900D dream build... Help me spec the water cooling please

allen5055 said:
Personally, I don't think you need a T-fitting at all. The Alphacool radiators have 6 slots for compression fittings. You need 2 to run your lines, which leaves 4 extra. I attached an extra piece of hose to my top radiator and bottom radiator and just put on a stop plug and those work great for air bleed lines and drain lines.

Second of all, if you're running your watercooling line behind your motherboard it's going to be a really tight turn for the tube when it gets to the top and has to go into the radiator. It may be too tight and it may kink. Also, if you do that, you're definitely going to need a 90 degree fitting so that it goes into the side of the upper radiator.



By the way, did you ever get a bridge for your gpu waterblocks? What type of wateblocks did you get?
Click to expand...

Noted on the 90 degree fitting. Is it an issue that the there is no radiator between the cpu and gpus in this route?

Yes I bought a Phobya bridge. http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B004230P3I/ref=oh_details_o06_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
It doesn't look great but it is adjustable.

I haven't yet decided on the waterblocks but am leaning towards XSPC or Aquatuning as I know some people had bad experiences with EK.. Otherwise I would have gone with EK as they look awesome.
 
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With the amount of pumps you have, you can keep up a high flow rate. A high flow rate means that temperature differences in the coolant are kept to a minimum (fluctuates maybe 3-5 C at most, and typically in the 1-2 C range).
 
kill8r said:
Ok so I went with dual Monsta 480s hoping to cool them in pull configuration. I will possibly add push pull if the fans are not strong enough and there is enough room or maybe even upgrade the fans.

I am now planning the plumbing and could use some guidance please. At the moment I have ordered:
10 x Straight compression fittings 1/2 ID 3/4OD
3 x 45 degree fittings
3 x plugs
3 x clamps
100 x washers

So if I am understanding you right and please correct me if am wrong, this is the best route:
Reservoir > Pump > T Fitting At Bottom of Bottom Radiator > 2 way Ball Valve (Drain) at the Bottom of the T> Bottom Radiator > Top Radiator (via the back of motherboard) > CPU > GPU > Reservoir

Won't performance be reduced due to the fact that there are no radiators at all between the CPU and GPUs? I would think the water would be getting quite hot by the time it got to the 4th GPU, but maybe not.

Are there any other fittings that you think I may need?

Will the T and valve (drain) fit if I have a 480 monsta on the bottom and fans in pull configuration?

Please confirm which type of T joint I need. Is it:
1) http://www.aquatuning.co.uk/product...-thread-1x-outside-thread---black-nickel.html
or
2) http://www.aquatuning.co.uk/product...w-on---2x-outside-thread-1x-inner-thread.html
or
3) http://www.aquatuning.co.uk/product...-G1-4---compact---knurled---black-nickel.html

Is this ok for the valve: http://www.aquatuning.co.uk/product...ugelhahn-G1-4---ger-ndelt---Black-Nickel.html

Thank you so much for sharing your experience and knowledge and I hope my very noobish questions are not to annoying for you.
Click to expand...

As long as the monstas fit I don't think you will HAVE to run push pull, that would just be optimal for them, you probably won't have less performance than using a 60mm radiator but like not gain much additional either.

As for fittings I can help but only so much, I was just happy with the way mine came out but it certainly isn't the only way or the ultimate best way to do things.

PIctures would explain better than I can in words, I can take some crappy cell phone pics for you but don't have time to bust out the SLR and make cool looking ones.

Your fittings will depend on your pump and reservoir location as well.

I have an aqualis mounted to to the case between the MB and drive bays (right about where the removable drive bays start in that section of the case (there's a support bar that runs across there)

This has a 90 rotary fitting that feeds down to my D5 pump top which I mounted to the bottom of the case. Since your using a monsta this wont work right because my Pump is only about 5mm from the back of my radiator, but with some more fittings, maybe a rotary 45 you could do something similar.
The D5 output is automatically 90 degress from this input and faces towards the front of the case.

