Suggestions for 6800gt block

O

osirus35

Gawd
Joined
Oct 6, 2004
Messages
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Im looking for suggestion for a block to cool my 6800gt. The only thing is that my system uses 3/8" tubing. If you all coudl suggest a block that has 3/8" barbs or if it is possible to convert a block with 1/2" to 3/8". If you have had any experiences please post your basic WC system and GPU temps so I can get a feel of what temps I should be getting.

Also since my res has 2 intakes would it be wise to split the waterflow into two parts with a Y connector and cool and GPU and CPU in seperate loops?

I plan on using a DDC-12v pump, and a swiftech mcw6000-775 block.
 
Im planning on purchasing two Danger Den NV-68 but the probleme i see is that when in sli the tubes might run into the video card below it........they also have a Maze 4 that isnt as styleish but would solve the probleme of the tubbing running into the other video card. Both blockscome in 1/2 and 3/8. As i am in the process of reciving via ups all my watercooling equipment i wont have temps for about another week or two.
 
I have only tried the Innovatek NV40 and the DangerDen NV68. I like them because they cool the DDR chips, as well. The Innovatek also cools the power rail. Another plus.

The DangerDen a big heavy chunk of copper, looks kind of nice, but the fit an finish can be a little lacking. If you put pressure pads on the GPU and RAM chips, mount the block, then check the results, the top two RAM chips barely touch. I had to get a extra mounting screw machined near the top to resolve the problem. Then after all that work, it was 6 degrees warmer than the Innovatek. I had bought it since it would fit the PCI-E cards I was getting. You can replace the outlets with 90 degree ones, if needed. But, since it did not work any better than the Innovatek, I used the NV40 instead,. I picked up a twin for the SLI cards. Work great. In quiet mode, the cards idle at around 41C. The DangerDen was 47C.

I also run my cooling in series, and it seems to cool fine. I did buy T-Blocks for the SLI connecting, but UPS damaged the box they shipped in, and they fell out. So, waiting to see if that improves the cooling a little.
 
You can order a Danger Den NV-68 with either 1/2" or 3/8" barbs. The price is the same.

Complete Block Assembled with Top and Gaskets
High Flow 1/2" or 3/8" OD Fittings
Just one Inlet and Outlet for complete cooling
Low flow restriction low pressure drop
Stainless Steel Hold Down
Machined Lapped and polished beyond 1200 grit
Pressure tested before shipment
 
HeavyH20 said:
I have only tried the Innovatek NV40 and the DangerDen NV68. I like them because they cool the DDR chips, as well. The Innovatek also cools the power rail. Another plus.

The DangerDen a big heavy chunk of copper, looks kind of nice, but the fit an finish can be a little lacking. If you put pressure pads on the GPU and RAM chips, mount the block, then check the results, the top two RAM chips barely touch. I had to get a extra mounting screw machined near the top to resolve the problem. Then after all that work, it was 6 degrees warmer than the Innovatek. I had bought it since it would fit the PCI-E cards I was getting. You can replace the outlets with 90 degree ones, if needed. But, since it did not work any better than the Innovatek, I used the NV40 instead,. I picked up a twin for the SLI cards. Work great. In quiet mode, the cards idle at around 41C. The DangerDen was 47C.

I also run my cooling in series, and it seems to cool fine. I did buy T-Blocks for the SLI connecting, but UPS damaged the box they shipped in, and they fell out. So, waiting to see if that improves the cooling a little.
Click to expand...


The coolmatic looks like good stuff....know where it can be purchased?
 
only one store that i know of (can not really read german) carries them and they are all sold out. One guy is selling them in the forums but he charges new prices for them so its a ripoff from him.


http://www.highspeedpc.com/
 
DangerDen maze4 GPU blocks now fit the 6800's. So you can get that and put some ram-sinks on and be set. Not to mention how the copper base and scetal top wont react witht eh other copper components in your loop.
 
The coolmatic is a relabeled innovatek block. Innovatek makes similar blocks for x800 cards as well... either way, they aren't very good blocks. And watercooling ram is an exercise in futility. Unless the water is chilled, you achieve nothing that ramsinks can't.
 
iddqd said:
And watercooling ram is an exercise in futility. Unless the water is chilled, you achieve nothing that ramsinks can't.
Click to expand...
Good point. As many complaints as I've read about the differing heights of the memory of 6800 cards, W/C the ram would be a PITA.

