Is Watercooling right for me?

[bhaltair]

I'm sure you guys get tons of these posts, but I was directed here from multiple other boards so I hope I get the best feedback possible. I am building a new high end system for gaming and am in the last stages of selecting my parts. However I do not know if watercooling is the right thing for my situation. My biggest concern is that I am still in college so about 10 times a year I will be driving to and from home in my car (5 hour drive). Not sure if that is a no-no with a watercooled PC in the backseat, not to mention I have yet to build a custom PC with watercooling so I don't know if first time experience + these high end parts are a no-no.

If I am being overly cautious and paranoid then I could use some help to see what I would need to make a pretty decent watercooled PC. Here are my list of components:

CPU: Intel 6800X
Motherboard: Asus P5B Deluxe (might wait for RD600 or n590)
Memory: 2 GB Corsair XMS2 DDR-800 PC2-6400 Cas 3
PSU: Seasonic M12 700W
GPU: Radeon X1900XT 256MB (waiting for DX10)
HD 1: 150GB WD Raptor 10,000
HD 2: 150GB WD Raptor 10,000

I want a relativley quiet PC that can also do a fair bit of overclocking. Price is not really an issue as I really want a quality system in place. I browsed performance-pc's and I really liked their Modded Lian Li PC-G70B Black but I don't if that's a waste of money or if watercooling is even for me?

[NickS]

First off, watercooling & case transportation is fine as it is a 100% air tight loop. I've transported my case many times :).

Looking at your rig, I see it is quite high end.

For watercooling I'd look at a basic configuration like this...

CPU Block: AquaXtreme MP-05 Series
VGA Block: AquaXtreme MP-1
Radiator: Thermochill PA120.3 w/3x Yate Loon
Pumps: 2x AquaXtreme 50z.

People may question my choice on the pump but they're..

A. Very high performance.
B. Metal -- meaning they arent loud, wont crack, etc.
C. Are VERY reliable. Love mine :D.

People may reccomend the Swiftech DDC w/Alphacool top but I for one would never buy one. There have been numerous cases of them failing to start with the PC, and killing hardware.

Good luck man,
Nick

[Nanometer]

In my opinion, I don't think water cooling is good for travlelers. Next, water cooling is only good when you install it the right way. So, if you are willing to build your system properly you shouldn't have a problem. Experts on water cooling will be in shortly, I'm sure, to give you better advise then I ever could.

....you don't need two pumps so pretend that isnt there... geez

[Ic3man]

Transporting PC's always has its dangers be it cooled with air/water or phase - aslong as your carefull and everything is tied down you should be ok. I wouldn't however plan on mounting anything externally as this will more than likely get damaged i.e no plexi reservoirs, external rads :nono:

[Seufar]

I have made two trips with my watercooled PC and had no probelms... Just dont crash, and make sure to buckle it up ;)

[NickS]

Yep. :)

[Serra]

As far as transporting a system goes, I think I had more hesitation when I was transporting my case with a Big Typhoon on it than I did when it was water cooled. The BT, for example, was heavy and tall enough that I had to worry a little bit about it pulling something the wrong way... whereas with water cooling I have everything tightly stuck down, and all tubing has been worm-clamped and leak tested. I think that, if anything, water cooled PC's may be safer to transport than air-cooled ones. If you *really* want to play it paranoid though, you could even drain the water before you transport it... but I think that would be totally unnecessary.

If you are serious about wanting to get into water cooling, or even good air cooling, you will have to make an investment in a nicer case like most Lian Li's or (my favourite) the Stacker STC-01 (it's the only 1 case that has it's own thread here that's as popular as ours is). The roomier the case, the more options you will get out of it. Still, although one *can* mount a tripple-120mm radiator into a case, I think a double is more than sufficient for most folks and fits much nicer in a greater variety of configurations. As such, my recommendations are:

CPU Block: Swiftech Storm Rev 2 (if available, if not an MP-05 if fine)
VGA BlocK: Danger Den Maze 4 (at least I think it's compatable with the X1900's...)
Radiator: Thermochill PA120.2 w/ 2xYate Loon fans (or Black Ice Pro if this out of your price range)
Pump: 1x AquaXtreme 50z (one should be amply sufficient)

Just be sure to pick up some RAM coolers for your video card, because once you take off its heatsink you're going to want to put something on them. I think Vantec has a line of all-copper BGA heatsinks... if not, Zalman has an almost acceptable line of all-alluminum sinks.

[bhaltair]

Well it seems that watercooling is the right thing for me but I am not sure if it is right for me now. It seems my plan to upgrade might be hastened by the fact that my old computer seems to be dying. This means that I will probably have to put in some interim parts. For example, I really wanted to wait until the RD600 and n590 motherboard chipsets came out for my Conroe. I also want to get a new DX10 card when they come out. Would it be better for me to just use air-cooling for the next couple months before I put together my entire dream system? (not sure how much effort is involved in upgrading a motherboard and graphics card in a watercooled system). With that said, what case would you recommend that is both great for air-cooling and water cooling? Don't really care about money, just want to see what's the best available and choose from there.

[Serra]

Well, this is XtremeSystems and we only have 1 thread for cases with a monster of a post and view count... the Stacker Slacker thread. Hence, I say my statement that you should get a Cooler Master STC-01 is fairly well backed up.

