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Watercooling Setup - HAF 932 Specific

O

Ogre67

Limp Gawd
Joined
Apr 9, 2002
Messages
457
To start off this will be my first attempt at watercooling and I want to have it done right and able to accommodate any future upgrades. Currently running a Q6600 and GTX260 - Future upgrades will probably be to a i7 and another gtx 260.

Parts list from reading so far:

Swiftech MCR320 "Quiet Power" Triple 120mm Radiator - Black (MCR320-QP-K)
Swiftech MCR120 "Quiet Power" 120mm Radiator w/ Reservoir - (MCR120-QP Res)
Swiftech MCP655-B™ 12v Water Pump w/ 3/8" Conversion Kit (317 GPH)
Swiftech MCW60 VGA Water Block - Rev 2.
Swiftech Apogee™ GTZ Universal CPU Waterblock

Questions:

Theoretically I would like to remove a res to reduce tubing and price. So to do that I was curious if buying that single 120 for the back cooling fan spot with the res built in would work in place of it and providing extra cooling. Does a stand alone res offer some sort of additional performance that the built in res could not? Also about the stacking 320's would those fit inside the HAF 932?

Do I want compression fittings or regular metal screw hose clamps?

In the above setup is there any possible problems with mixed metals? I was pretty sure they were all copper but wanted to be 100%.

What is the best tubing to buy? I wanted to run clear tubing with red uv additive.

What is the best fluid and additives to use?

Not exactly sure what to do for a fill/drain as the conventional res is for that.

As far as the loop, in my mind I thought of two theoreticals...
Pump -> GPU --> MCR120 -> CPU -> MCR320 --> Pump --- However I was thinking that loop might be limited if I went SLI and a better alternative for theoretical sli would be...

Pump -> MCR320 --> CPU ---> MCR120 --> GPU ---> GPU --- >Pump --- Not sure if you are supposed to send the hot side of the loop through the pump.

Any input is greatly appreciated.
 
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you could get the mcr320 with a res built in it, that will solve the res problem and will be able to handle an i7 with some overclocking room. A lot of people recommend the compression fittings but i like hose clamps, i think that compression works better though, i cant remember...i dont see any mixed metals but just from preferences i would change the cpu water block to a dtek fuzion v2 with a quad core insert. Buy tygon tubing, it is the best for anti kinking, also i use 1/2id tubing but 3/8 is much friendlier to use, especially when trying to keep everything inside your case(but your case is pretty big...) pure distilled water is the best to use with some pt nuke so algae doesnt form. for your fill/drain problem you could use a t-line. and for the order i would use pump->cpu->gpu->mcr320->pump, if you need more cooling then just one mcr320 you could get a normal mcr320 and a stackable mcr320 with 3 med late yoons or 6 low late yoons, with the 6 you could undervolt it to 7v, i dont know anything really about how restrictive your cpu and gpu blocks you chose are but i know that the dtek fuzion is pretty free flowing, and that the heatkiller 3 is very restrictive. also for your pump i noticed that is the mcp655, i have one but i thought that a 355 with the xspc res top was better then it and it solves the res problem, sorry for the wall of text but thats my opinion :)
 
I am/will be running an extremely similar setup (pump, case, video cards, rad)

A stand alone reservoir will be easier to fill, and IMO looks nice.

Compression fittings and hose clamps both do their job well, and the choice is really just a matter of preference. Compression fittings (at least the Bitspower ones) are pretty pricey. I decided to use them because I mess around inside my case often enough that the ability to quickly connect and disconnect tubing is worth the added cost -- that, and the fact that they're damn sexy. :D
Something to consider if you do end up getting compression fittings: you will need to purchase a replacement top for your pump if you intend to use them on it. I have an EK waterblocks top and am very happy with it.

If you want the absolute best tubing, Tygon is definitely the way to go. I personally use Masterkleer, as it's very good at a fraction of the cost. Many recommend 1/2" ID 3/4" OD tubing for the excellent flow that it offers. I use 7/16" ID 5/8" OD as it offers basically the same flow rate, but is easier to work with when the loop gets more complicated.

I don't think you should have no issues with mixed metals with what you've selected. I have seen some posts alluding to the fact that the impeller housing on the MCP-655 may be made of steel, aluminum, or similar. I haven't had any problems with mine, nor has anyone else that I'm aware of, but it is something to keep in mind. I'm not sure that any other pump on the market would be any different.

You may want more than a 120's worth of cooling surface for your processor to be on the safe side. More cooling is never a bad thing. I generally place my radiator(s) after my pump so that any heat dumped by it isn't sent to the component I'm cooling. It really shouldn't matter, though, as the differences will be minimal at best.

With the same case, I'll likely end up with stacked MCR-320s, or an MCR-320 up top, with an MCR-220 mounted at the back externally with a radbox.

