need some help choosing parts

[xdkimx]

iv decided to get water cooling but i really have no clue on where to start

from what i understand these are the parts i need:

pump - (i need a pump that puts up a good amount of pressure since i want some long tubing cuz my guess is that it will be messy in my p180 case if i dont have long tubes to work with, maybe even use 2 pumps? i dono)

tubing - (for the tubing wuts the difference between 1/2" and 3/8" wouldnt bigger tubes be better? or would i want smaller ones since i need them somewhat longer, to maintain better pressure? and also i need all the parts to be compatible with the same tube size im guessing)

radiator - (just need a good rad probably with dual fans that can be mounted on the outside)

clamps - (just need tight reliable clamps)

cpu block - (just need an effective cpu block for good temps)

gpu block - (i dont think i need a block that covers the ram unless its really needed and also it cant be too tall, i need one that takes up no more than 1 extra slot of space (so 2 slots including the videocard), just incase i decide to use sli later)

chipset block (optional) - (even tho from what i hear the chipset block being unecessary, the chipset fan can be pretty noisy spinning at 4k-7k rpms and if i do get one i need a fairly small one thats not too tall since itll interfere with my gfx card

reservior (optional) - if this isnt too expensive i think itd be nice to have one to keep track of how much water i have running through the system)

liquid - i think ill just use distilled water and antifreeze here since mct-5 seems too much for liquid and wuts the antifreeze for? kill algae?

also i think ill use dangerden for all the parts unless theres a better online shop

my budget is about $150-200 can be a little more or a little less if it can or needs to be, and i also need this thing to last since im planning on using it for my future systems

thanks in advance

 

[seniorpaul]

Since we have a very similar rig, here's some things that i've learned.

GPU blocks: On the SLI-DR board, there isn't much room between the PCI-e slots. So your going to need to use at least one low-profile block. This is the one i'm using. It is my understanding that you cannot use two NV-78 waterblocks (the one that covers the ram), alrough i believe you could fit one and a MAze4 slim profile. Ramsinks work fine though, so i honestly wouldn't even bother with the NV-78's.

Chipset Block: Finding a waterblock that will fit on the SLI-DR is no easy task, as they are all made overseas. The problem is that your GPU is going to be sitting pretty much right on top of the northbridge. There are other alternatives though if your looking to quite down your chipset cooling. The evercool VR-RE vga cooler will fit on your board and is a bit quieter, and will drop your temps a few degrees.

P180: I've got the same case, so here's a little warning. It's not easy to fit all your WC gear inside. It's good to hear that you don't mind having an external Rad, because that is far and away the easiest place to put it with this case. What i ended up doing is put all my harddrives into the bottom chamber. Then i put my pump in the spot where the top HD chamber was.

 

[xdkimx]

hm for the radiator i thought my only option would be to mount it externally but after looking at peoples setups i see that some used 2 single rads i think either setup would work but if i use the dual fan rad i dono where i would mount it since mounting it on the back seems that it would cover some of the sockets used on the gfx/sound card

and for the maze4 block, i see that there are more than one versions of them, do they all perform the same? http://www.dangerdenstore.com/home.php?cat=48

i notice the swiftech blocks are also popular would they perform better?

if i cant find a good chipset block ill consider the evercool

 

[seniorpaul]

hm for the radiator i thought my only option would be to mount it externally but after looking at peoples setups i see that some used 2 single rads i think either setup would work but if i use the dual fan rad i dono where i would mount it since mounting it on the back seems that it would cover some of the sockets used on the gfx/sound card

I'm currently using the "Rad Box" by swiftech, you can mount your Rad on the back of your case and it won't cover anything up. It's positioned to hang off-center. Once i get a couple more cups of coffee in me, i'll run out to my truck to get my digicam and take a picture for you.

and for the maze4 block, i see that there are more than one versions of them, do they all perform the same? http://www.dangerdenstore.com/home.php?cat=48

If your planning on going SLI at some point, your going to need at least one of the Low Profile Acetal MAZE4 GPU Blocks , as there isn't very much room between the PCI-e slots. As for the other Maze4's, they should all perform the same.

i notice the swiftech blocks are also popular would they perform better?

I'm pretty sure that the swifty and DangerDen blocks perform pretty evenly. You would need to check to see how tall they are though if you were considering SLI in the future.

if i cant find a good chipset block ill consider the evercool

Checking the "For Sale" forums is your best bet of finding a chipset waterblock. I bought an EK one from a guy on DFI-forums last week, so they are out there, just a little hard to find. I'm not sure how well they're going to work, as they are pretty constrictive to your loop, but i figured i'd give it a go.

 

[xdkimx]

hm ic so i guess ill go with the maze4 low profile for the gpu block

for the dual rads i dont really like the idea of poking 2 holes in the back of my case (yeah im very picky ) so would 2 single rads or maybe even 3 rads fit based on ur experience with the case, im considering putting a rad on each fan on the upper bay, but would the fans have to blow on the rads or could they suck the air through em

and how bout the cpu block, apogee, maze4 or swiftech's storm

thanks

 

[xdkimx]

^

i think im done picking out my parts, hows this wc build?

60 radiator - 2x two-pass black ice

75 pump - dd d5

- anti freeze - prestone (is this good enough or do i need some kind of algae killer with it?)

50 cpu block - swiftech apogee

45 gpu block - maze 4 low profile

23 tubes - 10 ft tygon soft (1/2 id) (5/8 od)

20 chipset block - koolance http://www.koolance.com/shop/product_info.php?cPath=29_46&products_id=86 (still not 100% sure if im gona get this, dono if itll fit w/o interfering)

30 resivoir - dd dual bay 5 1/4

10 clamps - 30 metal clamps

+60 +75 +50 +45 +23 +20 +30 +10

and also are all these prices reasonable

thanks