OK so I'm sold on waterCooling

[JBDan]

Have been doing a lot of research on water cooling. A thanks ahead of time to those who responed to my PM's . I know I can achieve better oc's on my winnie (& possibly my 6800gt) and greatly reduce the temps of both w/ WC'ing. I also believe that DIY is the way to go rather than a complete kit, but I am a novice on WC'ing. It's almost the pure novelty of it that intrigues me more than the "extreme" oc'ing I can achieve. So, the question being, I want to build as silent of a WC system as I can get (reserator1+ is not my style) and get great performance from it. Can ya'll suggest me some components? I have seen them all (I think), but have no experience with them. Just wanting some real world users input. Thanks.
EDIT: Oh and $$ is not an issue.

 

[imported_Kensai]

Storm G5
D5 Pump
1/2" Tygon
Weapon's modded heater core.

 

[NINaudio]

Kensai recommended some very good parts. Storms and the modded heatercores can be hard to find right now.

What case do you have? How much room do you have? Are you averse to modding the case for a radiator?

The D5 is a great pump, the DDC is also quite good (and makes almost no noise), a bit smaller, so if space is an issue it might work better. 1/2" ID tubing is pretty much standard, you can get 3/8" ID again if space is an issue. Depending on the pump you pick the effect of the smaller tubing will vary from almost negligible to noticeable. The Storm is a few degrees better than most other high performance waterblocks. The TDX from dangerden is still a good option and readily available. Maze4 and ramsinks is the only way to go for the video card. Maze4 will also work well for your chipset. For a radiator you can get a heatercore, or one of the many commercial radiators available (black ice series, etc.). For something quiet you would probably want to go with a double or triple fan design (if you have room).

 

[JBDan]

Tx Kensai & NI. I have a Tsunami w/ 3 open 5.25 bays. A lot of room. I'm not adverse to modding the case at all. Yea I figured on the Storm for cpu block. Found several places to get one. Looks nice. Kensai are you saying 1/2" ID tubing? Obviously 1/2" gives better flow, but shouldn't it match the blocks (pressure vs. flow)? I also liked the DDC since it seems much quieter than the D5. Can I daisychain (cpu,vga,NB) with the DDC? You said "heatercore." I'm not familiar with that can you link me plz? So NI you rec'd all DD products. They seem to be pretty much top dog. Is PolarfloTT good stuff? Swiftech? or are they all similiar in performance just different looks/appeal? Appreciate the answers.

 

[imported_Kensai]

Okay.. If you're that new, a triple Black Ice radiator would be better for you.

 

[JBDan]

Originally posted by: Kensai
Okay.. If you're that new, a triple Black Ice radiator would be better for you.

lol yes I am that new to WC'ing. Why the trip? I kinda would like an internal setup.

 

[mindwreck]

heatercore is the radiator. the weapon ones hes referring to are ones made/mod'ed by a member on xtremesystems forums.

 

[Bona Fide]

Originally posted by: JBDan

Originally posted by: Kensai
Okay.. If you're that new, a triple Black Ice radiator would be better for you.

lol yes I am that new to WC'ing. Why the trip? I kinda would like an internal setup.

Can you fit a double 120mm radiator in that Tsunami? If so, just get the Black Ice Xtreme Double.

Also, 1/2" tubing is only good if you get a nice pump. Since more water needs to be circulated, a strong pump is advisable. The D5's should suit you nicely.

 

[JBDan]

Tx and Tx mind and bonafide.
No more "water-users" out there?!!

 

[Elfear]

I'd say go with the Swiftech MCW6002-64 block, D5 pump (or MCP600 if you can find one), Weapon modded heatercore (or BIP2 and shroud if Weapon is still crazy busy), Maze4 gpu block, and 1/2" Clearflex tubing. After doing a lot of research into watercooling those are the parts I came up with. There are better parts out there but for the 3-4 degrees they'll help they're not worth twice the cost.

I did a mini-review here. I have my two 120mm Sanyo Denki's on a fan controller so for everyday use it's very quiet but when I want to game/oc I can crank up the cfm.

 

[JBDan]

tyvm elfear

 

[mindwreck]

yeah try to get some sanyo denki fans. they're really quiet. I remember seeing some in FS/FT

 

[NINaudio]

Originally posted by: JBDan
Tx Kensai & NI. I have a Tsunami w/ 3 open 5.25 bays. A lot of room. I'm not adverse to modding the case at all. Yea I figured on the Storm for cpu block. Found several places to get one. Looks nice. Kensai are you saying 1/2" ID tubing? Obviously 1/2" gives better flow, but shouldn't it match the blocks (pressure vs. flow)? I also liked the DDC since it seems much quieter than the D5. Can I daisychain (cpu,vga,NB) with the DDC? You said "heatercore." I'm not familiar with that can you link me plz? So NI you rec'd all DD products. They seem to be pretty much top dog. Is PolarfloTT good stuff? Swiftech? or are they all similiar in performance just different looks/appeal? Appreciate the answers.

