I'm planning on getting myself into the liquid cooling scene, in the coming months, and wondered if anyone might recommend using 5.25 Bay Internal Resevoire/Pump comboes.
I figure that the more components you want to cool, the larger the tubing needs to be, but I would like to see the numbers spelled out in ways of reviews and charts.
There's alot of termonlogy that wasn't very well explained in the sticky posted above and i'd personally like to wrap my head around all of the little tid bits.
Any links to resources would be greatly appreciated. (I'm not afraid to read.)
You do not want a Thermaltake Bigwater/Zalman reserator/all-in-one bay kit. Trust me and the few others that know around here.
Conumdrum has a copy/paste that he always uses...just find anything WC related on the forum and find the links he posts...or just wait a while...either he or Shadow will re-post it. Please, please, please...read and research. Know what you are getting into before you leap. If you have a budget under $200, might be better to look into other air cooling. Its so much fun and DIY...just not cheap.
I've budgeted around $400 to $500 for the water cooling I plan on imtergrating.
This would include CPU, NB and GPU
And when I mentioned the Bay, I hadn't implied that I would like it to be an all one one, rather just the reservoire and pump. (Though it seems that the pump might be lacking in that respect.)
I would prefer to use a rear or side mounted rad with atleast 2-3 120mm fans.
Like I mentioned, it really depends on what all you are cooling...you need to know exactly what components (for sure) before you decide on a pump and rads.
You don't really need NB WC...as long as there is a fan on it, you are most likely fine...unless you want to go for world record OC's. Otherwise, just forget it. Same goes for RAMsinks/MOSFETs.
Most people use a few different pumps: MCP355, MCP655 and there are a couple DangerDen/Thermaltake pumps. The MCP655 is a beast...most big loops use this. It is native 1/2" tubing, so makes running 1/2" your best bet for high flow.
The board I plan on using, an MSI X58 Platinum, uses one heatsink for both NB & SB (as most do). Unfortunately for me, I can't seem to find a 2 in 1 cooling block which is MSI specific. Furtheremore, MSI doesn't even see fit to provide any active cooling solutions for the NB. I have a small clip on fan Asus provided me from a previous build, but I'd be surprised if it fit.
In eithercase, I certainly plan on cooling both CPU & GPU.
I wouldn't worry about it...my 780i board has a NB/SB big heatsink with a fan on the NB. I'd have to pull the entire thing just to cool the NB, which I wouldn't mind doing, but isn't necessary.
I know that there used to be a pump/res combo that had a Swiftech MCP355, which is a good, compact pump. I use the MCP655 variant (mine is actually a Liang, Swiftech, DD and others just rebrand them). I also use a D-tek v2 CPU block, which does an excellent job for dual/quad cores. The newest Swiftech Apogee's and the EK Supreme CPU blocks are also really good.
For CPU, I use MCW60's on my cards which is a GPU-only block...you still need RAM sinks with those. They only reason I still use it is two-fold:
I have used these blocks for 4+ different video cards (just changing mount brackets), and they cool really well. I like the look of the full-cover blocks and they do very well at cooling the entire card, but typically are only good for one card design. If you get new cards, you likely need new blocks. It's not a deal breaker, but I like to reuse as much as I can from upgrade to upgrade, if possible, only getting newer gear if it is going to outperform previous gear.
I've had my eye set on the Apogee GTZ Ci7. Sporting "1/2" and 3/8" hose barbs" - I'm assuming this means it is both 1/2'' and 3/8''s compatible.
As for the card(s) I i plan on cooling - I found a Geforge GTX 280 going for about the same price as the 275, and koolance has a nice full-cover block which should fit nicely.
I don't upgrade hardware often enough to bother with individual blocks - eventually i would like to pick up a second 280.
Koolance doesn't have the greatest reputation for being good WC gear. I don't know much about that full cover block, but it might be OK. Typically, they have had issues with mixed metals in loops (copper, aluminum) but if it is nickel plated you might be ok. Where I would be most concerned with their products is in and around the fittings.
As for the Apogee, yes, you can just screw in the barb size you want to use with the block.
I'll just snip the whole thing, I just redid parts of it.
Us guys have done the WC thing, there are basics you gotta know. Take a look, don't take it as a diss on you or a rebuttal, look at as a friend saying "Dude, you gotta know what to say and how to communicate".
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CPU HS $65
GPU HS and air HS for vram and mosfets $95, full cover block, $100-$200
Radiator $60 min, up to $130
Pump $50 +
Resiviour $25
Hose, some barbs and clamps etc (min $25, more like $35)
Fans $15-30
I went top notch and spent close to $600 to cool my CPU and GPU.
First you gotta learn about WC. It's not like walking into Best Buy.
Spend a while (weeks is best for your sanity) at these links.
