New to Water Cooling - Lots of Ideas - Input is appreciated

[chris2341]

I currently have a HAF 922 on air.
I have a CM 212+ and an 80mm fan that I have added to the stock case.

I am very curious about Water cooling. I am currently running a Q6600 at 3.0 but plan to upgrade to a LGA1155 or LGA2011 chip soon. I will also be getting a GTX560 or 560ti in the near future. This thread is more or less a plan and a price I can expect to pay to WC my rig. I am thinking I need at least 360mm of rad to cool the GPU and CPU. I Figure my best bet is to install a 2 x120mm in the top and have a 1 x 120mm or 140mm at the back of the case where the current 140mm exhaust fan is. I would then move the 230mm fan from the top to the side of the case, or bottom not sure yet and probably put the 140mm fan in a couple of the empty 5.25in bays.
I need all the parts required to WC my only preferences are red/black but any silver fittings always look good.
I would like compression fittings and I like the look of dual 5.25 bay reservoirs but I have heard mixed reviews about them.

I know some of you experience Water coolers are very opinionated and any input is welcome.

I know the basic Rev 2 reservoir is half the price but here is a reservoir I like and I think would clean up the install
http://ncix.com/products/?sku=66918&vpn=BR525DUAL&manufacture=XSPC%20Asia%20Co.%20Ltd.

Here is a 3x 120mm Mod I have found as well:
http://forums.legitreviews.com/about22692.html

**New** A little more research and I found this kit with 2 x 120mm rad with fans and CPU block I dont know much about these but I do know there are other kits with differences that I do not know.
http://www.frozencpu.com/products/11743/ex-wat-159/XSPC_Rasa_750_RS240_Universal_CPU_Water_Cooling_Kit_w_Free_Kill_Coil.html

Combing this kit with a 120mm or 140mm rad I think would get the same results for a much lesser price

 

[boiler1990]

Hola.

I ran a 2500K + 560Ti recently (downgraded to an i3-2120 to recover some funds, and it works well for gaming), and I'm running with 480mm rad space with 5 100+ CFM fans (@~2000RPM). My 560Ti hits about 25-27C under load (it's a bit cold in Indiana now ).

That mod looks like a good way to fit a 360 into your case, and modding is really the only way you'll get it internal. I've used the pump/res in that Rasa kit and it's actually pretty decent if you're on a budget; the Rasa kit is also a good place to start. The RX-series rads that XSPC makes are actually quite good with strong fans, so you may want to look into a RX360 kit and adding a GPU block.

How much are you looking to spend overall? A kit + extra block would be a cheaper way to go, and universal GPU blocks save a lot of money. I'm getting similar performance from my current Swiftech MCW82 that I was from my EK full cover blocks, at half the price, and I can upgrade with a simple $5-10 mounting plate.

 

[rubix_1011]

I just picked up 2x brackets for my MCW60's for the 560 Ti's.

Also found that D-tek is supporting my jump from 775 to 1155 with a bracket, as well.

There is some love for universals around here...

 

[boiler1990]

I didn't realize the MCW60s had current GPU brackets until recently (about a month or so ago, when I was looking at a second 560Ti). It's a pretty good deal, I must say.

 

[Guest]

I Figure my best bet is to install a 2 x120mm in the top and have a 1 x 120mm or 140mm at the back of the case where the current 140mm exhaust fan is.

What I did in my build was run a dual loop. One running to the CPU & being cooled by a thin 120 mm rad at the rear exhause fan housing & another one running to the GPU & being cooled by a very thick 140 mm rad at the bottom front intake fan housing. All this I managed to put inside a small mid-ATX case (CM Storm Scout). I'm, running an older but much warmer dual GPU video card (Radeon HD 4870X2). For some reasons that doesn't resonate quite well with the scientific knowledge of some liquid cooling experts, the set up thermal control performs well on my components better than some using larger rads. You can definitely cool your components with with current plan.

 

[rubix_1011]

I didn't realize the MCW60s had current GPU brackets until recently (about a month or so ago, when I was looking at a second 560Ti). It's a pretty good deal, I must say.

Yeah, the brackets for the MCW60/80/82's are all universally interchangeable according to Swiftech's site, apparently.

http://www.swiftech.com/MountingKitGTX460.aspx

http://www.swiftech.com/GT400-REV2-Mountingkit.aspx

 

[chris2341]

What I did in my build was run a dual lool. One running to the CPU & being cooled by a thin 120 mm rad at the rear exhause fan housing & another one running to the GPU & being cooled by a very thick 140 mm rad at the bottom front intake fan housing. All this I managed to put inside a small mid-ATX case (CM Storm Scout)..

Do you have any pictures of this because we have similar cases and this seems that a valid option for my situation.

As well are the thicker RX series rads better than the thin rads?
I don't want to spend much more than 200 or 250 on the whole thing so if I spend more for a better quality 360mm rad I could wait and add a 140mm later.

 

[rubix_1011]

As well are the thicker RX series rads better than the thin rads?

Yes.

 

[Guest]

Do you have any pictures of this because we have similar cases and this seems that a valid option for my situation.

 

[chris2341]

Your dual loop seems very interesting, is the front fan still an intake? Blowing hot air over the rad into the case?

And I have heard a lot about one pump in particular being much better than any others I believe it's the Swiftech MCP655

Can anyone recommend a good quality solution for under $250 that is not the RX360 kit but will still cool better than a cm212+ and air on the GPU?

 

[Guest]

Yup, I got an Enermax TB Silence Red LED 120 mm fan in the front. If I place in as an exhaust the fan lightning effect is not visible. I decided to use the front as an intake rather than an exhaust. I've put a 120 mm intake fan at the side panel as well as another 120 mm fan at the top as exhaust. I have 2 exhaust as well as 2 intake fan inlet & outlet to equalized everything.

I actually have a very good temp on my GPU - 34 c when I'm not playing & when I play (game using Frostbite 2.0 game engine) I get a temp not more than 50 or 55 c.

I'll go with Koolance RP-401X2 Single 5.25in Reservoir ($99) & put (1) PMP-400 pump ($70) on it. You'll be surprised how powerful the small pump you have. It can more than do it at 25% of the speed. I used (2) pumps cuz I thought that (1) in not enough due to it being so small but I was surprised.

 

[chris2341]

I was worried for a second their that your mod left no cool air intakes, but it seems it is actually very well vented.

I just looked at your case mod thread and I saw 5 small fans at the back of the case are all these exhaust? and how much noise/performance do they produce for what cost? It seems like a good idea.

 

[Guest]

I was worried for a second their that your mod left no cool air intakes, but it seems it is actually very well vented.

I just looked at your case mod thread and I saw 5 small fans at the back of the case are all these exhaust? and how much noise/performance do they produce for what cost? It seems like a good idea.

I actually scrub that fan mod. It's too messy having to do a parallel wiring on (5) small 30 mm fans with very little effect on cooling.

I think one important key is equalizing the airflow (CFM) of fans. You have to calculate how much air is coming in & going out.

 

[chris2341]

Best answer selected by chris2341.