When should I try custom watercooling?

TheDavinator · Sep 16, 2015

Hi guys (and gals), I am planning upgrades for my PC and would like to know how much experience is recommended for installing a custom loop. I would also like to know should I upgrade more (ie. second GPU in SLI) before watercooling.

My Current Build:

Motherboard: Gigabyte 970A-UD3P
Processor: AMD FX-8350
GPU: XFX R9 280X
RAM: HyperX Fury 16gb 1866Mhz
PSU: Corsair CX850M
CPU Cooler: Corsair H105
Storage: A 240GB Kingston V300 SSD + Seagate Barracuda 2tb
Case: Cooler-master N600

The upgrades I am thinking of going to are:
an i7 4790K with a Gigabyte Z97X UD5H BK and a GTX 980ti.
I will probably also go to a fully modular PSU as i had quite a bit of trouble routing cables (Maybe Corsair RM850i) and possible a new case like a Corsair 750d or Fractal Design Define S

Btw, this was my first build but I did my research and always love a new project.

mcnumpty23 · Sep 16, 2015

its probably easier to have both cards first

or else you would need to drain the loop to install the second card

no experience needed as long as you are reasonably good at practical stuff-- i just did a bit of reading up before doing

mine

geofelt · Sep 16, 2015

My canned rant on liquid cooling:
------------------------start of rant-------------------
You buy a liquid cooler to be able to extract an extra multiplier or two out of your OC.
How much do you really need?
I do not much like all in one liquid coolers when a good air cooler like a Noctua or phanteks can do the job just as well.
A liquid cooler will be expensive, noisy, less reliable, and will not cool any better
in a well ventilated case.
Liquid cooling is really air cooling, it just puts the heat exchange in a different place.
The orientation of the radiator will cause a problem.
If you orient it to take in cool air from the outside, you will cool the cpu better, but the hot air then circulates inside the case heating up the graphics card and motherboard.
If you orient it to exhaust(which I think is better) , then your cpu cooling will be less effective because it uses pre heated case air.
And... I have read too many tales of woe when a liquid cooler leaks.
google "H100 leak"
-----------------------end of rant--------------------------

As to your build, your plan is reasonable.
The parts you picked are newer gen and run relatively cool.

If your upgrade is a big one such as you described, make plans for Skylake.
If your objective is gaming, A I5-6600K and a z170 motherboard is as good as it gets.
Availability in the us is scarce, but $100 more buys you a I7-6700K.
Skylake is built in 14nm, and runs cool. There is no value in exotic liquid cooling unless you are a competitive overclocker.
GTX980ti is as good as it gets today for a single gpu card. Unless you will be playing fast action games on triple monitors or a 4k monitor, it is all you need. If you really need more, it is better to add a second card for sli than trying to ger a small percent boost by liquid cooling and overclocking.
Next year, the same 14nm will show up in the next gen of graphics cards.

If you simply want the challenge,OK.
Otherwise stick with a good air cooler.

zAustin · Sep 16, 2015

I would advise doing all upgrades before you start your custom water-cooling loop due to additional, unnecessary labor. As mcnumty said, when you want to upgrade a part, you have to drain the loop each time.

mcnumpty23 · Sep 16, 2015

lol not a fan of watercooling then

not quite just an extra multiplier or 2 though and we are talking custom not corsair etc

heres mine with those extra multipliers turned on

TheDavinator · Sep 16, 2015

Just did some quick research, would i not be better off with a 4790k than a 6600k (6700k is really expensive on amazon uk) as i will most likely not be using ddr4

ps. thanks for the help

mcnumpty23 · Sep 16, 2015

depends--do you really need the hyperthreading of 4790k?

and with m2 drives becoming more popular and cheaper that route would leave you limited to m2 at x2 speed instead of x4

TheDavinator · Sep 16, 2015

I forgot about the m2 drives, I dont have too much money (this upgrade will be in the next year) so i wont get one soon but would the hyperthreading performance be worth it for the odd time I do some video editing?

mcnumpty23 · Sep 16, 2015

for odd video editing now and then no not in my opinion

the 6600k is around the £200 mark now and would be my choice with a z170 board

the samsung sm951 512gb has dropped from £299 to £219 in the last week and will drop more by the time you upgrade

to me its the top of the must have list but needs that m2 at x4 to max it out

TheDavinator · Sep 16, 2015

alright... will i need ddr4 ram or will it be easy to find a good mobo for ddr3?

capt_taco · Sep 16, 2015

The amount of experience you need for custom water cooling is the same amount of experience you need to understand that paying 100% or more of the purchase price of the processor, in order to get an extra 5-10% of performance out of it, is not a sound investment. Especially when very few programs are CPU-limited even at stock.

mcnumpty23 · Sep 16, 2015

TheDavinator :

to be honest the only skylake boards i have looked at so far are the ddr4 ones

but pretty sure some ddr3 ones have been released now

if you look at the asrock site i would bet they do one or more

TheDavinator · Sep 16, 2015

yeah, i realize that taco... i am really just looking for a fun project

TheDavinator · Sep 16, 2015

would my currrent h105 work on the new socket type?
or would/could i buy a new bracket for it

mcnumpty23 · Sep 16, 2015

TheDavinator :

if it came with an intel backplate then it still fits 1151

TheDavinator · Sep 16, 2015

alright, thanks. I am getting tired for tonight, but what i think i will do is go for the 6600k and buy ddr4 ram and keep the door open to water cooling in the future. anyway..

Davinator-out!

capt_taco · Sep 16, 2015

TheDavinator :

ah OK, well in that case I can't hold it against you.

I personally would not consider watercooling "fun," since once the initial thrill of completing the project and the cool look wears off, it adds a LOT of work any time you want to change something. I am quite lazy though, so to each his own.

mcnumpty23 · Sep 16, 2015

yep it does take some maintenance

and surprisingly some people build custom loops and forget a very important thing

make sure you put in a drainage point and as low in the loop as possible

sora · Sep 16, 2015

I personally would just stick with air cooling; water cooling definitely does take time to maintain after completing the system!

When should I try custom watercooling?

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