Dual CPU Setup

PROJECT
Hello, I am looking to liquid cool a dual CPU rig and only plan on cooling the CPUs, though possible the chipset. My primary goal is to keep noise levels decently low and I won't be over-clocking; I just want something better than air and quiet. Budget is about $500, not including shipping.

I've read most of the stickies and have some learned knowledge in this area. My only actual water cooling experience is a Koolance case I purchased over three years ago.... I have access to tools and don't mind doing a bit of modding.

Any and all suggestions or advice regarding parts and setup are welcomed. I'd like to know if I'm doing something wrong or could do something better before ordering and building.


CURRENT RIG
I've collected parts over time to build a decent machine and have procrastinated about a year before getting it together. I'll get some better CPUs after everything is in order as I don't want to accidently burn out good chips.

• Case: U2-UFO Black Powder Coat - Solid Top
• Mother Board: Supermicro X7DAE
• CPUs: (2) Intel Xeon 5060A
• RAM: (4) 1 GB FB ECC 667MHz
• Hard Drives: (1x) WD 1500ADFD Raptor 150 GB; (2x) WD 5000YS 500 GB
• PSU: 700 Watt

PARTS LIST
Here are the parts I've come up with. The main vendors are Sidwinder Computers and Jab Tech.

• Water Blocks: Possibly D-tek Fuzion?
  The four blocks I'm considering are Swiftech Storm Rev. 2, Swiftech Apogee GTX, the AquaXtreme MP-05 SP, and the D-tek FuZion.​
  D-Tek's Fusion caught my interest, and was my primary choice. I can't seem to find much info on the AquaXtreme block. As for the Swiftechs, I haven't kept up with all of the revisions, they seem about the same to me.​
  Still undecided on watercooling the chipset; don't really see much of a benefit.​
• Radiator: Thermochill PA120.3
  Since I am aiming for quiet, the PA series seems suited for low CFM fans.​
• Pump: Swiftech MCP655 12v DC Pump
  This pump seems in line with the goal; speed can be lowered for less noise. I'll probably also get some "Gel-Stuff" from Petra's Tech Shop.​
• Fans (Radiator) : YATE LOON 120mm Case Fan - D12SH-12 - High Speed
  I've read a lot of good things about the Yate Loon fans; they seem to undervolt quite marvelously.​
  I almost purchased the tri-fan deltas, but wondered what they sounded like under-volted. Searching the net led me to this forum, where I've spent most of my time reading about water cooling.​
• Fans (Case) : YATE LOON 120mm Case Fan - D12BL-12 - Low Speed Ball Bearing
  I haven't really researched case fans, so sticking with the same brand.​
• Fan Controller: Sidewinder 50 Watt Rheostat
  I couldn't find a decent controller that didn't have some sort of LEDs. I chose not to get the UFO with side windows since the motherboard and other various items within the machine tend to have LEDs too.​
  I'm going with the 50 watt as it can handle Delta fans, should I acquire some.​
  I considered a hardware/software controller, but I'm not sure the software is supported on Linux or I even want to go that route.​
• Fan Filter: 120mm Black Frame Aluminum Fan Filter / Compressed Air
  I have cats and I'm concerned about the insides of the case, including the radiator. I've read some threads about making your own filters, not sure if I should go that route or just buy some. In line with trying to build a quiet system, I'm not sure how much louder the fans will sound with an aluminum filter in front of them.​
  I could go with simple grills and used compressed air to clean out the system periodically.​
• Tubing: Tygon® Silver Antimicrobial Tubing (1/2" ID x 3/4" OD x 1/8" Wall)
  From what I've read about this silver tubing the price seems worth it, and I think it looks good. Plus, I've already have 10 feet.​
• Fillports: Dangerden Fillport - Delrin
  One on top and a drain port on bottom. I really don't want to mess around with the tubing once it's in place, unless necessary.​
• T-Line: 1/2" Black Lightweight High-Density Polyethylene Tee Barb Fitting
  Don't really see a reason to put a reservoir in. I've read some threads about ball-vales, or something like that, I don't know enough about them to go that route.​
  Not sure how I'm going to check flow or levels.... Could put a clear tube in, but I don't want it getting grimy. Should have thought about that first.​
• Hose Clamps: Home Depot
  PTS has Stainless Steel Worm-Drive Hose Clamp (Wide Band w/Liner) at $1.25 apiece. I'll check Home Depot for clamps with liners before purchasing online. This kind seem to be a bit expensive.​
• Thermal Interface: Arctic Silver 5 3.5 Gram
  Its either this or Ceramique.​

PROPOSED SETUP
I've gathered some knowledge from searching the net and this forum. Below is the setup I think I should use, any suggestions or advice would be appreciated.

