Noob Liquid Cooled builder looking for general advice

Hogiewan · Jan 7, 2014

Hi,

I'm looking at a potential build and having read up and watched a ton of videos on Youtube I think I'm ready to try my first Liquid Cooled solution.

I'm looking at the following:
Case: Aerocooler X-Predator http://www.hardwareversand.de/articledetail.jsp?aid=74457&agid=632

Mobo: Asus Maximus VI Formula http://www.hardwareversand.de/articledetail.jsp?aid=100687&agid=2241

Cpu: Intel Core i7-4770k http://www.hardwareversand.de/articledetail.jsp?aid=78030&agid=2211

Ram: 16GB-Kit G.Skill Ares PC3-17066U http://www.hardwareversand.de/articledetail.jsp?aid=56810&agid=1913

Gpu: 2x Gigabyte Radeon R9 290X http://www.hardwareversand.de/articledetail.jsp?aid=113324&agid=2448

PSU: Cooler Master V1000 http://www.hardwareversand.de/900+-+1000+Watts/113772/Cooler+Master+V+1000.article

Now, as regards cooling, I'm unsure of a few things so feel free to correct any assumptions I make.

I'm assuming/hoping to get the following into my case:

RayStorm 750 EX280 WaterCooling Kit http://www.xs-pc.com/watercooling-kits/raystorm-750-ex280-watercooling-kit

2x Razor R9 290X / 290 http://www.xs-pc.com/waterblocks-gpu/razor-r9-290x-290

2x EX120 Single Fan Radiator http://www.xs-pc.com/radiators-ex-series/ex120-single-fan-radiator

My questions are as follows:

1) Will it be enough Radiator for that set up.
2) If not, how much Radiator do I need for just the GPUs
3) Is it worth it to add the mobo waterblock to the loop
4) Is the PSU big enough
5) Will all of this fit in my case, and if so/not does anyone have any suggestions of how I might set it up or try before I buy. Ideally I'd like to avoid cutting or using an external rad.
6) Assuming the 2 120 rads don't come with fans, can anyone suggest some (cheaper the better as this is going to clean me out as it is!)
7) Will the pump handle all these components.
8) Are the double bay pump/resevoir combos reliable

Any and all help very much appreciated!

Deuce65 · Jan 7, 2014

1\2. Maybe. A 280 and 2 120s could be enough if they are good rads and the fans are turned up. As it is, those aren't particularly good rads (I would go with something like alphacool, UT45 or UT60). Part of it will depend on what you plan to clock the GPUs at as they are capable of putting out a ton of heat.
3. Worth it in what respect? Will it actually help your performance? Almost certainly not. Is it fun to do? Yes I think so. I would not use the stock one though. EK makes a VRM and PCH block, and probably some others make them as well.
4. Yes.
5. No idea, not familiar with that case. It doesn't look especially conducive to water cooling though.
6. Gentle typhoons are still the best readily available fan, as long as wherever you are ordering from still has them in stock.
7. Probably. It isn't a very good pump though. And considering the rads aren't very good either, I wouldn't get that kit.
8. In general are they reliable? Yes. Are XSPC's? This is only personal experience, I don't have any statisitical analysis to back it up, but I don't trust them as the only reses I personally know of that have leaked are XSPCs. With that said, I love the look and convenience (depending how it is setup) of bay res\pump combos, but just know that there is a good chance it won't be especially quiet unless you make efforts to decouple it from the case. Which is sometimes hard to do with a bay res. If you don't do this there is a good chance you will hear an annopying vibration.

Hogiewan · Jan 7, 2014

Really appreciate the feedback. Could you maybe suggest a better liquid cooling alternative to what I have? I really like the idea of a bay combo as it seems easy to install and I'm brand new to LC. If it could be kept to about €500 or there abouts that would be awesome. Again, really appreciate the help!

SU11YBEAR · Jan 7, 2014

Ok one thing to make sure is your kit has a 280 rad, i.e. 2x140mm fans, your case doesn't support 140mm fans
assuming you mean a RayStorm 750 EX240 kit,

