Chickenfeed
05-12-2008, 10:50 PM
Let me start now by saying I am a Canadian resident so sadly I can't go through PTech ( don't ship to us yet :down:) NCIX carry a good bit of their but not all of it obviously. I'd appreciate if any hardware suggestions can be purchased in Canada or shipped here.
I am preparing to order a transitional/new build at the moment which will eventually house a Nehalem and likely a 9900GTX or two. I'll be moving the majority of my current system into the new case to start with things.
Initially with this new build, the main goal is to have a more silent system but also one that is visually appealing. I love the quality of the TJ09 but my color scheme has grown old on me and I've found myself wanting more space for a dual loop system.
I'm planning to base the new build around a black wrinkle UFO Horizon with a original top which will be purchased here in Canada as they offer free shipping. If shipping was no object, I'd likely go for a custom case direct but I can't exactly find myself spending the extra money ( lets just say I save $100 not going through MM ). I would prefer the recently released MM Ascension but unless I can get one shipped here for a sane cost ( their little to no stock through them as of yet ) it's a no go. I'm hoping the Horizon will fit the bill. If anyone wishes to say my decision feel free. I'm easily swayed...
With the Horizon I'd plan on using my current PA 120.2 for my Q6600 and eventually a second identical loop save for a PA 120.3 ( for the 9900GTX(s) when the time comes ) My guess is the 2 GPUs would be better served on the larger rad. If I did indeed manage to get a Ascension instead ( although this would cost close to $200 without shipping ) I'd try to sell my PA 120.2 and pick up 2 PA 120.3s.
The grey area I'm at is on my fan choice. I've been eying the black/white Nexus D12SLs as appear to be quiet and the color scheme is right in line with my desires. I like the Noctua N12Ps but based on what I've heard they only strive on rads/sinks and not to mention the eccentric color scheme. I am going for a white black theme with the Horizon and water loop(s) and these are the only half decent fans I've managed to find. My concern is whether they will be adequate airflow wise. As long as these D12SLs are on par with my current Coolermaster LEDs, I'll be fine as these produce sufficient performance. Silent PC swears by these fans but their comparison is somewhat dated. I'll be willing to sacrifice performance for the sake of low noise and aesthetics but if you have any blaring objections I'm open to suggestion. I basically am looking for acoustics in the low to mid 20db range and fans that don't make any obnoxious motor noise. I'm open to use fan controllers so undervolting is okay.
As far as tubing is concerned I've somewhat hit a kink ( :ROTF:) Although Tygons stuff seems to be the talk of the town, I am wanting to have a colored loop but with clear coolant ( so no dye ) I haven't heard much about Feser One products but they appear to have something that may do the job. The stuff I'm looking at is their Feser Tube Clear UV 1/2IN ID 3/4IN OD. It comes in 10feet and I'm thinking 20feet should be more than enough for both loops once they are both finished. I'm not aware of any white UV dye so this stuff seems to be the best bet. Not sure if I'd want to use non clear white tubing ( the stuff I know of seems to be hard to acquire anyways ) If white UV dye/coolant exists, I'll gladly go with that.
As far as the NB/SB and MOSFET is concerned, I think I may go with Thermalright's respective products (the HR series). I'm not sure if going water on the NB would be worth it or not. It wouldn't cost much more but I don't really want any additional heat dump in either loop. If my current SPP monitor is to be believed, my NB only runs 28-38C pending ambient and load so I'm not sure it would really help much anyways.
Other than that, I'm looking at getting some dampening material to install on the case walls and potentially get something to quiet the PSU and HDs.
That's more of less the lowdown of my plans thus far. I appreciate any constructive feedback both good and bad so feel free to call me on any of my choices. If the Horizon is sufficient, I'll likely get it here within the next week or so. Otherwise I may wait for the Ascension ( may be more than a month or so ) I'm willing to be patient but I would have to spend considerably more to fully put together an Ascension based build. If my supplier can get them in, I'd probably pick the Ascension.
