Watercooling componant selection help requested

After rocking an overclocked Opteron 165 with a GeForce 8800GTX for the last 3 years, it's time for me to upgrade my rig... and by upgrade, I mean build a new one, since the only things I'd be able to salvage would be a HDD, the case, and the PSU.

So I'm building a system based on a Sandy Bridge CPU that I want to watercool, in part because I've wanted to watercool a PC for at least 5 years, and in part because I really want to quiet things down compared to how loud the stock HSF is on a 580GTX.

i7-2600K
Gigabyte GA-P67A-UD7
4X2GB Corsair XMS3
Zotac GeForce 580GTX
OCZ 120GB Vertex 2 SSD
Samsung 2TB HDD
Lite-On Blueray burner
Corsair 850AX power supply

And I'm planning on putting it all in a Corsair 700D case.

I've got two goals for the watercooling, 1) be quiet, and 2) provide enough cooling to overclock the snot out of my CPU (and maybe GPU). These are somewhat contradictory goals, but hopefully I can achieve both of them.

I've done some research and figured out roughly what I'll need, but I know I'm missing a few details, and there are a few places where I'm not sure of what to go with.

I'm located in Canada, so options that I can get easily without having to import would be handy. I'm aware of Dazmode, and based my selections fairly heavily around their inventory, but if there's a better option elsewhere, I'd be glad to hear it.


What I'm looking at so far is:
CPU
HK Supreme HF (I'm not sure if it's worth $10 to go with nickel vs copper)

GPU
Full Cover block for 580GTX (Not sure which manufacturer to go with here, EK or DD seem to be the best looking options)

RADIATOR(S)
3x120mm rad for top of case, probably a XSPC RX360 since according to Skinnee it's one of the best rads for low airflow, and seems to be available in Canada. I'm also wondering if I need more radiator area for adequate cooling given the fans I'm looking at using, perhaps a 240 in the bottom of the case?

FANS
Since I'm a fan of quiet PCs, I'm eyeballing the following options: Nexus Real Silent Case Fan D12SL-12, Scythe S-Flex SFF21E fans, or Scythe Slipstream SY1225SL12M, as they seem to offer a good balance of airflow and silence, though I'm entirely willing to look at other options.

RESERVOIR
I'm oogling the Monsoon reservoirs that BoxGods has been showing off, but don't want to spend quite that much money on a res, so I'm looking at either an EK bay res and mounting the pump separately, or an XSPC bay res with pump mounting

PUMP
Not sure if a DDC, D5, or Jingway is the best answer here, I'm guessing that for what I want, any of the 3 options would work?

TUBING+FITTINGS
I'm looking at 1/2" ID 3/4" OD tubing, ideally clear so I can see that I've bled my loop, UV reactive would be a nice bonus, but I don't want to pay extra for it. I know I can get Feser tubing for $2/ft from a Canadian supplier which seems reasonable compared to what primochill lists for their tubing.

For the fittings, I'd like to go compression fittings, and it looks like I'll need 8-12 depending on whether I go with a pump mounted reservoir, and if I need a second rad or not. I'm pretty sure that I'll want at least 2 angled fittings, but I have no idea what the best way to figure out how many angled fittings I'll need is.

Any help would be appreciated, I'm a bit overwhelmed by all the options and possibilities.

Edit:
I'm also eyeballing a Koolance TMS-200 or a T-Balancer for controlling everything, though I'm pretty sure I won't due to cost.

Planning is half the fun :)

In the pump department you may want to look at the Swiftech MCP35X, which gives you rpm control and a good top out of the box. Very handy for finding your optimal noise/performance balance.

As regards blocks, I only have experience with EK and have no complaints.

In the fan department Gentle Typhoons are generally accepted as the best, but there have been some complaints about them making weird noises when undervolted. For balancing noise and performance, you may want to undervolt, either with T-Balancer or your motherboard. The Nexus Real Silent Basic is also a very good fan in its rpm range and has no undervolting whine, but in overall noise/performance GT's are probably better.

