Need Help making decisions/changes to WC plan

[papapnoi]

I have had a lot of interest in water cooling over the years but have been holding off until my current computer is about to go. Well the time is now, instead of it about to go, it went. The mobo died and i decided to finally go about building a new rig with WC.

So I have been reading a lot about water cool lately and have done a lot of research. I have planned and planned and planned and replanned.

I have come up with two setups for my upcoming rig. At the end I have questions that need to be answered to help me better prepare for the upcoming build.



Computer Components Used for Both Setups:
Case/PSU:
- Antec Twelve Hundred Black Steel ATX Full Tower
- CORSAIR CMPSU-750TX 750W

Mobo:
- ASUS M3A79-T Deluxe

CPU:
- AMD Phenom II X4 940

Memory:
- Kingston HyperX 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066

HD:
- Western Digital Caviar Green WD10EADS 1TB 32MB

Vid Cards:
- HIS Hightech H487FT512P Radeon HD 4870 512MB (for crossfire)
- HIS Hightech H487FT512P Radeon HD 4870 512MB (for crossfire)

DVD Drive:
- LG 22X DVD±R DVD Burner Black SATA Model GH22NS30

Fan Controllers:
- Scythe KM02-BK 5.25" Bay Fan Controller
- AeroCool PowerWatch-BK Multifunction Panel

Case Fans:
- Antec TriCool Blue LED FAN



WC Components Used:
Pump:
Swiftech MCP655

Radiators:
Danger Den Black Ice GTX Xtreme 360 Radiator (Setup #2)

Danger Den Black Ice GTX Xtreme 240 Radiator (Setup #1)
Danger Den Black Ice GTX Xtreme 120 Radiator (Setup #1)

Rad Fans:
Antec TriCool Blue LED FAN

Reservoir:
XSPC Dual 5.25" Bay Reservoir - Black

CPU Block:
Koolance CPU-350 AT Acetal Liquid Cooling CPU Block

VGA Blocks:
Koolance VID-487 (Radeon HD 4870) VGA Full Card Water Block

NB Block:
Koolance CHC-122 (MB) Liquid Cooling Chipset Block

SB Block:
Koolance CHC-125 (MB) Angled Liquid Cooling Chipset Block

Mosfet (Thermal Regulator) Block:
Koolance MVR-40 Motherboard Voltage Regulator Block

Mosfet (Thermal Regulator Plate:
Koolance MVR Heat Transfer Plate 107.5mm (MVR-PLT1075)

Memory Block:
Koolance RAM-35 Single Memory Liquid Cooler

Hard Drive Block:
Koolance HD-60 Hard Drive Liquid Cooling Block

Tubing:
Feser Tube Active UV Hose - 1/2" ID (3/4"OD) Anti-Kink Tubing - Clear / UV Blue

Thermal Sensors:
Bitspower G 1/4" Temperature Sensor Stop Fitting

T-Lines connectors for sensors:
Bitspower G1/4" Crystal T Block - 180 Degree

Cooling Fluid:
Feser One Non Conductive Cooling Fluid - 1000 ml - UV Blue (F1-0001)

Fittings:
Bitspower FrozenCPU Chrome G1/4" Barb Fitting - 1/4" ID

Clamps:
Herbie Clip® Nylon Hose Clamp Size H - Blue



Setup #1 - Two Radiators
All the components above are being used with the exception of the Danger Den Black Ice GTX Xtreme 360 Radiator, which will be used in setup two.

I have made two diagrams for setup #1. This setup uses two radiators rather than one. It uses the Danger Den Black Ice GTX Xtreme 240 Radiator and Danger Den Black Ice GTX Xtreme 120 Radiator. I have also been going back and forth on possibly adding another pump and maybe another reservoir (EK Waterblocks EK-Multioption RES 100 rev.2??) since my loop is pretty big. The case fans, PSC, and rad fans all have arrows in the direction the air is flowing in and out of the case.

Each little square on the diagram represents 1/5". I got most of the measurements for the computer components from specs I Pulled off of the web. The actual size and fit should be pretty accurate, give or take a few millimeters. I also inspected and measured the Antec Twelve Hundred Case at a local computer store so that I wouldn't have to estimate certain things about the case that can't be measured by specs.

