Watercooling without Peltier - C'mon, Help a Newbie

[ARinard]

I posted this question before, but it was a little unclear and amidst a flurry of other newbie questions, so I didn't get a clear answer.
I just got a pretty quick system -- Tbird 1.2GHz, MSI K7T266Pro MB, 256 mb DDR RAM, 64 mb GeForce2 Pro -- and I'm looking to do some OCing, but the cpu temp crosses 50C even non-OCd in warm weather, even with decent air cooling. Also, with 7 total fans in the case, it's quite loud. So I'm looking towards watercooling. My only question is, is a Peltier really necessary? I know it could take me below ambient, but I'm not looking to store frozen foods in my computer, just let it run stable at 1.5-1.6ghz. If I get a decent water cooling system, would that alone do the job? I heard testimony both ways, but I figured I'd ask the experts.

 

[zoopa_man]

Here's the quick answer.

Watercooling alone will get you down to room temp or just above with the right setup.

With a peltier you will go below room temp but it will take a lot of matiance ( sealing everything form condensation) a lot of power (to run the peltier) and a lot of attention. I'v found peltiers take a lot more work then just water cooling.

 

[dozier768]

ya man a good water cooler is more than sufficeint you really dont need a peltier. unless you become addicted to overclocking. my water cooler keeps me around 35c on a warm day and im not using a peltier my temps used to be around 47c with the stock heatsink and fan now im o/c'd over 200 mhz and my temps are only 35 under load

 

[batboy]

I do not claim to be a water cooling expert, but I have done a bit of research on the subject. Hopefully others will respond to confirm or correct what I'm saying. Unless you're doing extreme overclocking, you probably don't need peltiers with water cooling, assuming you get a radiator that is large enough and efficient to adequately cool the water.

Don't count on water cooling to eliminate your need for extra case fans though, because overclocking will still heat up the motherboard and chipset. Video cards generate lots of heat too. You'll still need to have good case ventilation. Check out the Danger Den website, they sell high quality water cooling parts and systems.

Another way to cut down on fan noise is to replace as many fans as possible with larger fans. I swapped my noisy 60mm Delta CPU fan for a quieter 80mm and my 80mm front case fan with a 92mm unit. Both move as much if not more air and are so much quieter.

 

[William]

batboy is right. A well set up WC rig will get you to just above ambient. Pelts aren't needed unless you are pushing the chip to its limits.

 

[whiskeyinajar]

Make a evaporative cooling system (bong).That will get you below ambient if you do it right and its cheaper. Just make sure to get a good water block.