xspc starter kit or alphacool?

[Tolemac]

Hi guy's and girls I thought I would go for a starter kit rather than an AIO as it was my birthday yesterday (yay). I'm a complete NOOB when it comes to water cooling but essentially I want a starter kit that I can expand later to cool the GPU as well as i'll be buying an MSI lightning R9290x I have a budget of £150 so i'm in need of some really sound advice. My case is a Z11 NEO. What I need from a Starter kit is a strong enough pump/reservoir so I do not have to replace it when I buy the GPU water block. I'm either looking at the XSPC Raystorm 750 EX240 kit or an Alphacool NexXxoS Cool Answer 240 LT/ST - kit. Thanks in advance for any time taken Tolemac (BONKERS MENTAL).

 

[barnsley]

I'd not bother with one of those kits if you really want to expand. Your case isn't ideal for further watercooling either.
When I had my kit setup, the temperature performance and acoustics were excellent however after some research I found out the pump that comes with my alphacool kit would need replacing to get a decent flow rate for a full GPU+CPU loop. Currently mine is in pieces as I've had a couple of issues and I'm planning to redo the loop with hardline tubing at some point.
This is pretty much how mine ended up.

Just get a decent AIO and you'll be fine.

 

[Tolemac]

I'll take some pics of my case as there is room in the Z11 Neo I also have the Z11 plus case (which is empty) so you can see the difference

 

[barnsley]

I'll take some pics of my case as there is room in the Z11 Neo I also have the Z11 plus case (which is empty) so you can see the difference

For multiple radiatiors?

 

[Tolemac]

well if I wanted to cool the GPU as well I would put another radiator in the front and judging by OC3D's review the XSPC RayStorm 750 EX240 WaterCooling starter kit is very expandable all for £130

 

[barnsley]

well if I wanted to cool the GPU as well I would put another radiator in the front and judging by OC3D's review the XSPC RayStorm 750 EX240 WaterCooling starter kit is very expandable all for £130

From what I can see your case only has space for one 240 rad at best.

 

[Tolemac]

i'll upload some pics of the case as it differs so much from the Z11 plus I was so surprised how much room there is in the front )

 

[barnsley]

i'll upload some pics of the case as it differs so much from the Z11 plus I was so surprised how much room there is in the front )

There isn't fan space in the neo though. not without modding.

From a review of it:

Radiator mounting options aren't too extensive, with Zalman only offering support for a dual-radiator CPU water cooling in the top of the case. That's plenty for most users, though, and this case isn't built to be a watercooler's dream chassis. The top of the case can be sealed off for more silent operation and dust protection, and naturally, fan filters are in place in the most important intake locations.

 

[Tolemac]

the front panel has 60-70mm clearance from the main frame there is a youtube video of it the the HDD cages are removable and I can put my ssd behind the motherboard

 

[barnsley]

the front panel has 60-70mm clearance from the main frame there is a youtube video of it the the HDD cages are removable and I can put my ssd behind the motherboard

So you're going to cut the case so it can support the extra radiator then? Seeing as it doesn't support any radiator there currently?

 

[Tolemac]

~Here are some pictures

[/URL][/IMG] as you can see I have 30mm from the HDD cage clearance and 60mm clearance in the front )

 

[The_Governour]

my eyes!!!!!!!!!!

Also, forget any kind of starter kits, go with a proper pump and res. Most of us start with a *starter kit* and then that starter kit the only thing you will use later on is the radiator. I Started with the ex240 and now it is just laying there, bay res never again!

 

[Tolemac]

Is there a proper pump and res you could recommend please

 

[Tolemac]

This is what I ordered yesterday so I will be eagerly awaiting my order have I forgotton anything?
XSPC RayStorm 750 EX240 WaterCooling Kit £108.29 1 £108.29
Corsair SP120 Twin Pack Blue LED Fans (CO-9050031-WW) £12.49 1 £12.49
Mayhems X1 Clear Premixed Watercooling Fluid 1L £6.66 1 £6.66
XSPC Hose Cutter (0-25mm) £5.79 1 £5.79
XSPC M20 to G1/4" Fillcap Adapter (Chrome) £2.49 1 £2.49
XSPC G1/4" to 1/2" Barb Fitting (Black Chrome) £1.49 1 £1.49
XSPC G1/4" Plug (Chrome) £1.29 1 £1.29

Thanks in advance