Liquid cooled Silverstone FT03

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Rojo1982

Rojo1982

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Moved my post here to the proper section. I will add pics soon. FT03, 2500k 4.5ghz, GTX680 1229mhz, swiftech mcp35x, swiftech 120 in top, swiftech 120 in center, black ice dual 80 on bottom. Ek nickel plated blocks on both CPU and gpu. All stuffed inside this matx case. Idle temps are 28°-30° on gpu, 39°-42° on CPU. Load temps 48°-51° on gpu, 69°-71° on CPU. I know they are not the greatest temps in the world but that wasn't my goal. My goal was near silence in this small beautiful case without cutting out huge holes in the aluminum outside or making it look different in any way. Pics are coming soon.
 
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rubix_1011
Usually a GPU will see a greater temp drop benefit from watercooling than a CPU will. My GPUs rarely reach over 45C at load when you would easily expect them to reach high 60's or 70's using the stock air coolers. CPU temps at load don't always have such a dramatic change with air to watercooling at load.

Based on this (as well as GPUs having a higher TDP than CPUs) they would dump more heat into a case as well as a loop.
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jacknhut

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Damn 3 rads I wanna see some pics already!!!
 
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Rojo1982

Rojo1982

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Here is complete parts list:
CPU - Intel 2500K
Board - P8P67-M PRO
Ram - G-Skill ripjaws 8gb
Power - Corsair AX850
Hard Drives - 3 Hitachi 500gb + 120gb Corsair SSD

Now the good stuff:
Top radiator - XSPC RX120 120mm
Middle radiator - Swiftech MCR120- QP-Stack - fittings on both sides(perfect for this build, couldn't have done it without it!) Unfortunately its being discontinued.
Bottom radiator - Black Ice GTX Xtreme M160
Both of the 120mm rads are low FPI, sadly a low FPI dual 80mm doesn't exist.
CPU block - Ek-Supreme HF full EN nickel rev. 3
GPU block - Ek-FC680 Acetal+EN nickel
Pump - Swiftech MCP35X - small and packs a punch, and its so quiet!
Res - yeah right, where would i put one! Just a T- fitting and a fill port on the top for me.
Fittings are all nickel plated Enzotech except one on the bottom rad. Its made but Bitspower.

Fans:
2x 80mm Coolermaster for bottom rad
2x 120mm Silverstone SST-FM121 for middle and top

I used distilled water and 2 silver kill coils but the hoses are very cloudy already. I think it looks horrible. As long as it doesn't mold or anything I guess its ok. Any advice anyone?

caddydaddy1978


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Rojo1982

Rojo1982

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Jun 12, 2012
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Rojo1982

Rojo1982

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Temps are as follows:
Idle - GPU 28-30 | CPU 34-38
Load GPU 45-50 | CPU 68-71
I wasn't shooting for amazing temps, just enough for silence and not overheating. I feel that I have achieved that. I have seen some attempts at liquid cooling in this case and alot have hacked it up and put rads on the outside. I wanted it to keep its sleek look and be very powerful and silent.
 
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rubix_1011

rubix_1011

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Jan 12, 2007
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CPU load is a little higher than I would want it, but not off the charts. I understand that not everyone is out to over-rad and go all out and I think you're getting respectable temps for the rads you are using. My post wasn't to knock your setup; just more the understanding of total output I (myself) would plan for. Again, planning to cool based on TDP alone isn't an exact science and has leeway, especially in the watercooling realm.

I do like the creative use of rads and placement, though.
 
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Rojo1982

Rojo1982

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Thank you. It was really an experiment because I bought this case because silverstone claims great air cooling in the FT03 but I had issues with the fans being so loud to keep it cool. After buying it I was kind of stuck with a very expensive case that was ridiculously loud at load. I was running 2 6950's in crossfire prior to the 680 and it was running very hot. I am happy with the investment in water cooling though. Silence is golden!
 
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boiler1990

boiler1990

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I might just be a nerd, but I love the natural cooling design with all the air going up. It's actually extremely efficient, and it makes me sad somewhat that I'm not aircooling in my RV02. The natural convection phenomenon is the basis for the newest nuclear reactor cooling systems (ESBWR and AP1000).
 
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Rojo1982

Rojo1982

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Before this I was running a Corsair H50 on the cpu and stock fan on GPU. My CPU temps are about the same as before. However, my 6950's in crossfire were pushing 85 at load. My GTX 680 was also pushing 80 by itself. Now under water I have not seen the temp of the 680 go over 50 degrees! I was under the impression before I went to liquid that the GPU was more of a heat load on the system than the CPU. Apparently it's the other way around.
 
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Rojo1982

Rojo1982

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I like my system being compared to a nuclear power plant also. Thank you. The RV02 is an awesome case. I was going to sell my FT03 and get the older FT02 because you can fit a triple 180 rad in the bottom. I am satisfied with this for now though. I am already thinking of what to do next.
 
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rubix_1011

rubix_1011

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Usually a GPU will see a greater temp drop benefit from watercooling than a CPU will. My GPUs rarely reach over 45C at load when you would easily expect them to reach high 60's or 70's using the stock air coolers. CPU temps at load don't always have such a dramatic change with air to watercooling at load.

Based on this (as well as GPUs having a higher TDP than CPUs) they would dump more heat into a case as well as a loop.
 
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