DIY Swiftech MCP355 / Laing DDC3.2 Pump Repair Guide - Walkthrough

As many have seen in my previous video comparing the modded MCP355 (DDC2) to the MCP35X these next 4 videos involve pumps, but in this case it is a full walk-through from start to finish on how to repair your own failed pump. I know this will be useful to many since so many DDC based pumps have failed throughout the years.

The pump being used today is the Swiftech MCP355 based on the Laing DDC3.2 pump. These videos are educational videos providing my experience and step by step of how to repair your own failed up. This video is designed to be followed along or as a guide for your own repair.

A similar video will be made on how to repair the older Swiftech MCP350/355 based on the Laing DDC1/DDC2 pumps. The process is very similar, but so that there is no confusion those videos will follow one an additional repair PCB board is supplied to me.

I want to thank Elganja of AnandTech for supplying the failed pump at a low cost and DIYINHK for supplying the board. The PCB board can be purchased on eBay. http://myworld.ebay.com/diyinhk

My plan is to repair one of each DDC series (DDC1, DDC2, and DDC3) pump and do a full technical comparison of the modified pumps along with the different readily available pumps for water cooling your computer.

I will be testing for heat output, current draw, noise level, flow rate, and pressure on each pump configuration.

I already have many pumps, but will compile a full list of everything I would like to get into the review and hopefully either find sponsorship from the manufacture or some kind owners who would be willing to mail their personal pump(s) in for testing.

Any comments or suggestions are welcome. More information to come soon. Stay tuned.

Part 1:
http://i.imgur.com/Ajgfv.jpg

Part 2:
http://i.imgur.com/7xlsD.jpg

Part 3:
http://i.imgur.com/VQaZw.jpg

Part 4:
http://i.imgur.com/Jp8Vu.jpg

Great work!:clap:

Thanks for sharing!:up:

nice job! :D

[AK]Zip
Very detailed :up:
Butm is this my monitor or your DDC 3 series pump has black/grey impeller instead of regular blue?

The impeller is blue. It is a dark blue since it seems the previous owner used dye in the water so it turned quite a bit darker.

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Originally Posted by [AK]Zip

The impeller is blue. It is a dark blue since it seems the previous owner used dye in the water so it turned quite a bit darker.

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Yep, This is true. Mine's purple.

Anyway, I'm still not confident of performing this mod myself...

Holy smokes that replacement board really boosts the power of that pump. Any concern about over current on the coils? Also (forgive me if I missed it in this thread) didn't the Toshiba IC have a problem with overheating at full 12V?

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Originally Posted by [AK]Zip

The impeller is blue. It is a dark blue since it seems the previous owner used dye in the water so it turned quite a bit darker.

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Other than impeller color, one can examine the impeller hole inlet size to determine if it was indeed black or blue. The black impellers are the large inlet and the blue are a small inlet hole. Hopefully, the impeller was cleaned prior to testing since it rides upon the little ceramic ball.

Just my input here ... using dyes may have an effect on the impeller to the white ceramic ball in the pump housing. If the dye has any fine salt base, it would wear the contact areas of the impeller and the white ceramic ball. Even though Laing and the pump distributors are silent with what coolants or dyes to use, just be cautious on what is added to the liquids in your loop. Sure, dyes add the much needed BLING, but if not investigated first, could cost you your loop or hardware failures.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Sparky

Holy smokes that replacement board really boosts the power of that pump. Any concern about over current on the coils? Also (forgive me if I missed it in this thread) didn't the Toshiba IC have a problem with overheating at full 12V?

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Based on the specs of the stock DIYINHK board you really can't go any higher than 16v so you don't have anything to worry about in terms of the magnet wire (what is used for the coils). As for the Toshiba IC I don't know what overheating problem you are talking about. For me the pump seems to be running just fine. I had both repaired pumps running for about an hour at 12v without any issues. If you could provide a link to where there is an issue with the Toshiba chip I would appreciate it.

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Originally Posted by bmaverick

Other than impeller color, one can examine the impeller hole inlet size to determine if it was indeed black or blue. The black impellers are the large inlet and the blue are a small inlet hole. Hopefully, the impeller was cleaned prior to testing since it rides upon the little ceramic ball.

