First timer's Watercooling Questions

TESmith92

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Sep 30, 2013
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I am going to be building another computer here in the following weeks and have a few questions about water cooling. I have never water cooled a computer before and just have a few questions about it.
I am going to be using the following to build my PC.

Rosewill Blackhawk Ultra Case

4th Gen Intel Core i7-4770K

Asus Maximus VI Formula Or Extreme (I am undecided still)

2x Asus GTX660 TI 3GB

Corsair Dominator Platinum 16GB (2x8GB) DDR3 1600 MHz (Possible 32GB 4x8GB)

2x Western Digital WD1002FAEX Caviar Black 1 TB SATA III 7200 RPM 64 MB Cache Internal Desktop 3.5" Hard Drive

Samsung 840 Series 2.5 inch 120GB SATA III internal Solid State Drive (SSD) MZ-7TD120BW

ASUS BW-12B1ST/BLK/​G/AS 12X Blu-ray Internal Burner Drive with Disc Encryption - Black - Retail Box


Corsair Professional Series AX 850 Watt ATX/EPS Modular 80 PLUS Gold (AX850)


Corsair Hydro Series H100i (if i dont water cool)

Windows 7 Professional

Is watercooling worth it? If so what do i need as i have never done this before?
 

Applepienation

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Jul 19, 2013
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I have an H100i with a 4670k which I have overclocked to 4.5GHz. I love it, it never goes above ~55 degrees while playing games.

Everything to install it comes with the unit and it has some pretty good instructions too.
 

ddbtkd456

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Sep 4, 2013
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I assume that you have read this thread?

www.tomshardware.com/forum/277130-29-read-first-watercooling-sticky

Also if you want a true understanding of Closed Loop Water Coolers vs. Custom Water Coolers

http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/270566-29-discussion-thread-watercooling-closed-loop-coolers

As for your mistake...the H100i is a water cooler, it is just a closed loop water cooler much like my Kraken x60 (I own a H100i as well in my other computer) so your correction would be if i don't go with a closed loop water cooler. As for building your own the (first) thread I listed will explain everything you need to know about it. Also the second one is a discussion thread custom water coolers vs. closed loop water coolers, so you get an idea of the positives and negatives of both sides...Also custom loops are expensive (mine is going to have all the bells and whistles and I am looking at about 1,400-1,600 dollars for my custom loop).

As For your build I can do better here is a friendly suggestion for it:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i7-4820K 3.7GHz Quad-Core Processor ($329.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Corsair H100i 77.0 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($89.99 @ NCIX US)
Motherboard: Asus Sabertooth X79 ATX LGA2011 Motherboard ($314.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($139.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Kingston SSDNow V300 Series 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($79.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($59.98 @ Outlet PC)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($59.98 @ Outlet PC)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 760 4GB Video Card ($305.99 @ Amazon)
Case: NZXT Switch 810 (Black) ATX Full Tower Case ($132.98 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: XFX ProSeries 850W 80 PLUS Gold Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($109.99 @ NCIX US)
Optical Drive: Asus BW-12B1ST/BLK/G/AS Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer ($58.99 @ NCIX US)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Professional SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($132.95 @ Outlet PC)
Total: $1785.81
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-09-30 23:18 EDT-0400)
 

TESmith92

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Sep 30, 2013
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I am also using the h100 in my current desktop and i would like to do a custom because i like how it looks and i have been told it can keep the computer cooler. As i would cool the cpu and gpus. Been told when doing an sli like 3-4 sometimes the video cards get to hot as they are so close together.
 

TESmith92

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Sep 30, 2013
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Thank you for your input there, i am still working with the contents of the build as i will be doing Graphics design on the computer aswell. And actually trying to figure out the best build to work for both gaming and the graphics design. For the gaming aspect of things i will be using 3+ monitors as i use multiple accounts while i play (Ok to with the game) and i run 3-4 accounts. I am leaning towards the Watercooling more for the looks and the cooler temps are going to be a bonus :p.
 

ddbtkd456

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Sep 4, 2013
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Yes however it gets really expensive running your own. The H100i will keep an i7 right around mid-80's F - mid 90's F if you set it up right in that case under a load. Keeps my AMD around 95 degrees F under a full load and AMD always runs hotter then Intel, in your place the i7 would be better then the amd for gaming and graphical design i would say different if it was music/video rendering/editing tho.
 

TESmith92

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Sep 30, 2013
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For the type of work and gaming i do would you still suggest the build that you hvae above?
 

ddbtkd456

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I would fully stand by it. I think it will be actually a little overkill for what you are doing with it but yes it would be an excellent build for you. However you are going to fill up that case (I have 10 fans total in my case, including the 4 on the water cooler) with 140 mm fans. Here i worked it into your budget along with saving you some money as well, also a single 2 tb will out perform 2 1 terabytes. I would not use more then 2 monitors on that card, and if you were running 3+ monitors, i would grab a second one to SLI (supports up to 3-way SLI).