I used this valve
http://www.frozencpu.com/products/1..._G14_Mini_Valve_-_Matte_Black_BP-MVV-MBK.html

and this Q in both my water cooled PCs for the drain valve.
http://www.performance-pcs.com/cata...=27861&zenid=e4d0433758953bc627214aca0c8d7a65

From the bottom port on the radiator I mounted in a rotary "Q" and attached the valve to that using a Male to Male adapter. You want the drain valve at the lowest point in the loop and this is it. (a rotary male to male would be cooler if you want to line the valve top up better). then I used a compression fitting in another port on the Q to accept the line from the pump, then finally I blocked off the last port on the Q which faces the front of the case. So basically rotary part of the Q threaded directly into the radiator, and makes 90 deg turn from the pump. This also allows the valve to be securely mounted rather than in line with the tubing and the valve faces the opposite of the window.

Then from the top port of the bottom radiator I run it to a 90 rotary with a compression fitting to the top radiator (through the back side panel of the case so you can't see the run in the window) The ports on the top Rad are towards the back of the case. There is an opening in the case there to run the tubing through which lines up perfectly when a 60mm thick radiator is used but should probably be ok with the monsta too. Then the output from the top for me is just another compression fitting and I bend the tubing 45 deg into my CPU block, and from CPU block I bend the tubing another 45 into the Video card.

Your going to want some spacers (I can't tell you what sizes) and a probably a male to male for that valve. Looking at the pictures it looks like the compress ions may need to be spaced away from the monsta since their mounting holes are not flush, but hard for me to tell for certain since it is not in hand.

I would order the monsta and compression of your choice then figure out what else you are going to need. I used 1/2" / 3/4th: tubing so I do not knowhow your smaller compressions will fit. You will probably need at least 1 90 deg rotary. I only get rotary angled fittings because the non rotary ones never seem to be of much use.

No radiator order isn't going to matter.

The rotray 90's and 45's I use are like the one below as I find them more useful when they do not include the compression fitting.
http://www.performance-pcs.com/catalog/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=24754
 
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kill8r said:
Noted on the 90 degree fitting. Is it an issue that the there is no radiator between the cpu and gpus in this route?

Yes I bought a Phobya bridge. http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B004230P3I/ref=oh_details_o06_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
It doesn't look great but it is adjustable.

I haven't yet decided on the waterblocks but am leaning towards XSPC or Aquatuning as I know some people had bad experiences with EK.. Otherwise I would have gone with EK as they look awesome.
Click to expand...

You should have held off on the bridge until you decided what blocks you want. Manufacturers make their own bridges and it's usually really easy if you get theirs.

EK blocks are working fine for me.
 
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Justintoxicated said:
PIctures would explain better than I can in words, I can take some crappy cell phone pics for you but don't have time to bust out the SLR and make cool looking ones.
Click to expand...

Please take some cell phone pics. That would be very helpful in understanding how you went about the install.
 
allen5055 said:
You should have held off on the bridge until you decided what blocks you want. Manufacturers make their own bridges and it's usually really easy if you get theirs.

EK blocks are working fine for me.
Click to expand...

Oh, it that case I will just return it via Amazon Prime. Thanks

Good to know about the EK blocks!
 
Quick question regarding fans.

Here is how I have it planned:
3 x intake fans in the front of the case
4x outtake fans for top radiator (in pull)
4 x outtake fans for bottom radiator (in pull)

Should I be using the back 140mm fan for intake or outtake? Outtake would look a lot better but I was concerned there would be too many out takes vs intakes.

Thanks
 
kill8r said:
Quick question regarding fans.

Here is how I have it planned:
3 x intake fans in the front of the case
4x outtake fans for top radiator (in pull)
4 x outtake fans for bottom radiator (in pull)

Should I be using the back 140mm fan for intake or outtake? Outtake would look a lot better but I was concerned there would be too many out takes vs intakes.

Thanks
Click to expand...

You can only fit 2 intake fans at the front. the radiator blocks one fan. I took it out and put it on the hard drive cage.

I would have the bottom radiator be intake. You have two fans spots across from the bottom radiator that I would set as outtake. So cold air goes into the bottom radiator, and most passes right through by going straight through the exhaust on the other side.

If you did this you would have 6 intake, 7 outtake total. I would have the top 140mm fan remain as outtake.
 
I just came back victorious from a poker game, which brings me to my question.

If I indulge and go for dual water cooled Titan Blacks, would I be able to play with max settings on 3 ROG Swifts with good FPS (North of 100) for the foreseeable future? Or alternatively, should I still hold out for the gtx790s or the maxwell cards?

