- Joined
- Mar 18, 2014
Advice & Log:Water Cooling a Sabertooth 990fx (rev 1.0) in a Blackhawk mid-ATX
Updated Images Here
Hey guys. So first real thread post right here. I'll get to the chase.
I'm a film maker. I do video editing.. Wait.. I'm sorry, did I say video editing? I meant a LOT of video editing. I don't have the cash for an Intel, so my system is an AMD build. I will say that right now as I know many will tell me I need an intel. I already know that. Next person who tells me that can BUY me my next intel build. ;-)
So here are the specs on my current build.
MB: Asus Sabertooth 990FX (rev 1.0)
Case: Rosewill BLACKHAWK
GPU: EVGA GTX 670 FTW+
CPU: AMD 6core 3.3ghz... Will get the exact specs once I get home to post it for those who want it. I will eventually upgrade to an 8-core 4.0, and that is the reason for this thread. That CPU will need liquid cooling.
RAM: 16GB, going to upgrade to 32 with either g-skill or corsair depending.
OS is booted off a *newly upgraded* 500GB Samsung EVO SSD. Prior to that the system was on a 120gb ssd and everything else was on a 1TB HDD,
now that whole partition was copied onto a WD 4TB 7200RPM Black HDD. So plenty of disk space and speed, easy upgrade while keeping from having to reinstall everything. (thank goodness)
Fact is, I have been running this build for a while. Works great for what I need. I won't be switching to Intel until I can afford my next build, and that will be once there is another "affordable" MB that has the same potential lifespan as the 990fx that i own now. Until then I am going to push this system until It wont do anymore, and run it until technology moves to the point where I must upgrade again. (Or until i have the $$$ )
So here is the important part. I am upgrading to liquid cooling for a few reasons. One is to OC this baby to improve my render times. For now I am doing CPU only, but eventually I will also add my GPU to the mix. The other reason is to cleanup my system's internals. I hate how my system is currently setup. I will upload some pictures for you to cringe at in the attachments.
The third reason (and maybe one of the biggest) is because I have always wanted to do a liquid cooling setup. I see those awesome cases online and I start to make a puddle of drool on my desk.
With constant render's that go on for hours it always makes me a little nervous to have my CPU running at 99% at night while I sleep. Never had a heating issue before, but I don't want to start now. So I finally decided the other day to go ahead and build it. I will say more about what I chose to get in a minute.
First, here is a list of things I know I need to do.
1. Clean my room. ;-)
2. Take everything out of my machine and clean it. Dust has collected for a while and it shows.
3. Redo my cable management. Sadly The PSU I am running does not have modular connections (it has been in 3 different builds and worked amazingly. its like a 850W unit, so plenty of power for what I am running right now.) Eventually I will get a new PSU, but for now this one is what I am stuck with.
4. Mount the new LC hardware and add my lighting to the case.
My biggest problem at the moment (besides #1) is #2 and 3. Firstly I have no idea what the best option is to get rid of the dust to make my system look all new and fresh.
Dust has been coated on there for a bit, and I want to get it off and keep it off. Any suggestions there would be greatly appreciated as well as anything else anyone wants to add. Anyone with experience in cable management in this small mid-size ATX case who wants to help me out would be appreciated as well.
Alright finally I will say what parts are already on the way. (These parts should be enough to do the initial liquid cooling setup, at least for a trial run.)
From the reading I have done, the best option that didn't seem too overwhelming was to get the XSPC Raystorm 750 EX240 Universal CPU Water Cooling Kit everyone said that the block is one of the best out there. For a single loop cooling setup I heard that the res that comes with it is perfectly fine for what I need, and the kit comes with all the parts to get it setup. So in a moment of ecstasy i bought it with the following modifications:
Cable Sleeve Color: Red UV Reactive
Heatshrink Color: Red
Tubing Color: XSPC High Flex 7/16 x 5/8 - UV Red/Orange (which is semi-transparent)
These are all things I am happy with, as my final mod is planned to be red themed. Yes I know, the LED's that come with it are blue. I am planning on doing a blue/red setup. I also bought the RED led's that fit in the CPU block just in case i really hate the blue. ;-)
Here is where things start to get really dumb. I should have posted here before i clicked that buy button. I read some more and was told that the pre-mixed/dye solutions not only aren't as good as distilled, they also can clog up the system. But did I think about that when I was ordering the set? nope.
So I ended up buying the EK Ekoolant - 1L Blood Red solution. I feel dumb for that, but its done now. We will see what becomes of it. For now, I am stuck with it and with almost no more cash to buy anything else. I will make do for now unless anyone has a decent solution buy the time my parts get here.
I also got some lighting parts. I got a Logisys 12" Inverterless True-Color CCFL Light Bar (in red) and got the rocker switch setup with it as well. I probably could have rigged something up from parts at radioshack, but yeah... hindsight is always 20-20. -.-
So, what do you guys think? My main concern is that the rad won't fit inside the top of my case, but I am not sure as I have never done this before. Any suggestions/tips you guys can come up with would be greatly appreciated. Hopefully I didn't do anything too stupid.
I will update this thread as the build continues.
I await the flood of responses.
