Teh Uber L33t Aqua-Computer Thread :)

[R1ckCa1n]

Good news for Aquaero v4 owners. I have talked to Sebastian a few minutes ago and he is pretty sure that the 4.0 firmware will be ready for download at the end of the next week.

R1ckCa1n, you can't change the color of the display. You will have to use foils. Here is an example with a blue foil:

I have attached it with some sticky tape on the back of the front plate:

That is great news! I have come to the conclusion that I should not poke around the menus when I can't understand what they are saying. I was lucky enough to get the flow meter "shut off" turned off again, and all it back to normal. I can't wait to see the new software and start to make my Aquero do what I want it to do!!!!!!

I thought one of the major reasons to go witht he VFD was the ability to change the color? Maybe I was wrong. Can I use any tinted foil for the change?

 

[Shoggy]

Well, it seems you missundetstood that a bit. It is correct that you can change the color but you will have to do this with a foil. I have used colored foils for spot lights

 

[ShoNuff]

Shoggy, what are the advantages of flashing to Firmware 3.22D for us Aquero v3 users?

Were there any significant upgrades from the Aquero v3 to v4?

Oh, thanks for the link to the v3.22D firmware.

 

[R1ckCa1n]

OK.. I seem to be getting somewhere today!


One question though, what software are you guys using to add custom screens? I have tried the jaLCDs but it will not communicate via USB. I tried CrystalControl but it can not recognize the VFD. Any suggestions?

 

[Shoggy]

I have 3.22D because I don't want to play a guinea pig for the 3.23 alpha

The main difference between v3 and v4 ist that the newer version works with an analog regulation for the fans and it is easier to install because it has <pls insert corret word(s) *g*> on the left and right with screw threads like cd/dvd rom drives.

R1ckCa1n, did you start jalcds via the startmenu? You have to run this software with a paramter (X:\jalcds\jaLCDs.exe output=aquaeroLCD.jaLCD). If you start it in the explorer or somewhere else you don't have this parameter. You could create a shortcut with the paramter if cecessary.
Have you tried the example.cfg? And finally: you have to turn on usb lcd mode on the Aquaero. You can find it under Anzeige-Paramter (4) => USBLCD-Modus (6).

 

[Top Nurse]

I have 3.22D because I don't want to play a guinea pig for the 3.23 alpha

The main difference between v3 and v4 ist that the newer version works with an analog regulation for the fans and it is easier to install because it has <pls insert corret word(s) *g*> on the left and right with screw threads like cd/dvd rom drives.

Hi Shoggy...

So this is the infamous "winding" ? We call it a "threaded bushing."

 

[Top Nurse]

That is great news! I have come to the conclusion that I should not poke around the menus when I can't understand what they are saying. I was lucky enough to get the flow meter "shut off" turned off again, and all it back to normal. I can't wait to see the new software and start to make my Aquero do what I want it to do!!!!!!

I thought one of the major reasons to go with the VFD was the ability to change the color? Maybe I was wrong. Can I use any tinted foil for the change?

Hi R1ckCa1n...

The foil that Shoggy is talking about is the filter material you can buy at any camera store to make custom filters or use as filters for stage lights. So you can really have just about any color that strikes your fancy.

 

[Top Nurse]

There is a way to flash a lower version but I don't need to tell you how to do this because that may kill your aquaero. The only firmware that can be used with an Aquaero 4.0 is firmware 3.99. To change the language you need this firmware but it isn't downloadable. I sent a message to Sebastian. Maybe he could upload it.

Hi Shoggy...

I'm not sure I understand. The firmware on these five (5) Aquaero's here (I assume they are all the same) have a revision 3.99D, correct? Are you saying that what we need is a revision 3.99E? Does the "D" stand for Deutsche and the "E" for English? Or is there no English revision 3.99?

So the firmware we have has no way to change the visual display to English? I thought it was just a parameter change in the Aquaero menu.

 

[Top Nurse]

Anyone got a picture of the black Aquatube?
Would it look better than the silver?
thanks

A picture of it is here. Looks are up to the lookee

 

[Top Nurse]

I assume the Aquero software runs a backgroud task that runs in your taskbar if you want to use the monitoring software. Can you use it just from the front panel only so you don't have to run a background task? What functions can't you control from the front panel that you can from the software?

