I am thinking of building my first PC in the next couple of months, and I am planning to purchase the new Lian Li PC-V2120 case , which I believe will be released later this month (October 2010). I am planning to go with water cooling, and based on my initial research I am planning to purchase the following components: - Intel Core i7 930 CPU - ATI HD5870 or ATI HD5970 GPU - XSPC RX Radiator(s) - DDC Pump with XSPC top - EK Water Blocks for CPU & GPU - PrimoFlex Pro LRT (1/2" ID & 3/4" OD) tubing - Bitspower 1/2” compression fittings - LUND Pom Plex Reservoir Am I correct in my assumption that a single RX360 radiator would be capable of cooling an Intel i7 930 CPU and ATI HD5870 or ATI HD5970 GPU? While I do some additional research on the other components for my build and wait for the Lian Li case to be released I have been thinking about the best way to position the radiators in the case and which direction the fans should be oriented. After reading many helpful posts on this and other forums I have come up with a number of potential options that I would appreciate your opinions on: Option 1: Single RX360 radiator with exhaust fans A RX360 radiator is located in the roof of the case with the fans oriented to exhaust air from inside the case Advantages: Good air flow through the case Simple tubing with a single radiator Disadvantages: Radiator cooled by air from inside the case Option 2: Single RX360 radiator with intake fans A RX360 radiator is located in the roof of the case with the fans oriented to bring in air from outside the case Advantages: Radiator cooled by air from outside the case Simple tubing with a single radiator Disadvantages: Single exhaust fan may limit air flow through the case Option 3: Dual RX240 & RX120 radiators A RX240 radiator is located at the front of the case and a RX120 radiator located at the rear of the case Advantages: Good air flow through the case Both radiators are cooled by air from outside the case Disadvantages: More complex tubing with two radiators Warm air exhausted by PSU potentially sucked in by the top intake fan Given the size of the case there is potential to have dual loops and to add additional radiators, especially if I was to add a second graphics card in the future. However, as this will be my first PC build I wanted to keep things relatively simple to begin with. Therefore, my initial thinking is to go with Option 1 (single RX360 radiator with exhaust fans) as this will ensure good air flow through the case and keep the tubing simple. By exhausting the air from inside the case through the radiator this may not be quite as effective as drawing in cooler air from outside the case. However, I would not expect he impact on cooling to be too significant, especially given the good airflow through the case, but I would appreciate opinions on this point. So what does everyone think would be the best option for radiator placement, and are there any other options I should consider? Thanks James
Glad to see lots of people replied to your thread. I was looking for Rad flow info and found yours. Well put together. I've got a single loop system in a 800D using a RX360 I use the option 2 method - as it works so much better for me. Gentle Typhhon 1850rpm on Rad Hope you got your system sorted after all the help you got... lol
Its a shame that you had no replies to this thread. Its really well put together. So which set up did you go for in the end?
Hi oatey4519 and slaw, Thank you for the feedback and suggestions. With the whole SandyBridge recall put my PC build plans on hold for a while and then ended up building a gaming HTPC. As I have a 50" plasma, 5.1 surround sound and my steering wheel / pedals set up in my living room, I decided that it would be better to go with the gaming HTPC. If you would like you can check out my HTPC build log here is the link: http://www.avforums.com/forums/home-entertainment-pcs/1433364-jamesaevans-s-gaming-htpc-build-log.html I will come back to the PC build in the autumn and I'll update this thread when that happens. James
How did it slip past everyone,thats what I want to know. And for what it's worth I would go for option 2 as well.