When choosing a reservoir, check that the res does not allow air to be sucked into the loop. Reservoirs with pump mounting may be noisier as the pump's vibrations are transferred to the case. For quiet, either suspend the pump with shoelaces or mount it on something soft, e.g. Petra's Gel Stuff.

Unfortunately it is very difficult to estimate what the best radiator/fan combination is for your particular needs and this is likely a matter of trial and error. Generally more rads would allow you to run your fans at lower rpm thus generating less noise. Ideally you would buy GT's that run at the right rpm (they range from 500 to at least 1850) so that you don't need to undervolt, but buying three or five fans to find out that they don't fit becomes expensive. Look into the fan comparison threads here, some of them are excellent and have youtube vids illustrating fan noise at different rpm. In theory you can also calculate your system's heat generation and heat dissipation in watts, but I am no expert at this so I won't even try.

cpu block question: material = cosmetic change. I highly recommend going for an apogee XT because of the mounting system. If you ever so slightly mis-setup the EK block, you'll have way worse temperatures than the potential 0.2c improvement you could have by using it.

video card question: pretty much again a question of what looks best. Those blocks are very comparable in terms of performance. Pick with your wallet, remember nobody but you will see it ;)

rad question: if you're buying in canada, check your prices on both shopbot.ca and pricebat.ca for the best possible price. RIGHT NOW ncix has some good shipping deals so it makes sense to price match to them and get 10-15$ express shipping. I would recommend a mcr320 for the cost/performance ratio which is simply miles ahead of anything else.

reservoir question: This will depend on your case. I find bay reservoirs to be easiest to install / maintain but it isn't always the easiest to fill. I'd pick with my wallet here again, remembering that the reservoir doesn't need to be very large to be useful.

pump question: they would all work since you have a medium sized loop. The d5 can be controlled so maybe you'd like the extra choice. I know I do. I have 2 of them soft mounted on foam pads and I barely hear them and both my loops are fine :P

tubing question: I personally go with 3/4 OD but for it's minimal compared to 1/2 OD. Try UV tubes instead of UV dyes. It's way less messy, won't leave deposits on your blocks and tubes and reservoir.

fittings question: you can use bards for a less expensive solution or compression fittings for a nice look. However, be aware that large compression fittings won't fit on small blocks. You'll need angled fittings for those (or use the alternate config for the XT). Bards are fine though.

I guess my overall recommendation is: don't go for the bling, go for what makes sense in the performance/cost metric.

Happy new year and enjoy watercooling!

Thank you for the feedback, your comments are helping me narrow down what I need to go with.

I see what you mean about the mounting mechanisms, the Swiftech uses machine screws with a shoulder that screw into the backplate to achieve a consistant mount while the EK uses non-shouldered machine screws so the way to ensure a consistant mount is to check spring compression/height of arms above motherboard. I'll have to think about this one a bit, that seems slightly cumbersome compared to Swiftech's method.

The asthetics of the EK GPU blocks appeal to me more than the DD ones, so I'll be going in that direction. According to the EK website, a backplate is merely an asthetic addon, so I'll just go for the FC block.

After re-reading the triple radiator comparison on Skinnee Labs, the MCR320 is looking better and better for price/performance as you mentioned antiacid. Given the heat load I'd be putting into the loop (overclocked i7-2600K and a 580GTX (maybe a second one later), I'm thinking that a 320 mounted up top and a 220 in the bottom is the way to go.

For the pump, I was originally leaning towards a D5 vario so I could turn down the flow rate (and noise), but the MCP35X mentioned in the pump thread looks very appealing too. Not sure yet.

I'm entirely unsure as to the reservoir, I like the idea of a tube res, but since I'm planning on putting this all in a case with no window, I suspect I'll grab a bay res of some description so I can see the water level.

For filling/draining the res, a t-line at the bottom of the loop should do for draining, and if I leave a bit of slack, I think I should be able to pull a bay res out far enough to get to its fillport.

That was a good catch on the fittings possibly interfering with each other on some blocks antiacid, I'm thinking that if I go with the swiftech block, I'll do 3/8"ID tubing and if I go with the EK block I'll go with 1/2" ID tubing to avoid compatibility issues. I won't run into clearance issues on GPU blocks, will I?

