Hybrid SingleStage Watercooling in Lian Li PC-201

[jcool]

Hey guys, I want to thank you for posting and for your interest in this project, any input is well appreciated since I'm pretty much a phase change noob
However, I'm not a noob when it comes to hardware in general, overclocking, watercooling and silent computing so here we go

I would recommend the SilenX iXtrema Pro IXP-76-14 fan

Don't _ever_ use something from SilenX my friend. Their ratings are ridiculously exaggerated in terms of noise and airflow, basically they just suck.
See fan tests around XS and elsewhere.

38mm fan i would of gone with, maybe with a speed controler or 9v modded.

DagoDuck also suggested that, he wanted to use a 120x38mm Papst fan that was rated at 1500RPM, 82m³/h airflow and 25dBA or something.
But I insisted on using the Noctua P12, since it pushes more air per rpm than any other fan I've seen so far. Its rating is 93m³/h at 1300RPM and 20dBA, and while I'm not sure about the noise level being accurate, I do have some of these babies here and I can confirm the CFM rating, seems about right. So actually this fan pushes more than a low speed 38mm one.

Beautiful job, but a question, how is the phase systems heat exhausted from the case? It seems you're going to be heating up the powersupply quite heavily.

You are right, we both failed to see that problem in the planning phase. I think I'll try it the way it is set up, and if the PSU overheats I'll either reverse the airflow (so that it goes from back to front) or cut out the plate for the 2nd PSU (where the switch for the compressor unit sits) to mount an additional exhaust fan.

Did you made the cut for the 3x120 rad? Extremly nice quality, with what kind of tools did you that?

I made that cut with a computer-guided milling cutter (I hope that's the correct term, "CNC Fräse" in German)

One question:
You didn't need to cut out a square behind the mobo at the cpu-position?

I hope it will fit, but if not I've got plenty of standoffs from TJ07 cases lying around... they are very high and should do the trick (will have to mod IO shield though)

[jcool]

You might want to remove like, a triple 120mm space on the side of one case side, add a nice fan grill, and maybe even some very quiet yate loon 120mm fans.

I'd like to avoid that if possible, because the sides will be outfitted with noise absorbtion mats.

[tim-]

a 120x25mm fan.. i doubt it would hold -30 to @ 200w with such fan.. i doubt it. I use typically 100cfm fan for that use with this compressor.. which means ~160m^3/h

i also know dagoduck had some issues to get it hold load but it seems like he have solve the issue, glad to hear and nice unit my friend.

[jcool]

He tested it with a 240W load and it's holding fine
Like I said, this is no ordinary fan.

[DagoDuck]

Thank you once again for your advice tim-.

I have tested various loads. Even with 225 watts. I've also tested on an old Pentium 4. In the end it holds fine. The unit only needs some time to stabilise itself. I would gradually overclock the processor.

@ #26

As I said, you are the one who has to know about such things very well. By the way, the package was picked up today!

[Moc]

But I insisted on using the Noctua P12, since it pushes more air per rpm than any other fan I've seen so far. Its rating is 93m³/h at 1300RPM and 20dBA, and while I'm not sure about the noise level being accurate, I do have some of these babies here and I can confirm the CFM rating, seems about right. So actually this fan pushes more than a low speed 38mm one.

But way more important is air pressure. A condensor is quite restrict, and a 38mm fan can push the air way better than a 25mm fan.

[FireLight]

very nice and clean worklian li as awlays is beautiful.

[jcool]

But way more important is air pressure. A condensor is quite restrict, and a 38mm fan can push the air way better than a 25mm fan.

This fan is optimized for use with heatsinks and radiators, it builds up high static pressure levels
http://www.noctua.at/main.php?show=n...parison&lng=de

[Fr3akyPete]

I've got an 18db Silenx Ixtrema Pro IXP-76-18 120/38mm fan right next to me and can "confirm" that the noise is way more than 18db.
Also I've got the feeling that it is not as powerful as I expected. From the sucking side I feel also air getting pushed away...
So, I think this fan is not worth the ~20 Euros I paid for it.
I'll probabaly try the Noctua NF-P12, because I need them for my radiator.

[jcool]

Sad to hear you got trapped in their marketing strategy :/
Head over to the Fans Thread to see other recommendations, but if you want the best-performing quiet fan for rads, go for the P12.

[Fr3akyPete]

I would love to buy the P12s, but I would need 3 of them and 60€ for "just" fans is pretty
much.