And it's not very much trouble at all to upgrade a motherboard + video card when water cooling is installed at all.

[creidiki]

Best WC'ing cases are the CM Stacker SCT-01 and 810, TT Armor/Kandalf, and MM U2-UFO.

The "best" ramsinks are the Swiftech MCR-14, but youll want to pick up a strip of SEKISUI #5760 off ebay because the stock tape is about as sticky as glass.

As for upgrading hardware in a WC'ed PC, it all depends on how much slack you leave in the lines when you cut the tubes.

[syne_24]

I dont see anything wrong with traveling and watercooled rig. Just make sure you have everything secure: pumps, rads, reservoir etc.. Now what I would suggest is to find a nice and light aluminum case. Just because it would make it easier for you once you have everything loaded. The Stacker is great and I love mine. But it wouldnt be my ideal choice if I was to move around a lot.

[thunderstruck!]

DFI RD600 isn't coming out until November at best, that's a long time away. GFX cards can easily be removed/replaced without taking apart the loop. Just unscrew the waterblock and let it sit/hang, replace card, screw back onto new card. You will need to take apart the loop for replacing the mobo, but it's not a big deal. I've redone my loops 4 times in the past month and that was because I wanted to nitpick and mess around. I think watercooling is worth it and you should get started as soon as possible, just be sure to do all your research the first time and get a killer custom setup.

I also think Lian-Li v2000 series are great for wcing, but I admit, the next case I'll be getting is a stacker, putting a 120.3 in front, little x-mas gift for myself :p:

[ferrari_freak]

How come no one is recommending a DDC Alphacool top? I agree with a Storm/MP-05 and an MP-1/DD Maze 4, but why the AQX50Z? Links to "non-starting" pumps? I want to get my water cooling as soon as Petra releases his custom top, but this is something to be wary of.

Usama aka Ferrari Freak

[Dragoon42]

I learned a lesson in tubing, though as Crediki would like to stress shorter tubing the better, though with the potential to upgrade in the future then a little play left in tubing is advisable, or just buy a little extra tubing to allow for changes.


you guys cut your tubing off or something? @.@ i've always just taken the worm clamps off and pulled them off?

[thunderstruck!]

How come no one is recommending a DDC Alphacool top? I agree with a Storm/MP-05 and an MP-1/DD Maze 4, but why the AQX50Z? Links to "non-starting" pumps? I want to get my water cooling as soon as Petra releases his custom top, but this is something to be wary of.

Usama aka Ferrari Freak
I recommend the DDC+. It would be unwise to use anything else other than an iwaki. The 50Z is a poor performer, very loud (i owned one) and the same price. I don't know what NickS means by "excellent performance". :rolleyes:

OP, if money is no concern, DDC+ w/ petra's top (or alphacool top), storm, mp-1 (or mcw60), PA 120.3, etc.

you guys cut your tubing off or something? @.@ i've always just taken the worm clamps off and pulled them off?
Kind of hard to take of 7/16" tubing without making a mess. Hence, the scissors.

[punisher69]

Don't really care about money, just want to see what's the best available and choose from there.

I wish i was in your position. I consider myself well knowledged in comps but im still sitting on a socket a platform :(

[bhaltair]

Alright, looks like Stacker it is. Is there a preference on what model Stacker? I saw like three on their website? What are the differences?

[smopoim86]

wouldn't a silverstone TJ07 be great for protable watercooling.

Put the rad on it's side in the bottom.
Someone on here did that, but i cant find it

[bhaltair]

What about the Stacker 830?

[Serra]

I recommend the DDC+. It would be unwise to use anything else other than an iwaki. The 50Z is a poor performer, very loud (i owned one) and the same price. I don't know what NickS means by "excellent performance". :rolleyes:

OP, if money is no concern, DDC+ w/ petra's top (or alphacool top), storm, mp-1 (or mcw60), PA 120.3, etc.


Hey now, there's nothing really wrong with the 50Z... it's just not the best. Price-wise it's pretty cheap, the stock performance is good enough to net me at least very decent temps, and if you use it @ 13.8v it's actively good instead of just not bad. As far as sound goes, I'll admit that using a bit of foam on it is a good idea, but it's not as bad as it could be.

Edit: for the sound, I should point out that I can actually hear my Yates at the moment... if the pump was *that* loud I wouldn't be able to

[INJViper]

Stacker 810 FTW... I have one and have absolutely 0 complaints about it...

[bhaltair]

I think I will be getting either a Stacker 810 or a Stacker 01 but I am still not sure which one is right for me. Can anyone give me a quick rundown on the pro's and con's of both cases? I know phelan1777 replied but I am still not clear on what's better for me. The parts I expect to get are in my OP in this thread if anyone was wondering.

[hoax]

People may reccomend the Swiftech DDC w/Alphacool top but I for one would never buy one. There have been numerous cases of them failing to start with the PC, and killing hardware.


:eek:

Links to "non-starting" pumps? I want to get my water cooling as soon as Petra releases his custom top, but this is something to be wary of.

I am in the exact same sittuation as Ferrari Freak.. any more information about this non-starting DDCs that you could share with us?

thanks
hoax

[syne_24]

Is true there has been either a bad batch of the DDC or what but many people reported of the pump's failure. I havent seen one for the MCP655 yet tho.