Hey all,
I'm going to build my first water-cooled system, and I was hoping you all could give me some advice on the parts I've picked out. I've read guides and tutorials on how to set up a water-cooled PC, but since I've never done it before, I don't know if the parts I picked out will work well together or if any of them are unnecessary, too powerful, or not powerful enough.
Here are the PC components:
Motherboard – Gigabyte GA-EP45T-DS3R, P45
CPU – Intel Core 2 Quad 9550, 2.83GHz
RAM – OCZ Flex XLC 2x 1GB sticks, DDR3 1600 (PC3-12800)
GPU – ASUS EAH4870 Radeon HD 4870, 1GB memory, 256-bit, PCI-E 2.0
PSU – OCZ 500 Watt OR OCZ 600 Watt
Case – Something spacious, cuttable, and <= $120 (any recommendations?)
Here are the water cooling components:
Pump – Swiftech MCP655, 317gph
Radiator – Swiftech MCR320-QP (3x120mm fans), with 2x Swiftech High Flow ¼ BSPP to 1/2inch ID Barbs
Reservoir – Swiftech MCRES Hi-Flo (SSF), ½”
Tubing – ½” Blue UV Feser One
Coolant – Feser One UV Blue F1
CPU Waterblock – Danger Den MC-TDX for Intel 775
GPU Block – Swiftech MCW60-4870
I'm going to be overclocking the CPU, GPU, and RAM (for tighter timings). The reason I'm going with water cooling is so that my PC will run quieter and cooler, and because it'd be fun to build and awesome to own.
I'm not sure which PSU to get, since I don't know if my machine will need 500W or 600W - does anyone know? It seems like 600W might be overkill.
Also I haven't decided whether to get a waterblock for my northbridge or not. I've read that they can constrict the flow of your loop, but then again my pump will be cranking out 300+ gallons/hr, though my loop is pretty big since it includes my RAM. Should I get a waterblock for my northbridge? And if so, which ones are reliable and not too expensive?
I'm going to have a fan in the front of the case (something very quiet and not very strong) that will suck air in to blow on my hard drive. Should I also put a fan on the rear of the case just below the PSU to suck air out? Or should I just rely on my radiator's airflow to take care of that? I haven't figured out how to set up my fans yet.
I haven't picked out a case yet, though I'm expecting to be cutting holes in the one I end up buying. I think I'm going to put the pump in the bottom of the case, the radiator in the top of the case (with holes cut in the top, along with a hole cut for the PSU unless the case has a top fan), and the reservoir might go in the top as well.
I think my loop order will be:
Pump -> CPU -> GPU -> RAM -> (northbridge?) ->Radiator -> Reservior
Also, is it possible to hook the pump into the PSU, or somehow tie its power switch into the one on the PSU, so it turns off when the PSU's power is cut? I have little to no experience working with the specifics of power supplies and wire voltages, so that one might be out of my league.
How many feet of tubing should I get? 8?
Should I use some sort of sealant along with metal clamps to hold my tubes on their barbs, or are the metal clamps sufficient on their own?
And does anyone know of a good temperature gauge that I could drop in disk drive spot in the case?
Sorry to ask so many questions at once! I would greatly appreciate any help anyone can offer.
Thanks!
I'm going to build my first water-cooled system, and I was hoping you all could give me some advice on the parts I've picked out. I've read guides and tutorials on how to set up a water-cooled PC, but since I've never done it before, I don't know if the parts I picked out will work well together or if any of them are unnecessary, too powerful, or not powerful enough.
Here are the PC components:
Motherboard – Gigabyte GA-EP45T-DS3R, P45
CPU – Intel Core 2 Quad 9550, 2.83GHz
RAM – OCZ Flex XLC 2x 1GB sticks, DDR3 1600 (PC3-12800)
GPU – ASUS EAH4870 Radeon HD 4870, 1GB memory, 256-bit, PCI-E 2.0
PSU – OCZ 500 Watt OR OCZ 600 Watt
Case – Something spacious, cuttable, and <= $120 (any recommendations?)
Here are the water cooling components:
Pump – Swiftech MCP655, 317gph
Radiator – Swiftech MCR320-QP (3x120mm fans), with 2x Swiftech High Flow ¼ BSPP to 1/2inch ID Barbs
Reservoir – Swiftech MCRES Hi-Flo (SSF), ½”
Tubing – ½” Blue UV Feser One
Coolant – Feser One UV Blue F1
CPU Waterblock – Danger Den MC-TDX for Intel 775
GPU Block – Swiftech MCW60-4870
I'm going to be overclocking the CPU, GPU, and RAM (for tighter timings). The reason I'm going with water cooling is so that my PC will run quieter and cooler, and because it'd be fun to build and awesome to own.
I'm not sure which PSU to get, since I don't know if my machine will need 500W or 600W - does anyone know? It seems like 600W might be overkill.
Also I haven't decided whether to get a waterblock for my northbridge or not. I've read that they can constrict the flow of your loop, but then again my pump will be cranking out 300+ gallons/hr, though my loop is pretty big since it includes my RAM. Should I get a waterblock for my northbridge? And if so, which ones are reliable and not too expensive?
I'm going to have a fan in the front of the case (something very quiet and not very strong) that will suck air in to blow on my hard drive. Should I also put a fan on the rear of the case just below the PSU to suck air out? Or should I just rely on my radiator's airflow to take care of that? I haven't figured out how to set up my fans yet.
I haven't picked out a case yet, though I'm expecting to be cutting holes in the one I end up buying. I think I'm going to put the pump in the bottom of the case, the radiator in the top of the case (with holes cut in the top, along with a hole cut for the PSU unless the case has a top fan), and the reservoir might go in the top as well.
I think my loop order will be:
Pump -> CPU -> GPU -> RAM -> (northbridge?) ->Radiator -> Reservior
Also, is it possible to hook the pump into the PSU, or somehow tie its power switch into the one on the PSU, so it turns off when the PSU's power is cut? I have little to no experience working with the specifics of power supplies and wire voltages, so that one might be out of my league.
How many feet of tubing should I get? 8?
Should I use some sort of sealant along with metal clamps to hold my tubes on their barbs, or are the metal clamps sufficient on their own?
And does anyone know of a good temperature gauge that I could drop in disk drive spot in the case?
Sorry to ask so many questions at once! I would greatly appreciate any help anyone can offer.
Thanks!
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