It's been a while since I've fooled around with my watercooled rig.
Hardware:
- Motherboard - MSI 890GXM-G65
- CPU - AMD Phenom II X6 1055T @ 3800mhz @ 1.375v
- RAM - 8GB DDR3-1600 (2x2GB Kingston HyperX, 2x2GB Geil)
- GPU - eVGA GTX260
- PSU - Silverstone Olympia OP650
- Case - Lian Li v351B
Currently that's watercooled with:
- CPU - EK Supreme HF v1 (the one that screws together from the top side)
- GPU - EK FC280
- Radiator - HW Labs Black Ice GTX 240
- Pump - Laing DDC3.2 + XSPC top
- Tubing - Primochill Primoflex Pro LRT white 3/8-5/8
- Fittings - Bitspower Black Chrome compressions
- Fans - Panaflo FBG12M12 (something like that)
- Reservoir - Swiftech MC Res micro v1
I get some pretty nice temperatures given the small radiator for the heat load. In my 19-21°C room, the CPU loads at about 31°C and the GPU at 43°C when loaded separately. Loading them 100% together doesn't make sense (no real world use seeing as I don't Fold/WCG at the time), and after playing BF3 for 1-3 hours, they're at about 28 and 42.
I've grown tired of the fan noise, and having watercooled an mATX case (just to see if I could), I've decided to bump up to a mid tower. I've always loved the smaller size of the Lian Li A05B, the inverted ATX layout, and the fact that it can still house a full ATX board.
In the quest for more cooling power with vastly quieter operation, I perused Martin's and Skinnee's sites, crunched some numbers, and arrived at something that I think will be equally as challenging as watercooling the v351, while giving me better performance at a quieter profile.
I've bought recently:
- Case - Lian Li A05B
- Radiators - EK CoolStream XT 360 and XT 120
- Fittings - 2x Bitspower compressions
- Fans - 5x Gelid Silent 12 (per Martin's review)
- Grill - AC Ryan Bricky 3x120 in stainless
I'll keep this post updated here at the bottom with links to updates every time I post a new update.
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