I'm planning on distilled water + kill coil and/or PT Nuke despite the temptations of being able to see glowing fluid in the reservoir, the potential headaches that have been mentioned (staining, clogging, etc) just don't seem worth it.

In short:
CPU Block: Undecided between Swiftech Apogee XT and EK Supreme HF, one has the better mounting system, the other has slightly better temps when mounted properly, and accomodates larger compression fittings (ie, 3/4" OD tubing).
GPU Block: EK 580GTX Full Cover block
Rad: Swiftech MCR320 for the top of the case, if needed MCR220 for bottom of case.
Fans: Scythe Slipstream or Gentle Typhoons
Pump: Swiftech MCP35X or D5 Vario
Reservoir: A bay res of undetermined type most likely.
Fittings: Compression Fittings (Bitspower or Fesser most likely) for blocks, pump, and reservoir, and a t-line leading to drain plug.
Tubing: Clear tubing (maybe UV reactive) either 3/8"ID 5/8"OD or 1/2"ID 3/4"OD (Primochill LRT or Fesser?).
Fluid: Distilled water + PT Nuke and/or Kill Coil

The main questions that I still have are, do I have enough rad for my heat load? What about if I add a second 580GTX? Should I go with single loop or dual loop? Dual loop strikes me as more expensive to do (seems to require a second pump) but would isolate the CPU from the GPU's heat output so they could run at a higher delta T relative to air.

Your cpu block and your rad choices are same as mine

if you want, there are combos of res/pump that could be interesting for your setup if you're going to be limited on space. Also, there shouldn't be fitting issues on gpu blocks because you can usually use both sides of the block to mount your fittings (4 holes). The rest looks fine.

As for going 2x580gtx, that is a different question. First of all, if you play at anything below 2560x1600, I'd save up the money and buy a nice 30in screen instead of a second 580. You are right by saying you would get more control with a dual loop system at added costs. I think that at minimum, adding a second 580gtx on your system would cost an extra FC block, 2 more fittings, a swap from the 240 to a 320 radiator and a bit more tubing. That's 100$ for an EK block, 10$ fittings, around 10$ more for the larger rad and 510$ for the card. That's 675$ at the low end for an SLI solution. You have to consider this number before you ask if you need a bigger loop or capacity for expansion in the future. One of the aspects of water cooling is that you're more tempted to keep your hardware in play for long because of the added expense + hassle ;)

After doing quite a bit more reading today, Cathar's thread on the impact of tubing sizes, the swiftech MCP35X thread, the fan testing thread, Gabe's posts regarding dual vs single loop performance,

I'm now thinking that a single loop using 3/8" ID, 5/8" OD tubing is the way to go, and the Gentle Typhoon really impressed me with its performance relative to the other quiet fans, so I've decided on that part at least.

As far as bay reses go, I'm not sure if any of the options currently on the market fit exactly what I'm looking for. The Moonsoon looks pretty much ideal, in a pumpless version, but isn't available quite yet. :(

I'm also contemplating modding the top of the case for a MCR420, either that or figuring out if I can squeeze a MCR320 in the bottom somehow.

In short:
CPU Block: Undecided between Swiftech Apogee XT and EK Supreme HF, one has the better mounting system, the other has slightly better temps when mounted properly, and accomodates larger compression fittings (ie, 3/4" OD tubing).
GPU Block: EK 580GTX Full Cover block
Rad: Swiftech MCR320 for the top of the case, if needed MCR220 for bottom of case.
Fans: Gentle Typhoon AP-15s, not sure if I need to find a good 140mm fan to replace stock ones or not.
Pump: Swiftech MCP35X
Reservoir: A bay res of undetermined type most likely.
Fittings: Compression Fittings (Bitspower or Fesser most likely) for blocks, pump, and reservoir, and a t-line leading to drain plug.
Tubing: Clear tubing (maybe UV reactive) 3/8"ID 5/8"OD (Primochill LRT or Fesser?).
Fluid: Distilled water + PT Nuke and/or Kill Coil

I'm getting there... only a few blanks left to fill in.

Heres my tid bit based on your most recent post.

