Finished my Sandy + 6950 Xfire Watercooled build

[Codeman05]

After building watercooled systems from 2002 through 2009, I took a couple of years off and was pure air cooling only. I began experimenting with the corsair kits, H70 and H100, over the last 6 months and decided (with some inspiration from OCF) that I was finally ready to delve back into custom watercooling.

This is my first attempt in some time, I did things a little different this time.
I didn't use full cover blocks on the GPUs (I swap cards so often, universal was a must), and I went with a fairly unconventional W/C case from what I can tell.

The specs:
Case: Silverstone Raven RV-02
Radiator: Swiftech MCR320-XP 3x120mm Slim Radiator
Pump: Swiftech MCP655-B 12v
Reservoir: Alphacool 1x5.25" Acetal (Black)
CPU Block: EK Supreme HF Universal - Electroless Nickel Plated
GPU Blocks: EK VGA Supreme HF Universal - Electroless Nickel Plated
Tubing: 1/2" ID DD Dreamflex
GPU Heat sinks: Assorted Enzotech copper sinks
Fans: 2x Silverstone 180mm (AP181), 3x 120mm Aerocool Shark (Red)

Computer Specs in Sig

Not the wildest build in the world, but I'm rather pleased with it. It came out looking rather clean and is dead silent, and a sizeable improvement over the H100 I had previously.
I'm currently working on stabilizing my 2500k @ 5GHz, looks like it should be doable and temps are still excellent. My GPUs run colder at load now than they idled under air

The RV02 case was interesting to work with. I read a number of negative comments on it regarding W/C, but I love the novelty of the rotated mobo. In the end, it worked out better than I could have hoped. I had to get creative with the drives, but I did still manage to squeeze in a SSD and 4x HDDs.

Here are a few pictures.

The goods!

Mounting the radiator in the case

CPU Block mounted

GPU block mounted on one 6950, next to the stock card/cooler

Mobo and GPUs in the case

Leak Testing

Front view w/ the case panels removed. You can see the res,bump, and the second GPU block

Side view, sans 120mm fans and gpu heatsinks

Close up...I love these blocks...

Closeup of the CPU block...will swap the hoseclamps out to match

All lit up...sans UV...sorry for blur

UV on...looks better in person, hard for me to photo

 

[manu2b]

Neat. I love the red!
Is the rad sufficient for the cpu+gpu xfire?

 

[Codeman05]

So far so good...surprisingly good actually...
That was my primary concern, particularly once I realized I probably could have gone with a thicker core.

However, after 3 hours of straight BF3 gaming with everything cranked, my max CPU (4.8GHz) temp recorded was ~56C and my max GPU temp on either card was 44C (~23C ambient).

I've since 7v modded all of the fans...and temps have hardly changed and the rig is utterly quiet...pretty wild

 

[ssjwizard]

Interesting implementation of the AP181s, Ive got a pair that I ran on a MoRa3 for a while.

 

[trueplaya4ever8]

Wow, I'm pretty sure I'm going to invest in some water very soon. Looks good, what did you put on the ram on the Gpu?

 

[Codeman05]

Thanks!

I used Enzotech copper heatsinks on the ram and any other "hot spots" I found.
A combination of these 3 styles did the job well:
http://www.frozencpu.com/products/7191/vid-106/Enzotech_BCC9_Memory_Ramsinks_-_8_Pack_BMR-C1L.html
http://www.frozencpu.com/products/5...atsink_Multipack_-_ATI_and_nVidia_BMR-C1.html
http://www.frozencpu.com/products/7190/vid-105/Enzotech_MOS-C1_MOSFET_Heatsinks_-_10_Pack.html

 

[trueplaya4ever8]

Thanks!

I used Enzotech copper heatsinks on the ram and any other "hot spots" I found.
A combination of these 3 styles did the job well:
http://www.frozencpu.com/products/7191/vid-106/Enzotech_BCC9_Memory_Ramsinks_-_8_Pack_BMR-C1L.html
http://www.frozencpu.com/products/5...atsink_Multipack_-_ATI_and_nVidia_BMR-C1.html
http://www.frozencpu.com/products/7190/vid-105/Enzotech_MOS-C1_MOSFET_Heatsinks_-_10_Pack.html

Sweet, you have inspired me to look into getting a setup started! I wanna paint the inside of my Stacker 830 black first!

 

[Codeman05]

Awesome, looking forward to seeing it!

 

[neonblingbling]

Very clean build. Looks like one could fit a 120.4 rad in there...

I have not been really following SB temps, but I am impressed that the temps are that low with just one 120.3 rad. Do you remember the CPU temps with a H100?

 

[Codeman05]

Very clean build. Looks like one could fit a 120.4 rad in there...

I believe so and with fairly little trimming. The challenging part would be relocating the pump, however this may be something I look into the next time I get bored on a weekend lol.

I have not been really following SB temps, but I am impressed that the temps are that low with just one 120.3 rad. Do you remember the CPU temps with a H100?

I believe my ambients may have been a little lower than I measured in my first post, though my temps are still looking rather good.

It warmed up this week, I'd say it was around 72-75 in my office briefly, but gaming (BF3) I was still around 62-66C on the CPU and around 45-48C on the GPUs after a couple hours of non-stop action, again with all the fans running at 7v.

On average, I seem to be about 5-10C lower than I was with the H100...that's with my GPUs loaded as well.
If I'm running a CPU only load (Prime, etc...) I seem to be 10-20C lower on average...

The H100 seemed to idle lower, but my load temps are noticably cooler.

 

[neonblingbling]

Wow, amazing how much better a custom loop cools than an all-in-one solution.

 

[derek1387]

How did you 7v mod the fans??? I might be interested in doing that. Good to see that the universal GPU blocks did such a good job... i was worried about them... going to have to pick up af ew now!

 

[Codeman05]

How did you 7v mod the fans??? I might be interested in doing that. Good to see that the universal GPU blocks did such a good job... i was worried about them... going to have to pick up af ew now!

Well it was pretty much done for me.
The 120mm fans came with a 7v adapter cable, and the 180mm fans have a high (12v) and low (7v) controller on the case.

If your not that lucky, you can still easily do it with some spare molex cables.
This is how I used to do it all the time:
http://www.techpowerup.com/articles/other/137

 

[MRDcanadian]

question for you since i did the same. what are you're temps in gpu z for temp sensor 1,2 and 3? i am having weird reading not sure if i didn't sit something correctly or not

 

[I.M.O.G.]

MRDcanadian, this thread is a little older, and its been a couple weeks since Codeman05 was last on the site, so he may not get back to your question too soon.

If you wanted to start your own thread, letting everyone know what components are in your rig, and what sort of temp readings you are getting, I think we could give you some advice.

 

[Codeman05]

question for you since i did the same. what are you're temps in gpu z for temp sensor 1,2 and 3? i am having weird reading not sure if i didn't sit something correctly or not

Unfortunately I cannot remember, I since moved to another rig...can't seem to keep a setup for more than 6-8 months before I try something else

 

[MRDcanadian]

bummer, i am getting weird temps on mine from some of the sensor and do not know there exact location on the pcb. core temp is awesome but the other 3 leave to desire. well thanks anyway man. great built you made there