First build, need tips before I buy.

[Monkeyface]

Hey guys, new to forums, been researching Water Cooling on here for about a month or 2, and I have finally decided to join the party.

I only plan on OC'ing the CPU to like 3.5 or so for 24/7 use.

Here are the things I will be cooling:
Motherboard: Rampage 3 Extreme
CPU: core I7 930
GPU: GTX 480
All in a 800D case.

Now here are the parts that I think I want:

CPU: Either a HK block, or the EK supreme HF
GPU: EK Nickel+Acetal Block
Mobo: EK Full cover Nickel + Acetal
Going with a Laing 3.25 Pump
EK-DDC X-RES 140 VERSION 2 With a top for the pump (Is this any good?)
Primochill LRT Red Tubing (Does anyone have pics of this tubing on their rig?)
BP Black Compressions
2 MCR320 Quiet Power (Will this be enough to cool everything?)
6 1450 GT's (3 on each 320)

The only thing I am kind of confused about is what would be the optimal route? Would it be like:
Res > Pump > Rad#1 > cpu > Mobo > Rad#2 > GPU??

I welcome any input, good or bad.

Thanks in advance!

[jkresh]

order does not matter very much (some will argue if it maters at all),
2 mcr320's should be more than enough (if you are worried about temps you could always go with the 1850gt's and a fan controller)
watercooling the motherboard is of questionable value (current boards don't really get that hot

[space_pope]

Both choices are good. Some tests say that the Heatkiller is better than the Supreme, and some sites say the opposite. Either block is a good choice, and the temperature difference is so negligible that it won't really help you on your overclock that much

If you can wait, the new aquacomputer kryos looks promising. Shoggy stated that it beats the heatkiller by about 3 degrees.

The GPU block is nice, but my personal favorite is the aquacomputer block. Probably the nicest gpu block i've ever seen.

The pump is good, but I'm not so sure about the top. I would just be safe and get the EK DDC top version 2 and a seperate reservoir. There was a test a few months ago on ddc tops on dexgo, and the EK came out on top.

The tubing is nice, and there are tons of pictures in worklogs on this forum

The compression fittings are good, but keep in mind that you will need adapters on the heatkiller and kryos, and if you get the ek supreme full copper version, then you may also need them if you get the older revision.

The two radiators will definitely be enough to cool down your system.

And the fans are great. But why not get the 1850's? They're pretty quiet, and you can always undervolt them if you think they are too loud

[Trader88]

Why stop at 3.5, 4 to 4.2 is really quite effortless.

The parts that you choose all top notch and looking good.

About loop order, I believe Vapor did some test here and concluded it makes little to no difference to temps.

Just want to say if you still have budget left, squeeze in an SSD or 2. You will love it.

[Chickenfeed]

Loop order is really down to what works. Appart from having the res / t line before the pump the rest won't matter much, not enough to make or break anything at least. My new loop is using the Supreme HF and a D5 with the EK rev 2 top and they are both doing well so far At 1.3v loaded my 920 is loading in the low 60s at 4Ghz with hyper threading on ( prime 95 small ftt ) This is with a 5870 in the loop on a 360 feser rad with noctua fans. That said with 2 360 rads and those fans, you should be able to do over 4ghz with ease on a quality board like that.

As far as cooling the motherboard, the x58 chipsets run quite cool compared to the x38/x48 so even with minimal air flow they'll stay in check. Personally I don't feel putting the boards on water is worth it for anything but max overclocking potential and even then the enhanced routing difficulty and flow restriction seems pointless.

[Church]

Chickenfeed: while X58 chipsets can be relatively cooler (because of memory controller going to cpu), lot of top-end X58 motherboards have NF200 chips for extra pci-express lines for multi gpu setups. NF200 tends to run very hot.

[Monkeyface]

Thanks for all the input guys. Now to answer a few questions, and clarify a few things.

I do in fact have an SSD, and I do love it haha.
What kind of adapter will I need for the CPU block, or does it matter which block I get.
So if I pumped it up to 4 Ghz, I could still run it 24/7?
Alright so cooling mobo is kinda pointless, unless I am OC'ing a LOT, that will save some money.

As for the res, is the EK + Top a better option then say a XSPC bay res?

[randomhro]

Chickenfeed: while X58 chipsets can be relatively cooler (because of memory controller going to cpu), lot of top-end X58 motherboards have NF200 chips for extra pci-express lines for multi gpu setups. NF200 tends to run very hot.

Does this make much of a difference on board temps if only one of the PCI-E lanes is being used? Wasn't sure if it only got hot while in SLI or CF-X.