I second the recomendation of the DD Maze4 w/ Delrin top.
 
I'd be interested in comparison b/n Silverprop Fusion and DangerDen's Maze4 (delrin-topped). Any ideas on how they perform?

Btw, delrin is essentially plastic, can it crack?
 
TehQuick said:
I'd be interested in comparison b/n Silverprop Fusion and DangerDen's Maze4 (delrin-topped). Any ideas on how they perform?

Btw, delrin is essentially plastic, can it crack?
Click to expand...
Yes, but they say Pressure tested before shipment to 85psi
 
I would get the fusion HL but I do not want to wait 3-4 weeks and it has 1/2" barbs when my system is 3/8".. i can stretch my tubing as i run all tygon which people tell me is good for stretching. I am interested in the maze4 gpu but I want to get the chrome top (the chrome top looks so nice!!!!!!!!!!!!) but DD has not released them yet, nor did they email me back about an expected release date for the chrome tops.

Someone should write a review comparing the silverprop HL, Maze4 gpu, and the mcw50 blocks on higher end cards. I would do it but i am not experienced enough in the area of watercooling to write a decent review
 
osirus35 said:
I would get the fusion HL but I do not want to wait 3-4 weeks and it has 1/2" barbs when my system is 3/8".. i can stretch my tubing as i run all tygon which people tell me is good for stretching. I am interested in the maze4 gpu but I want to get the chrome top (the chrome top looks so nice!!!!!!!!!!!!) but DD has not released them yet, nor did they email me back about an expected release date for the chrome tops.

Someone should write a review comparing the silverprop HL, Maze4 gpu, and the mcw50 blocks on higher end cards. I would do it but i am not experienced enough in the area of watercooling to write a decent review
Click to expand...
Well if you want a chrome top, the how about the PolarFLO TT Series VGA chrome block?
 
I've chatted with Dano @ DDen about this.

I'm not sure about clearence issues using the NV-68 in SLi configuration.
cleansing_system_with_IPA2-vi.jpg
 
im not running sli anyways, just one 6800gt.

I have not seen any review for the polarflo vga blocks as well. Their cpu block are horrible and I get the overall impression that their vga block will yeild the same horrible performance

The aquafx looks cool but i have not seen any reviews. Plus i would rather just cool the core and put sinks on the ram. I do not see a reason to through the heat from the ram into the loop if i do not need to and it saves me money to do it this way as well.

do you think you can email DD about the expected release date of the chrome top for the maz4gpu?
 
Ooh, nice to see the Maze4 now supports the 6800. My brother has a 6800Ultra, but doesnt want to pay for the NV48 block just to cool the ram. A question I have though, is can you just leave the stock ram thing on there? Is there any ramsinks that are better? How much clearence does the Maze4 give you, as the barbs are right over two of the ram chips.
 
Viper87227 said:
Ooh, nice to see the Maze4 now supports the 6800. My brother has a 6800Ultra, but doesnt want to pay for the NV48 block just to cool the ram. A question I have though, is can you just leave the stock ram thing on there? Is there any ramsinks that are better? How much clearence does the Maze4 give you, as the barbs are right over two of the ram chips.
Click to expand...
There are plenty of ram sinks out there, like these Vantecs or OCZ. As far as clearance there's plenty. D/L the MAZE4 GPU Install in Windows Media and you'll see. The vid makes a point of showing that.
 
qdemn7 said:
There are plenty of ram sinks out there, like these Vantecs or OCZ. As far as clearance there's plenty. D/L the MAZE4 GPU Install in Windows Media and you'll see. The vid makes a point of showing that.
Click to expand...

But will the heatpipe ram cooling that on here now suffice, or does that hace to come off? Also, I never really experamented wiht it, but cooling a 6800U and a CPU in the same loop, how much is that going to bring up my CPU temp?
 