Thanks
 
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I say wait for Maxwell. The GT 750 Maxwell results are very promising.
 
kill8r said:
I just came back victorious from a poker game, which brings me to my question.

If I indulge and go for dual water cooled Titan Blacks, would I be able to play with max settings on 3 ROG Swifts with good FPS (North of 100) for the foreseeable future? Or alternatively, should I still hold out for the gtx790s or the maxwell cards?

Thanks
Click to expand...

If you mean three monitor gaming, the answer would be no.

I use EyeFinity and Surround....look at my sigs, and most games set to full video will get 65-75 FPS on average.
That's fabulous for 3 monitors.
 
kill8r said:
Quick question regarding fans.

Here is how I have it planned:
3 x intake fans in the front of the case
4x outtake fans for top radiator (in pull)
4 x outtake fans for bottom radiator (in pull)

Should I be using the back 140mm fan for intake or outtake? Outtake would look a lot better but I was concerned there would be too many out takes vs intakes.

Thanks
Click to expand...

You're making it too hard.
Radiators get cool air and exhaust blows out the warm air. The end.
 
Guys I am having a very hard time installing the Aerocool 2100 fan controller.

I can't get it to sit flush. I believe it is because there are two pieces on the case the separates each din/bay, blocking the Aerocool from being fully inserted as the unit cant go far enough back.

1) Are these pieces on either side removable on the 900D? I didn't want to break them or sand them, so I wanted to check with you guys.

2) Is there some sort of bezel that will make the area around the controller, blend with the rent of the case?

Here are some pics to illustrate.





 
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Can someone also please confirm that the top two dins/bays will not be usable due to the 80mm Monsta Radiator and fans. Will the 3rd din/bay also be blocked or should it be ok?

I wanted to install the fan controller and run all the fan cables and splitters, prior to the radiators arriving.

Thanks
 
Regarding fitting, I don't know.

Regarding using the top bays for the fan controller, it may be possible for you to use your top bay for the fan controller. It just depends how far into the bay the radiator extends. In my Genesis 9000, I couldn't use the top bay because the radiator literally extends to the front of the bay. But I could use the bay immediately below that because the fittings are farther into the case, and the fan controller is short enough that it just barely clears the fittings.
 
kill8r said:
Can someone also please confirm that the top two dins/bays will not be usable due to the 80mm Monsta Radiator and fans. Will the 3rd din/bay also be blocked or should it be ok?

I wanted to install the fan controller and run all the fan cables and splitters, prior to the radiators arriving.

Thanks
Click to expand...

I only lose one bay with the UT60
 
Does anyone know if this piece is removable? It is stopping my fan controller from sitting flush

 
Anything is "removable" if you have a dremmel.

If that's just a piece of metal jutting out to slide a drive on top of, and you'll never use it again, cut it off.;)
 
magoo said:
Anything is "removable" if you have a dremmel.

If that's just a piece of metal jutting out to slide a drive on top of, and you'll never use it again, cut it off.;)
Click to expand...

It is actually plastic. I just didn't want to risk breaking the surrounding plastic
 
Last few bits have been ordered:

£249.99 x 2 - Asus Radeon R9 290 "Voltage Unlocked" 4096MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card
£62.49 x 1 - Microsoft Windows 8.1 64-Bit DVD - OEM (WN7-00614)
£0.00 x 1 - BitFenix Alchemy Cable Bundle - Red
£4.99 x 1 - BitFenix Alchemy 8pin EPS extension 45cm - Red
£7.49 x 1 - BitFenix Alchemy 24pin ATX extension 30cm - Red
£5.82 x 1 - BitFenix Alchemy 8pin PCI-E extension 45cm - Red
£5.41 x 1 - BitFenix Alchemy 6pin PCI-E extension 45cm - Red
£5.82 x 1 - BitFenix Alchemy Molex to 4 x SATA power extension - Red
£5.24 x 1 - BitFenix Alchemy Molex to 3 x Molex Extension Adaptor 55cm - Red
£4.99 x 2 - BitFenix Alchemy 6+2-Pin PCIe Extension 45cm - sleeved redblack
£4.16 x 1 - BitFenix Alchemy 4-Pin ATX12V Extension 45cm - sleeved redblack
£71.66 x 2 - EK Water Blocks EK-FC R9-290X - Acetal+Nickel
 
If you can still adjust the order, I'd suggest you change your water blocks to the plain copper and acetal version.