Why don't you go here and download the latest software as well as the latest manual and see for yourself. Click on "Support" and then on "Download." This site is in German, but I'm sure you can navigate. This is the link for the Aqua Computer English website, but it isn't updated as well as the German site.

 

[Top Nurse]

Greetings most exalted ones....

I believe the display used by Aqua Computer in the Aquaero VFD version is a Noritake display. You can find more info about the use of colored filters here. Their USA website is located here. I believe there is development software on this site, though I have no idea whether it would help you to do custom displays or not. I think it is probably a better idea to wait and see what the new firmware or software will do as Shoggy stated.

The Aqua Computer personnel have recently declined to state the revision 4 firmware/software delivery saying "...it is done when it is done.." So it brightens my soul to hear that they are talking again about an actual date. If your interested here is a thread that talks about it. I thought it was actually kind of funny about the previous quote mentioned above.

 

[modsquad2]

A picture of it is here. Looks are up to the lookee

A few more.

 

[Shoggy]

The firmware on these five (5) Aquaero's here (I assume they are all the same) have a revision 3.99D, correct?

Yes and no because some have the older V3 and others the newer V4.

Are you saying that what we need is a revision 3.99E? Does the "D" stand for Deutsche and the "E" for English? Or is there no English revision 3.99?

I don't think that D is standing for Deutsch because there are no other versions and you can flash your V3 to english anyway with a D-firmware. As far as I know the firmware itself contains no language for menus etc. The language is inserted by the aquaero software.
In the past there were also versions with A, B and C at the end. It seems that it is only Sebastians own way to mark them where D means a stable version and A or B could stand for Alpha and Beta

When I spoke to him he told me that they don't upload the 3.99 firmware because you would also need an other program to flash your V4 which is too confusing. People could use the wrong software or firmware - and boom With the upcomming AquaSuite and firmware 4.0 you don't have to worry about that problem because there will be only one firmware that works with all Aquaeros.
If you want english menus they would flash it to english before delivery. So it depends on you or the reseller to make sure that your aquaero is flashed to english.

So the firmware we have has no way to change the visual display to English? I thought it was just a parameter change in the Aquaero menu.

The firmware itself don't have an option to change the language. As mentioned before the firmware itself contains no language. It's inserted on the fly while flashing a firmware.

 

[Top Nurse]

Yes and no because some have the older V3 and others the newer V4.

All of these 5 Aquaero's came from an IT-Trade shipment delivered to Sharka Corp last Thursday. It was my understanding that all Aquaero's for awhile now have been version 4 hardware. Will Sharka have to start each one to figure out what firmware revision is in each of them? Or is there a way to tell externally like with the threaded bushings on the mount (winding's)?

When I spoke to him he told me that they don't upload the 3.99 firmware because you would also need an other program to flash your V4 which is too confusing. People could use the wrong software or firmware - and boom With the upcomming AquaSuite and firmware 4.0 you don't have to worry about that problem because there will be only one firmware that works with all Aquaeros. If you want english menus they would flash it to english before delivery. So it depends on you or the reseller to make sure that your aquaero is flashed to english.

I hope you aren't saying that these Aquaero's are going to have to be returned to Austria or Germany to be reflashed? Are they EPROM's that need a burner or are they flashed through Windows or DOS software? I have an EPROM burner if that is what it is going to take. So with the new revision 4 firmware will I be able to download it and flash my "German language" Aquaero that I have now?

 

[nigely]

A few more.

Thanks
but do you have picture of those res. in action?
because i want to know if its as bright as the silver one
iam using a repack bay res. and its really dark, i think its becoz of the res. is in black or the white LED not powerful enough

 

[U235]

This is probably a stupid question, but none the less i feel the need to ask it. Im currently preparing to build a AMD FX based system and naturally am in the market for watercooling. I currently use an Exos-Al on my P4 system and have had great results. However, i am looking for a bit more of a traditonal setup. I have been looking at the newest swiftech set as a possible choice. So, i guess im asking how the A-C stacks up to all the others.

 

[topcat989]

Dan you have a PM.

