Water cooling?

[TnbRipper]

I am a newb when it comes to water cooling. I just recently started researching about it and i really don't know much. I want to buy a custom kit because i've read it will outperform most all in one kits on newegg or other sites for a lower price.

I would really appreciate if someone can make me a list of all the parts and tools needed for water cooling.
I want to spend around $150-$200. Thanks

 

[sparkie99]

I think you need to decide what you're planning on putting under water - processor only, or gpu(s)? chipset? I think that plays a big factor on what components to get, such as the size of radiator, etc.

 

[TnbRipper]

under water: cpu and gpu (might sli in the future)
Also, what are the disadvantages of water cooling?

 

[sirmonkey1985]

as a suggestion.. id say take a look in the water cooling sub forum in this section at the top of the page.. take a look at some peoples setups and work logs.. see if water cooling is the thing you want to do.. you will also get more information in there since this section is primarily air cooling..

 

[soulesschild]

You won't get a good setup for 100-200. Think more along the lines of 300-600.

Disadvantage of WC? Takes a long time to setup, alot of planning. If you don't want to think and plan things out, just stick with air cooling.

A good kit to get started out with is the swiftech Ultima APEX. Or a kit from Petrastechshop.com

 

[dmw5678]

Disadvantages

1. Warranty killer
2. $$$+
3. time/planning

 

[Masejoer]

I spent ~200-250 7 years ago building a SILENT watercooling loop for cooling a processor. It consisted of two "2x120mm" heatercores, Hydor and Eheim pumps (The Hydor destroyed itself pretty quickly), a Dangerden waterblock, a reservoir made from parts from the hardware store, and vinyl tubing. The above cooled an AthlonXP which by today's standards put out little heat but all cooling options sucked back then. It fan with no fans in anything except the power supply - I couldn't even tell the system was on due to the quiet hard drive at the time. I sold all the above parts for $80 after getting bored and irritated with the setup - it was pointless. Now even more so due to problems with extreme voltages unlike 10+ years ago, along with the lack of needing that extra 100-200MHz that used to be a 25% increase or in the case of original Celeron days, 50+%.

Things have improved since then so I wouldn't expect any complication due to the wide availability of parts now. If you just want to try it, that's the only reason I'd recommend watercooling. By doing it yourself and searching for deals, you can easily get a great setup for $100-150. Be warned that these things would require custom case modifications unless you shoot for a "PC" radiator that will bolt into existing case fan mounts.

Pump: ~30 (+/- depending on what you actually want to get)
Waterblock: ~40 (again, more of less depending on what you want)
Radiator: ~30 (for the typical heatercore or cheap PC radiator line)
Tubing: ~20
Other: ~20-50 (depending what you want to use. There is no "need" for a reservoir, just a bleed/fill line)

Prices are all higher or lower depending if you want more expensive or if you get used items (nothing wrong with this unless a pump is bad, the rest can easily be fixed if problems exist). I'd recommend going the custom build route for the cheap price, GREAT cooling, and knowing it wasn't some store purchased junk.

Aircooling has improved enough for me, along with processor speeds. I will never watercool or phase change again.

 

[sparkie99]

under water: cpu and gpu (might sli in the future)
Also, what are the disadvantages of water cooling?

As other have said, I would advise to take a look at what other people are setting up. There are a lot of variation depending on your budget, performance, etc. Good blocks alone will run you $40~50 ea (cpu & gpu - even more $$ if you opt for full cover blocks).

From my experience, the disadvantage would be planning (very important), and it does take more maintenance work than air cooling. I always try to comfort myself that I am getting much better performace/silence than aircooling whenever I think about all the $$ I spent on watercooling..