Just my input here ... using dyes may have an effect on the impeller to the white ceramic ball in the pump housing. If the dye has any fine salt base, it would wear the contact areas of the impeller and the white ceramic ball. Even though Laing and the pump distributors are silent with what coolants or dyes to use, just be cautious on what is added to the liquids in your loop. Sure, dyes add the much needed BLING, but if not investigated first, could cost you your loop or hardware failures.

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Yes you are right on the impeller size. The DDC1/2 have a large inlet cut for the impeller while the DDC3 series has significantly smaller one. I spent about 30 minutes total cleaning the impeller and the housing due to all the gunk from the dye. I know it is very important to have everything cleaned out as it can cause the pump to seize.



I received a PM from the previous owner regarding what he was used and I would like to share it since I am sure someone else out there is using this for their dye. The dye he was using is the Primochill Ice. In this specific pump's case, it was the "blue dye bomb". Based on what I see of this dye is it very bad. It hardens and cakes on which could make it start working as an abrasive to wear down on the rotating area of the pump and cause failure. I highly suggest to avoid dyes.

Guys I just got a PM from Elganja who used to own the pump that I got for this how to. As I already mentioned he used Primochill Ice for his liquid and based on what I saw on the pump I urged him to take his blocks apart and clean out the radiators along with everything else.

Below is a picture of what his Apogee XT looks like.

http://i.imgur.com/UNSoA.jpg

Honestly I knew it would be bad, but even that was worse that I had expected. As you can see very strange looking. Avoid dyes and pre-mixed if you can.

OMG its loud tho... i love the instant start time tho, i have to admit, there is no lag start.

But WOW, id have to say its at least double if not triple the noise a standard DDC makes.

Honestly it isn't that loud, but it is louder which should be expected. The camera is close and a sensitive mic. Plus most of the noise you hear is due to how much pressure/flow it has I end up sucking up air bubbles the entire time almost. As already mentioned I will have a proper review done where air bubbles will play no role when testing for noise ect.

Yeah air makes a HUGE difference in loop noise. c'mon Naekuh, you should know that :p:

Thanks for sharing this mate, excitedly awaiting your findings! :up:

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Originally Posted by Sparky

Yeah air makes a HUGE difference in loop noise. c'mon Naekuh, you should know that :p:

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oh i know the sound betweeen a air bubble getting chomped internally by impeller and the motor noise.

The thing is people have told me, its loud... louder then a DDC, and much noticibility, but i never really thought it would be that loud.

I will wait for your fully bleed review, but i can clearly hear the DDC pitch.

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Originally Posted by [AK]Zip

Honestly I knew it would be bad, but even that was worse that I had expected. As you can see very strange looking. Avoid dyes and pre-mixed if you can.

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And which tubing did he use this time?

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Originally Posted by NaeKuh

oh i know the sound betweeen a air bubble getting chomped internally by impeller and the motor noise.

The thing is people have told me, its loud... louder then a DDC, and much noticibility, but i never really thought it would be that loud.

I will wait for your fully bleed review, but i can clearly hear the DDC pitch.

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It is true the DIYINHK pumps are louder, but just as they should be since essentially the same pump when modded has a lot more flowrate and pressure even at lower voltages than 12v. In my video it doesn't help that the MCP35X has a nice thick acetal top which does a good job dampening noise from what I have seen so far.

When I will do the testing I will make sure to test with the same tops on all of them to make it fair and will try different impellers since they are a few different ones. :up:

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Originally Posted by Fatfool

And which tubing did he use this time?

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I don't know I don't know the guy personally. I just offered up to purchase his dead pump and he was kind enough to offer it at a very low price and from there I just ended up helping him restore his system once I saw what exactly was in the pump.

AK thank you so much for playing with these guys... :up:

if i ever sound rude... ignore my style... its a habit in how i type.. :rofl:

No worries I have thick skin. Go check out my other thread I made about the differences of the DDC pumps. Lots of good information there.

Great job. Thanks for doing this.

Just waiting to receive my kit from Hong Kong:yepp:

fully bleed pump sound : http://www.mediafire.com/?as92mpzm93i61cn

i thought i still have some lot air left. its totally noticeable without any fans blowing the system (huge humming noise IRL, not just pitch).
but with 3xap15 GT, 3x kaze jyunii slim blowing the rads, i dont hear the ddc noise anymore :)

I have two of the completed PCB's sitting on my desk. Really need to find some motivation to fix the broken DDC's I have. I hope it works this time around.