 

[Top Nurse]

This is probably a stupid question, but none the less i feel the need to ask it. Im currently preparing to build a AMD FX based system and naturally am in the market for watercooling. I currently use an Exos-Al on my P4 system and have had great results. However, i am looking for a bit more of a traditonal setup. I have been looking at the newest swiftech set as a possible choice. So, i guess im asking how the A-C stacks up to all the others.

Well lets see: A Yugo in one corner and Mercedes in the other corner.

Okay enough playing around! I guess it depends on what you want to do and whether you value aesthetics in a water cooling system. First of all Aqua Computer products are not cheap. They are probably the most expensive watercooling products on the face of the Earth that I'm aware of. But you also get a lot of technical and aesthetic plusses. So perhaps I should send you around a bit to some other places and you can draw your own conclusions, okay?

This is the German Language website. Go here to reach the English Language website. If your still interested come on back and we can send you to some other interesting places on the web.

 

[U235]

Well lets see: A Yugo in one corner and Mercedes in the other corner.

Okay enough playing around! I guess it depends on what you want to do and whether you value aesthetics in a water cooling system. First of all Aqua Computer products are not cheap. They are probably the most expensive watercooling products on the face of the Earth that I'm aware of. But you also get a lot of technical and aesthetic plusses. So perhaps I should send you around a bit to some other places and you can draw your own conclusions, okay?

This is the German Language website. Go here to reach the English Language website. If your still interested come on back and we can send you to some other interesting places on the web.

Im not so much concerned with asthetics as i am with preformance. In a perfect world i would have both. From what i see, it looks like A-C may be that, but i have seen no reviews on their products and have no idea as to what their benchmarks are, so i guess for those of you who have A-C systems, how powerful are their setups?

 

[Top Nurse]

Im not so much concerned with asthetics as i am with preformance. In a perfect world i would have both. From what i see, it looks like A-C may be that, but i have seen no reviews on their products and have no idea as to what their benchmarks are, so i guess for those of you who have A-C systems, how powerful are their setups?

Well there are people in this thread who are running OC to hell Pentium and AMD FX processors and some who are using the same equipment to run fairly stock systems. Depends what you want to do so how about telling us what you got and what you want to do with it?

I also have an EXOS I unit and was going to do a hybrid Koolance/DIY project. I was also thinking of getting the EXOS II till they came out with that ridiculous $350 price tag. In fact that was what got me interested in looking at Innovatek stuff, but the total lack of English support from them made me drop them like a hot potato. Then I found A-C equipment and have a lot of stuff sitting here on my desk awaiting installation.

 

[modsquad2]

Well lets see: A Yugo in one corner and Mercedes in the other corner.

Okay enough playing around! I guess it depends on what you want to do and whether you value aesthetics in a water cooling system. First of all Aqua Computer products are not cheap. They are probably the most expensive watercooling products on the face of the Earth that I'm aware of. But you also get a lot of technical and aesthetic plusses. So perhaps I should send you around a bit to some other places and you can draw your own conclusions, okay?

This is the German Language website. Go here to reach the English Language website. If your still interested come on back and we can send you to some other interesting places on the web.

Swiftech is no Yugo. They make good gear. BUT, you are talking apples/oranges..SmallBore/BigBore..With Aqua-Computer you get great looks and soild preformance..Swiftech will give you a few degree's over the Aqua-Computer stuff ( I would think )..BUT lets face_facts..We are H20 cooling to say we are H20 cooling..and Aqua-Computer makes the best looking gear on the planet..It's your call...

 

[Top Nurse]

A few more.

I think I need to ditch my silver Aquatube and get a black one from Wes! The silver one doesn't look anything like what I thought it would look like. It really looks like "silver" and I was expecting aluminum silver to match my Lian-Li. What would look nice would be a clear anodized look.

 

[Top Nurse]

Swiftech is no Yugo. They make good gear. BUT, you are talking apples/oranges..SmallBore/BigBore..With Aqua-Computer you get great looks and soild preformance..Swiftech will give you a few degree's over the Aqua-Computer stuff ( I would think )..BUT lets face_facts..We are H20 cooling to say we are H20 cooling..and Aqua-Computer makes the best looking gear on the planet..It's your call...

I was hoping to avoid Religion in this discussion. And yes Swiftech does make good stuff. In fact their factory is not to far from my house.

