Advice on 1st W/C setup

R

Resident

New member
With my poor experience with the H100i, which has now been RMA'd, it's got me thinking that I might as well sell the replacement unit when it arrives from Corsair and go for my 1st custom loop.

I don't need a big system as I'd just be having a simple CPU loop but I would like a 240mm rad as to use all of the roof in my 410 and minimal tubing and also minimal costs where possible.

So looking around I've come up with this idea:

1. Purchase the OcUK V6 kit (Link)

2. Purchase the XSPC EX240 X-flow rad (Link)

3. Flog the XSPC EX120mm rad & fans to re-coup some of the costs. (I already have 2 SP120 PEs)

Am I wrong in assuming that the fittings with the kit would fit with the rad of my choice?

I was thinking that the setup would look along the lines of this (I apologise for my poor paint skils):

w3r03vd.png


Also, I know I said I wanted to keep costs down but I kinda like the look of Mayhem's Aurora Nebula Blue coolant.

1. Does anyone have any experience of it?
2. Would 1 litre be enough as you only get 1l with the kit but that's for the 120mm setup?

Cheer guys. Any help is gratefully appreciated.

P.S If any of you have alternate suggestions regarding kit, please feel free.
 
A 1 litre bottle will easily be enough. But Aurora isn't good. That's meant for showcases and is just a short term coolant for looks. Look at Mayhem's X1.

As for the kit, you may be better off buying parts separately as I think you may struggle to sell on the 120mm rad.

It's an alright setup, should keep your CPU relatively cool - but with that pump and res, you'll be limited for upgrades in the future. If it were me, I'd want to spend a bit more and get some nicer fittings and tubing.

Watercooling and 'minimal costs' don't really go well together in my experience :p
 
jamesriley94 said:
Watercooling and 'minimal costs' don't really go well together in my experience
Click to expand...

+1

you can spend less, but always limiting your potentials.
dupping a H100 in a custom loop will be higher in cost, but like it was said,
deffo limiting future upgrades and add-ons.

using a D5 or DDC pump will help for future updating. barbs are fine to save
total cost involved now. and upgrade later. the ex240, the sp120 fans, RASA
or Raystorm block, 2m 7/16" tubing, 6x 1/2" barbs and coolant now you got a
base to work with.
 
Thanks guys,

The whole idea of using what I put above really was just to get something in more or less now to replace the H100i until I can afford bigger/better. I'm fussed if that means replacing the whole lot later down the line. Think of the above as 'interim' for now.

Plus with it being a 'kit' put together by those in the know, I'd feel more confident. This would be my first w/c setup outside of AIO.
 
Resident said:
Plus with it being a 'kit' put together by those in the know, I'd feel more confident. This would be my first w/c setup outside of AIO.
Click to expand...

Kits tend to be put together by people on a budget, however. Meaning you often don't get the best parts.
The pump in your kit for example. I've seen a few cases recently on these forums of those going wrong and making very loud noises.

IMO, unless you do go for a better pump like a D5 or DDC, an H100i may be more reliable. As the H100is are pretty new, if you're that concerned about reliability, it may be worth going for a standard H100?

The bugs on them were around early after launch, but they were quickly ironed out, and the later editions work perfectly - so maybe try one of those?

However, the temperature differences between H100i/H100/the custom loop you've put up, and a Noctua D14 are pretty minimal.
If it were me, I'd go for a D14 and save up for a proper watercooling loop if you wanted to do that.

Still, if you really do want to go down the custom loop option - that kit is probably about the best you'll get for the money - although I would advise spending a little more.
 
jamesriley94 said:
Kits tend to be put together by people on a budget, however. Meaning you often don't get the best parts.
The pump in your kit for example. I've seen a few cases recently on these forums of those going wrong and making very loud noises.

IMO, unless you do go for a better pump like a D5 or DDC, an H100i may be more reliable. As the H100is are pretty new, if you're that concerned about reliability, it may be worth going for a standard H100?

The bugs on them were around early after launch, but they were quickly ironed out, and the later editions work perfectly - so maybe try one of those?

However, the temperature differences between H100i/H100/the custom loop you've put up, and a Noctua D14 are pretty minimal.
If it were me, I'd go for a D14 and save up for a proper watercooling loop if you wanted to do that.

Still, if you really do want to go down the custom loop option - that kit is probably about the best you'll get for the money - although I would advise spending a little more.
Click to expand...

Cheers. I've already had a H100i. I bought it on the 12th and was fitted on the 15th. On the 18th it failed. All the firmware etc was up-to-date.

you guys have given me somethings to think about though. Do you reckon I could build a simple CPU loop for around £200?
 
I'd be looking at something like:
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=WC-143-XS&groupid=962&catid=1532&subcat=

Look on Specialtech too ( http://www.specialtech.co.uk/ ), they may have a similar kit for a more reasonable price - or maybe if you bought the parts separately you'd save a bit of cash.

