Watercooling Isse

Bucks85th

Bucks85th

Bucks85th

Associate
Joined
13 Jul 2010
Posts
29
Location
High Wycombe, Bucks
Hi Guys,

I have just added a water cooling system to my machine and am having problems.

Briefly, I am cooling an Intel i7 920 at 4Ghz (previously using a Corsair H50) and 2 x Nvidia GTX 580.

So the water cooling I have added are as follows

Swiftech MCP655 variable pump - currently set to 4...maybe it needs to go to 11 ;)
XSPC Dual-bay reservoir
Black Ice Stealth 360 Gen 2 triple-fan radiator
Swiftech Apogee CPU block
2 x EK GTX580 waterblocks

This is all wedged into a Coolermaster HAF-X case.

I noticed that ArmA2 was causing GPU1 to run upto 3 degrees higher than when using the card's stick cooling (stock upto 90 degrees, last night got to 93 before I decided to shutdown).

Flow is as follows: Reservoir to radiator to CPU to GPU1 to GPU2 back to reservoir.

I think I may have isolated one problem...

I have 3 Gelid Silent Series 120mm fans mounted below the radiator blowing out the top of the case (I, erm, liberated them from work to save a few pennies), but am now thinking they are not man enough for the job, as they are only rated at 37 CFM airflow. I have ordered 3 x Akasa Viper FN059 (up to 83 CFM) to replace them.

Can you think of anything else I should look in to as I'm not 100% convinced these will necessarily solve this? I'm concerned I have underestimated the requirements to water cool this?

Was running with just 12v to the pump to test it for >12 hours, and had the PC on all angles/sides and detected no leaks or anything dire like that.

Moochos grassyarse in advance!
 
Thanks guys,

After shutting down Arma2, I ran up Speccy and that was showing the CPU at 72.

I have 3 x Akasa Viper fans which should be there when I get home from work today, so hope to get those in today. Will crank the pump up to 11 (or 5 I guess as it doesn't go to 11) So I'll see what happens just swapping those straight over.

I currently have the front and rear fans sucking air in, and the 3 fans attached under the radiator blowing out through the rad, and then out the top of the case. So I can re-arrange this and the airflow as the next step.

Can check the contacts on the blocks too, but given all 3 items (1 x CPU and 2 x GPU are all running hot), I'm fairly confident at the moment that they are OK. Would have to leave this 'till the weekend as it's a bit of a longer job!

If I have to change the rad to a meatier one, or add a second rad, plus maybe change the flow order (which will mean I will likely need to order additional hosing too), then this may have to wait a wee while, as I just also change 2 tyres on my car (480 quid), and will need to change the font ones too (another 480 quid), plus I have car tax this month too (never rains but it pours...)

Boomshanka!

Jim
 
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Thanks for all the input Guys! This is very much appreciated!

So after fitting the 3 Viper fans to the bottom of the rad, there is at least a marked improvement. I've left the pump on 4.

You can feel the increased airflow just by placing your hand over the top of the case.

When idle, the temperatures are approximately as follows (using Speccy for CPU temp, and Afterburner for GPU temps:

CPU ~45
GPU1 ~36
GPU2 ~33

I haven't fired up ArmA2 as yet, that test will come, maybe later, probably tomorrow (I've concluded ArmA2 could kill a Cray!)

But I have run Heaven 2.1 (DX11, Stereo3D Disabled, Shaders high, Tess normal, Anisotropy 4, AA off, full screen 1920x1080) and the peak temps were as follows (checking CPU immediately after closing Heaven, but monitoring GPU via the G510 LCD Afterburner display)

CPU 56
GPU1 66
GPU2 55

So there is a marked difference in GPU temps when under load. I forgot to note down the temps using the old fans, but a figure of ~80 degrees seems to ring a bell on GPU1, with GPU2 8-10 degrees lower. I am just using distilled water with some form of additive (I forget exactly what as I inherited this from a friend).

So although there's an improvement so far, it's maybe not what I was hoping for and I'm certainly not planning to o/c the GPUs yet (they are the Black Ops Editions so very fractionally o/c'd out of the box. Disclaimer: This is not because I like CoD:BO. They were the only I could find in stock at the end of Dec when I was trying to beat the VAT increase as I was ordering a load of other bits too!

Consequently, I think I should go with the general consensus here and admit defeat. The 120.3 simply isn't man enough for the job.

So what I'm thinking of is adding a 120.2 (not a slim-line diet one) hanging off the back of the case.

What I am thinking of is:

- BlackIce GT Extreme 240 Radiator (it gets good reviews and appears to be named after an AC/DC album!)
- Koolance BKT-HX001 bracket
- Zalman ZM-MFC1 Plus fan controller

Plus any additional fans/hose/barbs etc.

I was then thinking of the flow as follows:

Pump/Res -> 120.3 rad -> CPU -> 120.2 rad -> GPU1 -> GPU2 -> Pump/Res

Alternatively, just switching the rad order over.

Do you guys think this would give me the desired results?

Once again, many thanks for all your help & advice!

Jim
 
Thanks Confused!

I'll try & have a look at the blocks at the weekend when I have a little more time.

Given the GPUs are at similar temps at idle, but 1 is hotter than 2 under load, would this not be considered usual? I'm thinking that the water going to the 2nd block is already warmed by the first GPU (they are next to each other on the mobo and joined by an adjustable length SLI barb.

If I reversed the fans on the rad to suck in air, would I not then also be better mounting them above the rad or are they OK still underneath the rad and sucking through it? Trying to mount them above the rad may prove to be tricky!

Cheers!

Jim
 
Thanks Jon!

Some good news! After 3 hours of ArmA2 tonight, I saw a max temp on GPU1 of about 68-69 degrees. CPU got into the low 60s. Room temp was about 22 degrees.

So I will be taking all your advice and getting a 2nd rad, re-checking all blocks, and reviewing the airflow before I start looking to o/c the GPUs.

Once again, many thanks to you all for your time & help!

Jim
 
I have finally got everything together, and whilst there are still a few bubbles to iron out, it's running like a dream.

This is the 1st time I have tried this, so once again, many thank to all for you advice!

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Seems to be running at about 13 degrees above ambient when idle.

Unfortunately, the room it's in is a bit of a sweat box and due to the insulation stays hot in the evening. Switching on this morning I am looking at GPU1=36, GPU2 = 32 and CPU = 39.
 
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