Added:

BTW, I was thinking about your Black Narcissus project and thought of something while I was perusing all the A-C parts sitting on my desk. Have you ever noticed that the Aqua Computer name on the metal parts is deep enough to think about putting something in there? Perhaps red paint or some of that fiery red stuff that they make cloisonne with? I don't have that kind of artistic talent to do that kind of stuff, but perhaps you do? It would look really hot

 

[sleepydano]

i'm still slighty confused in how the aquatube works.

there's a picture of my res. I've been wanting to buy an aquatube and mount it on the front of my case.

For my reservior i just open the cap on top and pour in some water. Then turn on the pump.

I don't even know how the aquatube opens! and it doesnt even look big enough to fill up all my lines. I'm confused. haha. some help would be great.

thanks.

 

[dgkulzer]

Sleepydano:
May I ask what kind of res do you have now and where did you get it from?

The aquatube has a outer set of bolts that hold it onto the case and a inner set of bolts that hold on the clear top, to fill it you just have to remove the inner set (the ones through the plexi). Naturaly this works only if its in the top of the case so the plexi is pointed up. Filling it up when its horizontal is slightly different

Generally a really big res isnt needed anyway, lots of people get by fine with just a t-line in fact. The main purpose of a res is to simplify filling and also to make it easier on the pump and for this the aquatube works great. I admit the aquatube doesnt hold much water but if it was much bigger it wouldnt be as versatile, easy horizontal mounting in a drive bay with the pump behind it or in the top of the case.

Edit: I think www.snt-systems.com has the aquatube with the 1/2" barb option for you guys that use larger hose sizes. Since I use the standard 10mm AC hose I just have the standard aquatube.

 

[Shoggy]

All of these 5 Aquaero's came from an IT-Trade shipment delivered to Sharka Corp last Thursday.

I have absolutley no idea which 5 aquaeros you mean. A V4 looks like this:

I hope you aren't saying that these Aquaero's are going to have to be returned to Austria or Germany to be reflashed?
So with the new revision 4 firmware will I be able to download it and flash my "German language" Aquaero that I have now?

You can flash firmware 4.0 yourself with the new software.
You will only have to return your aquaero if you would do something wrong and that's the reason why Sebastian don't upload the 3.99 firmware and software for flashing because than we would have two different tools for flashing and 4 different firmware versions (V3, V4 and LCD or VFD).
There are enough idiots that would use the wrong combination

 

[U235]

Swiftech is no Yugo. They make good gear. BUT, you are talking apples/oranges..SmallBore/BigBore..With Aqua-Computer you get great looks and soild preformance..Swiftech will give you a few degree's over the Aqua-Computer stuff ( I would think )..BUT lets face_facts..We are H20 cooling to say we are H20 cooling..and Aqua-Computer makes the best looking gear on the planet..It's your call...

So then the quality and preformance is on par with Swiftech?

 

[Top Nurse]

So then the quality and preformance is on par with Swiftech?

So it's religion Well yes and no. Swiftech is a big is better (BIB) system and the A-C gear is low flow small bore. Check out this post for more information. You will find just as many BIB as low flow disciples in this forum. But the really religious part is that while BIB sometimes gets a few degrees cooler temps, it doesn't seem to translate into anything measurable in the OC of the machines. So if you want specs you might want a BIB system. If you want the same OC ability and good looks then get an A-C system.

A good comparison might be between say a 1967 Camaro that has been set up for high performance driving and a $60K Mercedes. The Camaro will get you from one block to the next a bit faster, but the Mercedes will get you to the same place in style.

 

[Mysticcal]

I just bought the anodized black and black plate for my Lian Li PC-65B.... Hope it looks as good as the one above.

 

[Top Nurse]

I have absolutley no idea which 5 aquaeros you mean. A V4 looks like this:

You can flash firmware 4.0 yourself with the new software.
You will only have to return your aquaero if you would do something wrong and that's the reason why Sebastian don't upload the 3.99 firmware and software for flashing because than we would have two different tools for flashing and 4 different firmware versions (V3, V4 and LCD or VFD).
There are enough idiots that would use the wrong combination.