I'm not really saying you have to get a D5, but they do tend to be some of the quietest, reliable pumps on the market - and if you're doing this to be more reliable than the AIO loops, then I wouldn't really advise on the XSPC pump/res combos. Also, if there's any chance of you upgrading at a later date - which with watercooling I'm sure you will be sucked in to upgrading your loop in the near future, it's good to have a decent pump.

If you do look for parts separately look for:
Raystorm, D5, XSPC D5 Bay Res, 240mm Rad of your choice, then G1/4, 1/2 barbs with 7/16 hose.
Just play around, and see what kind of prices you can get out of it.
 
jamesriley94 said:
I'd be looking at something like:
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=WC-143-XS&groupid=962&catid=1532&subcat=

Look on Specialtech too ( http://www.specialtech.co.uk/ ), they may have a similar kit for a more reasonable price - or maybe if you bought the parts separately you'd save a bit of cash.

I'm not really saying you have to get a D5, but they do tend to be some of the quietest, reliable pumps on the market - and if you're doing this to be more reliable than the AIO loops, then I wouldn't really advise on the XSPC pump/res combos. Also, if there's any chance of you upgrading at a later date - which with watercooling I'm sure you will be sucked in to upgrading your loop in the near future, it's good to have a decent pump.

If you do look for parts separately look for:
Raystorm, D5, XSPC D5 Bay Res, 240mm Rad of your choice, then G1/4, 1/2 barbs with 7/16 hose.
Just play around, and see what kind of prices you can get out of it.
Click to expand...

Completely different from what you said, although I am going to do another pricing up based on it soon but have I got anything fundamentally wrong with this:


Apogee Drive II Block/Pump
Alphacool Delrin 5.25" Bay Reservoir
HL Black Ice 240mm X-flow (GTS240) Rad
1/4"-3/8"ID barbs x 8 (2 spares)
XSPC 3/8ID Hi-flex Clear/UV blue tubing x 2m (again spares in case I make a hash of it)
Mayham's X1 Clear coolant
 
You're better off with 7/16 hose and 1/2 barbs.
That way it's a tight fit, and you don't need clamps in order to keep from coming off.

Fair enough with the spares - spare hosing is always good - but the barbs are a little redundant as they're metal, so aren't going to break, and you shouldn't really be losing them...

If you don't have a pump/res combo, it's fine - but you need to make sure the bay res is in the top drive bay as the pump needs to be fed by water through gravity.

Maybe consider going for a slightly better rad like the original EX240 you said, but it probably won't make that much difference.
 
Resident said:
Completely different from what you said, although I am going to do another pricing up based on it soon but have I got anything fundamentally wrong with this:


Apogee Drive II Block/Pump
Alphacool Delrin 5.25" Bay Reservoir
HL Black Ice 240mm X-flow (GTS240) Rad
1/4"-3/8"ID barbs x 8 (2 spares)
XSPC 3/8ID Hi-flex Clear/UV blue tubing x 2m (again spares in case I make a hash of it)
Mayham's X1 Clear coolant
Click to expand...

and what fan choice?
what case?
what air temps under load condition on air-cooling?

cross-flow is half the cooling potintial as a standard as the coolant enters
cools and exits as a "dual-pass" circles back for a second chance of thermal
transfer. plus that model is 30 fins per inch so to make it equal to say the
H100/i your fans will have to be 2500rpm+ 24/7 or this was just in vain.

stick to standards, until you have the knowledge to move on.

the raystorm D5 ex/rx240 would be best...

keep it simple
 
airdeano said:
and what fan choice?
what case?
what air temps under load condition on air-cooling?

cross-flow is half the cooling potintial as a standard as the coolant enters
cools and exits as a "dual-pass" circles back for a second chance of thermal
transfer. plus that model is 30 fins per inch so to make it equal to say the
H100/i your fans will have to be 2500rpm+ 24/7 or this was just in vain.

stick to standards, until you have the knowledge to move on.

the raystorm D5 ex/rx240 would be best...

keep it simple
Click to expand...

To answer your questions:

Fans: SP120 PEs using a custom built PWM>DC converter as a control method

Case: NZXT Phantom 410

CPU is at stock values (3.4ghz). Currently CPU is on stock AMD cooler as I had to RMA the H100i after only 3 days, hence why I'm considering a custom loop.

Idle is mid-30s (but noisy, fan running at 2700rpm, max 3100)
I haven't OCCT'd it with the stock cooler but during gaming (STO mainly) it's in the region of 65, with an ambient of ~22

Before the H100i failed I was getting, with similar ambient:

Idle: 25
OCCT: 41

And that's with the H100i stock fans on Quiet mode.

I see what you're saying and with that I'll forget the Xflow. I'd rather have function over form in that case.
 
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