Water Cooling- custom vs kit

[antwanman12]

I have an i5-650 OC'd to 4.2Ghz in an Anetc 1200 and I'm dying to move to water. I'm a little apprehensive because of the setup and also the price. I was looking at a couple of pre-made kits, mostly the Zalman Reserator V2.

What I'm going for is low temperatures and a good Delta T (aren't we all) but noise isn't really an issue for me.

I'm only water cooling my CPU for now but I may be cooling my GFX card(s) later but woul want to do a separate loop.

The Reserator is ~$430 on Newegg and I would like to stay around and under there. I have poked around Dangerden but I also have a credit account with newegg that I would prefer to use but am open to other sites.

So as you can see I'm in a bit of a pickle but I'm confident that the internet will be able to solve all of my problems.

Thanks in advance.

 

[Forte125]

If you are new to water cooling go with a kit, as they have complete instructions and tech support that can help you if you have problems.

 

[Motopsychojdn]

I'd say not to imho, no disrespect intended to Forte though
This may help you a bit,
http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/forum/256607-11-watercooling-read-first
and I'm sure conumdrum wouldn't object to a pm asking for his advice
Moto

 

[ErikV55]

What kind of temps are you getting on your cpu? I don't think it will be worth it. Again, if you want to do it because you simply want to do the project, and enjoy the looks, then go right ahead. performance to price ratio, not necessary.

 

[madcratebuilder]

Cooling your i5 with a possible gpu later I would start with a 360 rad/fans, D5 pump, EK cpu block, Primo ltr tubing, compression fittings and res of your choice.

EK-Supremacy $90
http://www.performance-pcs.com/catalog/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=59_971_498_490&products_id=38120

Magicool Extreme Radiator $70
http://www.performance-pcs.com/catalog/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=59_457_667_670&products_id=21117

D5 pump $90
http://www.performance-pcs.com/catalog/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=59_201&products_id=33825

Res, pump top, tubing and fitting can run another $200. For the kit price you have all quality components.

 

[rubix_1011]

Hey Moto! Long time no see!

Conumdrum left the Tom's forums long ago to my knowledge, but there is an updated Watercooling Sticky that I put together and maintain: http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/277130-29-read-first-watercooling-sticky