Thinking of going custom instead of closed loop

F

Fahrenheit

Weaksauce
Joined
Nov 9, 2010
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So for a while I was thinking i'd just get something like the Thermaltake 2.0 Extreme, toss some NF-P12 on it and keep it moving. Lately though, as dreams of 1440p enter my head it seems more and more likely that at some point i'll have to go SLI/Crossfire. Now my biggest pet peeve is noise. Can't stand aloud machine. So Kinda thinking I should go custom loop so I can get GPU blocks to keep a duel card setup quiet.

Right now I'm running a single card so all I was thinking of doing now is getting a pump, rad, and reservoir that I can add GPU cooling too at a later date. So what should I be looking at? Pump wise I think the MCP655 should work judging by other reviews/setups, plus its super quiet from what I read. My case is a P280 so it can fit a 240 rad on the top and a 120 on the real exhaust port, is that enough rad for what I wanna do? What rads should I be looking at? reservoir recommendations? What about tubing?
 
Depends on what cards you plan to be using. Can you list out your full system specs?
 
Well right now it's rather basic with a i7 950 and a 7950. What i'm worried about is in the future. So think like two 7970/680 kinda heat with a OCed "next gen" CPU.
 
Doing some research and can up with another question, I love the idea of a duel 5.25 res. Some people say they are prone to leaking and the tube style is much safer. Any info on this?


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General rule of thumb is 120mm radiator area for each component. With a 240 and a 120, you'll get decent temps, not great, but decent.

I don't see anything wrong with bay reservoirs. The ones that leak are usually specific poorly made models, not an overall generalization.
 
Thanks man, let me ask. How much maintenance goes into maintaining it. I do run my rig 24/7

Another question, would getting a case that can fit a 280 rad 140 rad be worth the upgrade for cooling?


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in short, yes. upgrading to 140mm rads makes a huge difference with the right fans.

and very little maintenance. i never drain my loops tbh... i just rebuild the system every year or two.
 
Maintenance is simple and painless if you do everything correctly from the start. Usually it just involves topping off the reservoir, maybe draining it and putting in fresh water once a year.

If you're getting a new case, I would recommend you look at cases that properly support large radiators. Two relatively budget friendly cases that support large radiators are the NZXT Switch 810 (supports 3x140 extra thick radiators, and I believe a 2x120 on the bottom), and the Azza Genesis 9000 (supports a 4x120 on top and 2x140 on the bottom).
 
Full loops are years beyond AIO's in cooling performance. About twice as good, actually. So, make sur eyou do a lot of reading, research, and look at other people's builds before you pull the trigger and get in to something that causes a lot of headaches.

Watercooling is a TON of fun too. Planning a loop can take days and putting one together can be infuriating, but the satisfaction you get when it's all done, and it's clean and works without hitch is a very good feeling.
 
XNine said:
Full loops are years beyond AIO's in cooling performance. About twice as good, actually. So, make sur eyou do a lot of reading, research, and look at other people's builds before you pull the trigger and get in to something that causes a lot of headaches.

Watercooling is a TON of fun too. Planning a loop can take days and putting one together can be infuriating, but the satisfaction you get when it's all done, and it's clean and works without hitch is a very good feeling.
Click to expand...

And the agony when you get a new video card and has to redo it all :D
 
oqvist said:
And the agony when you get a new video card and has to redo it all :D
Click to expand...

God don't I know it, lol. It sucks too because not many people make non-ref blocks for AMD cards. I guess this is why I'll be moving over to Nvidia next gen.
 
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