New to water cooling

[siege2008]

hey, whats up guys.

I built my rig a couple months ago and its been running excellent. For awhile I've been considering watercooling but don't have much experience in that area. For now, I just want to do a simple loop to cool my CPU. I wanted to know if one of those water cooling kits would be any good. I've been reading good things about the Swiftech H20-220 Compact CPU Water Cooling Kit. Should I go with this since I'm pretty new to water cooling? or should I create my own and if so any good suggestions? Suggestions and help would be most welcome. I would also like to keep the cost to the minimum ($200 maybe a little bit more).

BTW here are my specs:

Thermaltake Armor w/ 25cm side fan (Full tower)
ABIT IP35 Pro ---> Might change to an EVGA 780i
Core 2 Duo 6750 2.66GHz OC @ 3.2GHz
ASUS Arctic Square 92mm Vapo Bearing CPU Cooler
OCZ Reaper HPC Edition 2GB (2 x 1GB) 4-4-4-12
EVGA 8800GTS 512MB (G92)
Rosewill RX850-D-B 850W
Seagate Barracuda 250GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache

Thanks!

 

[DerwenArtos12]

First off, Welcome to AT and congrats on a very good first post.

The swiftech 220 kit is probably the best kit available, short of a waterkeg which is entirely external. All in all, installationis going to be pretty similar whether you get the 220 kit or a DIY set-up. Read around here as much as you can, there are a few build threads and the newbies guide is quite good. Also, head out and paruse some of the online shops like performance-pcs and sidewinder and jab-tech and petrastechshop just to get familiar with what all is out there.

A couple simple rules, friends don't let friends use thermaltake and don't buy anything koolance without checking with aigomorla first, he's one of the last guys still giving them a chance and checking out their new stuff.

 

[siege2008]

Thanks for replying. You guys have a great community here.

I was looking at the different sites you were suggesting and it looks like they have good stuff. I am still a little lost when it comes down to the quality of the different brands and what would work best with what. Good thing is that I'm not in a rush to buy everything. I also read the newbies guide which gave me a better understanding of water cooling.

Would DIY water cooling be more cost effective and customizable just as if you were to build your rig compared to buying a preconfigured rig?

I also found another swifttech product that caught my eye. It's the Swiftech H20-220-APEX-GT CPU Liquid Cooling Kits. It cost a little more but it is still in my price range and seems to be a more 'complete' kit'. I have a Full tower so room shouldn't be a problem. It also seems that I would be able to add more loops to that kit in the future if I ever decided to (I'm thinking about chipset cooling in the future but not right now).

Right now I'm leaning towards swifttech H20-220 Compact because of it's simplicity and lower costs but the H20-220-APEX-GT is very appealing. Suggestions greatly appreciated!

 

[aigomorla]

Originally posted by: siege2008
Thanks for replying. You guys have a great community here.

I was looking at the different sites you were suggesting and it looks like they have good stuff. I am still a little lost when it comes down to the quality of the different brands and what would work best with what. Good thing is that I'm not in a rush to buy everything. I also read the newbies guide which gave me a better understanding of water cooling.

Would DIY water cooling be more cost effective and customizable just as if you were to build your rig compared to buying a preconfigured rig?

I also found another swifttech product that caught my eye. It's the Swiftech H20-220-APEX-GT CPU Liquid Cooling Kits. It cost a little more but it is still in my price range and seems to be a more 'complete' kit'. I have a Full tower so room shouldn't be a problem. It also seems that I would be able to add more loops to that kit in the future if I ever decided to (I'm thinking about chipset cooling in the future but not right now).

Right now I'm leaning towards swifttech H20-220 Compact because of it's simplicity and lower costs but the H20-220-APEX-GT is very appealing. Suggestions greatly appreciated!

Hi, welcome to the forum!

Anyhow a custom kit is always the best solution bcause its scalable. This means, if you require more coolign, you can always addon to a custom kit, if your loop allows for one.

The compact kits are very limited i what they can cool. Gabe and i even had an arguement regarding the capcity of the unit. The only consus i came with gabe was that our quadcore heat numbers matched, and that this unit is perfect for a quadcore but thats about it.

You said your willing to spend around 200 for parts?

How about this? goto jab-tech.com and check out the prices.

D-tek Fusion 60
XSPC Res/TOP Combo for DDC 50
Swiftech MCP355 70
~ 10 feet in masterkleer tubing @ .49cents per foot
Swiftech MCR220 45

This unit would allow a greater flexability due to the stronger pump arrangement, and the better waterblock.

 

[siege2008]

Thanks for the recommendations!

