Cooling Is this enough for an ultimate setup?

Here's my cart(s), as it(they) stand(s) right now...

*** NEW *** Alphacool NexXxoS NB-SLI 1 Northbridge *** NEW *** Alphacool NexXxoS NB-SLI 1 Northbridge
- Fitting Size No Fittings


$47.95
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Alphacool NexXxoS XP Bold Socket 754/939/940/FX/Opt./AM2 Alphacool NexXxoS XP Bold Socket 754/939/940/FX/Opt./AM2
- Fitting Size No Fittings


$49.95
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Danger Den MAZE4 Chipset Block for AMD and Intel Danger Den MAZE4 Chipset Block for AMD and Intel
- Fitting Size 3/8" for 3/8" I.D. Tubing


$34.95
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Alphacool LEDready 5mm UV Ultra Bright Alphacool LEDready 5mm UV Ultra Bright
- Cable Sleeve in your choice of colors
- Sleeve Color White
- Heatshrink Color UV Blue


$35.80
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Black Ice Pro Compact High Peformance Radiator - Black Black Ice Pro Compact High Peformance Radiator - Black
- Fitting Size 3/8" OD


$29.99
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Swiftech 3/8" ID PVC Clear Tubing Swiftech 3/8" ID PVC Clear Tubing


$3.27
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Alphacool Laing DDC Clear Acrylic Top Alphacool Laing DDC Clear Acrylic Top


$59.90
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Danger Den G1/4 High Flow Fittings - 3/8" Danger Den G1/4 High Flow Fittings - 3/8"


$27.86
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Alphacool Cape Bullseye (POM) Polyoxymethylene - Black Alphacool Cape Bullseye (POM) Polyoxymethylene - Black
- Fitting Size No Fittings
- Bullseye Reservoir Mounts Bullseye Bay Mount - Silver


$81.95
Delete
Alphacool Plexi G1/4" Lighting Module - UV Alphacool Plexi G1/4" Lighting Module - UV
- Cable No changes (stock, unsleeved)
- Sleeve Color White
- Heatshrink Color UV Blue


$7.95
Delete
*** NEW *** Alphacool Heattrap RegCooler Asus SLI *** NEW *** Alphacool Heattrap RegCooler Asus SLI
- Fitting Size No Fittings


$39.95
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Swiftech 1/4" ID PVC Clear Tubing Swiftech 1/4" ID PVC Clear Tubing


$4.95

Qty. Product Description Unit Price Savings Total Price

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Swiftech MCP350 12 VDC Pump for liquid cooling system - Retail
Model #: MCP350
Item #: N82E16835108063

Return Policy: Standard Return Policy

In Stock
$57.19 $114.38

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Swiftech MC14 Memory Cooling Heatsink - Retail
Model #: MC14
Item #: N82E16835108071

Return Policy: Standard Return Policy

In Stock
$18.99 $18.99

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Swiftech MCR80 80mm Liquid Radiator - Retail
Model #: MCR80 QuietPower80mm
Item #: N82E16835108083

Return Policy: Standard Return Policy

In Stock
$17.89 $17.89

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Thermaltake CL-W0052 Tide Water All in One VGA Liquid Cooling module - Retail
Model #: CL-W0052
Item #: N82E16835116017

Return Policy: Standard Return Policy

In Stock
$78.99 -$20.00 Instant $58.99

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KOOLANCE HD-50-L06 hard drive liquid cooler - Retail
Model #: HD-50-L06
Item #: N82E16835127010

Return Policy: Standard Return Policy

In Stock
$35.99 $35.99

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KOOLANCE RAM-30-V06 Memory Cooling Block - Retail
Model #: RAM-30-V06
Item #: N82E16835127012

Return Policy: Standard Return Policy

In Stock
$36.59 $36.59

Do you think this will net me three loops of high-quality cooling in a tight space? I think I've got enough here to make most people drool, but a few questions...

First, I'm using both Koolance and Alphacool/DD blocks in a 1/4" ID loop, but with mostly 3/8" barbs. Should I for pressure drop put in a 3/8" to 1/4" splitter on both sides of the blocks, run them parallel, and loop back that way? If not, can I force 1/4" Swiftech PVC onto 3/8" barbs?

Second, yes, I know that half of those blocks aren't necessary, but like sc4mpi and others, I like cooling excess. So much so that I cool everything I can. Anyone got a good order on the chipset/RAM/MOSFET/HDD loop?

Third, anyone got a good way to calculate in advance what this will weigh? I'm using a Hiper Type-R PSU, 3500+ EE, Biostar Tforce 6100 AM2, X850XT PE, a Diamondmax 10 250GB 16mb cache, and a gig of Elpida D9s. System already runs at 2.7 24/7, hpoing to increase my max OC as well as look all badass and kinda mini-ORAC.

Any suggestions for substitutions, or advice with any of these items? I know, ThermalCrap, but there's no bad reviews on it and Sapphire will ship their cards with it stock, so it can't be that bad... and it frees up my CPU loop from a lot of extra heat dump.

So, from what I have here, any suggestions?

