![[H]ard|Forum](/styles/hardforum/xenforo/logo_dark.png){kind=logo}
Best 120mm radiator
- Thread starter newbs
- Start date
Tsumi
[H]F Junkie
- Joined
- Mar 18, 2010
- Messages
- 13,757
What speed fans? I would go with either Black Ice GTX or GTS radiators for high-speed fans, or Swiftech radiators for low-speed.
scaarbelly
Supreme [H]ardness
- Joined
- Dec 11, 2008
- Messages
- 4,462
The swiftech does well with low speed.
Juggalo23451
Weaksauce
- Joined
- May 2, 2011
- Messages
- 78
XSPC RX120 or the Sr-1 120 rad
Tsumi
[H]F Junkie
- Joined
- Mar 18, 2010
- Messages
- 13,757
RX120, Sr-1, and Swiftech all perform similarly with low-speed fans. At that point, I would determine which to buy based on price.
You'll get slightly better performance using the XSPC RX, Thermochill TA, or HW Labs SR-1 over the Swiftech MCR-QP series, but at the expense of added thickness (important) and cost.
You'd have to consider that it may be more difficult to fit a push-pull setup on a thicker radiator, especially if you're running a DUCTED (20-30mm spacing improves performance slightly) push-pull setup. If you don't have room, then Swiftech is the obvious answer for low-RPM operation.
When you have the room for thicker radiators, but are limited to a 120x1 area, perhaps it makes sense to spend the extra money for the best.
If it were a triple-radiator (120x3) with plenty of capacity for a single CPU (water temps closer to ambient), then I could tell you that the difference (between these 4 options) would be very minimal (within 1C). In this case, however, I'm not certain. Tsumi is indicating that the same holds true...perhaps he has reviewed the data:
If you were willing to do the work, there is probably enough data out there to get a decent estimate of the likely performance differences between these options (available at Skinneelabs and Martins Liquid Lab).
http://hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=1608601 - here is Martin's latest watercooling spreadsheet, for reference. This will probably be the easiest method to make a rough estimate of the expected performance, assuming it has your desired components. Note that it counts the pump separately as part of the total heatload, and if it doesn't have data on your waterblock, then just choose one of similar flow restriction.
I would try for a 140mm radiator if I could fit it... and duct 120mm fans to it if I needed to save space or felt like spending the money on Gentle Typhoons.
You'd have to consider that it may be more difficult to fit a push-pull setup on a thicker radiator, especially if you're running a DUCTED (20-30mm spacing improves performance slightly) push-pull setup. If you don't have room, then Swiftech is the obvious answer for low-RPM operation.
When you have the room for thicker radiators, but are limited to a 120x1 area, perhaps it makes sense to spend the extra money for the best.
If it were a triple-radiator (120x3) with plenty of capacity for a single CPU (water temps closer to ambient), then I could tell you that the difference (between these 4 options) would be very minimal (within 1C). In this case, however, I'm not certain. Tsumi is indicating that the same holds true...perhaps he has reviewed the data:
If you were willing to do the work, there is probably enough data out there to get a decent estimate of the likely performance differences between these options (available at Skinneelabs and Martins Liquid Lab).
http://hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=1608601 - here is Martin's latest watercooling spreadsheet, for reference. This will probably be the easiest method to make a rough estimate of the expected performance, assuming it has your desired components. Note that it counts the pump separately as part of the total heatload, and if it doesn't have data on your waterblock, then just choose one of similar flow restriction.
I would try for a 140mm radiator if I could fit it... and duct 120mm fans to it if I needed to save space or felt like spending the money on Gentle Typhoons.
This is the case I am using http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811163159 and I can't seem to mount a 2x120radiator because of mounting points. I could mount it as one fan pushing and two pulling but it's an older thinner thermaltake radiator. I also have several 1x120 radiators DD,swiftech and a couple I can't remember. I would prefer to use what I already have but I am not opposed to get something else if it performs significantly better then what I have.