1) General rule for Rad's is number of heat sources + 1 for how many 120mm rads you will need since you have list a 240 and 2x120 rads you should be ok in that regard, not going to be the coolest since the rads are thin
2) If you just want to cool a dual gpu setup you should look at 3x120 setup (probably via a 240 and 120 rad if your in a normal case), normally you need that extra from the rule of thumb for your gpus since they put out 200W plus vs the cpu 100W
3) Mobo waterblocks are generally not necessary unless you are really pushing your OC, the one issue you will see is the VReg's getting hot since they generally depend on the airflow from the CPU cooler to cool the area, for my last build I just put an extra RAM fan set I had over my VReg and took care of the problem but doesn't give as finished of look
4) Your PSU should be alright for this setup, thermaltake has a nice calculator if you want to be sure, http://www.thermaltake.outervision.com/index.jsp
5) For fitting this I doubt it, the rear 120mm rarely leaves enough room for a rad, fan and cpu block, been bit by this before, the front of the case doesn't look like it would hold a rad and fan without modding, also the bracket for the top fans is not flat but bellowed so would require fans on top of rad in a pull setup (probably better anyways since its easier to clean dust of the rad if its before the fan but something to be aware of)
6) I'm in Canada so not sure if they are available in Europe but Yateloons are powerful, cheap and fairly quiet, been using them in most of my builds
7) the 750 only gives 1.8m of head and 750 lph, for comparison the d5 varient of the same system gives 3.7m and 1200lph, i dont have a rule of thumb for you but assuming you want to run everything with 1/2 inch tube and in series I would recommend the d5 varient
8) havent used this set but overall I like bay kits for simplicity

Hogiewan · Jan 7, 2014

Thanks again for the replies. I really like this case, would it be possible to fit 2X120 on the top, a 120 on the back and 120 on the bottom? Also, if I remove the main exhaust at the back and replace it with a radiator, will the rest of the system still be ok?

Deuce65 · Jan 7, 2014

Hogiewan :

For rads, I suggest the alphacools. They make them in all different sizes, from really thin 30mm like the one in the kit there to the 80mm ones, they are all copper, they have screw guards, just really nice especially for a first build. I only know what they cost in USA but they are average in price.

For a bay res, the only one I personally used was the swiftech maelstrom. It worked well enough, actually better than expected, but swiftech products tend to be a bit priceier, and it was a pita to decouple it so it didn't rattle something terrible. I haven't personally tried it but I have heard very good things about Monsoon's bay res\pump combo.

For pumps, strongly suggest getting either a D5 or DDC variant of some sort. Exactly which will depend on which res you decide on.

SU11YBEAR · Jan 7, 2014

Hogiewan :

The top and bottom should be ok, looks like there is room, the back one really depends, im trying to see if there are any examples of ppl who have done a similar thing with both back and top res, from what I have seen though it looks like it would be too tight, you could mount the back 120 on the outside of the case and run the tubing through the throughports but that generally doesn't look nearly as nice, your system should be fine no matter how much of it is rads since this case comes with 4 fan options for the door and a big front intake

Hogiewan · Jan 7, 2014

So you think I'd be ok with just top and bottom and the 4 fans on the door? If I put the 4 fans on the door is it going to sound like a hurricane?

SU11YBEAR · Jan 7, 2014

Since you're liquid cooling your graphics cards you don't need the door fans basically at all, top and bottom is basically all you can do unfortunately since the back one wont have room, also there doesn't appear to be a lot of room on the top so going to have to stick with a slimmer rad there so you can try and get a thick rad for your single bottom, since you are going all xpsc their version is this guy
http://www.xs-pc.com/radiators-rx-series/rx120-single-fan-radiator-v2
You can probably put a push/pull on the single rad and pull or push on the top rad, I would recommend getting a 6 fan controller, this is the same version i used for a build
http://www.hardwareversand.de/Fan+controller/31890/Aerocool+F6XT+Panel.article
run your rad fans and case fans to it and if the water pump you settle on has a tach cable I'd run that to your cpu fan slot
Since you are going to have less then recommended for cooling area your system will run hotter, with the case choice and what you want to cool I dont really see a way around it.
Also you dont have a list of fittings you will need outside of your base kit, GPU's will need 4, additional rad 2, plus really recommended you get a "T" adapter and ball valve so you can drain if you need to, you should also order hose for the whole system and probably additional coolant

Hogiewan · Jan 7, 2014

Awesome, really appreciate it! I think I'm ready to pull the trigger! Thanks again

SU11YBEAR · Jan 7, 2014

No problem, good luck with the build, last few tips are get a couple of extra fittings (one for the drain port at least and a few 90 degree ones since you never know if you might need them), grab some additional thermal paste just in case and after you first assemble the loop don't plug anything but the pump in and jumper (paperclip works) between pins on the ATX (green to black if I remember correctly) lets you test the pump and loop for leaks without powering anything on, if you got any question send me a message and ill see if I can help

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