 

First of all having three loops is totally uncessecsary. I hate to rain on your parade but excessiveness is not really that cool to most I dont think. I respect a well designed and robust loop more myself. My guess is that all of that will weigh a hell of a lot too.

I would suggest you go with one brand or at least one size throughout. Mixing high flow and low flow gear will probably not get you the best performace in a mixed loop. Plus why would you ever want koolance garbage mixed in with the other performace gear?

Not to bash you dude, just seems way too excessive. I can see cooling every part of your PC with the same type of gear, but this is too much of a mashup which I would not think would perform well.

 

I would go with either a all danger den highflow 1/2" loop or a med flow 3/8" loop.

 

Well, I chose parts partly based on the fact that I'm cooling the equivalent of a breadbox. I don't have room for a 3x120 radiator (nor do I want one) or other things like an Iwaki or stuff like that. Part of this is a challenge to myself to do it in the first place. Attempting to stuff three loops in a regular case isn't easy, but a SFF is asking for trouble. I like trouble. Besides, after a lot of measuring, sketching, and measuring some more it should just all fit.

If I could find a different RAM cooling kit on either of the sites I am shopping from I'll probably pick that instead, and the hard drive block will most likely go too. I was reviewing numbers, and they just don't add up. Not worth the little cost for almost no gain and more heat dump.

As far as going with all one manufacturer, I'd love to, but I can't get all the parts I need from one. Alphacool's chipset block is only available on performance-pcs as the SLI version, so I still need a regular one. I need to check the RAM block, though...

This is not my first water PC, or my second, or even my fifth. This is my ninth watercooled PC, and I've done large bore, small bore, prefab, DIY, and everything in between. By now, I have a fair idea of what I want, and I plan on doing it. Yeah, there are some ideas that have to be scrapped, but there are others to be gleaned from this. The key is to learn and go on.

As far as DD and Alphacool, they are both high-flow setups. Removing the Koolance blocks will give me all 3/8" blocks, on a pair of high-head pumps, and will basically leave all components perfectly matched. I've considered an Eddy-EK block for my GPU, as I said, but I think that the TideWater is a better setup than a block I can't transfer to another card (and I do have another card in mind, just have to have approval.)

I've been doing water since before you could get plexi topped blocks, when you had to either make your own or get them all from different people cause nobody made all the blocks you needed, when all it was was heater cores, pond pumps, and big cross-drilled slabs of copper on the side of your slot processor. I know a fair bit about tuning a loop, including how to split flow so that a 3/8" system could feed 1/4" blocks without a giant flow drop.

I did ask for opinions, and you're entitled to yours. If you want to argue high-flow vs low-flow (and both are equal, it's all about component choice) or such, I'll do that with you any day of the week. But ATM, I'm gonna see if I can locate the Alphacool chipset and RAM blocks. Those would make my night.

 

If your such an expert why are u asking about it then, just do it and post the results stop showing off that you want to put a thousand blocks in your comp and do it then show off.



Morgan.

 

There's nothing wrong with over-engineering the cooling sometimes. It depends what your objective is. I deliberately complicate my systems because it interests and amuses me, but still I would want effective cooling from it.

My ideal rig would use multiple loops each with a different tube-bore just for the hell of it. There are two components that give off a lot of heat and need cooling - CPU and GPU. The rest is optional and is better done separately to remove restriction from the main loop. There is aslo not need to stick to the same bore size for the second loop so you can use smaller tubing and reduce the bulk in the case.

Of course there's a great case for hunting around for alternative parts. For example www.watercool.de do seriously cool RAM and chipset blocks designed to take 6/4mm pusfits! If you want a HDD cooler the Asetek hdd blocks (for 5.25 bay fitting), allow you to mount two disks on each set of blocks which can be a saving if you have a lot of drives.

 

Good design, in my book, is about elegance: minimum required complexity for maximum functionality, form follows function, etc. In that respect, putting a triple loop with different diameters tubing/barbs (and, no, you cannot safely force 1/4" ID tubing over 3/8" barbs) in a SFF case is in my opinion a bit, well, ill-considered.

You may find that you can all cram it in with careful measurement, but you may find it is pretty difficult to visualise the bends, kinks and pathways of all the tubing. Lots of loops will also stifle airflow in your case, which is still a factor, even if you cool all the main chips and mosfets. Every single component exudes heat and wants to breathe, you know?

But each to their own. As you pointed out, you are not exactly a WC virgin, you know what you are doing. Also, you conceded that you did ask for our opinions, and each person is entitled to theirs. This includes you, so no, we are not going to argue high- and low-flow components with you; it's all good to us. Neither are we going to be able to tell you what is the best order for such a complicated loop, nor how much it will all weigh. You can work all this stuff out for yourself as you go along building the thing much better than we can off the tops of our heads.

This is your folly after all, so you enjoy it.

 

I would support the approach of from from function, but that doesn't have to mean minimalism. My approach of deliberate complexity was that all the equipment would have a function, just that you could argue not all of the functionality was essential.