• LOOP
  Serial: Pump » CPU » CPU » Chipset » Radiator
  or
  Serial: Pump » Radiator » CPU » CPU » Chipset​
  Can’t be certain until I have the parts, but I want a proper loop. From what I can tell, and could be wrong, the benefits of a parallel loop are mostly outweighed by variance in restriction or flow. But since I'll be using two identical blocks to cool only the CPUs, it shouldn't make much of a difference.​
• FLUID/COOLANT
  I don't really care what it looks like since it won’t be seen anyway; a basic solution of distilled water and an anti-bacterial agent and possibly an additive. Like iodine, biocide, or PT Nuke; something of that sort. I haven't done enough research on this yet, but will have to soon.​
• FILLPORT & DRAINPORT
  From what I've read, the T-Line for the fillport should come before the pump. Where should the T-Line for the drain port be positioned?​
• FANS & RADIATOR
  Push-Pull configuration; 6 fans; three on back pushing air through the radiator, three on front pulling air through the radiator and out of the case.​
  I've read about fan configuration for the HE series, but after hearing a High-CFM Delta I'm now going for less noise over performance. Do I still need a Push-Pull configuration or will a simple Pull configuration do? Fans will be on a controller, so it might not matter anyway.​
• FANS & CASE
  To ensure positive air pressure, the 3 fans will push air out of the case and 4 fans will push air into the case.​
• CABLE MANAGEMENT
  I plan on purchasing wire, Molex connectors and pins, sleeving and heat shrink tubing from http://performance-pcs.com/ and making my own cables and sleeving the rest.​

Sorry I can't answer your question as im new to water cooling myself but just wanted to say thats an awsome setup what to you use it for?

I have built what you kinda want to build with U2UFO on water etc etc
I have some advice for you...









Tubes = Tygon silver tubes = never need cleaning no need for additives I have used them for a year now worth every penny
Coolant = I dont use any they dull the effectivness of water as a coolant and dangerous around pets.
Fans = I like panflows and deltas.
T line = I like havin a res its easy to fill and easy to bleed (If you got MM you got the space for a fish tank).
Fan controller = Should aim to get one that suports HEAPS of fans and has USB suport. (MM didnt porvide front mount USB and its convient having USB ports on the front of the case).
Rad = You dont have much choice it MUST be a thermochill (black ice, swiftec dont fit caus the holes dont line up). I have push / pull setup and I regret not gettin the thicker thermochill considering its the same price.
Pump = Good choice
Water block = I like swiftec ones (totally biased opnion)
Cable management = There is absoutly NO cable management there is nowhere to tuck cables away. I use lots of zip ties and a cable select PSU and all the cables are sleved (only plug the cables you need).
If you use lots of fans you will want some kind of fan grill or dust filter (MM dont give you any)

bhu11: Currently unused, but will be used as a student 3D modeling/rendering station.

Mycobacteria: Nice setup!

I'll look over your suggestions and see what I can implement.

As for the cable management, I see your point as there isn't anywhere to hide the cables. I mainly want to tidy up fan wires and other miscellaneous cables about.

I'd go with the Fuzion, or an Apogee GT. The performance of the GTX over the GT is not worth the hassle of having aluminium in your loop, although the Fuzion when bowed will out perform both.

Good choice on pump, MCP655/D5's are reliable DC pumps

Mycobacteria said:

Coolant = I dont use any they dull the effectivness of water as a coolant and dangerous around pets.

Click to expand...

You're saying you dont use any coolant? What kinda temps do you get!?

I'd get the GT or the Fuzion.

Just 1 question.....if you arnt overclocking why in the world would you want to switch to water?

If you aren't overclocking you can save a lot of money by NOT buying top end parts. If you are trying to cut down on noise go with a 3x120 rad and 3 of the quietest 120mm fans you can find.

the FuZion is the top performer amongst the blocks you have selected. However, since you aren't overclocking go for the cheapest. It'll all work out the same in the end.

Same goes for the PA 120.3 . That is an amazing rad that you'll just be wasting your money on since you aren't overclocking. I think the MCR320 series rad for 1/3 the price will perform just as well in your situation.

The late-yoons will work well and are fairly quiet.

The rest of the setup is fine. If you aren't going for a max overclock there is no need to spend $90 on a rad and $10-15 more per CPU block for that extra 2-5 degrees C. Instead, spend that money on a quality fan controller/fans. That's where the noise comes from.

Oh...don't waste money WCing the NB. Most people agree it is a waste for top end overclocking, let along silencing. If there is a loud fan on your NB cooler look into replacing it with something silent. Otherwise leave it alone.

Good luck.

I would recommend an MCR320 aswell, but since he's using a UFO it wont fit. He has to use a Thermochill...

There is no cheaper 3x120 rad than the Thermochill? What a waste if you aren't overclocking. :/

Dawgdoc: I've burned out perfectly good CPUs using only air; summer temps in AZ are rather high and batch renders fully utilize the CPU, so temp keep going up. I probably could go the air route, but what's the fun in that?

It wasn't exactly detailed in my original post, but I'd like to eventually get quad-core CPUs. Can I still get away with using less expensive parts or would it be better to build with high-end parts now?

I'm not comfortable enough to dive straight into watercooloing with quad-core CPUs yet.


I have a Quadro FX 2000 right now, but will have to upgrade because the motherboard doesn't support AGP. Those cards aren't exactly quiet and the latest versions may be even louder. I hope that doesn't negate everything else I'm doing.

Can't you simply watercool the card as well?

I remember a thread discussing watercooling a quadro with a Danger Den Maze, though he didn't say if he went through with it or worked. I'm mainly concerned about mounting issues, and there's not a lot of info regarding watercooling that line on the net.

I should probably acquire the card first if I'm going to water cool it, so I can appropriately plan the loop.

I'm off to do some in-depth GPU water block research....