I decided not to go with the Swiftech H20-220 Compact CPU Water Cooling Kit because it is very limited but I am still considering the Swiftech H20-220-APEX-GT CPU Liquid Cooling Kit. However, I have a few questions. I could see how the D-Tek water-block you recommended would be better over the Apogee GT water-block but is it a big difference? Is the Swiftech MCP355 any better then the MCP655-B that is included in the swiftech kit? I also like the swiftech kit because it comes with "Radbox" included.

I was able to find the XSPC Acrylic Res but I'm a little confused what the XSPC TOP (want to make sure I'm looking at the right part: XSPC Laing DDC Top) is for.

Sorry for the many questions, I'm still very new to this and I am trying to learn as much as possible since putting liquid near my rig kinda terrifies me . oh and the only thing else I would have to add to your custom list are hose clamps ($0.30), 2x120mm fans for the radiator and probably one of those additives I've been reading about. Is there anything else missing?

Thanks a lot!

 

[DerwenArtos12]

Originally posted by: siege2008
Thanks for the recommendations!

I decided not to go with the Swiftech H20-220 Compact CPU Water Cooling Kit because it is very limited but I am still considering the Swiftech H20-220-APEX-GT CPU Liquid Cooling Kit. However, I have a few questions. I could see how the D-Tek water-block you recommended would be better over the Apogee GT water-block but is it a big difference? Is the Swiftech MCP355 any better then the MCP655-B that is included in the swiftech kit? I also like the swiftech kit because it comes with "Radbox" included.

I was able to find the XSPC Acrylic Res but I'm a little confused what the XSPC TOP (want to make sure I'm looking at the right part: XSPC Laing DDC Top) is for.

Sorry for the many questions, I'm still very new to this and I am trying to learn as much as possible since putting liquid near my rig kinda terrifies me . oh and the only thing else I would have to add to your custom list are hose clamps ($0.30), 2x120mm fans for the radiator and probably one of those additives I've been reading about. Is there anything else missing?

Thanks a lot!

Good call on the compact, you'll be happier in the end.

The 655 is about equivalent to a 355 with top but, you'll get opinions both ways, none of which are particularly right or wrong, you know what they say about opinions. The main disadvantages to the 655 are it's size and it's lack of threaded ports for standard barbs. The main disadvantages to the 355 w/top are that there is some assembly required, it's not quite as powerful in a less restrictive loop and that long term affects of a top on the 355 are still being explored. I do often reccomend the 355 w/ XSPC top and res to first timers because it's small and easy to bleed and is a great performer.

The "top" essentially just replaced the pump housing with a custom one. This allows for using off the shelf barbs which will flow better and give more flexibility in tubin size and fitting style. They also perform better. With the XSPC "res-top" you're combining your reservoir and pump top. This does two things. As I stated before it makes it extremely easy to bleed your loop. It also reduces the negative pressure at the inlet of the pump which helps performance just a bit more.

aigomorla forgot to mention but, he mean 7/16" masterclear tubing, which negates the need for hose clamps. Simple zip-ties are all that necessary and with a really agressive barb, may not even be "necessary" but, still suggested.

As for fans, thats going to depend primarily on budget, the radiator chosen and desired sound levels, we'll sort that out once we get the rest of the set-up sorted out.

 

[siege2008]

Ok then thanks for the info. Here is my list:

D-tek FuZion CPU Water Block -- $60
XSPC - Acrylic Reservoir for Laing DDC -- $45
XSPC - Laing DDC Top -- $25
Swiftech MCP 355 12v DC Pump -- $60
10 feet of Masterkleer Tubing 7/16" ID 5/8" OD -- $4.90
Swiftech MCR-220 Radiator -- $42
Swiftech RadBox MCB-120 Revision 2 -- $18
YATE LOON 120x120x20mm Case Fan - D12SM-12C Medium Speed x 2 -- $9.90

What do you guys think? Any other suggestions welcome.

 

[DerwenArtos12]

You'll need barbs for the reservoir and radiator. Bitspower high flow should work. I don't know if the new DD fatboys will fit 7/16 readily.

 

[siege2008]

Hey guys, sorry for bringing this post back from the dead but I was away for a couple days. Anyways back to business!

I couldn't find the Bitspower you were talking about so I picked a couple but to be honest not sure which one to go with.

EK High-Flow Fitting - 1/2" OD
D-Tek HI-Flow Hose Barb - 1/2" (G-1/4" Thread)
Dangerden High Flow G 1/4 Fittings - 1/2"

In total I would need 4 barbs right? 2 for the rad and 2 for the res. Another question I have is that all the barbs say 1/2in OD but my tubing is 5/8 OD. I know I read somewhere that they should fit but I just wanted to double check that they would fit.

