Antec 900 for a 120.2 rad wc system

Hey everyone. Um i jsut noticed the Antec 900 case. the thing the apealed me was the fact that it has 2 120 mm fans at the front, so what i was thinking was to place the radiator there, which leaves me with 3 bay areas, 1 have a cdrom drive and i wanted to get a reservoir that fill another 2 bays, but then i dont know wher eto put my HD. Anyone got any ideas? or similar cases for the same idea. Also would it be better for the fans to blow air throught the rad (but then into the comp make inside hotter) or sucking ?

From a physical standpoint, there are many better options for your case.

With this case, it would be easier to use a T Line or 1 high reservior and mount the drive in the other available space. If you go with a 2 high res, then the HDD, PSU and pump will need to be located near or on the bottom of the case and this will likely cause many space issues.

Other things that you may not have thought of with this case. You will need better fans for WC. The 120s are case fans and may significantly lack CFM and pressure for dealing with a radiator. Prepare for significant modding as well. The front covers will need to be modded as well as cutting on the mounting rails. This may require creating a brace, as the mounting rails look like structural panels.

Airflow through the radiator could either be pushed through or pulled, but that may change the fans needed for this. Air should come in through the radiator though, as this will be exhausted through the PSU, 120mm and large upper fan.

To get a better idea on the space constraints, look at this review. There are pictures of a loaded case toward the end.

http://www.tweaknews.net/reviews/antecninehundred/

Yeah i se ewhat u mean by the modding situation i woul dhave to deal with to install the rad, and going with a single bay reservoir would allow me to put my HD in the bay area, the PSU and the pump would be on the bottom. I think this should work but i hate doing dimentioning and thinkign unless ihave the product in front of me, so i guess ill go out and grab the case and see what needs to be done to it, if not possible or way to hard then il jsut return the case.
i guess i could also swap the front fans for something a little more high flow if needed.

where do people usually mount their rads? and also i saw some pictured of a case that had a totaly seperate compartment on the bottom whch looke dperfect for PSU and rad, do u know what cases have that?

thanks

Lower front is a good position(easy to fill and bleed with short runs to reduce flow resistance), though there are lots of others, top, back, even external to the case. I have one mounted horizontally to the top of the case and a couple in the front.

This thread has pictures of a variety of watercooled PCs and may give some good examples:

http://69.20.37.110/showthread.php?t=138275

Generally, my choices in cases tend to be much larger. I normally go full tower or larger. It makes everything much easier.

Also from the stickies, this thread has some ideas on water cooling cases:

http://69.20.37.110/showthread.php?t=260240

Wow so many variations in mouting this stuff, i love it.

my goal will be to try and shove it into that antec 900 case cause it looks pretty slick, wanan go with a full black/blue theme, and yes im dong this partially for looks. hardest part will be ramming it all in so everything is confined within the case and the window have a nice view if hoses, not a whole bunch of crap everywhere.

thank u very much for the link to those pics, quite helpful and interesting to see what ppl do with this stuff.

i saw some withong reservoirs at all..... do u need one? or is it there jsut in case somethign evaporates, also if anyone know a decent pump that is rather compact plz tell me.

A T-line can be used instead of a res. It takes a little longer to fill the loop but once that's done it's as easy or easier than a res. You insert a T in front of the pump inlet and (usually) run the third line to the top of the case into a fill port. This is the one I like - no aluminum and cheap but good workmanship.

The smallest high-flow, high-pressure pump out there is a DDC+ (18 watt version) with a modified top. The stock pump comes with 3/8" IN/OUT, the modded tops are 1/2" IN/OUT and increase the performance considerably. They cost more than the MCP655/D5 but if you need small, powerful, and silent you can't beat it ...

wow that pump is expensive, awesome head on it as well, but the flow rate seems to be quite low compared to the MCP655, its like 1/3 of the flowrate if im not mistaken, would this make a big impact?

also another concern is iv ebeen looking at stuff to get 3.8'' tubing, waht difference will it make if i step up to 1/2''? will it be worth it? cause i think they are jsut too bulky


ad: Black Ice GT 120.3
Pump : Swiftech MCP655™ 12v
Res: Thermaltake AquaBay M1 2U
CPU block: Danger Den TSX A64
NB: Danger Den MAZE4
VGA: Thermaltake Aquarius II VGA

this was my initial idea for products, but im highly debating this DCC

The MCP655 will certainly do the job - I love mine! The DDC+ is slightly smaller (but not a whole lot) and quieter (again not a whole lot). It's a personal choice as both pumps will work fine for your loop. I only mentioned it b/c of your interest in smaller pumps.


For tubing, the MCP655 is only 1/2" barbs - no 3/8" option available. If you don't like the bulk of 1/2" you might want to consider 7/16" tubing. It fits over 1/2" barbs (with hot water softening and a little help) and is more flexible but doesn't loose as much pressure from tubing and fittings as the 3/8". It's a popular compromise ...

MasterKleer PVC Tubing 7/16” ID, 5/8” OD, 3/32” Wall (McMaster.com Part #5233K44)

$0.38/foot, great tubing.

Now ive been looking at Petra's Tech Shop and well they have that DCC (out of stock ) for 100$ and then they also have some other DCCT-01 which is 30$ but apereas to have the same flow rate and head pressure. what the deuce? any catch to the DCCT?

great, thats for the tubing tip, so i basically gott alook for 1/2'' fittings and stuff, makes things easier to decide. also i noticed that most rad have 1/4'' fittings, is tehre a way to change this do i have to get an adapter?

Most of the better shops will either specify or allow you to choose the fittings. Here is a good example:

http://www.jab-tech.com/120mm-Dual-c-257.html

The links to the specific radiators allow you to select the type or types of fittings desired.

The DDCT is just the delrin top with barbs, not the pump itself.