On the other hand, I could not find a definitive measurement for the Video cards. I see the Width and Height pretty much stay the same throughout the web, but the length, which IMO is the most important peice of info for my setup, fluctuated between 7" and 9.1" for the model number I have. My diagrams show 7" video cards. I am afraid that if it is 9" in length it might not allow me to water cool my SB, therefore nulling the need to purchase any Mosfets, NB, SB blocks since the MOBO has one big heatsink for all three.

Diagrams for Setup #1:
Case Setup with Radiators before the rest of the WCS is added.
Case Setup with WC Components.
Side Panel Setup




Setup #2 - One Radiator
All the components above are being used with the exception of the Danger Den Black Ice GTX Xtreme 240 Radiator and Danger Den Black Ice GTX Xtreme 120 Radiator, which were used in Setup #1.

I have also made two diagrams for Setup #2. This setup uses one bigger radiator for the whole loop. It uses Danger Den Black Ice GTX Xtreme 360 Radiator. I like this setup a lot but am unsure how well the loop will do in keeping the cooling fluid cool throughout the loop. This is the reason why I came up with setup #1.

Diagrams for Setup #2:
Case Setup with Radiators before the rest of the WCS is added.
Case Setup with WC Components.
Side Panel Setup


Conclusion:
Those are my two setups that I beleive would best fit my needs after all my research. However, like I said earlier, this is my first watercooled system and no matter the amount of reading I do on the web, experience beats it.

Questions:
- Will my video card cover the SB of my mobo making it not WCable?
- Should I change my flow?
- Should I change out any of my WC parts or components?
- Should I use two pumps? Two reservoirs?
- Is my setup good?
- Should I change my air flow?
- Where should I get my parts?

Anybit of advice would help and I really do appreciate all the things this forum provides. Thanks in advance for all your help, and hopefully I can get this thing up in a few months.

~papapnoi~

 

[Rickpatbrown]

You should reconsider cooling all thoose "extra" components. The NB, SB, voltage reg and memory don't benefit much from the extreme cooling ability of water. Especially since this is your first WC build, you should keep it simple. CPU and GPU's. Watercooling crossfired cards is kind of difficult as it is. Every connection is a possible leak point. Most likely, you will have a leak when you first assemble.

Also, cooling all the other stuff adds restriction to the loop and decreases cooling performance on the components that really do benefit.

I would stick with one radiator if you can. It is easier and will be less restrictive.

I have to say that you have provided way more information than most guys asking for advice. Good job.

 

[papapnoi]

.... I have to say that you have provided way more information than most guys asking for advice. Good job.

I like putting it all on the table rather than going back and forth with questions and answers. thanks for the advice. I'll take it into consideration.

~papa

 

[Spawn-Inc]

as said no need to cool hard drives, memory, mosfets, and south bridge. the north bridge can be cooled if your going to be pushing your overclock and your stock cooling is bad.


i wouldn't go with koolance stuff(overpriced low end stuff), swiftech, dtek, ek, DD makes better blocks.

those rads you picked out need high speed fans for proper cooling. go with thermochill, feser for low speed fans. and swiftech for medium speed.

otherwise it looks good.

 

[papapnoi]

as said no need to cool hard drives, memory, mosfets, and south bridge. the north bridge can be cooled if your going to be pushing your overclock and your stock cooling is bad.


i wouldn't go with koolance stuff(overpriced low end stuff), swiftech, dtek, ek, DD makes better blocks.

those rads you picked out need high speed fans for proper cooling. go with thermochill, feser for low speed fans. and swiftech for medium speed.

otherwise it looks good.

I have the antec tri cools....that run up to 200 rpm...is that fast enough?

 

[exe163]

You are putting too much work on the pump, having all the extra item will decrease your performance significantly. If you really want to cool the rest of the board and HDD go with 2nd loop. Maybe get a small footprint bay res pump combo and run it with 3/8". Otherwise GPU and CPU alone already made the loop highly restrictive.

 

[Spawn-Inc]

I have the antec tri cools....that run up to 200 rpm...is that fast enough?

what cfm are they? also you need good static pressure from them, which i'm not sure of what is good for the rad. cfm wise i think at least 80.