Hello folks, Quick simple questions regarding my setup, starting with the background. So I got a 250D case with an i5 (see Perseus in my sig) and I like to watercool it for noise-level sake. Since I'm planning to expand my watercooling setup in the future, I opted for the Swiftech H220 instead of one of Corsair H-series (such as the famously-used-for-250D, the H100i). This has proven to be a costly mistake. Confirmed by Swiftech rep over at overclock.net who has generously helped me troubleshoot it. In summary, due to the orientation setup in the 250D, the fact that the reservoir that resides in the radiator, it cannot act as an air trap. This means, the pump will get some air trapped and create a noise akin to my saltwater aquarium pump..... when broken. Even if I can get the air out, eventually it will find its way in and I had to get it, tilt, drop a few dish soup (Swiftech rep suggestion) and run it full speed for a few hours... again... So, let's get to the solution: This is a kit I'm looking at: https://www.dazmode.com/store/produ...pump-tank-reservoir-complete-watercoling-kit/ - with DDC 3.25 pump It's priced decently for a kit, the 35mm rad would fit 250D, and it's readily available in Canada. My questions: - Any glaring issue with that kit for my case? I'm not looking forward to another air-trap issue Should I opt for the bay+pump option? - Should I pick and chose my own parts instead of this starter kit? - Is DD PWM pump better than the full 3.25 pump for $10 more? - If I opt for the tank reservoir and place it lower than the Mobo... where would the air trap be? - I'm looking into.... amputating my non-modular TX650 PSU to make space instead of forking another $100 for a new modular PSU. I'm fairly confident I can do a clean job, but any words of wisdom? - Since I'm pretty much stuck with the H220 until I get my custom kit setup, any tips or tricks to get the air out of my pump so I can regain some sanity while working on my computer? The Swiftech rep and I tried adding a few drops of soap, holding the res/rad at an elevated position, shaking the pump, the rad, the case, whatever... It just keeps being noisy. Both of us are at the point of thinking it may not be air trapped.... but it does sound like it.... That's all for now. Thanks!
Just as well I didn't fork out for one of them! I was thinking of one of the Coolermaster Eisberg pump/res blocks and then custom making the rest, but OCUK (one of the cheapest places to get them in the UK) seem to have stopped selling them?
I had the same issue with the Swiftech H220. I was lucky enough to get a full refund from SpecialtechUK, they even gave me back the postage costs. I decided to go fully custom as well, spent nearly £1000 over the last year thanks to that decision but the computer is very silent with great temps. If you want silence I wouldn't get a DDC pump. I have 2x Swiftech MC35X pumps which are PWM controlled DDC pumps and you can hear them even when running at 1800RPM. The D5 pumps that have direct control of the RPM on the pump are widely regarded as the best performance without making much noise, most people get them to be completely silent in their systems so I'd recommend looking for a kit with one of those rather. EK have a D5 vario, XSPC have a range of 5.25" bay and tube reservoir pump combos using the D5 and Swiftech do a D5 although I'm not sure they have a reservoir combo. Here is the EK one from the same store you linked to: https://www.dazmode.com/store/product/ek-d5-vario-x-res-140-incl-pump/
You need to decouple 35X pumps to get them running quiet, even so at full speed they're slightly louder than a D5. The advantage of PWM though is that you can run the pumps at slow speeds and ramp them up only when needed. You'll be running a low restriction loop so running a 35X/3.25 PWM pump at higher speeds is to be avoided to stop it overheating. You can get Swiftech heatsinks for them and mounting them on a Shoggy Sandwich with the Swiftech mounting legs going a long way to reducing noise. A D5 would be better suited to a low restriction loop and they're also now available with PWM. I've had 6 D5 Varios and never found any of them particularly quiet at any setting over 2-3. They don't get hot though as their (minuscule) waste heat is passed into the water. I would never get a non-PWM DDC ever again unless I was running it in a separate room to the PC.
I can't hear my DDC over the noise of my slow fans or hard drives, and from outside the case the main noise is air flowing through the radiators (pushed by the fans, not air bubbles). The pump is definitely well decoupled though, it hangs free off the tube going up to the radiator, so there's not vibration being transmitted at all.
Anybody would like to explain "decouple the pumps" to me? Thx for the tips. I contacted NCIX and they dont do refund with AIO. They do, however, RMA.... so I'm not keen on doing that. Now I'm asking for a store credit refund and hopefully I can pick up some custom kit there... Funny you mentioned XSPC though..... because NCIX actually carry the starter kits lol... I never even heard the name before. See links and share your thoughts please: http://www.ncix.com/detail/xspc-raystorm-d5-ex240-water-13-79207-1443.htm or http://www.ncix.com/detail/xspc-raystorm-750-rx240-v3-51-97944.htm
I would choose the kit from the first link over the second, the reason from my very quick glance at the links is that it seems to have everything included where as the other kit doesn't have some essential items like tubing and fittings that first time watercooling buyers can easily forget about; I forgot about those things when I got my first watercooling setup and was not impressed because I had already spent more than I could afford, I ended up waiting a few months to install the watercooling equipment. Thanks for the mention of DDC decoupling Big Elf, I'll look into that. My PWM control on the CPU header on my motherboard only goes as low as 20%. Swiftech unfortunately decided they would make the pumps run at their lowest setting when PWM was at 0% rather than a reasonable setting like 30% or say 50%, I confirmed that this was intentional from a helpful support member at Swiftech. So I can't get the pumps to spin slower than 1700RPM which is annoying.
actually, under Specifications tab, it does include it. From http://www.ncix.com/detail/xspc-raystorm-d5-ex240-water-13-79207-1443.htm From http://www.ncix.com/detail/xspc-raystorm-750-rx240-v3-51-97944.htm edit: just read the official XSPC page: http://www.xs-pc.com/watercooling-kits/raystorm-d5-ex240-watercooling-kit That EX240 rad looks nice and thin for my 250D........... hmmmmmmm............... and D5 pump.
Basically it just means insulating the pump so the vibrations don't vibrate the whole case. There's lots of different ways of doing it but basically you want something springy between the pump and whatever it's attached to. As I said, i just dangle mine off one of the hoses, works a treat! I'll have to do something about it next time I have to transport my computer though.
Beaver, you cant use that with a 250D! It's a dual bay res, and the 250D only has a single 5.25" bay.. :/
Clicking the specifications tab would of changed my very quick glance to something else, like maybe a brief overview. I spent a total of maybe 8 seconds looking at the links and gave a quick opinion. I didn't choose to write a quick reply and include a lengthy section of it explaining that it was only a very quick glance for nothing. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- XSPC also do a tube reservoir and pump combo which can be mounted easily if you don't have 2x 5.25" bays available for the reservoir in the first 2 links.
i picked those 2 out of all 6-8 options in NCIX because they're the ones readily available. The rest are 3-6 weeks waiting. remember guys, if im returning my H220, it'll be store credit to NCIX... About that dual-res though..... i've sketched a few ideas. Could look wicked cool. Basically cutting the removable front panel into an "H" shape. And instead of a max 140mm fan, i can stuck 2x80mm fan in the front. it'll take a bit of work. but that's the fun part. ....or.... i can ***** out and wait for 6 weeks........... *EDIT* Nope. NCIX only carry dual-res. Might just use the credit for a waterblock or pump or whatever and get my kit somewhere else. like DazMode...
Sounds like you have a plan there Redbeaver. I personally prefer the modding option because it is more enjoyable but you should expect it to take a while so waiting might end up just as quick to be honest. Depends on your preferences of course. You won't be disappointed with either option you have mentioned.