Look at the hundreds of loops close to your case and components in the stickies, read a couple 50 or so threads over the next week or so, you'll be on the ball to make the right choices and by then know how to put it together.
Not 'Roket Sience', but basic knowledge is required.
And you should spend a few hours on the listed sites reading threads. It's how we learn. Once the goodies show up on your doorstep your on your own.
For your benefit please spend a few days reading a LOT. At the busiest places for WC masters. Guys who have done it for YEARS at OC Forums and xtreme forums. It took me a while (I was OCing on air, aftermarket stuff, bios settings, best chipsets etc etc) to learn the language and the tricks to a easy install.
Don't expect miracles or SUPER DOOPER over clocks. What you will get is a quiet system that can handle OC to the max of your hardware IF you buy quality and buy smart. And minor maintenance too, a bonus for the water cooler.
Also while there please read on case mods etc. The radiators are not for small cases, pumps and hose routing, wire management and other things are important. Google your planned case and the word water-cooled in one line. You might get lucky.
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Edit: The next paragraph was from 2008. With the advent of the HOT i7 and bigger GPU's, it has changed. A 220 size MIN rad for an i7, you want big overclocks, better go 320 sized rad.
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IF you just cool your CPU and your NB if you want, you can get by with a 120.2 sized radiator (RAD). And MAYBE fit in inside depending on your mod skillz. You want to cool your GPU too, you'll need a 120.3 sized rad, and it probably won't fit inside. The rear external rad really works great. No matter what your adding 10lbs to your PC.
Once you got an idea of what is good/bad then start getting your system for WC put together and we'll be glad to help.
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Here is the poop on solid info on air/water temps. The link is to an MCR320.
http://martin.skinneelabs.com/Swifte...20-Review.html Scroll half way down and you can see the in/out air diff on the chart. It depends, like I said on fannage what the out air temp vs. the in temp is.
You can also see the water in/out is very close in temps. No more than 1.5 C. Amazing eh? I thought so too once I deciphered the charts.
So if you put a second rad with good airflow, you still get good results. Fannage needs to be higher to compensate for the increased air restriction. Meaning double fans on the rad setup, but it's a viable solution.
Equilibrium (tough word) means with a set heat load (idle/load) after an amount of time temps in a WC loop will stabilize. The heat load is the same, ambient air is the same, fannage is the same, pumps are the same, size of rads are the same, temps will stabilize for those conditions. Any of these parameters change, it has to stabilize. …………………………………………………………
Cleaning a loop, not a new loop: I do this once a year, I drain and refill at 6 months, the next time I do this……..
Wash hands very well, getting rid of hand oils.
For pumps and blocks, fittings, clamps, acrylic res/block parts.... not hose, tear it to smallest pieces, put in a bowl, heat water up not to boiling add 10% vinegar, when hot, pour over parts. Rinse in 10 min or so. Put aside.
The bocks will probably have some black oxidation. Take the copper parts out of the pile of parts you took out of the water. Dry well and pour ketchup on them, and set aside. Only the copper parts need this.
Rad cleaning: fill with very almost boiling hot water. Let sit 10 minutes, drain half out and shake for 5 min. Repeat till liquid is clean.
All the pump, block, fittings, and clamps, inspect, get in the tiniest corners with a tooth brush. Kind of meditative, time consuming, you learn a lot about o-ring size, how it all feels. Run a rag using a caat hanger and dish soap through the tubing, rinse well.
Rinse all the parts and hose with distilled, dry then really dry with an air compressor (nice extra step to get rid of water spots). Don’t need to dry the inside of the hose.
Now on to the copper parts, they should have been soaking an hour or two. A toothbrush and ketchup should clean much of the oxidation. It probably won’t be like new, but pretty darn good. Rinse, dry, and blow the parts.
That’s it.
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Benching software and such is very varied. I use these for each purpose:
These are pretty standard and used by many.
Monitoring the PC temps overall: HWmonitor aka hardware monitor
CPUZ for CPU info
GPUZ for GPU info
CPU only: RealTemp
GPU only: ATI Tool, I have a Nivida GTX280, so it works on Nvidia
The GTZ is a good choice. There is no need to cool NB,MOSFET,RAM,etc. Just provide some airflow using a low speed or low noise fan. MAKESURE you get a 320 or better rad (if just cooling the CPU) more if GPU will be cooled.
I've uses Koolance for years and have had no problems. It's been shown theres no different s between 3/8 and 1/2 for cooling and the 3/8 tubbing is easy to handle.
http://www.koolance.com/water-cool [...] uct_id=280
^That is more or less right, but 1/2in ID is less immune to kinking. Also there is a bit of a difference.
See: http://www.xtremesystems.org/forum [...] p?t=147767 I do have to agree with rubix on the Non Koolance. They work, but their reliability under isn't the best.