[Church]

1) it's not adapter, it's 'water block'. You can think of it as base of air cooler, to which heatpipes (tubing with liquid coolant) are attached via fittings, that transfer heat from cooled comonent to large area fins (radiator). Current best probably would be EK Supreme HF.
2) depends on each cpu exemplar, but at least overclock won't be limited by cooling (which should be quieter aswell). Some manage to run even @4.8ghz, while some only upto 4-4.2.
3) cooling mobo & cooling memory yes, mostly is for bling.
4) depends on taste. for each his own.
P.S.
You mentioned Obsidian 800D & two 3x120 rads .. while you won't have problems with placing one of it on top of case where there are stock 3x120 cutouts, you might have lot of headache & customising ahead to place somewhere second rad (if you plan to do all-internal build). Should be simple if you place second outside case though, eg. attach to back of case via some mount or shroud.

[Monkeyface]

I think I am going to mount it on the bottom.
So wait I am a little bit confused here, so say I get a HK 3.0 or a EK Supreme HF, can I install a BP compression right onto it? Or was the other poster saying I will need an adapter to be able to attach those fittings.

Thanks

[wesley]

I think I am going to mount it on the bottom.
So wait I am a little bit confused here, so say I get a HK 3.0 or a EK Supreme HF, can I install a BP compression right onto it? Or was the other poster saying I will need an adapter to be able to attach those fittings.

Thanks

Hi!

I have the HK 3.0.

You can't put 2x 1/2inch compressions on the HK. Even 45 rotaries. The closest is a 1/2 barb + 45 1/2 compression.

Wes

[Monkeyface]

Well I am planning on doing 3/8in inner, 1/2 outer. So that will not work?

[D-P]

3/8 ID 1/2 OD works fine. He means 1/2 ID 3/4 OD won't work. Because they are like 2 cm's width. You need a rotary fitting is you plan using 1/2 ID 3/4 OD.

[Monkeyface]

Ok so I am good to go with the 3/8 inner 1/2 outer for either the HK or the EK?

[Monkeyface]

Anyone know where I can buy the AC block for the GTX 480? Could not find it after 30 mins of looking.

[Monkeyface]

Is there any way I could fit 2 of those triple 120's into the 800D? I have seen a couple people do it, and looks like it requires a lot of work. I want to mount everything internally.

[Conumdrum]

yes. Lots of work.

[Church]

Monkeyface: if you give up on all internal mounting even big/lot of rads will simplify things Greatily. Eg. this. You can easily put quad on back, tripple on top with _no_ customising at all. Going furthier, top mod to fit quads is simple aswell (dremel/cut for quad top + slap quad rad grill on top of cuts. You can check about it noeru's Blood+ build here on XS). Using case bottom area to place rads will bring lot of headaches/need to customise a lot. Like cutting bottom for more air intakes, removing non-removable hard disk enclosure and so on .. There even is build with quad in bottom, but it needs to remove disk enclosure, relocate PSU to very side of case, remove wall below motherboard tray, on PSU area use thin fans and so on.

[Monkeyface]

I see, well is there any way I could cool both the GPU and the CPU, with like one big rad on the inside?

[Church]

Hmm, one big rad on the inside for both i930 & gtx480? I'd put 4x120 on top of case then, with fans in push-pull. Maybe temps won't be as great as for some with excessive rad ammount, but probably will do the job. And 800D top mod to fit quad is simple enough, as i've already mentioned. For fans i advise scythe gentle typhoons 1850 rpm variety downvolted to 1000-1100 rpm = both silence && performance reserve if you'll need it. From rads probably swiftech MCR 420 QP would be both cheap and effective.

[Monkeyface]

Gotcha, sorry for all the questions, but maybe I should just pick out another case that can mount 2 triple rads inside? I was thinking the lian li v1000b?

[Church]

Hmm, dunno. Maybe TJ07 then? Or some mountainmods case? Well, it's your money, it's YOU who decides where to spend it

[PiLsY]

800D will take 2 triple 120s or 2 quad 120s in the bottom section as long as you put the psu at the top and remove the bottom drive cages. Youll have to think about ventilation. Air in the bottom and out the sides seems the best option, but you could reverse that I suppose.

[Church]

PiLsY: i beleave from previous posts that such ammount of customising is above of what he is willing to do.

[Monkeyface]

Yeah, I am really not that handy with a dremmel or something like that. I am looking at the Lian Li V1000b, that looks like it can fit the 2 rads i think.