Liquid Cooling my Lian Li V1000

I've decided to take the plunge in W/C'ing after talking about it for a couple years now and looking to bounce some ideas off you highly experienced/skill peoples :) Got a friggen sweet deal on the W/C kit second hand, one too good to pass up.

I've done a fair bit of reading and starting to get the hang of it, but definetly have much more reading to do.

Some background:
Case + specs:
* Lian Li V1000B+II,
* Q6600 G0 (currently @ 3.28Ghz [365*9] @ stock V on Tuniq Tower)
* 2x2GB Team Dark 1066 DDR2
* Gigabyte 4850ZL (Zalman cooler).
* DFI DK P45 TRS2 Plus

W/C components:
* The Sidewinder Sledgehammer (link)
* Extra MCW60
* Swiftech MicroRes v2
* Zalman MFC1+ Fan Controller

W/C still to purchase:
* Coolant (+ anti-algae etc), nfi yet. -- Been told distilled water and alcohol free iodine is all you need. Sounds good to me :D
* Tubing (current pieces are random lengths), thinking Tygon R3400 Black. Now looking at Tygon B-44-3 7/16"-11/6"-1/8"
* Metal barbs -- Yep, either Swiftech or DD 1/2"

Now I'm trying to figure out how to make it all fit. Ideally I'd love to get it all inside the case but don't think this is going to be possible with the MCR320.

I've already ripped out a HDD case and the divider from V1000 (did that not long after I got it) so it only has 1 HDD bay down there. Also made a few holes for cables, but still need more.

Ideas for installation include:
1. Use the included RadBox and mid-mount the rad;
2. Use the included RadBox and bottom-mount the rad;
3. Cut holes in the roof of the V1000 for the rad to be mounted internally;
4. Cut holes in the roof of the V1000 for the rad to be mounted externally;
5. Sell the MCR360 and get a similar 120 + 240 (120 in HDD or back fan + 240 on the top).
6. Sell the MCR360 and get a 'better' 240.

Pros/Cons of each (where applicable):
P1: Aesthetically better looking for ext mounted; easier to setup and get going, no hacks to case;
C1: External mounted and I have young kids that like to fiddle; covers PSU and slots.
C2: As per C1 + rad will stick out over the top of the case
C4: God damn ugly!
P5: Much easier to work with in the V1000;
C5/P6/C6: Don't know here, that's what I'm here for ;)

Research I still need to do:
* Best order of tubing for water flow.
* How I'm actually going to make it fit.
* Realistic benefits of metal vs plastic barbs. (I can't help think plastic barbs are a recipe for disaster, but I'm not sure!)


So my questions to date are:
a. Re: 1+2, can you/should you/does it make any difference if you mid-mount the radbox?
b. Re: 1+2, can I put the inlet/outlet at the top or should this be at the bottom (given the V1000's back-to-front MB mounting)?
c. Re: 4, I assume the MCP655-B is enough to pump a 120+240?

d. Do I really need to cool my RAM on the video card? I've read conflicting reports about needing to, and it's not currently cooled with the Zalman fan, besides the airflow generated by the fan.
e. Comments/Suggestions :)

Thanks.

you don't want an apogee GT, you should use some of those components but do use the kit, put them in your cart yourself

Whoops, didn't make myself clear ...

Got the kit second hand, so already have the components.

Updated the first post too.

Also, you saying I shouldn't use the GT or there is better available? If it's former, why's that, if it's the latter, yeah I realise :D From my reading I know it's not the best out there, but thought the GT was good enough and can still cool quads OK.

yes it can still do it fine for cheap, if you can afford it grab a fuzion v2 though :up:

Alright, I'll keep an eye out for one. :up:

What about my other questions? ;)

you can fit the rad inside the case, mounted to underside of top of case. but you'd have to sacrifice access to some pci slots, or just use a mATX motherboard.

Here's how I fit my stuff in my case:

http://i327.photobucket.com/albums/k...202090001a.jpg http://i327.photobucket.com/albums/k...0202090002.jpg http://i327.photobucket.com/albums/k...202090002a.jpg

Huge thanks Diverge! I was thinking of doing something almost identical! That's where I was thinking of putting both my fan controller, pump and rad if I went with option 3.

Couple of questions for you:
* Do you have a res in your setup, I can't see one in the pics.
* What's the 'box' where the rear fan used to be?
* What's the rad you are using? Is that the PA120.3?

