Need a Recommendation on a H2O setup for Dual NV6800 GT's (SLI) and an AMD FX-55

[Josh_Hayes]

System Components:

Lian-Li PC7077B full-tower case
OCZ Powerstream 520watt power supply
Asus A8N-SLI Socket-939 motherboard
AMD Athlon FX-55 CPU
1GB OCZ PC3200 Platinum Rev2 memory
2 BFG Nvidia 6800 GT PCI-E graphics cards
SoundBlaster Audigy 2 sound card
Western Digital 74GB Raptor hard drive
Plextor Premium CD-RW drive

(Newegg.com)

This case features one 120mm exhaust port on the back and one 120mm intake port on the front.

I am planning on using the back port for one of the radiators and I plan on drilling another port on the top of the case for the other.

My Plan:

Two independent loops, one for CPU and Chipset and one for both GPU's.

The pumps will be hung upside-down from the roof of the case (Is this okay for the pumps?). There will be a T-line up at the top between the pumps and radiators leading to a Fillport in the top of the case. Fans will be attached to the radiators using 1" shrouds and will be pulling air through the radiators and exhausting it outside. I will eventually add fans to the inner-side of the radiators once I can find another source for Globe fans. I will be using 1/2" ID tubing throughout.

Watercooling Components:

Danger Den TDX CPU block - brass top - #4 nozzle	$  61.94
Danger Den Maze4 GPU block - brass top (2)		$ 102.90
Danger Den Maze4 Chipset block - brass top		$  38.50
AquaXtreme 50Z-DC12-T pump (2)				$ 178.30
Black Ice Pro radiator and shroud (2)			$  99.00
Danger Den fillport for T-line (2)			$  23.90
Polypropylene T-connector (2)				$   2.00
HydrX coolant (2)					$   6.58
30 black plastic tubing clamps				$  15.00
10 feet of Tygon R3603 1/2" ID - 11/16" OD tubing	$  20.50
Total before shipping					$ 548.62

I plan on running two independent loops in the following configuration:

Loop 1

+<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<+
|                                      |
|   Res    Pump   Rad    CPU    Chps   |
|   +--+   +--+   +--+   +--+   +--+   |
+>>>=  =>>>=  =>>>=  =>>>=  =>>>=  =>>>+
    +--+   +--+   +--+   +--+   +--+


Loop 2

    +--+   +--+   +--+   +--+   +--+
+>>>=  =>>>=  =>>>=  =>>>=  =>>>=  =>>>+
|   +--+   +--+   +--+   +--+   +--+   |
|   Res    Pump   Rad    GPU1   GPU2   |
|                                      |
+<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<+

This will be my first attempt at watercooling. Please let me know if there are any changes I need to make as I want to make sure I do it right the first time. Also let me know if I've forgotten anything.

Thanks for the help!

-Josh

 

[Sneaky]

black ice pro... nuh-uh! get atleast a black ice extreme (thicker version of pro - dissipates twice the heat)

and the dual 6800's - they dump ALOT - i mean ungodly amounts of heat into the loop - one BIX will NOT handle the heat load that these will put out

for the cards, i'd suggest mounting a black ice extreme II in the floor of your case, as it is raised off of the floor - and for the dual GPU blocks - get the acetal low-profile version of the Maze4 - its much lighter than having a chunk of brass on your card, plus its designed for the SLI boards, so you don't have the water block resing on top of the card below, and it provides equal performance, as it uses the exact same base as the normal maze4 blocks

then for the CPU & chipset, i'd suggest mounting a second BIX II in the top of your case


and don't even bother with a resivoir... or in your case, two of them - use a t-line - it'll be alot more compact, and use alot less tubing in a setup such as yours

plus a res does nothing but take the velocity of the water from X to zero, creating more work for the pump, decreasing the overall flowrate of the loop in the longrun (res restricts flow)


i'd also suggest using 1/2" barbs/fittings and 1/2" ID x 3/4" OD (1/8" wall) tubing for your setup - and use clearflex60 - its MUCH cheaper than tygon in large volumes (89cents/foot @ jab-tech.com for 10+ feet), and has a bend-radius, and anti-kink properties near that of tygon, and with the larger ID, flowrate through the loop(s) will be much greater


and the pumps - the DDC's are great pumps, and have a great amount of friction head, but lacks in the flowrate - because of this, i'd suggest a Laing D4/MCP650 - they're still very small pumps, they run on 12v DC, and they have 1/2" fittings (less restrictive), they have a slightly lower friction head, but that is compensated for by the flowrate that they provide - just over 300gpm


please read my post below for important PSU information

 

[Sucka]

Wow, someone hit the lottery or something, nice setup, i'm very jeleous

Why not DFI though, all the rage.