EK's plating process is well documented as very hit or miss. You will either experience plating coming off or corrosion in your loop.

People suggest to avoid EK completely, but I feel they still make great products that perform well, as long as you stick to the plain copper.

kill8r said:
Last few bits have been ordered:

£249.99 x 2 - Asus Radeon R9 290 "Voltage Unlocked" 4096MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card
£62.49 x 1 - Microsoft Windows 8.1 64-Bit DVD - OEM (WN7-00614)
£0.00 x 1 - BitFenix Alchemy Cable Bundle - Red
£4.99 x 1 - BitFenix Alchemy 8pin EPS extension 45cm - Red
£7.49 x 1 - BitFenix Alchemy 24pin ATX extension 30cm - Red
£5.82 x 1 - BitFenix Alchemy 8pin PCI-E extension 45cm - Red
£5.41 x 1 - BitFenix Alchemy 6pin PCI-E extension 45cm - Red
£5.82 x 1 - BitFenix Alchemy Molex to 4 x SATA power extension - Red
£5.24 x 1 - BitFenix Alchemy Molex to 3 x Molex Extension Adaptor 55cm - Red
£4.99 x 2 - BitFenix Alchemy 6+2-Pin PCIe Extension 45cm - sleeved redblack
£4.16 x 1 - BitFenix Alchemy 4-Pin ATX12V Extension 45cm - sleeved redblack
£71.66 x 2 - EK Water Blocks EK-FC R9-290X - Acetal+Nickel
Click to expand...
 
ilal2ielli said:
If you can still adjust the order, I'd suggest you change your water blocks to the plain copper and acetal version.

EK's plating process is well documented as very hit or miss. You will either experience plating coming off or corrosion in your loop.

People suggest to avoid EK completely, but I feel they still make great products that perform well, as long as you stick to the plain copper.
Click to expand...

As soon as I saw your post I called to change my order but it has already shipped and will be with me tomorrow.
Here is the specific model I ordered:
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=WC-461-EK&groupid=962&catid=1520&subcat=2765

I can still return it if it is something to avoid. Please advise
 
To answer your case question.

You can remove them without consequence, however you would have to mod it to do it, they are not "removable" in the sense that they will go back.

As for making it more "flush" with the front, unfortunately no, to my knowledge there is nothing, you just have to accept it (In my case, im not putting anything in my 5.25" drive bays)
 
I ordered those same bitfenix cables, they were cheaper when purchased as a pack though. Sorry no pics yet!

I agree on sticking with copper, however I got my EK block used so it's nickle, didn't see any problems when I pulled it apart but I also prefer plain copper for everything it's cheaper and keeps things simple. However for my CPU block I would have been better off going nickle as I am direct die cooling using liquid metal tim and I read it can eat at copper or be hard to seperate from the CPU die over time. In which case I would have preferred nickle water blocks then as well. So I kind of have some backwards stuff but I'm not too worried about problems.
 
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Making some good progress!

Doing my leakage test.

Two quick questions:

1) My dual pump has pwm control (4 pin fan). My fan controller only supports 3 pin. Should I:
a) just buy a couple 3 pin to 4 pin adapters
or
b) let my ASUS Rampage IV Black Edition motherboard control the pumps (I think this might also allow control via the ROG controller which can be case mounter or located externally)

2) My motherboard comes with a ROG controller for
Overclocking and other things. Should I:
a) mount it in my case (my very basic understanding is it limits the functionally)
b) locate it externally.
If b please explain why b is better

Thanks for all the help!

Thanks guys!
 
Does the pump have separate power headers? If so, run the PWM off of the motherboard. If not (all one cable), run it off the fan controller if the fan controller can handle it.
 
Tsumi said:
Does the pump have separate power headers? If so, run the PWM off of the motherboard. If not (all one cable), run it off the fan controller if the fan controller can handle it.
Click to expand...

Yes it has 2 x molex (one for each pump) and 2 x 4 pin fan controller
 
Run it off the motherboard, with the power directly attached to the PSU.
 
