Custom Water Cooling Loop Idea

[gringo_1987]

I have set out my idea of a custom water loop on my h440.. wondering what you think and if it's a good way of laying it out.

PC Specs
NZXT H440 Case
FX 8320 @ 4.5Ghz
Gigabyte R9 290oc
ASRock Fatality Killer 990fx Motherboard
8GB G-Skill Ripjaws 1600mhz ram
Silverstone Strider 650w PSU

Possible Custom Water Cooling Loop Components
XSPC Photon 170 Tube Reservoir
EK D5 Vario 12 DC Pump
XSPC EX360 Radiator with Corsair SP120 fans in pull configuration
XSPC Razor R9 290X/290 Waterblock
XSPC RayStorm CPU Waterblock for AMD



Do you think this would work ok and keep temps nice and cool? Thanks

 

[ATMINSIDE]

I would run at least 120.4 if not 120.5 worth of radiator for an OC'd 8320 and 290.

Also, look in to some better fans.
Those fans are a bit lackluster, and the PWM versions have issues when controlling multiple off a single header.

PWM control is your friend for WC.
The Noctua Industrial 2000RPM PWM would be a great option in combination with a Swiftech PWM Splitter.

 

[gringo_1987]

can you elaborate on that? i'm new to water cooling and don't know what you mean by 120.4 and 120.5.. thanks

 

[ATMINSIDE]

can you elaborate on that? i'm new to water cooling and don't know what you mean by 120.4 and 120.5.. thanks

Right now you have a 360mm radiator, which is a 120.3.
That means 3 slots worth of 120mm cooling.

I know you can run another 120.3 in the front of your case as well.

Also, check my edit above.

 

[gringo_1987]

money is a bit of an issue.. so another rad is out of the question for the moment.. also, i've seen on other forums that it's hard to fit the tubing if you install 2 360mm rads.. i'd have to go for a 240 rad... but as i said, for now that could be a bit pricey.. also i haven't decided on what fans to use just yet.. i was considering the new noctua industrials.. i could run them straight from a fan hub at low rpm.. i'm thinking with the big rad, i won't need pwm fans.. i'd rather just keep them at a constant speed as to not have to hear the change in air pressure whenever things heat up..

 

[ATMINSIDE]

You won't get the cooling you need for your heat load with low RPMs and 120.3 worth of radiator....
A lot of our guys run 120.3 for their 83xx CPU by itself.

 

[Witchdoctor]

This will not work , the thickest rad you can get up top is like 30MM

I used a 28MM AIO on a client build I did a few weeks back and that worked nice, but not much room left.

you could put it up front but you loose all your drive bays.

there is HD mounting on the bottom of the case though.

With a hot 8320 and a 300 watt 290 card I have too think that 120.3 will run out of talent.

120.5 should get close, 1200 to 1800 rpm fans will be needed

you can throw away quite. if you have not already bought the case you may want to look at the Switch . If you did this case can accommodate such a build but it will be very tight, should be a nice challenge

good luck

edit:

wow I must type slow .... lol

 

[gringo_1987]

i'm always up for a challenge .. i'm going to change all the fans to noctua industrials.. they blow an insane amount of air with an insane amount of static pressure.. so the cases lack of air flow shouldn't be too much of an issue.. the case is sound proofed also, so even if i do run fans at about 2000rpm, it'll be relatively quiet.. i'm not looking for silence.. just want to steer away from fluctuating fan speeds

 

[ATMINSIDE]

i'm always up for a challenge .. i'm going to change all the fans to noctua industrials.. they blow an insane amount of air with an insane amount of static pressure.. so the cases lack of air flow shouldn't be too much of an issue.. the case is sound proofed also, so even if i do run fans at about 2000rpm, it'll be relatively quiet.. i'm not looking for silence.. just want to steer away from fluctuating fan speeds

Challenge here will be limitations of the radiator's heat capacity....
You NEED more radiator.

 

[gringo_1987]

well i'm sure it's going to be an improvement on my current setup.. i have a h80i aio cooler on my cpu and running the gpu on air.. so i think this custom loop will definitely be an improvement.. do you agree? otherwise i'll consider waiting a little longer and adding a 240mm rad at the front also..

 

[ATMINSIDE]

well i'm sure it's going to be an improvement on my current setup.. i have a h80i aio cooler on my cpu and running the gpu on air.. so i think this custom loop will definitely be an improvement.. do you agree? otherwise i'll consider waiting a little longer and adding a 240mm rad at the front also..

Wait and do it right the first time.

If you don't get enough radiator (which you won't with 120.3 worth) your water temp will start climbing up and up.
And OC'd 83XX CPU can easily get to the 200W range, add 275W for a fully loaded GPU and you're suddenly about 100W over what that radiator is capable of.

OC the GPU and you're pushing into the 300W range, popping you farther into the under-radded area.

 

[Witchdoctor]

yep, adding a 240 will be a must IMO

you will have to remove the insulation from the top as it impedes air flow

Scape it off and use goo be gone to get all the stuck on stuff off, you can get it to look like it was never there with some hard work

again, the rad you have picked will not work on top with 25mm fans,

it will hit the heat sink on the board and probably the memory as well depending how far up on the board the slot's are located.

 

[ATMINSIDE]

yep, adding a 240 will be a must IMO

you will have to remove the insulation from the top as it impedes air flow

Scape it off and use goo be gone to get all the stuck on stuff off, you can get it to look like it was never there with some hard work

again, the rad you have picked will not work on top with 25mm fans,

it will hit the heat sink on the board and probably the memory as well depending how far up on the board the slot's are located.

Not sure where you're getting that radiator info from, the EX360 will fit fine.

Using a 120mm should overlap the board, not hit it.

See reference here:

https://imgur.com/a/gEcK7

 

[gringo_1987]

would that work better in your opinion?

 

[ATMINSIDE]

http://i58.tinypic.com/smfz40.jpg[/IMG

would that work better in your opinion?[/QUOTE]

You can either do that or a 360mm in the top and a 240mm in the front.

See my link, that guy got a 360mm in the top just fine.

 

[gringo_1987]

i think the 240 at the front would be better actually as it would still leave me some room for my hdd

 

[ATMINSIDE]

i think the 240 at the front would be better actually as it would still leave me some room for my hdd

Exactly
And you can fit the EX360 with 25mm fans in the top just fine.

 

[gringo_1987]

yep, it's a low profile rad, so the fans and rad will fit fine..

 

[gringo_1987]

another question.. is it possible to have the reservoir laying on it's side rather than vertically?.. i'd love to be able to mount it at the bottom of the case, just above the illuminated "nzxt" symbol on the psu shroud..

 

[Witchdoctor]

Exactly
And you can fit the EX360 with 25mm fans in the top just fine.

This config will flow over the motherboard, if anything is sticking up it will not fit, if the board has nothing sticking up at the very top it may fit