Thanks for your guys's tips and support in advance.
- Alexander G. Swensen
Updated Images Here
Hey guys. So first real thread post right here. I'll get to the chase.
I'm a film maker. I do video editing.. Wait.. I'm sorry, did I say video editing? I meant a LOT of video editing. I don't have the cash for an Intel, so my system is an AMD build. I will say that right now as I know many will tell me I need an intel. I already know that. Next person who tells me that can BUY me my next intel build. ;-)
So here are the specs on my current build.
MB: Asus Sabertooth 990FX (rev 1.0)
Case: Rosewill BLACKHAWK
GPU: EVGA GTX 670 FTW+
CPU: AMD 6core 3.3ghz... Will get the exact specs once I get home to post it for those who want it. I will eventually upgrade to an 8-core 4.0, and that is the reason for this thread. That CPU will need liquid cooling.
RAM: 16GB, going to upgrade to 32 with either g-skill or corsair depending.
OS is booted off a *newly upgraded* 500GB Samsung EVO SSD. Prior to that the system was on a 120gb ssd and everything else was on a 1TB HDD,
now that whole partition was copied onto a WD 4TB 7200RPM Black HDD. So plenty of disk space and speed, easy upgrade while keeping from having to reinstall everything. (thank goodness)
Fact is, I have been running this build for a while. Works great for what I need. I won't be switching to Intel until I can afford my next build, and that will be once there is another "affordable" MB that has the same potential lifespan as the 990fx that i own now. Until then I am going to push this system until It wont do anymore, and run it until technology moves to the point where I must upgrade again. (Or until i have the $$$ )
So here is the important part. I am upgrading to liquid cooling for a few reasons. One is to OC this baby to improve my render times. For now I am doing CPU only, but eventually I will also add my GPU to the mix. The other reason is to cleanup my system's internals. I hate how my system is currently setup. I will upload some pictures for you to cringe at in the attachments.
The third reason (and maybe one of the biggest) is because I have always wanted to do a liquid cooling setup. I see those awesome cases online and I start to make a puddle of drool on my desk.
With constant render's that go on for hours it always makes me a little nervous to have my CPU running at 99% at night while I sleep. Never had a heating issue before, but I don't want to start now. So I finally decided the other day to go ahead and build it. I will say more about what I chose to get in a minute.
First, here is a list of things I know I need to do.
1. Clean my room. ;-)
2. Take everything out of my machine and clean it. Dust has collected for a while and it shows.
3. Redo my cable management. Sadly The PSU I am running does not have modular connections (it has been in 3 different builds and worked amazingly. its like a 850W unit, so plenty of power for what I am running right now.) Eventually I will get a new PSU, but for now this one is what I am stuck with.
4. Mount the new LC hardware and add my lighting to the case.
My biggest problem at the moment (besides #1) is #2 and 3. Firstly I have no idea what the best option is to get rid of the dust to make my system look all new and fresh.
Dust has been coated on there for a bit, and I want to get it off and keep it off. Any suggestions there would be greatly appreciated as well as anything else anyone wants to add. Anyone with experience in cable management in this small mid-size ATX case who wants to help me out would be appreciated as well.
Alright finally I will say what parts are already on the way. (These parts should be enough to do the initial liquid cooling setup, at least for a trial run.)
From the reading I have done, the best option that didn't seem too overwhelming was to get the XSPC Raystorm 750 EX240 Universal CPU Water Cooling Kit everyone said that the block is one of the best out there. For a single loop cooling setup I heard that the res that comes with it is perfectly fine for what I need, and the kit comes with all the parts to get it setup. So in a moment of ecstasy i bought it with the following modifications:
Cable Sleeve Color: Red UV Reactive
Heatshrink Color: Red
Tubing Color: XSPC High Flex 7/16 x 5/8 - UV Red/Orange (which is semi-transparent)
These are all things I am happy with, as my final mod is planned to be red themed. Yes I know, the LED's that come with it are blue. I am planning on doing a blue/red setup. I also bought the RED led's that fit in the CPU block just in case i really hate the blue. ;-)
Here is where things start to get really dumb. I should have posted here before i clicked that buy button. I read some more and was told that the pre-mixed/dye solutions not only aren't as good as distilled, they also can clog up the system. But did I think about that when I was ordering the set? nope.
So I ended up buying the EK Ekoolant - 1L Blood Red solution. I feel dumb for that, but its done now. We will see what becomes of it. For now, I am stuck with it and with almost no more cash to buy anything else. I will make do for now unless anyone has a decent solution buy the time my parts get here.
I also got some lighting parts. I got a Logisys 12" Inverterless True-Color CCFL Light Bar (in red) and got the rocker switch setup with it as well. I probably could have rigged something up from parts at radioshack, but yeah... hindsight is always 20-20. -.-
So, what do you guys think? My main concern is that the rad won't fit inside the top of my case, but I am not sure as I have never done this before. Any suggestions/tips you guys can come up with would be greatly appreciated. Hopefully I didn't do anything too stupid.
I will update this thread as the build continues.
I await the flood of responses.
Thanks for your guys's tips and support in advance.
- Alexander G. Swensen
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