Also these are the additives I'm planning on getting:

Pentosin G11 Long-life Coolant - Blue
PT_Nuke
Distilled water

I was thinking about dyes and UV additives but threads I have read scared me from using them because of gunk that builds up. Any thoughts on this?

Anything else that I am overlooking or missing? (I really want to get this right the first time. sorry for the newbiness)

Thanks all for you input so far! I'm really looking forward in getting this project underway!

 

[aigomorla]

unless you can see the dangerden "fatboys" yeah there seriously called this, id go with the d-tek

by far is the most noobie friendly cuz you cant overtighten them.

 

[siege2008]

Well, I found the DD FB (Fat Boy) G 1/4 Fittings so I guess I'm going with those since they would be better then the D-Tek.

Basically here is my revised list:

D-tek FuZion CPU Water Block -- $60
XSPC - Acrylic Reservoir for Laing DDC -- $45
XSPC - Laing DDC Top -- $25
Swiftech MCP 355 12v DC Pump -- $60
10 feet of Masterkleer Tubing 7/16" ID 5/8" OD -- $4.90
Swiftech MCR-220 Radiator -- $42
Swiftech RadBox MCB-120 Revision 2 -- $18
YATE LOON 120x120x20mm Case Fan - D12SM-12C Medium Speed x 2 -- $9.90
Pentosin G11 Long-life Coolant - Blue
PT_Nuke
DD FB (Fat Boy) G 1/4 Fittings x 4
Plastic Tubing Clamps - Black (I know I can use zipties but I kind of want it to look a little neater. Will these work okay?)

Do I need any barbs for my MCP 355 pump?

I'm going to probably start ordering this stuff in like a week or two.

Again thanks for all the help!

 

[aigomorla]

Originally posted by: siege2008
Well, I found the DD FB (Fat Boy) G 1/4 Fittings so I guess I'm going with those since they would be better then the D-Tek.

Basically here is my revised list:

D-tek FuZion CPU Water Block -- $60
XSPC - Acrylic Reservoir for Laing DDC -- $45
XSPC - Laing DDC Top -- $25
Swiftech MCP 355 12v DC Pump -- $60
10 feet of Masterkleer Tubing 7/16" ID 5/8" OD -- $4.90
Swiftech MCR-220 Radiator -- $42
Swiftech RadBox MCB-120 Revision 2 -- $18
YATE LOON 120x120x20mm Case Fan - D12SM-12C Medium Speed x 2 -- $9.90
Pentosin G11 Long-life Coolant - Blue
PT_Nuke
DD FB (Fat Boy) G 1/4 Fittings x 4
Plastic Tubing Clamps - Black (I know I can use zipties but I kind of want it to look a little neater. Will these work okay?)

Do I need any barbs for my MCP 355 pump?

I'm going to probably start ordering this stuff in like a week or two.

Again thanks for all the help!

zipties is cleaner and prettier:

http://i125.photobucket.com/al...aigomorla/IMG_0588.jpg

 

[Nocturnal036]

Hello siege2008,
I'm in a very similar situation as you are in now. I've been thinking of cooling my rig via water for a few weeks now. I can't start until the summer because I'm still at school with classes and such. Let me know after you assemble everything and how it turned out. I also have the Thermaltake Armor full tower case.

Originally posted by: DerwenArtos12
A couple simple rules, friends don't let friends use thermaltake and don't buy anything koolance without checking with aigomorla first, he's one of the last guys still giving them a chance and checking out their new stuff.

Whats wrong with Thermaltake?

 

[siege2008]

Sure thing Nocturnal! I'm still buying the parts but hopefully by May it will be done. Derwen didn't mean all Thermaltake products, he meant the watercooling kits that thermaltake makes. They are basically bad.

My list actually kind of changed... A guy I knew was selling some water cooling stuff for a cheap price (brand new).
I got the Swiftech MCP 655 for basically $60. Good buy and do I need to chnage anything on my list because of this?

He is also offering me a Black Ice GT Stealth 360 (New) for $50. Should I buy this radiator instead of the Swiftech MCR 220? 3 fans better then 2 .

 

[DerwenArtos12]

Originally posted by: Nocturnal036

Originally posted by: DerwenArtos12
A couple simple rules, friends don't let friends use thermaltake and don't buy anything koolance without checking with aigomorla first, he's one of the last guys still giving them a chance and checking out their new stuff.

Whats wrong with Thermaltake?

Welcome to AT first of all. Glad to see so many new faces lately.

The thermaltake pun is specifically for their watercooling products. I don't like their cases personally but, there is nothing glaringly wrong with them. Their watercooling products on the other hand are sub-par, mixed metal, restrictive junk and their pumps have a distinct tendency to burn out which is really bad for whatever is being cooled by your loop.