Viper87227 said:
But will the heatpipe ram cooling that on here now suffice, or does that hace to come off? Also, I never really experamented wiht it, but cooling a 6800U and a CPU in the same loop, how much is that going to bring up my CPU temp?
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No the heatpipe has to come off. The long sink for the power transistors on the far right side on the card stays on.

As far as temps go, when I had my BFG 6800 GT with the stock cooler, it hit 82C under full load. After installing an Arctic Cooler NV5, it dropped to 72C under full load.
Considering that a CPU should never get over 60C, I'd say adding the GPU to the mix will bump up your loop temps quite a bit. I'll find out in a month on two, and let you know.
 
Yup, u can leave the stock ram cooler on, but the problem would be whether the waterblock will clear them. Fusion HL (not SL) is guaranteed to do so because it's pretty tall, but I am not so sure about maze4 and others. Someone did it with Fusion HL and the barbs were pretty close to the pins on the stock ram cooler
 
my stock cooler idles at 51c and load temps are at 61c (400/1100) so those temps are not that bad but I want to get them to drop around the 50's or 40's load that is why i would rather not throw the ram heat into my loop.

Ive seen a pic of a person who has the mcw50 block on his GT with the stock ramsinks on there. He says he gets 44 idle and 54 load (418/1150).

http://forums.extremeoverclocking.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=57466
 
qdemn7 said:
Yes, but they say Pressure tested before shipment to 85psi
Click to expand...

I am not worried about pressure per se but heat/cold cycle and other extenuating circumstances affecting plastic more than a metal top. I might be being overcautious but I'd gladly pay $10 over Maze4 and wait a little to get all-metal Fusion HL which also has no aluminum :D
 
the bad thing about the fusion HL is that you have to wait a while because the only place you can order them now is from australia. Everywhere else is sold out
 
So then the important question, if the Maze4 could clear the stock ramsinks, what would be better? I would think its a matter of large surface area of stock vs. copper if I went with OCZ. I have the money to purcahse the ramsinks, so thats not the the issue, I just dont see the point if there not going to impove performance.
 
I found the Innovatek worked fine. The RAM cooling does work. Helps get my 6800 Ultra clocks to 515/1320. The RAM bakes without good ariflow or being properly cooled. Laser heat meter showed 80C with plain heatsinks. And, I the fluid I use is only 70% water, so the corrosion is less of an issue between the copper and aluminum. And, even if it does not help increase the mem clocks, it does help ambient temps.

The DD block, for all interested, will fit the SLI config fine with some 90 degree barbs. You can't get them directly from DangerDen, but they use standard fittings, which can be purchased at a number of water cooling vendors.

I have heard good things about the SilverProp GPU blocks (Aussie company).

Bottom line, pretty much any block will improve cooling over and above air cooling. It comes down to personal preference and experience. In my case, the DD block did not work very well. The mounting was a little lacking. Four mount points for the whole block. And, wheni got it, there were still copper shavings inside the block, and the casing had small cracks at the barb mounts. Maybe I got a rush job, who knows.

Help my 6800 UEE AGP card work at 515/1320 on a regular watercooling system. Just don;t listen to the one that yells or belittles the most. Nothing really "sucks" per say. It is all about preference.

As the old saying goes, "Opinions are like butt holes, everyone has one, and some stink more than others". ;)
 
I dont plan to overclock past 400/1100 anyways.

I have heard mixed reviews about the nv48 and plus the cost is an issue as well. And then there are cool-matic nv40 and the aquagrafx blocks that do the same as the nv48 but im not sure which one is better especially for a 3/8" system

Many people say that the Fusion HL is a better block but not by much. Maybe a 2-3c difference but that all depends on water temps, ambient temps and everything so the difference isnt really big engouh to pick one or the other.

Would there be a big difference in temps from a block that cools the ram as well vs a block that just cools the core? That is my major conern because I want to keep my parts as cool as possible. I plan on cooling the cpu first then run it down to the GPU and through a double rad, maybe i will not notice a temp difference

btw HeavyH20 what temps do you get on your card clocked that high?
 
Thats mianly my issue as well. I want to overclock my 6800U, but my CPU is more imporant. I overclock more as a hobby then game performance, so if watercooling my 6800U will in turn raise my CPU temps, thats no good. I am concidering just running my card on air for now, and down the road I will set up a second loop just for my GPU.
 