I also thought about the Sanyo Denki San Ace 1011 (would turn them down to 7V or 9V), but they are nowhere listed here in Germany.
I found one industrial website and they wanted 49€ for 1 fan!!!

[jcool]

They aren't cheap I know, but they are worth it. Check out geizhals for prices.
If you want something decent and lasting but are not prepared to spend 60€ on 3 fans, go for the S-Flex 1200. They don't push quite as much air but also have a MTBF of 150000h, a great bearing and rather low noise.

[Fr3akyPete]

Don't _ever_ use something from SilenX my friend. Their ratings are ridiculously exaggerated in terms of noise and airflow, basically they just suck.

Hehehe...matches my experience pretty well.

Also this from the Fans,Fans,Fans-thread:
"SilenX 90CFM 18dBA - Just a plain sucky fan. Put it on a radiator and it sucks even more (really, really bad radiator fan...nearly 50% of airflow is lost on the radiator--worse than the Noctua 1200!). That said, it does not make extraneous noise and looks kinda cool. Has a cheap flimsy feel though. Also, the motor overheats. Also, it costs a lot. Also, the specs are WAYYYYYYY off, a big no-no in my book."

But where to find f.e. Sanyo Denki San Ace 1011 in Germany or Europe for an adequat (?) price?
I want to hear that fan and see it's undervolting abilities.

[Moc]

He tested it with a 240W load and it's holding fine
Like I said, this is no ordinary fan.

At what temp and highside pressure?

[jcool]

-30C for 240W I think, no idea about the pressure. The unit should arrive today

[DagoDuck]

The fan has not only to condense the refrigerant, the compressor has also to be cooled. Unfortunately, this is ignored by many of you. This is why such small fans sometimes aren't enough. An unnecessary heat accumulation only increases the pressure. And of course we would not like to do this to the compressor.

The unit must be well ventilated. I believe I have had a difference of 4-5K without additional fan.

[toaster]

dago,

nice unit
but what is with the highside pressure @ >200w load?

[DagoDuck]

@toaster Thank you! I can't remember exactly, HD maximum of 17 bar, without load it goes down to 13 bar. The fan is a bit too weak. ND about 0,7 bar, without load 0 bar.

[godmod]

17bar is maybe ok yet, bit it is already 1,2bar out of the specifications of the NL11F.I like the build, especially the elektrics work.

[jcool]

I received the case today, seems like everything is in top order. Really great work there DagoDuck, build quality is excellent.
I already did some measuring and I can fit a 92mm exhaust fan where the power connector is sitting, that should take care of the heat problem
Will show you guys some pics as soon as its finished, but will be some time cause I'm leaving for the mountains early tomorrow morning... back in 2 weeks, see you then

[jcool]

Hey guys, back from Skiing
Also received my new DFI mobo, I'll start rebuilding my rig today

About the heat issue, I fit a 92mm exhaust fan in the back that should help a great deal, since now it's like a windchannel in the bottom of the case
Will post some pics and first results later

[toaster]

updates?

[DagoDuck]

@toaster

What do you want to see? Looks like we have some little problems with the PSU. It does not fit in the lower shaft. Need to place the plug elsewhere, so that the PSU can be mounted in the upper shaft. We also need to make some modifications in order to increase the performance. Will take a few weeks. Even some patience, please.

[toaster]

@toaster

What do you want to see?

jcool said, that he will post pics and results in few hours...

[jcool]

Yeah folks, been kinda busy this week. Sorry for the delay...
Also had some problems with the setup, it seems to break down way too early.
Even though I changed the fan for a higher speed model (a Zalman ZM-F3 actually, inspired by Vapors great fan review thread), it doesn't hold as much as it should.
Everything is fine until a certain point, that point being my Q6600@4Ghz with 1,43V. Runs WCG for days with no problems, holding steady at -39C.

However, if I start prime small FFT I can watch the temp rise, reaching -15 or something which is where I get a bluescreen due to the CPU getting too warm. It goes back to -42C after that...

So, either it holds -39C or it doesn't hold at all, which is kind of strange. Shouldn't it just hold at -35C or something when the load increases, especially when I'm not even remotely close to the 240W DagoDuck tested? (remember, that was even with the weaker fan).

The other issue is that the PSU doesn't fit... we'll get it worked out somehow, just seems all very strange to me.

cheers