NickS
02-20-2008, 11:45 PM
Well, it's about time for a project I suppose. Nothing too OTT for now.. well, no, dual loops is pretty OTT but nothing flashy quite yet. I still gotta save up to get the aftermarket windowed CM690 side panel. Anyway, the details.
Case -CoolerMaster CM690
It's a good case tbh. Very very cheap but constructed well. I've already modded it a bit to fit the MCR-220-QP up top, but apart from that it remains stock.
Hardware
MSI P35 Neo2-FR Motherboard - What an awesome board tbh. So far I've had zero issues with it running my Xeon 3060 @ 3.6GHz, 24/7 @ 1.6125v (what a crappy clocker eh?)
Xeon 3060 - as I mentioned above, a crappy clocker. It works though, and it's still quick by todays standards. I will be going Wolfdale soon enough though.
G.Skill 4GBPQ - probably the best 4GB kit of DDR2 out. Love the stuff. Cheap, and runs 450MHz, 5-5-5-15 @ 1.95v BIOS 24/7 with no active cooling at all. Does it get hot? Not even close. If you've ever felt RAM with D9 chips @ 2.0v or above with no fan over it, you know HOT RAM.
eVGA 8800GTS 640 - again, theres nothing worth upgrading to right now for the money. GTX's are looking attractive @ $359 AR, but the 9 series is just on the horizon.
Enermax Liberty 500w - I've had it since.. a while. It's been through hell tbh. Still a champ though! No sense in upgrading it. It's 80+, it's got 8-pin PCI-E cables and its SLi + CF certified. Quiet and sexy too.
Cooling - I didn't need dual loop. I didn't want dual loop, but a good deal came along and I traded one of my copies of Vista Ultimate for it, so I figured why the hell not? Summer is gonna be here in a few months, might as well be prepared.
Loop 1
D-Tek Fuzion - An oldie but a goodie. Doesn't seem like it but it's been out for a while! Still, the only thing better than it is the EK Supreme and buying a whole new block for a 1-2ºC improvement isn't something I wanna do.
Swiftech MCP-655-B - Also an oldie but a goodie, sorta. Has a lot of flow so it'll work great with the unrestrictive Fuzion. For those of you who don't know, I'm the "anti-DDC." They break way too much for my comfort, so I stick with tried and true performers with a good reliability track record. I may
Swiftech MCR-220-QP - The best 220mm RAD out IMO. Thermochill's are overpriced I think. Less than half the price but 80% of the performance? I know what I want!
Misc - Using a T-Line + Danger Den Brass Plug for the filling/res. Simple, cheap, best flow, effective.
Loop 2
D-Tek Fuzion GFX - Not my first choice but it's what the guy has. Good performer but talk about a flow & pressure killer. It's like pumping into a damn brick wall. It looks sweet though.
AquaXtreme 50z - Another oldie but goodie. I chose this for my GPU loop because it has more head pressure than the MCP-655-B so I feel it'll be better for this restrictive block. Also has less heat dump.
Black Ice GT Stealth 220 - Again, not my first choice but it was what was included with the trade. I don't know much about it, all I know is they're unpopular for the most part, so I figure that's for a reason. Plus, the BI series have never exactly been top performers.
Misc - T-Line + DD Plug again. Flow ftw.
-------------------------------------------------
I'm not to sure what I'm going to do for modding, probably nothing. I really don't have anywhere else to put the rad except in front of the HDD cages, so that is where it shall go. I wish I had the money for an original Stacker! :p Stay tuned, the parts will be here this week - hopefully by Thursday.
Case -CoolerMaster CM690
It's a good case tbh. Very very cheap but constructed well. I've already modded it a bit to fit the MCR-220-QP up top, but apart from that it remains stock.
Hardware
MSI P35 Neo2-FR Motherboard - What an awesome board tbh. So far I've had zero issues with it running my Xeon 3060 @ 3.6GHz, 24/7 @ 1.6125v (what a crappy clocker eh?)
Xeon 3060 - as I mentioned above, a crappy clocker. It works though, and it's still quick by todays standards. I will be going Wolfdale soon enough though.
G.Skill 4GBPQ - probably the best 4GB kit of DDR2 out. Love the stuff. Cheap, and runs 450MHz, 5-5-5-15 @ 1.95v BIOS 24/7 with no active cooling at all. Does it get hot? Not even close. If you've ever felt RAM with D9 chips @ 2.0v or above with no fan over it, you know HOT RAM.
eVGA 8800GTS 640 - again, theres nothing worth upgrading to right now for the money. GTX's are looking attractive @ $359 AR, but the 9 series is just on the horizon.
Enermax Liberty 500w - I've had it since.. a while. It's been through hell tbh. Still a champ though! No sense in upgrading it. It's 80+, it's got 8-pin PCI-E cables and its SLi + CF certified. Quiet and sexy too.
Cooling - I didn't need dual loop. I didn't want dual loop, but a good deal came along and I traded one of my copies of Vista Ultimate for it, so I figured why the hell not? Summer is gonna be here in a few months, might as well be prepared.
Loop 1
D-Tek Fuzion - An oldie but a goodie. Doesn't seem like it but it's been out for a while! Still, the only thing better than it is the EK Supreme and buying a whole new block for a 1-2ºC improvement isn't something I wanna do.
Swiftech MCP-655-B - Also an oldie but a goodie, sorta. Has a lot of flow so it'll work great with the unrestrictive Fuzion. For those of you who don't know, I'm the "anti-DDC." They break way too much for my comfort, so I stick with tried and true performers with a good reliability track record. I may
Swiftech MCR-220-QP - The best 220mm RAD out IMO. Thermochill's are overpriced I think. Less than half the price but 80% of the performance? I know what I want!
Misc - Using a T-Line + Danger Den Brass Plug for the filling/res. Simple, cheap, best flow, effective.
Loop 2
D-Tek Fuzion GFX - Not my first choice but it's what the guy has. Good performer but talk about a flow & pressure killer. It's like pumping into a damn brick wall. It looks sweet though.
AquaXtreme 50z - Another oldie but goodie. I chose this for my GPU loop because it has more head pressure than the MCP-655-B so I feel it'll be better for this restrictive block. Also has less heat dump.
Black Ice GT Stealth 220 - Again, not my first choice but it was what was included with the trade. I don't know much about it, all I know is they're unpopular for the most part, so I figure that's for a reason. Plus, the BI series have never exactly been top performers.
Misc - T-Line + DD Plug again. Flow ftw.
-------------------------------------------------
I'm not to sure what I'm going to do for modding, probably nothing. I really don't have anywhere else to put the rad except in front of the HDD cages, so that is where it shall go. I wish I had the money for an original Stacker! :p Stay tuned, the parts will be here this week - hopefully by Thursday.