wrapping up WC loop.

[Tjj226_Angel]

Hey guys, I just have a question or two to wrap up my water cooling loop. Some of you might remember that I was trying to do a water cooling setup a month or two ago, but it was kind of cut short since I was laid off from lowes. I had purchased some WC parts and I have since sold some off to some friends for a few dollars profit (I don't feel too bad considering I fix their PCs for free all the time).

 

Things I have so far....

 

Aqua Computer Airplex revolution 360mm radiator.

 

XSPC raystorm CPU block.

 

Indigo extreme TIM (or what ever this thing is)

 

Possibly my own reservoir. I am still kind of working on it, but I am having a difficult time trying to curve the acrylic into an S shape. If it doesn't work, I can always get a cheap bay reservoir.

 

3/4th inch tubbing

 

Corsair obsidian 800D.

 

Things i don't have ..............

 

Pump

 

Things I am still sort of debating.....

 

CPU block .... I have a friend who wants to buy it off me for 70 and I bought it for 60. I am pretty sure I want to keep the block, but obviously since I have some one who wants to buy it off me for a profit....we will just say that I am open to suggestions.

 

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I have a couple of quick questions and then one question about the pump that is a bit more complex.

 

First question is the radiator I have is weird in that it can use both 120mm fans AND 140mm fans. I would like to use this rad in push pull, but the issue is that I already have 3 120mm fans. They are some cheap xigmatek black fans with white leds. I really like the way it looks, but the performance is not all that great. I was hoping I could use the fans I have now on the top of the rad for appearance, and then get some corsair 140mm performance fans on the bottom. Can this be done WELL, or would it just casue a huge mess?

 

Second question is of course, if anyone knows of a better CPU block please let me know. I am already aware the one I have right now is really nice and all that, but if I can lower my temps by a degree or two for 10 to 20 bucks more....why not?

 

Lastly is the pump. I have probably spent 3 weeks doing research about pumps and I have more questions than when I started. I have read that the MPC655 by swiftech is the best performing stock pump. But if you take a MPC 355 3.25 and give it a custom top and a heatsink backplate that it will beat out the 655 by 3 degrees. And then of course I learn that I could do the same to the MPC 655. then there is the whole pressure vs flow rate controversy that I got sucked into .

 

Basically I have have no idea which way is up. I am looking for the best performing pump plus accessories for under 150 USD. I don't care about noise level, and I want to take my i7 3770K to 5GHZ. I have seen some reports of 5 ghz being achievable on a triple 120 rad setup like this one with 85C at 100 percent full load. I really want to get the best stuff available and try to knock that reported temp down to about 80C. So any further recomendations to my setup would be apriciated.

[bishop245]

For the first question its best from what i have read to use fans with equal cfm. I use 2 of the mcp655 pumps in my system but I have yet to fire it up that may happen next week, but during leak testing I had alot of turbulence in my dual bay res. it looked like a bubbling cauldron lol

[sticknstone]

What is the problem with the acrylic bending? Have you searched acrylic bending?

1. bottleneck

2. increase flow, maybe different plate, thicker o-ring

3. the top just increases flow, the 355 has a higher flow stock, did that comparison have identicle setups

[Waco]

Pumps don't affect temps much unless your flow is too low. I saw a huge jump in flow with my new D5 top but my temps didn't change at all.

[Tjj226_Angel]

What is the problem with the acrylic bending? Have you searched acrylic bending?

1. bottleneck

2. increase flow, maybe different plate, thicker o-ring

3. the top just increases flow, the 355 has a higher flow stock, did that comparison have identicle setups

 

It is a matter of getting the shape right. I am trying to make a 3 5.25 inch bay reservoir with an S shape divider in the center. The divider would effectively make it a dual bay reservoir. My issue is that when I try to bend the acrylic divider, I always have an issue with either getting the shape right, or having the acrylic cool too fast. Right now the issue is just finding a clever way to make this divider and then hope that when I drill my holes for the fittings that the acrylic doesn't crack.

 

And I have not been able to find a direct comparison between the D5 and the MP35x or the mp355 3.25. Usually I only find info on the MP355 3.1

[Waco]

And I have not been able to find a direct comparison between the D5 and the MP35x or the mp355 3.25. Usually I only find info on the MP355 3.1

Unless you're using extremely restrictive parts (and multiple of them) I doubt you'd see more than a degree or so difference between any of them (with or without tops).

[Tjj226_Angel]

Pumps don't affect temps much unless your flow is too low. I saw a huge jump in flow with my new D5 top but my temps didn't change at all.

