Will a second 360 radiator make a big difference?

13oots2 · 17 Oct 2022 at 12:19

Had my new Fractal Design 7XL arrive, it looks as if I can use my drives and fit a 360mm rad in both the top and the front of the case. My processor is a 10980XE overclocked to the max using per specific core to gain the maximum out of the processor. My temps with a single 35mmx360mm rad approach 90-102 degrees when running Cinebench, is a second 45x360 rad going to have a significant effect on the temperatures?

Jay85 · 17 Oct 2022 at 12:58

13oots2 said:
Had my new Fractal Design 7XL arrive, it looks as if I can use my drives and fit a 360mm rad in both the top and the front of the case. My processor is a 10980XE overclocked to the max using per specific core to gain the maximum out of the processor. My temps with a single 35mmx360mm rad approach 90-102 degrees when running Cinebench, is a second 45x360 rad going to have a significant effect on the temperatures?

Yes it will is the short answer, how much it will help will entirely be dependant upon your setup, components, fans used, fans peed, fan placement etc. There's a ton of variables when watercooling with custom components.

therealdippy · 17 Oct 2022 at 13:42

FYI I have the 7XL and I managed to fit a third rad at the rear - a 45x140 crossflow.

Noxia · 17 Oct 2022 at 15:35

I understand more radiator space is always better but if it's worth the cost or not is up to you. If it only lowers temps by 2-3C then you'd have to decide in advance if you'd be happy with that.

13oots2 · 17 Oct 2022 at 16:56

Noxia said:
I understand more radiator space is always better but if it's worth the cost or not is up to you. If it only lowers temps by 2-3C then you'd have to decide in advance if you'd be happy with that.

I bought a load of bits off Evilbay for a good price, may as well use them.

SirConfused · 17 Oct 2022 at 19:40

If you're doubling the rad space then I would expect to see more than just a few degrees drop off your helps, but if you're really pushing the CPU to the max then you could just be at the limit of how much heat the cpu block can pull away. Do you have a temp sensor for your fluid? That would give you a good indication of whether you're going to get anything more out of a 2nd rad.

METEORIC · 19 Oct 2022 at 00:49

Yes, it will make a big difference, I have 2x360mm and that enables me to run the fans at a lower speed, thus making my computer super quiet.

I wouldn't even bother getting a thick radiators even, mine are Magicool G2 Slims which is around 27mm, and they cool my 5950X and 2 GPUs just fine.

My setup easily saturates 1x360mm, my Noctua NF-A12x25 fans would need to spin pretty loudly to keep it at sane temps, whereas with 2 it works very coolly.

Drumroll · 19 Oct 2022 at 16:13

All depends on your delta. If your delta for the coolant is below 10C under load, gains will be marginal. Expect 2 or 3C improvement for your delta. If delta is higher, go for it.
Before all, try running your fans at full blast and check your temperature. At 100% and open side panels, the limitation is the radiator. Try closing the side panels and check. If temperature increase a lot, not much to do with radiator, but not enough airflow to allow the radiator to perform.

13oots2 · 21 Oct 2022 at 10:37

Thanks for the replies.

Should be finding out for myself when my bits and pieces finally arrive, needed some screws for the radiators and 3 extra fans.

Monkey Puzzle · 21 Oct 2022 at 22:10

13oots2 said:
Had my new Fractal Design 7XL arrive, it looks as if I can use my drives and fit a 360mm rad in both the top and the front of the case. My processor is a 10980XE overclocked to the max using per specific core to gain the maximum out of the processor. My temps with a single 35mmx360mm rad approach 90-102 degrees when running Cinebench, is a second 45x360 rad going to have a significant effect on the temperatures?

Are you cooling graphics card as well?

13oots2 · 21 Oct 2022 at 23:09

Monkey Puzzle said:
Are you cooling graphics card as well?

No, just my 10980XE.

Black Noir · 21 Oct 2022 at 23:40

As someone running triple 360 radiators, I’d say “yes, but not much when running benchmarks”. Nothing can help with an artificially high stress test like cinebench.

Normal usage is a different kettle of fish. You should see some reasonable drops but you’ve got to be realistic.

Do you really need to run your CPU with a beefy overclock? I dropped 10c by undervolting a 12900k just 0.070v and maintained the same performance.

Not sure how those water cooling radiator calculators are anymore (particularly with overclocked components) but it has to be better than nothing.

13oots2 · 5 Nov 2022 at 08:55

Finally built up the new case with the two radiators, idle is about 6C cooler, playing games 15C cooler and Cinebench about 3C.