Tsumi said:
Run it off the motherboard, with the power directly attached to the PSU.
Click to expand...

This is probably a stupid question but as there are two pwm plugs to connect to motherboard (one for each pump), which fan connections on the motherboard should I use?
 
My motherboard has an 8 pin CPU plug and a 4pin CPU plug. Do I need to plug in both or will the 8 pin be sufficient?
 
8 pin is sufficient. Or you can plug in a 4 pin if you want. Doesn't really matter except for high overclocks.
 
Build 95% done with just some tidying up to do.

I am currently installing windows and could use some help finding the ideal WC OC settings for my processor and GPUS. Can someone point me in the right direction?

Thanks
 
kill8r said:
Build 95% done with just some tidying up to do.

I am currently installing windows and could use some help finding the ideal WC OC settings for my processor and GPUS. Can someone point me in the right direction?

Thanks
Click to expand...

The ASUS boards are actually very good at automatic unless you are crazy picky.

For the CPU all I would do is up the BClk and VCore, leave everything else on auto.
You should be able to easily reach 4.6 on the CPU. (46 x 100) with just a minimal increase in VCore.
I have an ASUS Rampage IV Formula, which is the same chipset as your MB and 4.6 was easy.
Use AIDA 64 to test your stability.

GPUs, use Afterburner, 1150 should be simple to achieve with a +50 VCore.
 
My ram is 2400mhz DDR3 but it is showing up in the bios as 1333mhz. What do I need to do to fix this?

Thanks
 
magoo said:
The ASUS boards are actually very good at automatic unless you are crazy picky.

For the CPU all I would do is up the BClk and VCore, leave everything else on auto.
You should be able to easily reach 4.6 on the CPU. (46 x 100) with just a minimal increase in VCore.
I have an ASUS Rampage IV Formula, which is the same chipset as your MB and 4.6 was easy.
Use AIDA 64 to test your stability.

GPUs, use Afterburner, 1150 should be simple to achieve with a +50 VCore.
Click to expand...

So what should I set the CPU VCORE voltage to? It is currently at 1.06

What would you set the BClk to?

Thanks
 
Here you go, crappy cellphone pic as promised :)


Untitled by Glamisduner, on Flickr

Not sure if you have enough space with a monsta in there instead but it should give you some ideas for a drain valve.
 
kill8r said:
So what should I set the CPU VCORE voltage to? It is currently at 1.06

What would you set the BClk to?

Thanks
Click to expand...

You need to research those values yourself. They aren't plug and play.
You should also research basic overclocking for the Core i7 CPU and what the various BIOS values do and represent.
That ASUS Rampage IV Black has an expert OC BIOS, there is shit in that BIOS I cant even pronounce, let alone understand.
You should google reviews of the board and read them carefully, pay attention to how the reviewer OC'd the board. Anandtech generally has the most in-depth reviews if they have reviewed the board.
[H] has great reviews, but I haven't seen the Black reviewed here yet.

For starters......

D/L the trial version of AIDA 64
Go into the BIOS manually, and set it to manual.
Go to the BClk and adjust it to 45......BClk 45 x BClk frequency of 100 = 4.5 GHz
Adjust your VCore to 1.20V
Leave everything else set to "auto".
Now run the burn test on AIDA 64. If it crashes, you need to add a little VCore...... .05V for example, rinse and repeat until the burn test is stable......
watch your CPU temperatures though.
I DO NOT know what your CPU can stand as far as VCore....so look that up.

AS for your memory, you'll probably need to set the timings and frequency by hand in the BIOS......the sticker on the side of the RAM will list the timings.
 
We'll so far so good guys... Thanks!

Aida64 has been running its test and things seem stable at 4.6. However when I st the stress test it stays running at 3.4 which is the stock clock. Windows doesn't show the new oc speed either?

Can someone also please advise on the best settings for my water cooled R9 290s for each section in GPU Tweak, specifically:

GPUs Clock - default 947
GPUs Voltage - default 1259
Memory Clock - default 5000
Power Target - default 100

Is afterburner much better than GPU tweak?

Thanks Again! This forum has been a wealth of knowledge and you have all been so helpful. It is much appreciated!
 
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