Huge Radiators: Roundup

[HESmelaugh]

hey Shane, any problems with the QC with the XSPC rad? i have been reading a lot about missing fins, bent fins etc. i know that XSPC has solved the paint problem which came with the first shipment, but I would like to know if it has solved the bent and missing fins problem as well...

The RX480 I got is literally flawless. The fins are perfectly spaced, the finish is smooth and even, all the threads are in the right place etc.
If my RX480 represents all the current RX rads then there is really nothing to worry about. But of course I can't really know since I only have that one radiator here.

Shane it would of been nice to see the TFC 480 In there, As not many people test Them, Not sure if it because you can't get TFC via aqua tuning, where you work.

But it will be nice to see the comparison between this and martins, to see how different the results are.

Agreed on both points.
Just like with the 360s, I would obviously love to get my hands on a TFC 480. I've only heard good things about those rads and it would be great to see how they stack up agains the ones I've tested so far.

The problem is that not only don't I get samples from TFC, their products are actually available nowhere in Switzerland...
If they were, I'd just buy one. But if I have to buy one and pay for the rad, the international shipping and taxes (we pay lots of taxes here, for stuff that crosses the border), I'm paying ridiculous amounts of money for just a radiator...

Awesome work...man you have been busy!!

I'm suprised the Mo-Ra is so restrictive, I would have never guessed it would even be more restrictive than a GTS. It must have some very thin tubes or something causing that.

Anyhow, good to know in the 120 vs 140mm fans on the monsta, I suspected 140's are really needed to make full use of it's 140mm factor. Time to go order some, I think I'll go with the Koolance fans since they go up to 1700RPM.

Yeah, it's been a few busy weeks. ^^
I was also surprised at how restrictive the Mo-Ra is. Tubes are 9mm afaik. I flushed it with water, like all the other rads and I assume that was good enough. But I think I'll reflush it with some vinegar and see if there's any more gunk in there. If there is -> retest.
I was also surprised to see how much of a difference fan size made on the Monsta. Another argument for 140 mm fans, IMO.

you have been busy HES! I'm glad you got the C/W calculations licked, also nice to see the data table as well. Nice work!

Although, should this test be battle of the fatties versus "huge".

Thanks!
Though I have to say, I am still a bit sceptical towards my results. Looking at the data table, there are some weird numbers in there...
I don't think that my results are dramatically wrong, but I'm guessing they're still a bit off here and there.

can one of you pro's out there explain to me the whole basis behind the C/W calculations and why it is so widely used?
i've tried googling it... kept getting some damned TV station...

sorry for my nub question...

A radiators performance shows in it's temperature difference "Water - Air". i.e. how much hotter does the water get than the ambient temperature? The smaller this difference, the better the rad performs.

This difference is dependant on the radiators efficiency at transferring heat (in short: it's performance) and the amount of heat it has to deal with. The more heat is being dumped, the higher the temperature difference is going to be, obviously.

Now, C/W is exactly that measurement - temperature difference Water - Air - but adjusted to how much heat was dumped into the loop during testing. The heaters don't deliver a completely constant heat load, so just comparing the absolute temp differences isn't quite fair.

So if your data shows that radiator X produced a temp difference Water - Air of, say, 7.5° at a given fan speed, that's one part of the equation. Let's say that the average heatload during the test was 290W.

This results in a C/W of 7.5/290 = 0.025862

To translate C/W values back to tangible water temperatures, just multiply them with the estimated heatload in your LC loop and add your room temperature to that.

With the above example, I would say my system dumps maybe 180W of heat into the loop so it's 0.025862*180 = 4.66° plus my room temperature 24° = 28.66° water temperature.
So I could roughly estimate that I'd get a water temp of about 29° with a radiator that has a C/W of 0.025862

So much for my explanation. I hope it helps (and I also hope I didn't make any mistakes...).