CPU - EK Supreme HF
GPU - EK's are gorgeous and preform great.
Rad - I'm worthless in rads I bought a GTX480 and love it though.
Fans - GT1850s or San Aces!
Pump - mcp355 is a great pump and the X is just the new version you wont be dissapointed.
Res - I'm no help for a bay res! TUBES FTW!
Fittings - BP/EK are my fav
Tubing - Primochill LRT is great
Fluid - Distilled - Silver Coil.. period.

Drop me a pm if you have any questions and ill do my best to help.. I know when I started WCing last March there were a billion things I didnt know and help was always appreciated.

After doing yet more reading, and listening, and asking a few questions in the DD res thread...

CPU Block: Undecided between Swiftech Apogee XT and EK Supreme HF, one has the better mounting system, the other has slightly better temps when mounted properly, and accomodates larger compression fittings (ie, 3/4" OD tubing).
GPU Block: EK 580GTX Full Cover block
Rad: Swiftech MCR320 for the top of the case, if needed MCR220 for bottom of case.
Fans: Gentle Typhoon AP-15s if I can get them, AP-14s if I can't, not sure if I need to find a good 140mm fan to replace stock ones or not.
Pump: Swiftech MCP35X
Reservoir: DD Monsoon bay res.
Fittings: Compression Fittings (Bitspower or Fesser most likely) for blocks, pump, and reservoir, and a t-line leading to drain plug.
Tubing: Clear tubing (maybe UV reactive) 3/8"ID 5/8"OD (Primochill LRT or Fesser?).
Fluid: Distilled water + PT Nuke and/or Kill Coil

I'm getting there... only a few blanks left to fill in.

Speaking of which, could someone with a 700D or 800D take a measurement of the internal length of the case (ie, from back wall to front wall in the bottom section), as well as the depth inside the front bezel, and if possible, the thickness of the front wall? I'm considering trying to wedge a triple rad in the bottom of the case...

Also, is there really any compelling reason to choose Bitspower, Fesser, or Enzotech fittings over the other options besides price and availability? (ie, quality)

Finally (for now) from what I've read, Primochill LRT tubing is the way to go assuming I can get my hands on it in terms of quality and bend radius, right?

Thanks again for the input.

....

Basic lessons in H2O.

1. First you get your EQ to make sure u have what u have when you ask for help, and not changed in the middle of help.
(ie.. u never ask for advice on a system which isnt even released yet, unless its to a guy who has it under water already.)

2. You run everything on AIR for about 1 week to make sure you dont have any DOA product b4 u spend 6 hours installing blocks and doing your loop, only to find out you need to return a product.
(biggest mistake a new hobbier can make because they get far too excited and want immediate gains.)

3. Once your system has been on air, and you fairly understand what its limitations are, you then ask for water advice.

NEVER ASK FOR ADVICE B4 YOU HAVE YOUR EQ IN YOUR HANDS LIVE.

Trust me.. with gpu revision madness, and other things vendors can screw you on, the safest route in starting water is to run everything on AIR for about a week b4 u go out buying parts.

Because that way, you dont sit on a gpu block or cpu block, and realize when you get your hardware it wont fit.

Thank you for the advice NaeKuh.

1) At the moment, I have all the equipment except for the motherboard (ordered, not planning on watercooling it) and the case (ordered, it's a case. Dimensions should be roughtly consistent I would expect)

2) This makes a lot of sense to me, and it's true, it would suck to have a DOA videocard with a voided warranty because of the installation of a block for example.

3) I'm not entirely sure I understand what you mean by this last point. From the available information, I know what sort of heat loads the CPU and GPU will dump into the loop, and should be able to plan accordingly based on the results that others have obtained for similar hardware. I seem to be missing something.

Regarding equipment revisions affecting waterblock compatibility, you have a good point and I will be sure to check to ensure that my 580GTX is compatible with the waterblock I want before I order the block, ditto the CPU block with the motherboard.

At the same time however, I can still nail down the other componants that I will need based on the information that I have, right?

After yet more reading, and punching numbers into Andrea's spreadsheet to try to get a better handle on rad sizing...