There is a new revision of the upgrade board. It is now white and has built in LED's.

Looks pretty good with a clear top. I think this would look very nice with a clear res top so that the light has more area of diffusion.

Lights on:
http://i.imgur.com/UPlrW.jpg

Lights off:
http://i.imgur.com/jYOsE.jpg

just shoot a video,
use an USB camera and soldering FLUX to assembly, it's easy and fun.
BTW, is the english description grammar ok:confused:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PtcdCGA_qTk

Quote:

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Originally Posted by wizard1238

just shoot a video,
use an USB camera and soldering FLUX to assembly, it's easy and fun.
BTW, is the english description grammar ok:confused:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PtcdCGA_qTk

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Nice job, thanks!
What function does this IC you're soldering perform?
I don't suppose you can recommend a list of tools/material for beginners?

I'm also interested in modding my mcp35x pump (have 2x of them)
Is there a better PCB I can solder in than the one typically used?

why would you change PCB on MCP35X and loose their main distinctive feature - pwm regulation - in process? These are mostly for reviving old DDCs with fried PCBs, i see no sense in tinkering with working ones that you bought for high price with more loss then gains in result.

Only if there's a pcb with pwm, & slightly better qualities than the one already in mcp35x.
Just for fun, something interesting to do.... :)

Quote:

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Originally Posted by churchy

why would you change PCB on MCP35X and loose their main distinctive feature - pwm regulation - in process? These are mostly for reviving old DDCs with fried PCBs, i see no sense in tinkering with working ones that you bought for high price with more loss then gains in result.

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+1 Why waste the money on a pump that has PWM to start with? The 35X is already the strongest DDC variant out, why not do this to a regular 3.2 or 3.25 instead? The PCB on the 35X and the top are responsible for it being the strongest, everything else is the same as it's little brothers FWIR.

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Why waste the money on a pump that has PWM to start with?

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I have a 2nd one that I don't need for my puny loop ;)

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The 35X is already the strongest DDC variant out

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I "think" it still is....

Quote:

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The PCB on the 35X and the top are responsible for it being the strongest

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I know the top is responsible for it being the strongest.
I'm not so sure the same could be said for the PCB though (except for the handy PWM).

If you want to do this I would suggest buying some different DDC's to do this with. I am only going to be throwing these PCB's on non MCP35x DDCs.

The top isn't responsible for all of it, go look at skinnee's testing, it only accounts for a small percentage of the boost.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by lowfat

If you want to do this I would suggest buying some different DDC's to do this with. I am only going to be throwing these PCB's on non MCP35x DDCs.

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Yes but I want to take advantage of the MCP35x's top :)

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Waterlogged

The top isn't responsible for all of it, go look at skinnee's testing, it only accounts for a small percentage of the boost.

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The top may not be responsible for all of it, but the the pcb's def. not the best performing one out there.
There's a toshiba one (name escapes me) that's better performing (with added noise of course), no PWM though, but it can be added.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by jalyst

Yes but I want to take advantage of the MCP35x's top :)



The top may not be responsible for all of it, but the the pcb's def. not the best performing one out there.
There's a toshiba one (name escapes me) that's better performing (with added noise of course), no PWM though, but it can be added.

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Then get a regular DDC and a 35X top, Swiftech does sell them separately. Save the 35X you have for another build...you will have another build, trust me. ;)

There are 2 kinds of PWM, hardware and software. The 35X is controlled through software, I think the Toshiba is hardware (haven't read the WP so I'm going off what little info I've seen). The 35X is the best stock PCB out there.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Waterlogged

Then get a regular DDC and a 35X top, Swiftech does sell them separately. Save the 35X you have for another build...you will have another build, trust me. ;)

There are 2 kinds of PWM, hardware and software. The 35X is controlled through software, I think the Toshiba is hardware (haven't read the WP so I'm going off what little info I've seen). The 35X is the best stock PCB out there.

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Hey good idea, I hadn't considered that, thanks.

Not sure there's 2x kinds of PWM though is there?
I think it'd always need to be implemented in hardware.
I don't see how you could have "PWM" in software.

