Liquid Cooling setup [Advice/Help]

[Urstraight]

So I've been building computers for a while now and I've been wanting to get into liquid cooling. I'm going to upgrade my current computer and liquid cool those parts.

The specs would be:
Intel i5-7600k 3.8 GHz
Gigabyte - GA-Z270P-D3 ATX LGA1151 Motherboard
2x8(16)GB Corsair Vengance LED 32000MHz
Noctua - NH-U9S 46.4 CFM CPU Cooler
EVGA - GeForce GTX 1070 8GB SC Gaming ACX 3.0 Video Card
Thermaltake - Versa H34 ATX Mid Tower Case
Corsair CX 600W
plus one SSD and two HD


So I was thinking of getting a 360mm radiator for my GPU. Then eventually putting my CPU into the loop. I was going to buy this Alphacool NexXxoS XT45 Full Copper 360mm Radiator but I was reading some forums and they said you should spend more money on a radiator because it is what cools everything. So I wasn't sure if I should invest more or if this one is fine. For my water block I was going to use the EK-FC1070 GTX - Acetal+Nickel. I'm a little confused on which pump, reservoir, tubing, fittings, and coolant I should use though. Thank you in advance!

 

[MauveCloud]

I don't know much about custom watercooling parts, but I presume you're planning to overclock, so you might think about upgrading your psu first. The Corsair CX600 is mediocre, but for overclocking with a custom loop, I think you'd want a top-quality psu for maximum stability.

 

[Urstraight]

I don't know much about custom watercooling parts, but I presume you're planning to overclock, so you might think about upgrading your psu first. The Corsair CX600 is mediocre, but for overclocking with a custom loop, I think you'd want a top-quality psu for maximum stability.

Ok I was wondering about the PSU a little because I was reading and a lot of people were saying an 800W PSU is great and gives you a little head room

 

[amtseung]

It's not so much about PSU wattage as it is about build quality. Reference the PSU Tier List 2.0 here on Tom's for further info.

Alphacool makes some of the best radiators on the market. Other than EK's slim rads. XSPC makes decent stuff (I'm running two of their rads right now), at a lower cost. Hardwarelabs nemesis rads are supposedly pretty good too.

Get a CPU block while you're at it. It's much easier to build the whole loop in one go than to constantly drain -> disassemble -> add components -> reassemble -> refill -> leak test over and over again. EK supremacy, Watercool Heatkiller IV (I just got one, it looks GORGEOUS), XSPC Raystorm, Phanteks makes a pretty neat-looking block as well. I mean, I got the $15 Bxqinlenx Professional Special RayStorm block off Amazon just for sh*ts'n'giggles, and it's surprisingly good after you give it a thorough scrubbing.

For Pump and reservoir, aim to get a pump/res combo unit like EK's X-Res offerings or Thermaltake's D5 kit. Just make sure the thing you're getting says it includes a pump.

Tubing dimensions should match the fitting dimensions. For example, if you're going to use 16mm outer diameter / 10mm inner diameter soft tubing, you'd get compression fittings that match that 16/10 size. If you're going to use 13mm/10mm PETG hardline tubing, then you'd get fittings for 13/10 hardline. Whether or not you use soft tube or hard tube is up to you. Soft tube is easier on fixing the oops moments that inevitably happen, but hard tube can look so good so easily. Now if you want to do copper or glass or something, well, I have no idea how to do that.

Two fittings per component is the bare minimum you'll need to get it working. You may want to get a handful of 90 degree rotary fittings. If you want to run hardline but don't want to bend the tube, that's a lot of fittings. Like seriously, that's a train-load of fittings. And elbows. Which is expensive AF.

Coolant? Pure distilled water (not drinking water) with the tiniest drop of dish soap in it. And maybe some PT Nuke. Really. Now if you want pretty colors, that's a whole different story. And I don't like pretty colors, they tend to clog up the tiny fins in blocks and they stain everything.

Don't forget to clean every component individually before you assemble your loop. I take each piece, fill it with isopropyl and let it soak for a while, then vigorously shake it, then flush with tap water for a while, then rinse through with distilled water. Usually gets most of the gunk. Others use a diluted white vinegar solution to soak/clean. I hate the vinegar smell, so no thanks for me. Oh, and rinse your tubing before you use it. You'd be surprised how much junk is in there.

To end this wall of text, don't underestimate watercooling. Or, more specifically, its price tag. It's not for the faint of heart.

 

[geofelt]

What do you hope to gain by spending some $270 on liquid cooling parts?
Your EVGA GTX1070SC is already binned and factory overclocked.
You can't expect much more.
My suggestion, if you can, is to invoke the EVGA 90 day free upgrade option and buy a GTX1080 or GTX1080ti.
If that is not possible, sell the GTX1070 and buy a stronger card.

Corsair CX units used to be unreliable, but their RMA process was very good.
If your unit is one of the newer grey units, you should be ok.

You should be able to overclock your I5-7600K and that is what I would do first.
As of 6/19/17
What percent of samples can get an overclock
at a vcore around 1.4v.
I5-7600K
5.3 samples exist, unknown % of occurrence
5.2 16%
5.1 27%
5.0 52%
4.9 72%

Your 92mm cooler is very good for the size, but you might want something a bit better.
Look at the Noctua NH-U14s for example.

I use a NH-U12s for my i5-7600K@4.9 with no issue.

 

[n0ns3ns3]

i'm sorry man, but your computer does not worth water cooling.
get better parts first.
after you have i7 class CPU, at least GTX 1070, better MB and much better PSU, you can start thinking about liquid.