Hi,
I'll preface this by saying while I've never done water cooling before(beyond a closed loop AIO CPU unit), I've been reading up on this for a while.
I'm looking to install a system with the primary goal of lowering the volume of my MSI 290X Lightning's fans.
I have:
Silverstone SG10 case
Intel i7-4770k
MSI 290X Lightning
This case is small, not well sorted for a water cooling loop. I've currently got some small Corsair AIO on the CPU. The fans on the Lightning are crazy loud though.
My goal is a single loop to cool the CPU and the video card. I have no plans of going SLI. I do not likely see myself overclocking the CPU much if at all.
I already have the EK waterblock(and backing plate) for the 290x Lightning(got a great deal on that a while back). So I need to pick out a pump, radiator and reservoir.
I was looking at some of Swiftech expandable AIO's and then read that the pumps may be a bit loud. I was even considering swapping out to a Fractal 804 case. However, I like how small my SG 10 is. I have two 27" Dell's sitting on a corner desk, with the SG10 sitting behind them in that small space. Easy access to the front fascia ports and it doesn't eat up any other useable desk space.
So my theory is now maybe to keep the case, perhaps get a few large external rads, maybe two 240's, with some slow fans. I've read one 240 would be enough, but if I could easily run two, perhaps that'd allow enough extra cooling to run the fans even slower(quieter)? I do understand there's concerns about having enough pump pressure to go through all this.
First off...am I biting off more than i can chew by doing this? I was thinking of fabbing up some small external box, routing the tubing out from the SG10 into this box(like a base and two walls, otherwise open) and mount the rads in there with the fans, along with pump and reservoir, wiring running back into the case. I could place this either under the desk or perhaps on top of the case if I make it low profile enough.
Second...is the dual rad setup not going to get me the increase in cooling to noticeably decrease the fans speed?
Lastly...would this setup really justify 1/2" tubing? If I assemble parts, I'm leaning towards doing that just because. However, if I start with a kit, many seem to include 3/8", which I've had some tell me wouldn't be worth paying to replace it if I already have some.
I've not seen a lot of stuff out there on external setups. I've seen some of the external brackets offered by Swiftech or EK for radiators, but that's about it.
I'll preface this by saying while I've never done water cooling before(beyond a closed loop AIO CPU unit), I've been reading up on this for a while.
I'm looking to install a system with the primary goal of lowering the volume of my MSI 290X Lightning's fans.
I have:
Silverstone SG10 case
Intel i7-4770k
MSI 290X Lightning
This case is small, not well sorted for a water cooling loop. I've currently got some small Corsair AIO on the CPU. The fans on the Lightning are crazy loud though.
My goal is a single loop to cool the CPU and the video card. I have no plans of going SLI. I do not likely see myself overclocking the CPU much if at all.
I already have the EK waterblock(and backing plate) for the 290x Lightning(got a great deal on that a while back). So I need to pick out a pump, radiator and reservoir.
I was looking at some of Swiftech expandable AIO's and then read that the pumps may be a bit loud. I was even considering swapping out to a Fractal 804 case. However, I like how small my SG 10 is. I have two 27" Dell's sitting on a corner desk, with the SG10 sitting behind them in that small space. Easy access to the front fascia ports and it doesn't eat up any other useable desk space.
So my theory is now maybe to keep the case, perhaps get a few large external rads, maybe two 240's, with some slow fans. I've read one 240 would be enough, but if I could easily run two, perhaps that'd allow enough extra cooling to run the fans even slower(quieter)? I do understand there's concerns about having enough pump pressure to go through all this.
First off...am I biting off more than i can chew by doing this? I was thinking of fabbing up some small external box, routing the tubing out from the SG10 into this box(like a base and two walls, otherwise open) and mount the rads in there with the fans, along with pump and reservoir, wiring running back into the case. I could place this either under the desk or perhaps on top of the case if I make it low profile enough.
Second...is the dual rad setup not going to get me the increase in cooling to noticeably decrease the fans speed?
Lastly...would this setup really justify 1/2" tubing? If I assemble parts, I'm leaning towards doing that just because. However, if I start with a kit, many seem to include 3/8", which I've had some tell me wouldn't be worth paying to replace it if I already have some.
I've not seen a lot of stuff out there on external setups. I've seen some of the external brackets offered by Swiftech or EK for radiators, but that's about it.
