Additional Rad, Worth It?

[danks]

So I recently went back to single loop setup after running dual for awhile since I got a new case. I had the cpu on 120x3 rad and the gpu on a 120.2 but here is what I have now:

pc:

asus p6t deluxe v2
core i7 920 @ 3.8ghz (1.28v)
evga gtx 285 (stock clock)

cooling:

xspc rx360 rad
2 laing D5's with EK dual D5 top
ek 250 res (mounted to pump block with multilink)
apogee gtz cpu block
ek gtx 285 vid card block
3x gentle typhoon (1450rpm) on rad
7/16 id primochill tubing

My temps are higher than when I had the dual loop but I expected that and they really aren't horrible by any means. My question is though if I add another small rad to the loop would I notice any decent change in my temps? I have an xspc RX120 rad I never ended up using so I was thinking of adding it to the loop. Any thoughts? Thanks...

[Church]

imho better add another row of fans to existing 3x120 rad for push-pull setup. I'd also change cpu waterblock to some of current top performers, eg. EK Supreme HF full copper or full nickel/Swiftech Apogee XT/Koolance CPU-360 ..
With Supreme HF you'll also get less restriction in loop that might help as you're using D5. Another "tweak" to current loop might be rechecking it if you can remove all 90 degrees fittings(eg. replace with 45 degrees)/make tubing shorter. I would add another rad only if you adding another videocard to loop.

[dnottis]

You are offsetting more cooling with lower flow. I've done the dual rad thing and found 0 gain for it. I'd stick with one good rad (PA120.3) and use higher CFM fans or push / pull. I've found that works better than adding more distance to your loop.

[Levish]

since he has two pumps he could run a separate loop with the addition of a 2nd rad, which should drop his load temperatues a lot by eliminating the GPU from the CPU loop but with a 120.1 rad, it wouldn't be worth the effort. Maybe try some hollowed out 120mm fans as spacers on the rad to begin with?

[Church]

2 pumps. But he will loose failover safety by deserialising pumps, will have to buy new tops instead of current dual top, and most probably gains will be (if will be at all) minimal (after all, he has only 1 cpu/1 gpu blocks on loop. no restrictive mem/chipset/mosfets blocks).

[danks]

Thanks for the suggestions guys. I'd like to stick with the single loop setup and the pumps in serial seem to be keeping flow fairly high. I had 3 additional fans for push/pull originally but had to remove them as one of them got in the way of the pci power connector going to the motherboard.

Eventually I was thinking of upgrading my gpu but keep it on air this time. So a new CPU block with only that in the loop sounds like the best option?

[Church]

You can also try some more effective TIM pastes. Not much to gain by that, but it's cheap enough to try. I don't know how right you apply thermal interface paste currently. You know the basic rule - less is better? I cannot see any other reasons for tripple rad to not be enough for cooling just i7+one gpu. As for one fan in way of pci power connector .. it's not something workarroundable with different passing of wire to it or using one of fans of less height? (eg. not 25mm, but 15mm?) (i haven't seen any pics of your setup, so cannot advise something definite)

[danks]

You can also try some more effective TIM pastes. Not much to gain by that, but it's cheap enough to try. I don't know how right you apply thermal interface paste currently. You know the basic rule - less is better? I cannot see any other reasons for tripple rad to not be enough for cooling just i7+one gpu. As for one fan in way of pci power connector .. it's not something workarroundable with different passing of wire to it or using one of fans of less height? (eg. not 25mm, but 15mm?) (i haven't seen any pics of your setup, so cannot advise something definite)

Using AS5 just the right amount so I think I'm good on that front. Sorry for lack of pics, my digi cam died last week and I havent gotten around to replacing it. The case is a corsair 800d and I have the rad mounted on top. The pci power connector sticks out just enough to cover the fan mounting hole unfortunately. I mean my temps are good I was just seeing if there was any way to lower them some more without going crazy.

[Tabzilla]

Do you use a tool like OCCT which logs your temperatures to a file? If so, you can tell by the shape of the curve whether you cooling system is overloaded. Basically, if your system takes a long time to reach it's peak temperature or equilibrium then you need more cooling. Before I added the swiftech rad in my sig this weekend, it would take about 15-20 minutes to reach a peak of 50C. After installing the new rad, it would only take 5-10 mins to reach a peak of 44C.