 

[Sneaky]

yah... the DFI boards > all other SLI boards


edit: and only one hard drive for that insane system... get out of here!

use the raptor for games and the OS, and then get a 200gb 7.2k drive for storage



and the PSU - i highly recommend the PC Power & Cooling 510 SLI power supply - that OCZ 520 is going to take a big, warm s**t on you when you try to power A FX-55, 2 6800GT's, a 10k Raptor, 2 pumps, and everything else


when you look at the wattage, it seems like nothing, right? well, wrong. its the best PSU in the industry for SLI cards - it has a peak power output of 650w - the 510w rating is measured at the industrial standard for power supplies - 50ºC

it also has monstrous amperage ratings for every single voltage rail, and the tolerances on these rails - 1% tolerance - thats a +/- .01v tolerance - you won't find that anywhere else - and the voltage rails are adjustable - allowing you to fine-tune your voltages

check out the brochure for the PSU here: http://www.pcpowerandcooling.com/pdf/510-SLI.pdf

 

[Josh_Hayes]

1. black ice pro... nuh-uh!

2. One BIX will NOT handle the heat load that these will put out.

3. I'd suggest a Laing D4/MCP650

1. I have quiet, low-flow 120mm Globe fans (67CFM's @ 34dBA) and the Black Ice Extreme is not designed for low-flow.

In fact, the BIP beat the performance of the BIX in the OC Review with the fans he was using.

2. Do you have any data to back this up? Xbit Labs did a reivew of the Swiftech which uses a single BIP and it was able to handle over 250watts of heat keeping the die temp at 54*C! Link

3. Agreed, the D4 Pump is a very high-performance pump as is 1/2" tubing. However, I am under the impression that that the D4 is loud and noise is of primary concern to me (providing performance is decent).

Thanks for the suggestions! Keep em coming!

 

[Josh_Hayes]

Nice setup, i'm very jeleous

Why not DFI though?

Thanks!

The DFI wasn't out when I purchased my parts... I even paid $275 for this board!

 

[Josh_Hayes]

Only one hard drive for that insane system...

That OCZ 520 is going to take a big, warm s**t on you when you try to power A FX-55, 2 6800GT's, a 10k Raptor, 2 pumps, and everything else.

I had a 250GB Hitachi 7K250 but never used much of the space...

I've been running fine for two weeks without issue. The Powerstream PSU is on par with the PCP&C in my book. I have their Silencer 400 model but wasn't impressed.

PCP&C		OCZ
+5V @ 40A	+5V @ 40A
+12V @ 34A/38A	+12V @ 33A
-5V @ 0.3A	-5V @ 0.5A
-12V @ 2A	-12V @ 5A
+3.3V @ 30A	+3.3V @ 28A
+5VSB @ 3A	+5VSB @ 2A
power=510W	power=520W
pk. power=650W	pk. power=620W
34 - 44dB(A)	<32dB(A)
Price $239	Price $140
5 Yr warranty	5 Yr warranty

 

[Sneaky]

2. Do you have any data to back this up? Xbit Labs did a reivew of the Swiftech which uses a single BIP and it was able to handle over 250watts of heat keeping the water temp at 54*C! Link

3. Agreed, the D4 Pump is a very high-performance pump as is 1/2" tubing. However, I am under the impression that that the D4 is loud and noise is of primary concern to me (providing performance is decent).

Thanks for the suggestions! Keep em coming!

the D4 is loud in some peoples perspectives, as it has a slight humming/buzzing sound - but with normal case fans running, that sound is almost inaudible - it just blends in with the fans (Laing rates pump @ 35dba) - otherwise check out the MCP600/AquaExtreme 50x for a quieter pump with similar performance

and if you put the fans to suck air through the radiator, you'll be fine with the BIX - you can find fans with a much better noise to air flow ratio, the Delta WFB1212M being first to mind - 96.41 CFM @ 38dba - and throw them down to 7v, and you have a much better fan, especially because of the air pressure that it creates at any voltage - as it is a 120x38mm fan

i still would never trust a FX-55 and 2 6800's with a BIP... never - atleast get BIP II's if you're that worried about airflow through them

and its been shown that a heat load simulator to test water blocks and HSF's, cant be used to simulate real-life performance - it is mainly used as a standard when testing multiple water blocks (as in the OCF waterblock lineup), as CPU performance is not always constant

 

[Sucka]

Gonna agree on the PCP&C thing, overall a much better PSU. I've tested both mine, and had better results with the PCP&C (using DMM obviously ). That isn't to say the OCZ isn't a great PSU, but the PCP&C just can't be beat. I've got mine running my system, prometia, and water setup....rails are rock solid still. Money well spent, esspecially at the level you're taking it.

 

[Josh_Hayes]

1. Check out the MCP600/AquaExtreme 50x for a quieter pump with similar performance

2. I still would never trust a FX-55 and 2 6800's with a BIP...

1. I've been looking, but haven't found these for sale online anywhere. Did swiftech take them off the market because of a reliability problem? Do you know where I might buy one here in the US for a resonable price?