CPU Block: Still undecided between Swiftech Apogee XT and EK Supreme HF, the Swiftech has the better mounting mechanism, the EK has slightly better performance (though looking at the RTV modded XT numbers in Skinee's review, I'm not sure that's really true), offers a better flow rate, and (in my opinion) looks slightly better.
GPU Block: EK 580GTX Full Cover block
Rad: Swiftech MCR320 or MCR420 for the top of the case, MCR220 or MCR320 (if I can fit it) for bottom of case.
Fans: Gentle Typhoon AP-15s if I can get them, AP-14s if I can't, not sure if I need to find a good 140mm fan to replace stock ones or not.
Pump: Swiftech MCP35X
Reservoir: DD Monsoon bay res.
Fittings: Compression Fittings (Bitspower or Fesser most likely, only difference AFAIK is price, right?) for blocks, pump, and reservoir, and a t-line leading to drain plug.
Tubing: Clear tubing (maybe UV reactive) 3/8"ID 5/8"OD (Primochill LRT or Fesser?).
Fluid: Distilled water + PT Nuke and/or Kill Coil

My logic on going to a much higher radiator capacity than strictly needed (according to the spreadsheet) is that the excess rad capacity will let me run the fans at a slower speed than otherwise, which is one of my goals for this build, and, if the spreadsheet's numbers are right, will still leave me with good performance if I do happen to decide to drop a second video card in later on.

For reference, I'm using a power draw of 505Wfor single card, 725Wfor SLI. These numbers are based on the extreme power supply calculator with a highly overclocked i7-875K as the CPU (clocks and voltages changed to match Sandy Bridge) and a GeForce 580GTX. I believe these numbers to be pessimistic as [H] found that the total system power draw under load for an overclocked 580 running on a S1366 system was 519W at the wall.

And while yes, I could probably get away with just a MCR420 for now, I'd really rather do all the case modding now and get it done with rather than wait until I find out that I need more rad capacity and having to do it later.

Regarding block compatibility, I'm confident that the either block will work as everything I've read about S1155 says that S1156 heatsinks fit (same mounting pattern). I've also looked at board shots of the motherboard I've got on order, the area surrounding the socket is clearer than that on the GA-EX58-Extreme board, and the XT fits that board in current revision. At the same time, I can afford to wait here before ordering for now at least.

At any rate, the only remaining questions that I need to figure out (other than making sure CPU block will fit) are: Can I wedge a MCR320 into the bottom of the case? Is there any reason other than price and availability to choose one brand of compression fittings over another (is there something I'm missing, or are all the metal compression fittings pretty much created equal)?

alright, here's some more food for thought:

Get your fittings and stuff from Dazmode. Whatever he has in stock is well priced and that shop has the best customer service I've had in years on both side of the US/CA border. He's also one of the few to carry IXtreme cooling pads in Canada and if you're still thinking about the EK HF because of the potential 0.1c gain, then you can't go without those. While we're at it, I'm still going to push the apogee xt. I had a gtz and swapped an XT on my newer build and the mounting system really makes it be the best value for the money.

I suggest you look at projects in the LQ log section for inspiration on fitting rads in a 800D. I'm pretty sure it's been done before. As for tubing, I've used both LRT and fesser and I prefer LRT for long term use. I've never had plasticizer issues with them and I've used more than 50 feet of the stuff over various builds in different colors. Pro-tip, distilled water at your local pharmacy is like 1.50$ for 4 liters :)

Thank you antiacid, unfortunately it looks as though DazMode doesn't carry the Primochill tubing or 3/8" ID 5/8" OD tubing, but other than that his prices/selection looks pretty good.

The main reasons why I'm still considering the EK waterblock are that it doesn't have issues with larger compression fittings (I need to do some more research into what fittings will fit the Apogee without swapping the inlet plate around), and that I like the appearance of the EK better (the Swiftech is a little bit too shiney for my taste with the chrome mounting bracket).

What I was trying to convey about the performance of the two blocks is that according to the tabulated data here http://skinneelabs.com/swiftech-xt.html, the XT with a silicone mod actually shows better temperatures than the EK does according to the data here http://skinneelabs.com/ek-supreme-hf.html?page=4.