 

Here is how I look at it. I read a lot of reviews that say don't waste another 50 bucks on a high performance radiator because you will only see a degree difference in temperature. It is the same with CPU blocks, pumps, and even water coolant (I will be using distilled water so you don't need to worry ). I figure that while the performance difference of any single part is minuscule....when you ad up all the components into a single cooling system it probably adds up.

 

I do think you in particular might be able to help me. More and more reports are being posted on the internet about people hitting 5ghz with their IB chip. They are almost all using at least a triple 120mm rad water cooling loop and I have seen some temps as high as 90C at full load (but not higher). The average I have seen is about 85C and I would like to get it down to about 80C or lower if possible. Is there something more I can add to a water cooling loop to improve the performance. For instance, a computer will work just fine without a SSD, but it still gives you a huge performance gain. A water cooling loop will work with a cpu block, a pump, res., and rad., but is there something that I can add that might help it out a bit especially knowing the temp range I am aiming to achieve?

[Waco]

Well the differences do add up...but when talking about pumps once you have "enough" flow the differences are minimal at best. Any good pump will do fine with a CPU block and a couple radiators. There's no magic bullet to lower temps though...

 

As for coolants - I've never seen concrete proof of anything working better than pure distilled water (with a kill coil of course!) in any decent testing.

 

If you're really hunting for the lowest possible temps the thing you should focus on the most is getting the ambient to water delta to be as small as possible. That means more radiator area, better fans, etc. Once you get your water temperature delta to a good point (for an extreme loop you're looking at 5 C and below) you should focus on getting good transfer between your CPU and the water block. I have an old D-Tek Fuzion v1 and at 5 GHz I hit 70 C or so running IntelBurnTest with my 2600K at a tad over 1.5 volts. If I switched to a newer/better block with a thinner baseplate (perhaps one of the impingement designs) I could easily drop 4-5 C at full load. The Raystorm isn't a bad block, but if you're determined to chase that last few degrees, there are better blocks out there.

 

Anyway - the best thing you can do is add radiator area and get air flowing through said radiators. If you can manage dual 120.3 radiators you'll be set in terms of water temps even if you put crappy fans on them. The Swiftech MCR320-QP is by far the best bang-for-buck radiator on the market and works well with everything from low speed fans to 4000+ RPM screamers.

 

 

EDIT: If you end up needing a reservoir let me know. I have one of the old-style (longer than the new ones, about the size of an old CD-ROM drive) XSPC 5.25" single-bay reservoirs laying around. I wouldn't mind giving you a good deal on it, I used it for literally 2-3 months at best and it's in brand-new condition. If you're interested just let me know and I'll send you some pics.

[Tjj226_Angel]

dual 360mm rads would be too much of a challenge for the obsidian. The best I could probably do though is mod the top of the case to fit a 3x 140mm Rad and then continue the loop to a rear single 140mm Rad. Unless external mounting has gotten a lot easier/better since last time I tried it, then 560mm is the best I got.

 

 

I will take you word on the pump situation and narrow it down to two. http://www.frozencpu.com/products/9495/ex-pmp-84/Danger_Den_Laing_DDC_Rev_325_Liquid_Cooling_Pump_-_12_Volt_-18_Watt.html?tl=g30c107s153 and a top OR http://www.frozencpu.com/products/11740/ex-pmp-109/Swiftech_MCP35X_12v_PWM_Controlled_Water_Pump_-_Black.html?tl=g30c107s153

 

Reason being is that I want to use my own fittings, and this form factor will fit in the case a bit better.

 

Also, I am starting to realize I am going to have to get different fans. I absolutely love the way these look http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835233045 . I am sure I have asked this question before, but does anyone know of some fans that have the same look, but a better performing fans?

[Waco]

I have a 360 hanging off the back of my case with 6 fans on it.

[sticknstone]

Use a jig to shape the piece. A full jig or half a jig and turn the piece. In shop class I remember the teacher using some heat equipment maybe 18" x 5" x 6"h with a taper to bend a piece of acrylic resting against the equipment. The acrylic eventually bent down on its own and the teacher removed the piece. I never bent any acrylic because I decided to make a pen and pencil holder. I used acetone or acetate? to bond multiple layers of clear acrylic and sandwich them with white for the base. I remember being surprised at the bonding fluid which had an appearance like turpentine and was not sticky. I remember asking the teacher if this was the right container. The pen and pencil parts needed screw holes so I simply drilled the size I needed in the base only the exitting side of the drill hole chipped. To avoid this drill a smaller pilot hole through and then turn the piece and drill the hole part way then turn and drill through. I know from wood cutting masking tape works but unsure about acrylic.