Go read some articles here, they do a good job of explaining and demonstrating things.

The thing with the Storm block is that it is fairly restrictive, you would want to run it with a high pressure pump if you plan on putting everything in one loop. I have yet to see a pump with a higher pressure rating than the DDC, although I can't seem to find the rating on the D5. Swiftech products are also very good, they rank right up their with DangerDen's stuff. Polarflo TT is also a very reputable company. The DDC will work fine with 3 blocks, I've had no problems with mine.

Honestly, if I were you I would try to keep in very simple. Order a complete system from DangerDen or someplace similar. Since you have a Tsunami, I'd say get a Black Ice Extreme and mount it in place of one of the 120mm fans in your case. I would say to avoid the Storm due to pressure issues and it is not known yet how much maintenance it will require. The very small jets may clog over time and require cleaning, so I wouldn't recommend it for a novice watercooler.

 

[JBDan]

Sound advice...much appreciated. Thanks NI.
Good reviews by-the-way!

 

[Mrvile]

Ahhh...JBDan I forgot to mention.

My 3500+ Winnie makes 2.6ghz on air (XP-90, Panaflo M1 fan), and barely pushes 2.7 on water. So it wasn't much of an overclock improvement.

The thing about Winchesters is that once they hit their limit on high-end air, it's probably their chip limit, and usually doesn't have anything to do with temperatures. Although I know you said you lowered the fan speeds because you wanted it quiet, I'm just giving you a headsup.

And btw, 2.7 is about as high as any Winchester, 3500+ or lower, will go.

 

[0roo0roo]

sell gt and use wc money to buy 7800gtx

 

[JBDan]

Originally posted by: 0roo0roo
sell gt and use wc money to buy 7800gtx

 

[JBDan]

Originally posted by: JBDan

Originally posted by: 0roo0roo
sell gt and use wc money to buy 7800gtx

Im on AGP8x still and my monitor only does 1600x1200@75MHz. My 6800gt@ 432/1170 does well for me. Tx Mrvile and 0roo.

 

[Safeway]

I have to agree with Mrvile and his thoughts on Winnies. They have a hard limit that is difficult to pass by merely lowering temps. Sure, a triple cascade might get you higher, but not that much higher. You'd have to go for a newer chip to OC - a Venice or San Diego?

 

[JBDan]

Originally posted by: Safeway
I have to agree with Mrvile and his thoughts on Winnies. They have a hard limit that is difficult to pass by merely lowering temps. Sure, a triple cascade might get you higher, but not that much higher. You'd have to go for a newer chip to OC - a Venice or San Diego?

I will be happy w/ 2.6 and good temps on my Win. I get mid 50c's with xp120 under prime torture. Fans get too loud IMO to keep it cool to my liking. Im also keying in on my 6800gt. The NV5 is annoying me lol and maybe I could hit 450/1200 as you did on WC. Also I love to just mess around with pc's so I think it will be a lot of fun. Tx all for the input.

 

[ayabe]

My 3200 Winnie will only hit 2450 regardless of what I do, that's at ~1.5v+, it all depends on what your binning is. My load temps at this speed with the retail cooler are still only 44 C at the max, 37 at idle. She will boot into windows at 2650+ but Prime dies instantly.

I'm going Venice fairly soon.

 

[JBDan]

mcp350 pump-DD TDX A64 block-DDnv68 block-DDMaze4chipset block-swiftech MCRES Bay resevoir-hydix coolant-BlackIce extreme radia=$360 Will be using either a Papst or Pannie 120mm.
This is what I got so far. Thinking about the Storm, but it seems that to optomize its performance you really need 1/2"ID and the mcp655 pump. I want QUIET & 1/2"ID tubing seems bulky (I may be wrong) so opted for the mcp350. Still got to get tubing and any additionals. Any suggestions?

 

[mindwreck]

1/2 isn't bunky at all. I thougth that at first but when i actually put it in my case it worked out fine.
For tubing you could get clearflex tubing, it works just fine. or you step it up and get tygor which is more kink resistant, but expensive.
For the additive i used zerex racing coolant for because prevents corrosion

 

[imported_Kensai]

The DDC is a pretty quiet pump.. Dunno what the MCP350 is or based off of.. I could be a DDC for all I know.

1/2" isn't bulky or loud at all.. A Storm G5 would be good..
Ditch the chipset block, it'll just reduce the cooling power of your system by lowering the pressure..

 

[JBDan]

Originally posted by: Kensai
The DDC is a pretty quiet pump.. Dunno what the MCP350 is or based off of.. I could be a DDC for all I know.

1/2" isn't bulky or loud at all.. A Storm G5 would be good..
Ditch the chipset block, it'll just reduce the cooling power of your system by lowering the pressure..

mcp350=ddc both made by Laing. Same pump in the Mac g5's. I guess to go to 1/2" ID I'll just get the adaptors. So no chipset block? Storm g5, I cannot find anywhere. Just the Swiftech Storm.