I may, of course, be misreading/misunderstanding the data, but when I overlay the trendline for the Supreme HF onto the graph for the XT, I get the result shown below.

http://www.images.atragon.org/main.p...&g2_itemId=939

Edit:
After doing some more thinking, I think I will go with the XT after all. However, I do need to figure out whether a standard 3/8" ID 5/8" OD compression fitting will work with the intake plate in the normal position, or if I need to order angled fittings to allow for clearance.

Well, since the non-watercooling hardware has arrived, I've started a thread in the worklogs sub-forum (http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/....php?p=4692403)

And I'm pretty sure I'm down to the last two unresolved questions, one of which requires more reading on my part.

Will 3/8" ID 5/8" OD compression fittings work on the Apogee XT, or do I need to use an angled fitting or barbs instead? (I would like to avoid flipping the intake plate if I can avoid it.)

This question can alternatively be phrased as what is the overall diameter of the various 3/8" ID 5/8" OD compression fittings? I believe I can figure out clearance by referring to the drawings Swiftech has posted.

What is my best option for fan control and system monitoring? I would ideally like a solution such as the t-balancer, a TMS-200, an aquareo, or similar since being able to monitor everything in software would be a definite plus. I could, however, use something like a Lamptron FC6 instead, however my selection seems a bit limited as I am trying for a very minimalist look for the front panel and a controller with lots of knobs would spoil the effect.

Again, thank you for all the helpful input, I'm pretty sure I would have made some worse decisions without it.

Atragon,

First I would like to applaud you on your use of the search function, and answering / following up on your own questions and answers you received Big Upps for that!

I didn't real EEEEEverything you said, but I skimmed it ;).

I think your issue of tube res vs bay res, i would say you could even go with neither, and get the swiftech micro res if just having a res is what you're after. as they're cheap, well made and are very versatile.

I know you're most likely just trying to save on shipping ( who doesn't ) but I think that Fittings should always be ordered AFTER, Just in case.or you pay too much for fittings you don't need. either way it takes a little more money. this is BTW only MY way of thinking.

Why? because I never order the right amount ! lol.

Why don't you want to move the XT's plate around? it results in less than .12°C Difference
I think your best option is to email swiftech sales support and ask ; ).

I will measure my BP 5/8 OD fittings and edit this post for you if it helps.

edit: on my micrometer ( which took me way less time to find than i thought it would lol )

i get 55/64 or 21.92 mm on the outside ring of my 5/8 OD Bitspower fittings. From the inside of the threads on the threaded side to the outside is 6.05 mm course idk how that would help just having fun with my calipers ; ).

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by penguins

Atragon,

First I would like to applaud you on your use of the search function, and answering / following up on your own questions and answers you received Big Upps for that!

I didn't real EEEEEverything you said, but I skimmed it ;).

---

Penguins,

I do get a bit wordy at times, I suppose some of my posts look like a wall of text. :rolleyes:

It only seemed right to share what I found out, one of my pet peeves is when people post a question, and then follow up with an 'I answered it myself' post without describing their answer, it makes troubleshooting a little bit harder at times.

Quote:

---

I think your issue of tube res vs bay res, i would say you could even go with neither, and get the swiftech micro res if just having a res is what you're after. as they're cheap, well made and are very versatile.

---

I could definitely find place for a micro res in my build, but I'm pretty settled on a bay res, I think that being able to see the water level would bring a little peace of mind. Kind of silly, but there it is.

Quote:

---

I know you're most likely just trying to save on shipping ( who doesn't ) but I think that Fittings should always be ordered AFTER, Just in case.or you pay too much for fittings you don't need. either way it takes a little more money. this is BTW only MY way of thinking.

Why? because I never order the right amount ! lol.

---

This is true, but I'd rather not have to wait for shipping more than once... :D

Quote:

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Why don't you want to move the XT's plate around? it results in less than .12°C Difference

---

Looks in part, I think I like the asthetic of a centered inlet, even if my case has no side window and I won't be able to see it. :rolleyes:

Quote:

---

I think your best option is to email swiftech sales support and ask ; ).