I also have a DFI Jr P45 T2RS+ sitting here, that I was going to put in another LAN PC mod I am in the middle of of doing (and now suspended as W/C came along as well ... lol). That case can handle a ATX board so I *could* swap it. Do you notice much/if any performance difference with the JR PCIe only being x8 instead of x16 speed?

heres a thread by me full of different mounting solutions and such, read through it and see if you get any ideas ;)
http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/...d.php?t=168321


I will try to answer more of your questions later, right now I am swamped with work.

No res in my setup, just a T or Y line; which is the port on the front/top of my case.

The box thing is the exhaust deflector that came with the case, to mount on the the backside of case where that fan is. I have that fan blowing in, and wanted to direct the air over the PWM heatsink, since it gets pretty damn hot when over clocking... and My last Jr P45 T2RS's PWM blew up. Right now it's just held in place with masking tape. I have something coming that is sorta a 90 degree elbow that will be replacing it, and should look better.

The rad is a TFC 360, so if you used the MCR, you'd have more room, since i think it's a lot less as think. with my rad, the Jr P45 fits perfectly, without loosing anything on the board. You could use a normal ATX mb, but then you might have to take out rad first, before removing motherboards - at least with my rad it wasn't possible to easily remove an atx motherboard. mATX fits perfectly though.

I haven't noticed any performance hits on my 280 gtx with only 8x pcie slots. It's just as fast as my old dfi infinity p965-s was, with it's older version pcie 16x.

@SNiiPE_DoGG ::
Wow, some impressive pics! 2x320's .. haha crazy! But I like what you've done with the res, that's a great idea!

Thanks for your help so far, giving me good info :D

@Diverge ::
How did you find having only a T/Y Line? That is what came with the kit, but was told they are fiddly for newbie's (like me).
Yeah, the MCR320 is lower profile, which is why I asked.

Ahh I have that, that never made it into the first ever build as it got in the way of my Noctua U12F. So the PWM's get hot hey, might need to look into that.

Might need to do some more research on PCIe x16 vs x8. We are only talking a 4850 here so if it's minor I'm happy with that. If it's like 5-10%+ then I might have to re-think. Apparently PCIe1 x16 = PCIe2 x8 which is why you didn't notice an improvement over your 965. I'm happy to be stand corrected if I'm wrong!

I've done a few different setups in my V-1000, latest being with an MCR320 aswell, dunno how long this will stay together but im quite happy with what I accomplished. This was a 2 day mini project :)



http://img123.imageshack.us/img123/2241/img0609gd9.jpg

I vote for an all internal, since it looks a 100 times cleaner IMO.But this case while not being the easiest to setup water cooling, offers alot of possibilities.

Yeah I've heard about a lot of V1000 LC installs and seen a few, but tbh most seem outside the case. I'd love to get one going internally.

I had a peek around your imageshack shots, you've also sacrificed some PCI/e slots for the rad/fans to be internal?

I was tempted by a 5.25" bay res, but decided on the MicroRes for now.

So performance wise what'd be 'best' with everything else the same:
* MCR320
* 240 + 120
* 'Good' 240?

Also, if I do decide to use the radbox, does positioning matter?

And ramsinks on the graphics .. necessary or not?

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by downforce

Yeah I've heard about a lot of V1000 LC installs and seen a few, but tbh most seem outside the case. I'd love to get one going internally.

I had a peek around your imageshack shots, you've also sacrificed some PCI/e slots for the rad/fans to be internal?

---

That's the downside of an internal top mount, losing atleast 2 slots depending on which motherboard is used. I gained some space by changing my 38mm ultra kaze's for the Scythe gentle typhoons 25mm (awesome fans btw).

I'd say go for an easy radbox with your existing hardware, middle mount the 320 with ur radbox & run the tubing thru the rear fan hole or do some holes for the tubes. Pump & res positions are easy to figure out once you are at it. Tubing wise I'd go for some flexible 3/8" or 1/2" and regular barbs, no compression stuff + distilled for fluid.

I am tempted by just using the RadBox but also know I'm lazy/time constricted so if I don't do it the first time, it's unlikely I'll go back and change it unless something breaks, so want to do it right the first time.

Done a bit of research on the JR vs the DK boards and now I'm contemplating swapping the DK for the JR in that machine, it'll solve all my space issues! :)

So further updates, going to get a AC Ryan 360 Radgrillz (from here). I was looking for something like a Koolance Shroud (link) but can't seem to find them in Aus. This is a happy compromise for me between fully internal (e.g. Diverge & hewi) and fully external (Sniipe). My last reluctance to top-mounting is cutting a 360 hole in my case, not sure if it's going to screw the resale value of my case too much. I reckon a 240 at the front (without impacting the MB clearance, ppl wouldn't mind, but when you make the choice to loose MB space .. well!).

Another 2 questions/confirmations ...