Yes, the NV40 is expensive, but it is so pertee.

For cooling, the core is the most important. You will do fine with any block and some passive heatsinks for the RAM (Copper ones from OCZ, $15 at NewEgg). I did not mind springing for the NV40's since two of them cost less than the PSU I was looking at. Strange world we live in the last 8 or months. $300 motherboards, $400 PSUs, $700 video cards, $300 for 1 GB of RAM, and $1000 for a CPU. Nice.
 
HeavyH20 said:
The DD block, for all interested, will fit the SLI config fine with some 90 degree barbs. You can't get them directly from DangerDen, but they use standard fittings, which can be purchased at a number of water cooling vendors.
Click to expand...

can you name a vendor? Please!!!!? I have 2 NV68 Danger Den blocks strapped onto my 6800Us and its all sitting idle until I can find the proper 90 degree "elbow" barbs. The main problem with using a standard right angle fitting is that once one barb is screwed in the 2nd one wont screw in because it hits the 1st barb. I think if the fitting had a swivel on the threaded side that allowed the joint portion to remain facing forward while the threads were screwed into the block then it would work... BUT I have been googling for a freakin week now and haven't find the proper fitting. Home depot had brass fittings that would fit the hole on the block but they had no swivel action so only one could be used :rolleyes: I'm hoping to make it to Ace Hardware tonight (supposedly they have better selections of small fittings) so I'll see what happens...

Right now it looks like my only surefire method is going to be calling up a CNC manufacturer ($$$) or having a friend braze some brass fittings together for me in an attempt to make the pieces. Either way its gonna suck... A vendor site would be greatly appreciated!

::edit:: I did find some 45 degree elbows from a site in the UK that MIGHT work... They were 45 degree elbows with 3/8"MPT/FPT threading...but I'd much rather find a simple 90 degree with a swivel head.... :mad:
 
TehQuick said:
I am not worried about pressure per se but heat/cold cycle and other extenuating circumstances affecting plastic more than a metal top. I might be being overcautious but I'd gladly pay $10 over Maze4 and wait a little to get all-metal Fusion HL which also has no aluminum :D
Click to expand...
the delrin wont crack after heat and cold cycle's, but if you want you can order the new maze 4 top made of brass, no rust problem there and no cracking....

i bought 2 of the delrin ones, they are very nice, it wont fit an sli on a dfi, it will fit most probably on the asus.
 
Just FYI, there are no sites that sell the proper 90degree fittings for an SLI'd Danger Den block (NV68) and Danger Den cannot find the proper 90 degree barbs. Also, the barbs do NOT use "standard" fittings. They must be made for a 9/16-18NF threaded hole. This is not the common NPT, BSP, etc that you would find at Home Depot, Lowes, Ace HW, etc). So far the only proven way of using a DD NV68 block on both SLI'd cards would be to MOD the bottom card's block.

Although you loose the warranty on the $125 GPU block you can get it to work in under 15 minutes (assuming you have the proper tools).
 
Solutions said:
Just FYI, there are no sites that sell the proper 90degree fittings for an SLI'd Danger Den block (NV68) and Danger Den cannot find the proper 90 degree barbs. Also, the barbs do NOT use "standard" fittings. They must be made for a 9/16-18NF threaded hole. This is not the common NPT, BSP, etc that you would find at Home Depot, Lowes, Ace HW, etc). .
Click to expand...
So whay did DD use such an oddball thread?
 
AFAIK, Aqua Computer has a 6800 block that uses 10mm ID fittings. It's for SLI systems so, according to their web site.
 
I'm known as a rabel rousing maven of low flow so take the following with a tylenol ;)

This cooler will do you right. But some design considerations are necessary to make it work right due to it being a 1/4" ID system.
 
thelostrican said:
the delrin wont crack after heat and cold cycle's, but if you want you can order the new maze 4 top made of brass, no rust problem there and no cracking....

i bought 2 of the delrin ones, they are very nice, it wont fit an sli on a dfi, it will fit most probably on the asus.
Click to expand...
i stand corrected, the new maze4 with the delrin top will fit an sli system with a dfi board, a little modification is needed.....
hopefully i can post some pics soon....
 
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