stunning custom loops in Parvum cases and its making me want to try it. I'm not sure if I should look at the D5 or the CM Eisberg block, but eventually, id be looking to WC my CPU and 2x 7970.

Budget is no more than £350-400, looking for black fittings and red coolant. Not looking to buy immediately, will be close to end of this year, but need recommendations. Will also need to start saving, this is what I've come up with so far, fittings...I'm unsure about which would suit.

YOUR BASKET
1 x Cooler Master Eisberg Prestige Jetstream CPU Liquid Cooler £89.99
2 x EK Water Blocks EK-FC7970/R9 280X CSQ £79.99 (£159.98)
2 x XSPC EX240 120mm Radiator - Black £37.99 (£75.98)
2 x Corsair Fan, SP120 PWM Low Noise High Pressure Fan 4 pin, Dual Pack (CO-9050012-WW) £25 (£50.00)
1 x EK-FC Bridge DUAL Serial CSQ Plexi £18.98
2 x Mayhems X1 UV Red Premixed Watercooling Fluid 1L £7.99 (£15.98)
3 x Primochill Primoflex Advanced Tubing 16/10 - Clear £5.99 (£17.97)
Total : £438.48 (includes shipping : £8.00).



Suggestions and recommendations are welcome

 

[snips86x]

+1

Doesn't look like it will provide a good flow rate and enough pressure

It would seem that while the D5 is 750L/h at 400L/H, the Eisberg is still a great investment with plenty of oomph.

 

[snips86x]

i'm running a ek supremacy + ek 7990 block + ek xtx 240mm rad on a ek dcp 2.2 (lol ek fanboi much)
the dcp 2.2 doesn't have a problem pushing coolant through the loop

Do you know what the pressure is on that? I'm struggling to find any specs!

 

[snips86x]

Is having the 2.2 to a 2.6/4.0 really going to make that much of a difference? I don't want to spend more than I have too! 2 GPUs and a CPU is all that will be added to the loop.

 

[snips86x]

It might be the difference between adequate flow and a trickle for a loop of three blocks.

The flowrates given are MAX flows unhindered. When you add components the flow drops depending on how much head pressure there is and proportional to the square of the max flow.

You might find it copes well enough with two blocks but doesn't cope at all with three. I have not heard of someone using the 2.2 in the sort of loop your suggesting. Pumps are not something you can skimp on, if they fail to adequately push water around the loop, your block will crack or the loop will burst at the tubes.

spec a recommendation?

 

[snips86x]

OK, so I'm now unable to contain my need to watercool my PC and planning what to buy for it. So far I've come up with this:

YOUR BASKET
2 x XSPC EX240 120mm Radiator - Black £37.99 (£75.98)
1 x EK-Supreme LTX CSQ Intel CPU Waterblock £29.99
4 x Aerocool DS Edition Fan - Red - 120mm £12.49 (£49.96)
2 x Mayhems X1 UV Red Premixed Watercooling Fluid 1L £7.99 (£15.98)
1 x Primochill Primoflex Advanced Tubing 16/10 - Clear £5.99
Total : £177.91 (includes shipping : ).



Now; the perfectionist in me want to ensure that everything matches, so I have included 2 of the same 240mm rads into this spec. However, I've been thinking about adding this to the front to aid the cooling capabilities:

YOUR BASKET
1 x XSPC RX240 Dual Fan Radiator V3 £64.99
Total : £64.99 (includes shipping : ).



Does anyone see an issue with this?

I will be sourcing a pump-res combo elsewhere and the fittings too!

 

[snips86x]

i'd get the supremacy instead of the supreme ltx =)

The issue is the price. They both do the same job and the reviews seem just as good!

 

[snips86x]

DS fans are nice for aesthetics pretty poor for rads, especially higher FPI ones. They're very noisy on full whack, and still perform poorly. If you can find some AP15s second hand buy them in a heartbeat otherwise SP120s are your next 'go to' fan imho.

Second the block choice as above, the LTX feels cheap.

One of the reasons I looked at these fans is because they have been reviewed to perform well on rads, despite the SP not being great. They also fit in well with my colour scheme.

The 2nd reason was due to the size of the rads I plan to use. The top rad will be 38m thick and the front 64mm giving better cooling due to the size. I was hoping this would mitigate the lack of SP when compared to the preferred fans.

 

[snips86x]

You spend too much time looking at reviews lol. I tend to play with stuff and find out first hand, the DS fans aint great mate. They look amazing, but they're noisy and perform poorly compared to other fans at the same price point (SP120s, second hand AP15s)

Unfortunately, I cannot afford to keep trying first hand, reviews are what I kind of rely on. As well as the forums.

EOL Mate
I made a mistake and sold most of mine, only have 3 left!! They're by far the best fans for rads tbh, good luck finding some

I wouldn't touch these.

They are not aesthetically pleasing, despite being highly rated and recommended.

 

[snips86x]

snips86x, why don't you put up a wanted thread in the MM if you're on a budget and see if anybody has a decent pump or cpu block going?

That will be my intention. I'm researching first however as I want to ensure I've got everything I need to get it right the first time round. I'd hate to buy an incompatible product or wrong item.

I'm still planning how I wish to plan my loop, order and components and when I want to add my GPU into the loop also. Once I've planned it 100%, I'll stick one up.

Shouldn't be too long!

Are there any metal combinations I need to be aware of?

 

[snips86x]

I'm hoping when I comes to buying the coolant, I can get the Red Aurora. I've seen the Orange & White at i51 and it's stunning!!

 

[snips86x]

i think the rad for the front might be to thick if you are gonna put the pump/res between the gpu/ front rad, i had same prob and after working out sizes for my parvum the most i could go for was a 40mm with the 25mm fans = 65mm leaving 70mm between gpu/front rads/fans using a ek ddc 3.2 pwm pump and xspc acrylic top/res plus due to the heat sinks on the msi z87m only a 30/34mm up top.

I have measured it, it will be fine. The bonus to using an x-flow radiator is you only have 1 outlet on the top at the front.