MSI Gaming 1080 TI watercooling questions

[drparton21]

Hey guys, I'm trying to find a water cooler for my 1080 TI (MSI Gaming), but I'm getting a little confused by looking at different coolers. I'd prefer something that doesn't require any modification (as far as cutting into the coolers and such, like I've seen to make old coolers work with new cards).

Also, my case is the Thermaltake New Soprano, so I don't have any top/bottom/side exhaust locations--- Just the intake on the front and the exhaust on the back. The intake is 200mm, the exhaust is 120mm. There's a spot for a bottom fan, but the cables from my PSU block it. Is that going to be a problem? I notice these watercoolers all have fans.

My goal here is mostly noise reduction. Cooler temps are nice too, but I'm not planning on OC'ing and don't really care as long as my card stays under like 60 Celsius.
I've looked a little bit at the Kraken G12 and the Kraken x42, but I have no idea what to do with that fan and I feel like I can probably do what I'm wanting to achieve cheaper than that.

Thanks in advance for your help! I've built 300+ computers, I just haven't ever touched any water cooling.

 

[Nebulous]

The 1080Ti puts out some heat, and that Soprano case has poor airflow. Your card's temps will suffer greatly. A single 120mm AIO will have a hard time keeping the 1080Ti cool with poor airflow. If you don't want to modify the case for better airflow, I would suggest in getting a case that will support better airflow.

 

[drparton21]

So I take it that means that I cannot use a water cooler?

 

[Nebulous]

So I take it that means that I cannot use a water cooler?

You can, but you won't get the lowered temps you want. Money wasted. For water cooling to be successful you need good airflow, otherwise your radiator will choke. In essence you'll just be running a hot watercooling loop. Might as well stick to air cooling and save the money. Again if you want to go with watercooling and silence, you need a case that will accommodate the radiator(s) for cool temps and silent operation or modify the case you have which you don't want to do.

Not too many choices with your request.

 

[drparton21]

You can, but you won't get the lowered temps you want. Money wasted. For water cooling to be successful you need good airflow, otherwise your radiator will choke. In essence you'll just be running a hot watercooling loop. Might as well stick to air cooling and save the money. Again if you want to go with watercooling and silence, you need a case that will accommodate the radiator(s) for cool temps and silent operation or modify the case you have which you don't want to do.

Not too many choices with your request.

Thank you for being direct and honest! I'll probably look into a new case then. I've got a Fractal R5 that I use for my media server, and I'm pretty fond of it. I know it has a good rep, too.

Let's say I get that-- what would be a reasonable choice?

 

[Nebulous]

The Fractal R5 would be a better choice as it has ventilation to add fans without modifying anything. It has room on top, in the front and the bottom. Plenty of fan possibilities for cooling. You can add low RPM fans for silent operation with plenty of airflow. I would swap over to the Fractal R5.

We're all here to help so you get the most out of your system

 

[drparton21]

Absolutely--- I'm thinking that's what I'm going to do. What watercooler for my 1080 ti, though? Main thing I'm looking for is silence, though it staying cool would be nice as well.

 

[Nebulous]

You can go with your original plan with the Kraken G12 and the Kraken x42. The fan on the G12 is to cool the VRM section of the graphics card. Just follow the instructions when mounting it on the card. You can mount the radiator to the top or bottom of the case. Are you air cooling the CPU or using an AIO for that?

 

[drparton21]

I've currently got the PHANTEKS PH-TC14PE for my CPU, so I'll probably stick with that--- unless there's a way to combine some of this watercooling equipment?

Is the G12 and the x42 the best bang for my buck? Or is there something cheaper out there that's almost as good?

Thanks for all of your replies, by the way!

 

[Nebulous]

There's the EVGA Hybrid kit for the 1080Ti, but me thinks it's exclusively for the EVGA cards and quite pricey, so yes the G12 & x42 is the cheapest way to go without sinking alot more money into going custom watercooling. Will the x42 cool as good as custom? No, but it'll do somewhat better than stock air with alot less noise if that's what you're after.

And you're welcome. That's why we're here

 

[GTXJackBauer]

I would also recommend going with the G12 on the GPU with a X52 and if finances and case allows it, go with a X52 as well for the CPU. Than use the CAM software to monitor and control. Heck, you can really go bonkers and add a HUE+ to the mix for case lighting and a Grid+ V2 with Aer RGB Fans but that is getting fancy with your build with lots of visuals along with monitoring and controls, if that's your thing.

Sure this all can add up but you won't have to deal with custom water cooling maintenance and have saved several hundreds of bucks. Good thing about AIOs is they're reusable on other gear where as custom full GPU waterblocks aren't in majority of the cases.

If finances are are still an issue, go with the X42 all around or just for your GPU.