Now that said a SFF box seems a bad place to start with this approach enven the larger cases would start to be hard work. My experience in this was working in a GW802 with watercooling and a full set ofd drives, addin cards, monitoring etc. I still aim to rebuilt that with an auxilary loop some day but this will need external mounting for the radiators.

 

I may have typed a post in bad humor last night, it was VERY late.

As Risky said, there's lots of fun in making grossly complicated loops. Sometimes.

My last water setup that I used full time was a DD RBX/Maze4GPU with a BIX, Panaflo L1A, and a Mag5. Really dirt simple. It did a good job, it was quiet once I hooked the fan to my mobo header and enabled CnQ, but it was bog simple boring.

After that I messed with the parts from an old Koolance and a CM Aquagate, putting a friend of mine a rig together. Chipset, vga, CPU, and HDD (He had an old hard drive he wanted to use that was loud as hell) and the case was a cheap micro tower. It worked, but it took me three days of test fitting tubing to get it in there. After that experience, I got interested in doing it all. sc4mpi, Risky (I remember the BGA RAM waterblocks) and others have shown that it is beautiful to get it all together. However, I ran into problems real early, trying to get compmnents that are available across the pond in quantity in the US.

AC is my first choice, but I can't swing their prices. Not only that, but Sharka (damn them) doesn't have half of what I want, so I'm stuck with my next choice, Alphacool. They had almost everything I'm after, but they're 3/8" and larger normally. I can't get 3/8 compression fittings (or 1/4" for that matter) from the place I had originally planned to get all this from. That also puts a kink in things (possibly literally) because of the extra height of barbs.


As for some of the issues, they may be simply because I do want complexity. I do want a computer that will be hell to service, to keep me from tinkering with every piece of hardware I find. I want a project that will make people ask how it works, and how I did it. A simple DD watercooling setup is not going to do that. Now, mixing up some custom loving with everything that can make heat covered, that's a different story.

So, rather than continue to be an ass, I've now clarified some of my goals, and I'll hit the rest. I'm looking to basically shove all this in an Ultra MicroFly case (like the Aspire Q-Pack, but higher quality and 1" longer) and I can fudge components a fair bit as long as I keep it in budget.

My plan was to have the bullseye res in the place where the two opticals normally reside, my hard drive under it, and the hard drive cage out of the PC, for extra places to route tubing. The pair of pumps, with their tops changed for the plexi ones and lit with UV LEDs, would fit on either side of the res bolted to the brackets. The RAM and HDD blocks can go, there's no Alphacool block for RAM that I know of, and I can't find any other good ones that will fit my setup. The chipset loop would run MOSFETS-NB-SB, going toward the rad in the front of the case. With the two 1/4" blocks out of the way, everything is native 3/8" and should work fine. The pump for that loop would be to the left of the res (facing forward) and the 80mm rad at the front of the case, pulling in.

For the CPU loop, the BIP would be mounted on the back of the case (ala Xoxide's premod case), the pump on the right side of the res, and the loop would be pump-cpu-rad-res-pump. This would allow for the shortest tubing lengths, as well as the easiest setup. To keep it simple on the GPU, the Tidewater is self-contained, just sink the RAM and digital VRM, and the PSU fan would pull air over the heatsinks. Alternately, if I could fit it under the PSU, an Eddy-EK fullcover block would do a great job as well, though I don't want to show off my card.

Now that I've explained this in better detail, is anyone able to give me more advice? I've done DD, I've done swifty, I wanna mess with something that frankly interests me more. It would have been dirt simple to get that Xoxide case, an MCW60 and two MCW30s, but that would be no fun at all. This way I can actually challenge myself. I figure that's what this is all about, anyway.

 

hmm id go for a single 3/8" loop

something like a DDC_+ running 3/8" should shif tit nice ona s ingle loops Black iCE GT somin like that they seem to do quite well. Then just mix and match your blocks might need a GT 2 or something to make it fit.


Missed alot of this what case you going to fill with this lot can go from there. I had 2 loops in my case

had 2 120mm rads 2 80s and a passiv innovatek, 2 D4s and a tank-o-matic, floppy res all in a mid tower . was running 2 hdd blocks, nb, sb, cpu, gfx front and back, mosfet . I can get pics if u want it wasn't amazinly pretty but it worked none the less

 

Unneccessarily complicated and fun are 2 different areas. FUn is making it more complicated than neccessary with intention of better effectiveness while maintainging general simplicity. BUt 3 loops 3 tubing sizes and god knows what else I see little point. 1/4" is basically nothing. so anything smaller than 3/8" isn't good for much other than unessecary cooling. But since you have made them I say hell go for it. But I believe you can do better with a more simplistic loop. Maybe you have a better idea of what you are doing than I but 1/4" is ugly to me.

 

Don't underestimate the cooling power of small-bore tubing, young padwan. Be not misled by unfounded myths from the unenlightened in watercooling, who slept through physics class. 1/4", if designed well, will do the trick nicely.

 

While thats true you have to fine tune it so much to get the proper flow rate in order to transfer all the heat effectively. No doubt it could be done. BUt I wouldn't try it without an Aqua Computer Ehiem 1046 adjustable pump.