1. In terms of parts order am I correct in saying:
Pump -> CPU -> GFX -> RAD -> Res -> Rinse & Repeat.

2. Is it good/bad/possible to put a T-Line from top of case to top of res? Does it negatively impact performance or just a waste of time/effort?

If you want some ideas have a look at my worklog (link in sig)

I am doing a fully internal build with a 920 i7 + GFX and a PA120.3 - and having a bit of fun making it all fit. While still in its early ideas it might be worth keeping your eye on it.

With the loop order it is normally better to go pump -> rad as this means that any heat dump from the pump is not a problem. I am basically going to to the same with a T-Line to the top of me res - don't forget that it has to be easy to drain as well as fill!

heres mine... :D
http://upload.overclock3d.net/dwn/302156258039/main.jpg

http://upload.overclock3d.net/dwn/30...8/snv31193.jpg

Here's mine...uses a 220 and not a 320 but may give you some ideas...

http://img134.imageshack.us/img134/9643/dscn3038mc9.jpg

@swale.. holy crap man that's a lot of stuff in there!! I like what you did with the 120+80 in the top right.

Couple of qu's:
Where does that tubing at the top go to (between the DVD & gfx)?
Where are your hdd's?

@sheriff_deadeye .. that's a hell nice clean build, very impressed.
And a question for you too:
* How did you manage to squeeze the VX550 in there?!? Where are all the cables going? Got any close ups of that region please?

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by downforce

@swale.. holy crap man that's a lot of stuff in there!! I like what you did with the 120+80 in the top right.

@sheriff_deadeye .. that's a hell nice clean build, very impressed.
And a question for you too:
* How did you manage to squeeze the VX550 in there?!? Where are all the cables going? Got any close ups of that region please?

---

thanks!
I need to take some better pics and will post soon.

for the psu, as you can tell from the pic, i moved it to the front of the case. I ran all the of cables behind the drive cage, along the bottom and also behind the motherboard tray. Some are also crammed under the psu. Still some room for improvement there.

mawr pics! mawr pics! hehe

One of the problems of non-modular .. but I'm in the same boat, I have the 650TX.. You using a right-angle power cable to fit it in?

Also, I've basically decided I probably will go with:
Pump -> CPU -> GFX -> RAD -> Res -> Rinse & Repeat.

.. as reading some other threads - shortest = WIN!

My layout will probably be similar to Diverge's with rad up top, pump down the bottom but my res (Microres) against/inside the 5.25" bays.


I was playing with the loop on the bench last night (no water, just checking out how it goes fitted together, i.e. playing! :up:), maybe test it out without parts first and I'm definitely getting some metal barbs. Getting the tubing off plastic ones is god damn HARD, but the few metal ones I have came off with a little work. I discovered this when I forgot to include the T-Line (hahah). The MicroRes hasnt' arrived yet.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by downforce

@swale.. holy crap man that's a lot of stuff in there!! I like what you did with the 120+80 in the top right.

Couple of qu's:
Where does that tubing at the top go to (between the DVD & gfx)?
Where are your hdd's?

@sheriff_deadeye .. that's a hell nice clean build, very impressed.
And a question for you too:
* How did you manage to squeeze the VX550 in there?!? Where are all the cables going? Got any close ups of that region please?

---

Drives mounted in the bottom still, the tubes underneath the res go into my ddc1t ultra pump

sheriff that psu must get toasty with the side panel on or do you just leave it off???

OK, ordering some barbs, but the place I'm ordering from only have D-Tek and Danger Den 1/2" ones.

Are there any realistic difference between the two or should I just get the cheaper? (It's $8 vs $9).

(PS: It's a choice between DD or D-TEk)

heres a little pic of my dual loop v1000 in progress

$9 for 2x barbs :eek:

Unless you have to order from there you can save yourself half the total cost by buying from Petra's http://www.petrastechshop.com/12odfittings.html Performance PCs http://www.performance-pcs.com/catal...x&cPath=59_346 or any number of other places, ~$2.50 a barb much more reasonable.

Also if you haven't tried it yet make a model (or see if the is one floating around on the tin-ter-net) of your case and play around in Sketchup makes working out if things will fit or not a hell of a lot easier :)

I'm in Australia dude, so US prices are semi-irrelevant.

USD$2.50 = AUD$3.80 x 2 = AUD$7.60 + shipping and shipping from US to Aus is a friggen killer.

Ah sorry wasn't paying any attention (in the UK by the way so US prices don't mean a lot to me either :p)

Oh and I would go for the D-Tek barbs the DD ones are out of stock ;)

Hahah good spot. D-Tek it is :D