Custom loop or closed loop (AIO coolers)

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almostageek

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Aug 30, 2015
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As the title said, I'm going to overclock my i5-5675C, but I was having headache whether to build a custom loop or get a closed loop
Also, if I buy custom loops, can you guys suggest me sites that have a wide range of custom loop parts, or show me the direct link to the parts
regards
 
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Sticks1

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honestly, unless you have huge amounts of money burning a hole in your pocket, dont do a custom loop. and in most cases an air cooler will give you 95% of the overclocking capability of an AIO, at a much lower price. water cooling isnt cost effective, if you arent building a balls to the wall enthusiast system, or doing pretty extreme overclocking, water cooling isnt worth the cost.

and tbh, its not any quieter than an air cooler with a decent fan on it
 
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DonkeyOatie

DonkeyOatie

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Like Sticks1, I would not recommend AIO or custom loop for most cooling situations, and certainly not for the Broadwell chip. A decent air cooler will do the job.

Your money to spend. If you do go liquid, I would suggest something like the Swiftech H 220X, or the EKWB Predator 240. They are AIO coolers made from custom loop parts and can be altered and expanded.
 
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1LiquidPC

1LiquidPC

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Most folks do custom loops because they want to(for various reasons). You don't need one for your Broadwell if you asking, unless extreme OC or silence. This would require $$$ to do both, however. Custom loops also will be much better quality components than AIOs. For parts if your interested, I buy from Performance-PCs and Sidewinder Computers if your in the U.S.
 
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almostageek

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Btw, I also have a Haswell CPU for benchmarking (my job is mostly benchmarking graphics cards, SSDs, hard drives, and write reviews about them), which means that I do not accept any noises from my system, which creates audible noises, especially when benchmarking graphics cards, the only noise available is the one from the graphics cards, and that is a MUST. Haswells are hotter, so I want to spend some more on cooling, around $250. My cousin is in the US, and I'll ask him to buy it, then send the parts to Vietnam
 
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DonkeyOatie

DonkeyOatie

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I was not suggesting that the pumps were loud merely that the noise of a pump must be extra, since the air cooler lacks them.

 
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almostageek

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Dear all
I appreciate all of you guys have been noticing that the real point is the pump makes everything loud
HOWEVER, the point is that I've been researching a lot on the Internet and found many AIO coolers without noisy pump
Thus I DO hvae a fan controller and some free PWM headers on the motherboard, so I can choose either way to slow down the pump, the only two thing I want to know is
First, how much do I have to slow the pump down to get the noise level under 40dB
Secondly, how well does the cooler performs under 40 dB (because my neighbors make around 40dB noise)
I'm targeting the Swiftech H240-X
I want TOP PERFORMANCE NOT TOP PRICE-TO-PERFORMANCE
 
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almostageek

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To be straight forwars, I was really afraid about the risks of leaking on Swiftech's coolers; in the other hand, EKWB has outstanding performance as I saw on the web. The only point is that are the pumps loud or not (pump noise at 12V). I don't really worry about the fans because I've alrealdy had 6 Corsair SP120L fans, so I'm ready for 360mm radiators in push-pull, as I mentioned before, top performance not top price-to-performance
 
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rubix_1011

rubix_1011

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Why would you assume Swiftech's cooler would leak? They have been in the watercooling business longer than most companies.

I just got the EK Predator 240 to benchmark and test - it's a fantastic unit from what I am seeing so far and I haven't even conducted any thermal load tests yet.

I am curious about 'what is too loud' for you when it comes to a pump, when you talk about having 6 SP120's running? You wouldn't be able to hear it over that noise. As I mentioned, good watercooling pumps are very quiet and you have to have your ear right next to them to even hear audible noise.
 
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almostageek

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My mistake :) I intended to mention that Swiftech ones sometimes got very dirty, or at least having air bubbles. As everyone knows, whether air bubbles are in wanter pumps, the pump gets overheated and super noisy. BTW I'm not brave enough to open the whole thing and clean
 
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rubix_1011

rubix_1011

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BTW I'm not brave enough to open the whole thing and clean
Click to expand...

Both Swiftech and EK recommend full loop draining and maintenance at least every 2-3 years.

If you don't want to learn and understand watercooling, you either need to get an OK closed loop cooler (which costs almost as much as the Swiftech H220-X in cases of a 240 sized rad) or just get a good air cooler. You're sitting on the fence hoping to hear something from us which doesn't include you learning something new or giving you magical advice that covers all your fears. This isn't possible.
 
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rubix_1011

rubix_1011

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Yes. But it isn't difficult to gain this understanding - it is covered in the watercooling sticky, and the hardest part is just taking the step of doing it when you need to. Once you are familiar with it, you'll see there isn't a whole lot to watercooling overall.
 
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