2. Remember there will be two separate loops... One for CPU and Chipset, and another for the GPU's.

 

[Sneaky]

www.cooltechnica.com - aquaextreme 50z = MCP600

yes, i know, but the 6800's dump ungodly amounts of heat into the water, and in real life situations with a BIP, they would still be damned hot, and the same with th FX-55 (less heat, but same situation)




and the PC P&C is overall a much more stable PSU, PC Power & Cooling is basically the undisputed god of power supplies - you can't beat them

the Active PFC on the PC P&C is another reason why i suggested it - constant voltage conditioning - 1% voltage tolerances, it wins, period.

 

[Josh_Hayes]

www.cooltechnica.com - aquaextreme 50z = MCP600

They dont have them in stock...

I do see some 50z-DC12's are they the same thing?

 

[Sneaky]

thats what i was referring to

 

[Josh_Hayes]

thats what i was referring to

Woot!! You've just made my day! Back to the drawing board and 1/2" tubing...

 

[Sneaky]

just make sure you get the 1/8" walled stuff, the 1/16" wall sucks - kinks easier than hardware store vinyl tubing

 

[Josh_Hayes]

Okay, I've updated everything. Let me know what you think. Sneaky, thank you for the info on that pump!

I have an older thread with pics of my system in my old case here.

 

[Sneaky]

you know, if you mounted the VGA radiator in the floor of the case, you would use ALOT less tubing than running it all the way to the top of the case


and PLEASE use atleast a BIP II... just my suggestion, theres a reason why most members here run a dual HC or dual Rad of sorts

and note that the BIP test was done with a 75cfm fan, yours are 67cfm

 

[Josh_Hayes]

Note that the BIP test was done with a 75cfm fan, yours are 67cfm

As per the graph, I see that he tested a range of CFM's from 30-60. Am I reading this incorrectly? And I am inferring from the graph that I will get better performance than is shown there as I have higher CFM's than the graph is displaying.

From the article here.
"For this test, the fan used was a Delta 120 mm fans (WFB1212HH, 0.68 amp, 2800 rpm @ 95 cfm); I varied voltages to attain the cfms tested - users considering a different fan can match their fan's rpms to those tested for a close approximation of expected performance. Users concerned with noise can infer what performance might be using the rpm curves below."

Flows 30 CFM 45 CFM 61 CFM
BTU/Hr @ 0.5 gpm - 0.09 psi 464 595 635
BTU/Hr @ 1.0 gpm - 0.26 psi 577 721 793
BTU/Hr @ 1.5 gpm - 0.53 psi 622 757 852

Black Ice Extreme review here for comparrison.

 

[Sneaky]

i just browsed through the pages - and on one of the first few pages i saw something about the supplied fan putting out 75cfm or something

ignore me now

 

[Josh_Hayes]

**Hopefully Final Selections**

My case : Lian-Li PC-7077B

My plan:

Watercooling Components:

Swiftech [URL=http://www.sidewindercomputers.com/swmcforamk8a.html]MCW6002[/URL] CPU Waterblock
2 x Danger Den [URL=http://www.dangerdenstore.com/product.php?productid=153&cat=48&page=1]Maze4[/URL] GPU Waterblocks with Brass tops
Danger Den [URL=http://www.dangerdenstore.com/product.php?productid=157&cat=46&page=1]Maze4[/URL] Chipset Waterblock with Brass top
2 x D-Tek [URL=http://www.dtekcustoms.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=103]Pro-120[/URL] HeaterCore with Shroud
2 x Fan [URL=http://www.dtekcustoms.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=117]Shrouds[/URL] for read of Heatercore
2 x [URL=http://www.dangerdenstore.com/product.php?productid=66&cat=34&page=1]Y-Connectors[/URL] for GPU loop
2 x 5 1/4" Bay [URL=http://www.dangerdenstore.com/product.php?productid=51&cat=6&page=1]Reservoir[/URL] 
2 x AquaXtreme 50Z-DC12-T [URL=http://www.cooltechnica.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Product_Code=AQX-50Z-DC12-T-Barbs&Category_Code=DC-Pump]Pumps[/URL] 
30 black plastic tubing [URL=http://www.cooltechnica.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Product_Code=APHC&Category_Code=TAF]Clamps[/URL] 
15 feet of Tygon R3603 1/2" ID - 11/16" OD Tubing
2 x 2oz Bottles of [URL=http://www.sidewindercomputers.com/hyexduco.html]HydrX[/URL] Additive

Questions:

1. Are brass tops recommend over Acetal ones? Why?

2. Will 15 feet of tubing be sufficient for my setup?

3. Will 2 x 2oz bottles of HydrX be enough for two loops?

4. Am I missing anything?

5. Can you see any problems with my final selections?