Updated:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i7-4820K 3.7GHz Quad-Core Processor ($314.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: NZXT Kraken X60 98.3 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($109.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Asus P9X79 LE ATX LGA2011 Motherboard ($224.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($139.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Kingston SSDNow V300 Series 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($79.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($84.98 @ Outlet PC)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 760 4GB Video Card ($299.99 @ NCIX US)
Case: NZXT Switch 810 (Black) ATX Full Tower Case ($132.98 @ Amazon)
Case Fan: NZXT Air Flow Series 83.6 CFM 140mm Fan ($13.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case Fan: NZXT Air Flow Series 83.6 CFM 140mm Fan ($13.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case Fan: NZXT Air Flow Series 83.6 CFM 140mm Fan ($13.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case Fan: NZXT Air Flow Series 83.6 CFM 140mm Fan ($13.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Power Supply: XFX 650W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Asus BW-12B1ST/BLK/G/AS Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer ($58.99 @ NCIX US)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Professional SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($132.95 @ Outlet PC)
Total: $1705.79
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-10-02 19:34 EDT-0400)
 

TESmith92

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Sep 30, 2013
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Thanks for the insight on the build here, I was looking around after seeing this thing could have 64GBs of memory and that made me question if it is worth having 64 Gbs or not? I heard once you start going over 8gbs you wont see much of a difference. But as i want to be running 3-6 screens here wether i am working or playing games the 65 gbs almost seems like it would be worth having?
 

TESmith92

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Sep 30, 2013
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Thank you for your insight. I do see this thing can hold 64gbs of memory.. Is that worth it? I mean i plan to be running 3-6 screens in the next couple of months. Wether i am gaming or i am working with all the shiz i will have up should i spend the extra money and get the 64GBS? and if i do are the G.Skill Ripjaws Z Series 64GB (8 x 8GB) DDR3-1333 Memory Good to use for the 64GB?
 

ddbtkd456

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If you were to have 64 GB of RAM, then i would be against recommending it, I have 16 GB on my system pushing 3 32" TV's and my graphics card is what handles the load not the CPU RAM. You will never use more then 16 GB of RAM. I have Photoshop (half screen) & Firefox (Half screen) on one monitor, and play Batman Arkham City on the 2nd one and my card is more then enough to push that. I don't even come close to using 10-12 gigs of RAM much less 16 GB, I would only recommend 32 GB of ram if you are using a 3-5 monitor setup for extreme video/music rendering. 32/64 GB is just a waste. However if you are going with 32 GB of RAM (which would be more then plenty), I would recommend something like this:



PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i7-4820K 3.7GHz Quad-Core Processor ($314.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: NZXT Kraken X60 98.3 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($109.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Asus P9X79 LE ATX LGA2011 Motherboard ($224.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($139.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($139.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Kingston SSDNow V300 Series 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($79.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($84.98 @ Outlet PC)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 760 4GB Video Card ($299.99 @ NCIX US)
Case: NZXT Switch 810 (Black) ATX Full Tower Case ($132.98 @ Amazon)
Case Fan: NZXT Air Flow Series 83.6 CFM 140mm Fan ($13.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case Fan: NZXT Air Flow Series 83.6 CFM 140mm Fan ($13.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case Fan: NZXT Air Flow Series 83.6 CFM 140mm Fan ($13.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case Fan: NZXT Air Flow Series 83.6 CFM 140mm Fan ($13.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Power Supply: XFX 650W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Asus BW-12B1ST/BLK/G/AS Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer ($58.99 @ NCIX US)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Professional SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($132.95 @ Outlet PC)
Total: $1845.78
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-10-02 21:29 EDT-0400)

or the 64 GB if you really have money to burn:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i7-4820K 3.7GHz Quad-Core Processor ($314.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: NZXT Kraken X60 98.3 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($109.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Asus P9X79 LE ATX LGA2011 Motherboard ($224.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($139.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($139.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($139.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($139.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Kingston SSDNow V300 Series 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($79.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($84.98 @ Outlet PC)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 760 4GB Video Card ($299.99 @ NCIX US)
Case: NZXT Switch 810 (Black) ATX Full Tower Case ($132.98 @ Amazon)
Case Fan: NZXT Air Flow Series 83.6 CFM 140mm Fan ($13.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case Fan: NZXT Air Flow Series 83.6 CFM 140mm Fan ($13.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case Fan: NZXT Air Flow Series 83.6 CFM 140mm Fan ($13.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case Fan: NZXT Air Flow Series 83.6 CFM 140mm Fan ($13.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Power Supply: XFX 650W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Asus BW-12B1ST/BLK/G/AS Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer ($58.99 @ NCIX US)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Professional SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($132.95 @ Outlet PC)
Total: $2125.76
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-10-02 21:29 EDT-0400)

Like i said i would stay with the 32 gb but thats just me. I hope this helps at least a little bit. Please feel free to contact me about any other questions/concerns you may have in the future. Also please remember to pick your best solution so other people may learn from your thread. Thank you for your time, and have a good day.
 

TESmith92

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Sep 30, 2013
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Thank you very much i will Def. keep that in mind.
I currently have a second Rosewill Blackhawk-Ultra case sitting here and want to fill it and i like the insight you have given me.
 

ddbtkd456

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Sep 4, 2013
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Hahaha just remember to pick the best answer....like i said I am always here to help when needed, if you have questions in the future please feel free to contact me directly.