1st timer with some radiator questions and general setup

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gurumagic

n00b
Joined
Feb 2, 2005
Messages
9
Ok, I’m ready to take the plunge into water cooling. I’m still on the fence of exactly how I want my setup. Here is my system spec’s.

LGA775 3.2GHz
1.0 GB DDR2 Dual Channel
80 GB SATA
200 GB PATA
BFG Geforce 6800GT OC
ASUS P5AD2 Deluxe
550W Power Supply
CoolerMaster Wave Master Aluminum Case
Dell CD-RW/DVD-ROM
No Floppy

Items I’m looking at
CPU Water Block: MCW 6002
Chipset Water Block: None
GPU Water Block: DD 6800 or Maze 4 with heatsinks if possible
Pump: DD 12V Laeng
1/2" Radiator: DTek - Pro 120 (depends on decided setup)
w/ DTek Shroud w/120mm fan
Reservoir: DD Bay Reservoir High-Dens Polyethylene
Tubing: 1/2" Tygon tubing

Primary Questions:
Radiator vs. Heat Core
1. What is the diff?
2. Is the DTek Pro 120 considered a Heater Core?
3. If I get the DTek Pro 120, I’m likely going to mount it on to the rear fan position of my case with a fan using the MCB-120™ Radbox radiator/fan housing by Thermaltake. Does this seem like a feasible solution?
4. Or, I’ve seen some users that have radiators on the inside top of their machine. Would that be more ideal and if so, what would be a good radiator to use and how would I mount it? I would prefer to use a radiator that does not require soldering or anything like that.
5. Or, I’ve seen some users mount the radiator on the outside top of their rig. Does this seem like the ideal solution?
6. I can cut and drill my case, I’m ok with that, but are their “pass-thru” barbs I could get that would allow me to drill the holes and mount the pass-thru barbs, or will I have to “MacGyver” it with silicone or something.

I’ve heard nothing but good things about the blocks I’m looking at and I know the pump is known for a whinny pitch noise, but I’m not too concerned about the noise level and it doesn’t really require and moding. If you can recommend another “no mod” more quiet and equally reliable pump that will give equal performance, then I’m certainly open minded.

I intend to mount the res in a 5 ¼ bay. From there I’ll feed water to the pump, then to the radiator, then the cpu, then the vga and then back to the res.

Again, I’m very new to all this, but very excited about investing the time, energy, money and learning experience into it. Some of the rigs I’ve seen displayed here have been truly inspiring.

I’m sorry if my questions are noob or possibly repeat something someone has answered before, but I sincerely appreciate any and all help that can be provided.

gurumagic
 
the difference between a radiator and a heatercore? nothing really. A heatercore is a radiator. Heatercores are called heatercores because, well that is what they are. In an automobile the way you get heat is that the coolant from the engine goes to the heatercore, which radiates that heat off into your vents. (I dont know all that much about cars but I know that much).


In the watercooling world, the radiators you buy have been designed to function as a radiator and not in a car as a heatercore. (hence the reason why they are not called heatercores)

In terms of cooling, they are all around the same, some are better than others, but for a price/performance you cant beat heatercores. Not to mention heatercores like the '77 bonneville will typically outperform specifically made water cooling radiators such as the BIX series for a fraction of the cost.

The placement of the radiator will depend upon how you want to set your system up, none of the solutions you mentioned would require any soldering (you can buy premodded heatercores if you go that route so you dont have to braze anything). Any of the aforementioned placements would work just fine. Place the radiator in a position that allows you the greatest ease in routing the tubing and making everything look nice and neat.

An alternative pump you might want to consider is the mcp600/ AQX-50Z it is sold at cooltechnica (perhaps other places too not sure). While the spec sheet on the pump is a little below the D4, it puts half as much heat into the water, making final temperatures with the AQX-50Z a little bit better than with the D4 (It is also a very quiet pump). If you dont mind the noise however the D4 is a perfectly fine pump.
 
Thank you for the input.

I'm curious if I mount the radiator on the inside top of my machine and cut some holes for the dual fans, the fans would blow down over the radiator and into the pc, right? Wouldn't that cause the case temp to go up? And if so, should I just make sure i have a rear and side fan set as exhaust?

Thanks again for the reply.

gurumagic
 
your case temperatures will not be any higher than they were with air cooling. You are still putting the same amount of heat into your case. And yes it is still a good idea to have some fans circulating air through the case, ram and other components still need a little lovin too.
 
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