MandoPatriot Posted June 23, 2012 Posted June 23, 2012 I've been using my current rig for 4-5 months now, and I really like it. I used to be a big time air cooling guy, but I recently decided to take the plunge into water cooling. Once I saw how good temps were for GPU's and how quiet it can be, I was hooked. My previous rig: HAF 922, Zalman CNPS9900MAXX-R i5 2500k, 8GB Corsair Dominators CM 1000W, MSI GTX 570 ASRock z68 Gen3, Crucial C300 WD Blue 320 x2 (RAID 0) I was not thrilled with how loud the GPU was when I overclocked, nor was I happy with the temps. I decided to look into watercooling, but figured out non-reference boards suck for it. Plus, the GTX 680/670 came out and I wanted one for the performance. So I started ordering parts for my watercooling build. I ordered the EVGA GTX 670 FTW because it is a good overclocker and has the reference 680 board, so I can use a 680 waterblock on it. I wanted to keep everything inside the case, so I was figuring out what cases could hold a 120x3 radiator at least. Not many could with a 60mm thick rad and push pull fans. Thanks to Waco, he confirmed that the HAF 932 has plenty of room for that. So I ordered the HAF 932. Right after, I ordered the XSPC Raystorm Extreme bundle from FrozenCPU. Comes with rad, CPU block, tubing, D5 pump, XSPC dual bay res with pump mount, and compression fittings. I really like the options for each part on FrozenCPU, you could really customize an already great kit. I also got a 20w per channel fan controller to ensure I can run multiple fans on each channel. So with watercooling kit and new case, I went about swapping everything over and setting up the watercooling loop. I ran into a few issues (first time watercooling), but nothing I could not deal with. The major thing I had to deal with was the dual bay res. Not only is it VERY hard to drain those types of res without a drain tube, but the res itself does not dissipate bubbles. It is still a good res, but for my setup and placements, it did not work well. I looked around for what to do, and decided upon the EK X-Res D5 Top combo. Comes with a 100x60mm tube and the pump top to attach it together. I don't want separate pump and res as that requires more space + tubing + fittings, etc. Got the res, and it works like a champ, but had an issue with mount it. I first used velcro stickers (the kind used to hold ipass or izoom or what not on car windshields), but it kept peeling off the hard drive cage. EK also offers clamps for the tubes, so ordered those and had to drill holes in the cage to install them, but no big deal. With all this happening, I decided to start ordering sleeved wires to get a cleaner look. I ordered what I thought I needed, but of course I need more. I just finished putting everything together and routing all the cables (was previously only set up to run, not cable routing or anything until I had time/parts. All that I am waiting on or have to order are the GPU block (Heatkiller 680 Ni-Bl), 3-4 more Scythe Gentle Typhoons, a couple more sleeved cables, and the two red leds for my CPU block. Still have some more routing and wiring when I get everything else, but 4 hours of routing and I'm pooped. So far I am very happy with the setup and it keeps getting better. I cannot believe how quiet the entire computer is, I can BARELY hear it (and I thought my old setup was quiet). Watercooling is amazing and I am now hooked. I will continue to update as I go along, sorry about not starting a thread earlier. I am not normally into build logs but decided to make one for this setup because of how happy I am with it. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
MJCRO Posted June 23, 2012 Posted June 23, 2012 VERY nice buddy! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
El_Capitan Posted June 23, 2012 Posted June 23, 2012 That is one big fat radiator, lol. Looks nice! I didn't know a HAF 932 could fit a 120.3 rad. Just wait until you watercool your GPU. Welcome to the higher 24/7 overclocking world, and the world of near-silent computing (once you watercool your graphics card). Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
MandoPatriot Posted June 23, 2012 Posted June 23, 2012 Thanks guys. Yea it has been a mission so far, but coming along very nicely. And I love the fat radiators with low FPI. It just means I can get great tempts with near silent setup. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpikeSoprano Posted June 23, 2012 Posted June 23, 2012 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
oh_fubar Posted June 23, 2012 Posted June 23, 2012 looking good Trap Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prunes Posted June 23, 2012 Posted June 23, 2012 Very clean and neat. I really like the looks of it! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
MandoPatriot Posted June 23, 2012 Posted June 23, 2012 Lol wow, don't mind the clutter in the background, we are in the process of renovating the basement apartment at our house and just me and my parents working on it, so everything takes a long time and all of the stuff had to come up. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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