What's a "WP"?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by [AK]Zip

There is a new revision of the upgrade board. It is now white and has built in LED's.

Looks pretty good with a clear top. I think this would look very nice with a clear res top so that the light has more area of diffusion.

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I'd suggest bringing the no-LED version back for those who don't want this sort of tacky bling

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Originally Posted by anzial

I'd suggest bringing the no-LED version back for those who don't want this sort of tacky bling

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do not install the LED and the pcb will work as no-LED version:D

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Originally Posted by jalyst

What's a "WP"?

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White Paper, I guess.

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Originally Posted by zalbard

White Paper, I guess.

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:yepp:

Quote:

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Originally Posted by wizard1238

just shoot a video,
use an USB camera and soldering FLUX to assembly, it's easy and fun.
BTW, is the english description grammar ok:confused:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PtcdCGA_qTk

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Very nice. I was going to make the same video except for soldering the whole board, but at this point I don't think I need to. Great video showing how to solder the hardest component on the board.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by [AK]Zip

Very nice. I was going to make the same video except for soldering the whole board, but at this point I don't think I need to. Great video showing how to solder the hardest component on the board.

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many people are still waiting for your great voice teaching video and the external PCB playing method:clap:

Does that soldering tip have a notch in it to hold some molten solder to apply with?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by wizard1238

do not install the LED and the pcb will work as no-LED version:D

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read the original post - LED is now BUILT-IN as in soldered on:rolleyes:

Quote:

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Originally Posted by anzial

read the original post - LED is now BUILT-IN as in soldered on:rolleyes:

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Is there any reason to go name-calling? :down:
Please have a little civility, OK?
*updated quote* thanks :)

Besides, if you don't want LEDs it is very easy to just take them off.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Sparky

Is there any reason to go name-calling? :down:
Please have a little civility, OK?

Besides, if you don't want LEDs it is very easy to just take them off.

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Sorry, fixed it (and you can fix the quote, as well ;) ) :) As for LEDs, it was just a suggestion for the manufacturer, and there's no need for y'all to get so excited about it :rolleyes:

Quote:

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Originally Posted by wizard1238

many people are still waiting for your great voice teaching video and the external PCB playing method:clap:

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Yes I will still do the video showing the external PCB setup. I am actually quite interested in this method as I want to see how much of the temperature is due to the controller and how much to the actual coils.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by anzial

read the original post - LED is now BUILT-IN as in soldered on:rolleyes:

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Well actually that isn't true. The actual feature is built into the board, but you can avoid the LEDs by not soldering the 4 LEDs and 2 resistors on. If a pre-built board is ever released it will take a few seconds to remove the LEDs and you can just leave the resistors on there.


When I am hoping will come next is PWM. :D

Quote:

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Originally Posted by [AK]Zip

Well actually that isn't true. The actual feature is built into the board, but you can avoid the LEDs by not soldering the 4 LEDs and 2 resistors on. If a pre-built board is ever released it will take a few seconds to remove the LEDs and you can just leave the resistors on there.

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Well, thank you for the clarification. It was not entirely clear from your original post which said that LED's are built-in but did not specify that they are not assembled that's why I thought they were soldered on... My apologies for the confusion :)

Very good tutorial and respect for doing it.

i disagree with you about the dyes though hahaha. How ever the main point being that ive now ordered two of these my self for 2 of my dead pumps. :)

Quote:

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Originally Posted by [AK]Zip

Yes I will still do the video showing the external PCB setup. I am actually quite interested in this method as I want to see how much of the temperature is due to the controller and how much to the actual coils.
What I am hoping will come next is PWM. :D

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PWM is what I'm desperately keen for too...
Best performing (known) PCB for DDC pumps + integrated PWM + DDC 2.x pump* + MCP35X top = win :D
Might even try to installing the PCB externally, after seeing how you've done it in your vid.
Man I love this community! :)

*rev. might be wrong, I forget them right now, something a bit older than the MCP35x I guess.

Weve got some of these. well all 3 version how ever can i hell get them to work.

The chip heats up like mad and then the pump doesnt work with in 1 second

... need more input ...

Did you solder it all together or was the board pre-built? What version of the DDC pump are you using this with? If you can provide large detailed images of the pcb board I can look over it and see if there is something wrong there.