New To Watercooling

[GAM]

Hey OC3D,

I am looking to eventually water cool my system that is in the process of being ordered/built. I looked up a little about water cooling to try and get the idea of how it works. So to clarify that part first, A reservoir is not needed but it holds the water for the cooling. Than a pump takes that water to a different water blocks and than to a radiator to disperse heat? I think I have that right but some more clarification would be nice. Ok, now to what parts I should use to do so. I was looking for some recommendations on what to buy, and I noticed that the Corsair H100 is something that a lot of people use. But I don't know where to go from there.

I believe that is the radiator so from there I would need fittings, fans, coolant, a reservoir, tubing and a pump right? If you guys could give some advice on what parts to buy it would be highly appreciated.

Thanks again - Jared

 

[jamesriley94]

Firstly - an H100 is different. You dont need maintain that in anyway, so that's the easy option - and probably one that's best for you to start with. You dont ever need to add anything to it (except maybe quieter fans).

You are right though - the reservoir holds water, and simply acts as a medium to enable you to fill and empty the loop easier.
The pump will draw in the water from the reservoir and pump it round the loop, through the block, the radiator, and back to the reservoir.
The water goes through the radiator, with fans attached to the rad to blow through it and dissipate the heat - thus cooling the water down.

 

[ruairi.C]

What James said pretty much. Can't break it down any further really.

The h100 is a closed loop which means it's a prebuilt watercooling loop that comes with everything you need already built and no parts of it can be changed (besides the fans really)

 

[GAM]

Ok, so if I got the h100, that's all I would need, nothing else? Should I stick with a closed loop or would an open loop be more ideal? Thanks for the quick replies - Jared

 

[PapaSmurf6768]

H100 = Easy, Cheap, Cleaner, n00bier
Custom Loop = Harder to setup, needs maintenance, looks awesome, more expensive, better performance.

You choose based on that.

 

[LiamTheBoss]

Go with custom loop mate. It really isn't that hard to do and you will get better temps and more satisfaction. People say that there is maintenance needed but that only once a year.

 

[jamesriley94]

If you do go for a custom loop - read up a lot lot more on it. You need to know exact specifics of things really before diving into it. If there is any doubt in your mind over something, you shouldnt really be doing it tbh.

If you're asking this question now - I wouldnt advise a custom loop for a few months at least

 

[GAM]

Thanks for the replies guys,

I planned on just building my computer first, within the next month, and than installing a water cooling system once I have read more about how it all works and saved up some more money. I was just asking to see what was involved in water cooling. I also had to consider my case, the Stryker. I remember seeing a video Tom put up about water cooling a Trooper and how he had to mod the case. Luckily I found a tutorial on how to install the radiator into one so that was good. Thanks again for the replies.

Jared

 

[B NEGATIVE]

Get yourself an XSPC kit,cheap and capable.
You can extend and change components this down the line to suit your needs.

 

[GAM]

Ok I have done some more looking around about water cooling in general and picked out some parts that I thought would be good for a custom loop, and I switched the case for my build to a Switch 810 from a Stryker. I wanted to know if these parts would fit into the case along with my build:

RAD - XSPC RX360 Triple 120mm Radiator Rev 2.
RAD Fans - Noctua NF-F12 PWM Cooling Fan x3
Pump - DD12V-D5 Pump Variable Speed
Reservoir - Swiftech MCRES Micro Revision 2 Reservoir
CPU Block - XSPC Raystorm Special Edition Copper
GPU Block - XSPC Razor nVidia GTX 670 Full Coverage
GPU Block Backplate (is this needed?)- XSPC Razor nVidia GTX 670 Full Coverage
Hose - PrimoFlex Pro LRT Clear Tubing -1/2in. ID X 3/4in.
Fittings - XSPC G1/4" Thread 1/2" ID x 3/4" OD Low Profile Compression Fitting

Would these parts work well together? And please recommend fittings and coolant as I was most unsure about those two things.

Compatibility - Will these work with a build like this
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i7-3770K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($314.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($27.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: MSI Z77A-GD65 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($168.17 @ NCIX US)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 16GB (4 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($82.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Samsung Spinpoint F4 2TB 3.5" 5400RPM Internal Hard Drive ($119.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Crucial M4 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($99.99 @ B&H)
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 670 2GB Video Card ($419.99 @ NCIX US)
Case: NZXT Switch 810 (Gun Metal) ATX Full Tower Case ($169.98 @ Outlet PC)
Power Supply: Corsair 750W 80 PLUS Gold Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($156.98 @ Amazon)
Optical Drive: Asus BC-12B1ST/BLK/B/AS Blu-Ray Reader, DVD/CD Writer ($49.99 @ Amazon)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (64-bit) ($90.49 @ Amazon)
Total: $1701.55
(Prices include shipping and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2012-09-11 23:02 EDT-0400)

 

[CPMFW]

isn´t it cheaper to get the xspc rx360 d5 kit + the gpu block + new fans + the hose and the fittings

 

[GAM]

I was looking into getting the kit, but I had some problems with it.

I heard that the bay reservoirs are a little noisy and I wasn't too sure about the res/pump combo. Would it be better to have those two things separated? Also, the CPU Block I picked was the same as the other one, but had a copper top to it. Would buying that one enhance the performance or does the copper top not make a difference? Also, are the Noctua fans good for this setup, or can anyone recommend better fans or ones that are the same quality but cheaper?

Thanks - Jared

 

[ruairi.C]

People will recommend Corsair's new fans for rads. Corsair air series SP120 quiet edition probably.

 

[PapaSmurf6768]

The D5 pump/res is very quiet on the 3 setting and lower, above that you can hear it but its still not bad. Copper top blocks are just for looks, it's the part that touches the CPU that matters.