I'll be sure to post a visually documented build log with the new case and the gpu loop when that happens. Thanks again.
I am preparing to order a transitional/new build at the moment which will eventually house a Nehalem and likely a 9900GTX or two. I'll be moving the majority of my current system into the new case to start with things.
Initially with this new build, the main goal is to have a more silent system but also one that is visually appealing. I love the quality of the TJ09 but my color scheme has grown old on me and I've found myself wanting more space for a dual loop system.
I'm planning to base the new build around a black wrinkle UFO Horizon with a original top which will be purchased here in Canada as they offer free shipping. If shipping was no object, I'd likely go for a custom case direct but I can't exactly find myself spending the extra money ( lets just say I save $100 not going through MM ). I would prefer the recently released MM Ascension but unless I can get one shipped here for a sane cost ( their little to no stock through them as of yet ) it's a no go. I'm hoping the Horizon will fit the bill. If anyone wishes to say my decision feel free. I'm easily swayed...
With the Horizon I'd plan on using my current PA 120.2 for my Q6600 and eventually a second identical loop save for a PA 120.3 ( for the 9900GTX(s) when the time comes ) My guess is the 2 GPUs would be better served on the larger rad. If I did indeed manage to get a Ascension instead ( although this would cost close to $200 without shipping ) I'd try to sell my PA 120.2 and pick up 2 PA 120.3s.
The grey area I'm at is on my fan choice. I've been eying the black/white Nexus D12SLs as appear to be quiet and the color scheme is right in line with my desires. I like the Noctua N12Ps but based on what I've heard they only strive on rads/sinks and not to mention the eccentric color scheme. I am going for a white black theme with the Horizon and water loop(s) and these are the only half decent fans I've managed to find. My concern is whether they will be adequate airflow wise. As long as these D12SLs are on par with my current Coolermaster LEDs, I'll be fine as these produce sufficient performance. Silent PC swears by these fans but their comparison is somewhat dated. I'll be willing to sacrifice performance for the sake of low noise and aesthetics but if you have any blaring objections I'm open to suggestion. I basically am looking for acoustics in the low to mid 20db range and fans that don't make any obnoxious motor noise. I'm open to use fan controllers so undervolting is okay.
As far as tubing is concerned I've somewhat hit a kink ( :ROTF:) Although Tygons stuff seems to be the talk of the town, I am wanting to have a colored loop but with clear coolant ( so no dye ) I haven't heard much about Feser One products but they appear to have something that may do the job. The stuff I'm looking at is their Feser Tube Clear UV 1/2IN ID 3/4IN OD. It comes in 10feet and I'm thinking 20feet should be more than enough for both loops once they are both finished. I'm not aware of any white UV dye so this stuff seems to be the best bet. Not sure if I'd want to use non clear white tubing ( the stuff I know of seems to be hard to acquire anyways ) If white UV dye/coolant exists, I'll gladly go with that.
As far as the NB/SB and MOSFET is concerned, I think I may go with Thermalright's respective products (the HR series). I'm not sure if going water on the NB would be worth it or not. It wouldn't cost much more but I don't really want any additional heat dump in either loop. If my current SPP monitor is to be believed, my NB only runs 28-38C pending ambient and load so I'm not sure it would really help much anyways.
Other than that, I'm looking at getting some dampening material to install on the case walls and potentially get something to quiet the PSU and HDs.
That's more of less the lowdown of my plans thus far. I appreciate any constructive feedback both good and bad so feel free to call me on any of my choices. If the Horizon is sufficient, I'll likely get it here within the next week or so. Otherwise I may wait for the Ascension ( may be more than a month or so ) I'm willing to be patient but I would have to spend considerably more to fully put together an Ascension based build. If my supplier can get them in, I'd probably pick the Ascension.
I'll be sure to post a visually documented build log with the new case and the gpu loop when that happens. Thanks again.