Okay it appears that all 5 of the ones at Sharka have version 4 hardware, which appears to be better from a performance point of view in that they have analog fan outputs (vs the PWM of version 3) and a better mounting system. So people just need to be aware that there are no English version 4 firmwares available till they are released in the next week or so, correct? I can live with that and perhaps brush up on my German skills at the same time. If it was going to be longer than that I would return it to Sharka.

So correct me if I am wrong or not but are you saying my dealer can flash the firmware for me to a 3.99 English if they get the software and English 3.99 firmware from Aqua Computer?

 

[Top Nurse]

Does anyone know the manufacturer of the flow meter that A-C sells?

Ahh...never mind I found it myself with Google. It is made by a Swiss Company called Digmesa for any who are interested. The part number is 937-1533/03 and you can download an English manual here.

 

[Shoggy]

The flowmeter is from Digmesa.

I don't know if your dealer can flash it. He needs the correct software and firmware which should be difficult to get.

 

[Top Nurse]

I don't know if your dealer can flash it. He needs the correct software and firmware which should be difficult to get.

Well I put Sharka to work on it and they always get stuff done for me so I know it will get resolved.

BTW, I was taking off that plastic film off my AquaBay AT and noticed there was a lot of residual gunk around the slots and edges after getting off the main pieces. I tried with alcohol and acetone to get the stuff off and no go What is the right stuff to get that off the metal?

 

[Top Nurse]

I just bought the anodized black and black plate for my Lian Li PC-65B.... Hope it looks as good as the one above.

I sure hope so as well because Sharka has a bunch of them coming in early next week and I already ordered one.

 

[Aviddigi]

BTW, I was taking off that plastic film off my AquaBay AT and noticed there was a lot of residual gunk around the slots and edges after getting off the main pieces. I tried with alcohol and acetone to get the stuff off and no go What is the right stuff to get that off the metal?

Flitz metal polish if you can find it, that stuff works wonders

 

[sleepydano]

Sleepydano:
May I ask what kind of res do you have now and where did you get it from?

The aquatube has a outer set of bolts that hold it onto the case and a inner set of bolts that hold on the clear top, to fill it you just have to remove the inner set (the ones through the plexi). Naturaly this works only if its in the top of the case so the plexi is pointed up. Filling it up when its horizontal is slightly different

Generally a really big res isnt needed anyway, lots of people get by fine with just a t-line in fact. The main purpose of a res is to simplify filling and also to make it easier on the pump and for this the aquatube works great. I admit the aquatube doesnt hold much water but if it was much bigger it wouldnt be as versatile, easy horizontal mounting in a drive bay with the pump behind it or in the top of the case.

Edit: I think www.snt-systems.com has the aquatube with the 1/2" barb option for you guys that use larger hose sizes. Since I use the standard 10mm AC hose I just have the standard aquatube.

thanks a lot man. yeah. i wanted to run the res. horizontal, so i was confused in how it could possibly work. haha. thanks though

but about my reservior. my friend actually made it for me out of a clear pvc pipe.

 

[Vlad335]

Flitz metal polish if you can find it, that stuff works wonders

Also, citrus based cleaners,

IE: Orange Clean.

 

[Top Nurse]

Also, citrus based cleaners, IE: Orange Clean.

After looking here, there, and everywhere I finally looked in my closet and found a can of Zep stainless steel cleaner. I think it came from Home Depot for maybe $5 a can. Works great and cuts right through that nasty gunk that was left on the Aquabay after the plastic came off. Gives it a nice polished look to boot.

BTW, did you get your Aquatube and Aquabay ordered today?

 

[badash]

Does anyone know anything about this power supply? It looks like 230v only:
http://www.hartware.net/review_446.html

http://www.alphacool.de/perl/shop.p...menu_id=2&prod_id=120&art_kz=125&art_id=12502

http://www.nc-silence.de/

 

[Top Nurse]

Not a thing. When someone makes a PSU equivalent to a PC Power & Cooling that is water cooled from the ground up I will buy it. Up to now I think they are all retrofitted designs of standard PSU's. Just water cooling the big heatsinks doesn't make it in my book as the are plenty of components that also need cooling that typically is done by air moving across all surfaces via a fan. Up till recently it all seemed kind of silly as it was a good way to exhaust heat from the top of the case. However, now with us putting PSU's in the bottom of the case that all changes. I'm still waiting....