I will measure my BP 5/8 OD fittings and edit this post for you if it helps.

edit: on my micrometer ( which took me way less time to find than i thought it would lol )

i get 55/64 or 21.92 mm on the outside ring of my 5/8 OD Bitspower fittings. From the inside of the threads on the threaded side to the outside is 6.05 mm course idk how that would help just having fun with my calipers ; ).

---

Thank you for taking the time to dig out the micrometer and measure the fittings. Unfortunately, those numbers make it pretty much too close to call as I get 2.2cm of separation between the centers of the holes from measuring off of a screen, and 0.08mm isn't much to play with. I guess an e-mail to swiftech is in order.

I e-mailed Swiftech this afternoon and got a response back 4 hours later from Gabe, talk about customer service!

Unfortunately, the hole spacing on the Apogee XT is 21.2mm. This means that the bitspower 5/8" OD fittings won't work as according to Penguins, they have an OD of 21.92mm.

I need to track down ODs for Feser and Enzotech fittings to see if they might fit.

Edit: Unfortunately, Enzotech fittings weigh in at 22mm, and while I can't find a solid number for their 5/8" OD fittings, Feser's 1/2" OD fittings have a diameter of 20mm, so I really doubt 5/8" fittings would fit.

I'm thinking about using thin-walled tubing to and from the CPU block and thickwalled everywhere else for kink resistance.

While I ordinarily don't crosspost much, I need some feedback on the condition of the two MCR radiators I received from NCIX today, a MCR220 with a paint chip (likely in shipping I suspect) and some fin discolouration, and a MCR420 with fin discolouration and a bit of discolouration under the shroud at one end.

(Copied from my build log thread, http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/...0&postcount=21)

The bad news, the baggie for the MCR220's screws comitted suicide and let the screws escape into the box, I'm not sure if that's the cause or not, but there is a big chip in the finish on one of the end tanks of the 220. :(

http://www.images.atragon.org/main.p...&g2_itemId=999http://www.images.atragon.org/main.p...g2_itemId=1003http://www.images.atragon.org/main.p...g2_itemId=1007

The questions is, is this normal? :confused:

http://www.images.atragon.org/main.p...g2_itemId=1011http://www.images.atragon.org/main.p...g2_itemId=1015

By this, I'm refering to the rust coloured areas visible on the fins of both the MCR220 and 420s, and on the end wall of the MCR420. I'm kind of concerned since I don't recall seeing any pics showing similar discolouration before, and I don't want to make a potentially expensive mistake by not taking action if I need to. (The flash makes it look slightly worse than it really is.)

Regarding the paint chip on the 220, I could touch it up myself, but I doubt it would be a perfect touchup, and it would probably bug me, when combined with the discolouration, I'm wondering if I need to think about an RMA.

Can anyone offer some insight?

Thank you in advance.

That is the color of copper and if the paint job was better, it wouldn't transfer heat as well as it does since paint is a pretty decent insulator. Dings and dents do happen (especially when the bits and bobs get loose) from time to time, if it's a major annoyance, you can either contact Swiftech (or maybe Linus @ NCIX) or try to repaint yourself.

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Originally Posted by Waterlogged

That is the color of copper and if the paint job was better, it wouldn't transfer heat as well as it does since paint is a pretty decent insulator. Dings and dents do happen (especially when the bits and bobs get loose) from time to time, if it's a major annoyance, you can either contact Swiftech (or maybe Linus @ NCIX) or try to repaint yourself.

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Thank you Waterlogged, like I said, I've never seen the same orange rustish colour in other radiator photos, so I was wondering if it was normal. You've helped put my mind at ease.

I'll contemplate touching up vs requesting RMA tonight, the endtanks are brass if memory serves, so I don't have to worry about rust/corrosion if the touchup isn't perfect, right?

Correct

As for closely spaced nearby fittings, there are always few options available. Eg. - using barbs on particular component (usually much smaller OD then those of compression type), using 45deg rotary as at least one of fittings, and IIRC in case of Apogee XT - switching inlet plate to distance fittings further at expense of a little bit worsening performance. For EK Supreme HF IIRC there were replacement tops available with more distanced inlets (and maybe newer sold versions have it aswell)