I hope my post is of some help. :)
 
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lilfiend said:
you could get the mcr320 with a res built in it, that will solve the res problem and will be able to handle an i7 with some overclocking room. A lot of people recommend the compression fittings but i like hose clamps, i think that compression works better though, i cant remember...i dont see any mixed metals but just from preferences i would change the cpu water block to a dtek fuzion v2 with a quad core insert. Buy tygon tubing, it is the best for anti kinking, also i use 1/2id tubing but 3/8 is much friendlier to use, especially when trying to keep everything inside your case(but your case is pretty big...) pure distilled water is the best to use with some pt nuke so algae doesnt form. for your fill/drain problem you could use a t-line. and for the order i would use pump->cpu->gpu->mcr320->pump, if you need more cooling then just one mcr320 you could get a normal mcr320 and a stackable mcr320 with 3 med late yoons or 6 low late yoons, with the 6 you could undervolt it to 7v, i dont know anything really about how restrictive your cpu and gpu blocks you chose are but i know that the dtek fuzion is pretty free flowing, and that the heatkiller 3 is very restrictive. also for your pump i noticed that is the mcp655, i have one but i thought that a 355 with the xspc res top was better then it and it solves the res problem, sorry for the wall of text but thats my opinion :)
Click to expand...

Thanks for the reply.

I cant use the MC320-res as the res because according to specs it wont work unless its vertically mounted. I really did want to use the stackable mcr320's but im just not sure they would fit, cant find anything via google about them fitting... but that would be the ideal if they did.

Using the xpsc as a res is just the same as using MRC120 cost wise, but i dont get any cooling benefit from it, unless it provides some other benefit I dont know about, but I do like the implementation of it. Also I looked at that pump and its half (roughly) the water movement that the 655 is... I was under the impression for potentially large systems you wanted the most pump possible not to mention in a smaller loop it would push more water ie better cooling. I was hoping to avoid any future potential needs to do a "second loop" but im not sure what exactly is the limitation for each loop, if its pressure, or heat or what.

Im not really hard set on any coolers, just read those were some decent ones, but I definitely wanted to run 1/2 tubing. Thanks for the idea about a Tline forgot about those.
 
Monkeypillow said:
I am/will be running an extremely similar setup (pump, case, video cards, rad)

With the same case, I'll likely end up with stacked MCR-320s, or an MCR-320 up top, with an MCR-220 mounted at the back externally with a radbox.

I hope my post is of some help. :)
Click to expand...

Thanks for the info about clamps and compression, they were a bit pricey but didnt know if they were really worth it..

Do you know for sure that the stacked MCR's will fit with 25mm fans between them? I would buy those for sure then.
 
Well its ordered... The core components arent that expensive but once everything starts to slowly add up it gets there quick. After everything was said and done with some "bling" I bought was $350.

Swiftech MCR320 "Quiet Power" Triple 120mm Radiator - Black (MCR320-QP-K)
Swiftech MCP655 - One with speed control.
Swiftech MCW60 VGA Water Block - Rev 2.
Swiftech Apogee™ GTZ Universal CPU Waterblock
Swiftech MCRES-Micro Rev 2
Copper Ramsinks
Tygon Tubing
Swiftech fill port
Dual CCFL UV Light
Feser One UV Red fluid
Primochill black anti kink coils
3x yate loons 120mmx20mm "medium speed"
Misc clamps and artic silver

Hopefully this will cool well and look nice, Im really hoping the UV red and black coils mesh well with the case. Got almost everything from Jab-Tech as it was by far the cheapest they just had a limited selection on some items.
 
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A single 3x120 isn't really enough for CPU and GPU if you want to OC worth anything and keep it quiet...
 
silent-circuit said:
A single 3x120 isn't really enough for CPU and GPU if you want to OC worth anything and keep it quiet...
Click to expand...

What exactly do you mean? At a specific temperature or % above ambient? I looked around at a lot of different setups and the MCR320 was used with great effect for anything less than a i7 setup. The only thing I ever saw stating the need for dual rads is when a i7 and dual GPU's came into the mix.
 
Ogre67 said:
Well its ordered... The core components arent that expensive but once everything starts to slowly add up it gets there quick. After everything was said and done with some "bling" I bought was $350.

Swiftech MCR320 "Quiet Power" Triple 120mm Radiator - Black (MCR320-QP-K)
Swiftech MCP655 - One with speed control.
Swiftech MCW60 VGA Water Block - Rev 2.
Swiftech Apogee™ GTZ Universal CPU Waterblock
Swiftech MCRES-Micro Rev 2
Copper Ramsinks
Tygon Tubing
Swiftech fill port
Dual CCFL UV Light
Feser One UV Red fluid
Primochill black anti kink coils
3x yate loons 120mmx20mm "medium speed"
Misc clamps and artic silver

Hopefully this will cool well and look nice, Im really hoping the UV red and black coils mesh well with the case. Got almost everything from Jab-Tech as it was by far the cheapest they just had a limited selection on some items.
Click to expand...

I'm very interested in how many & what size ramsinks you end up using to cool your GTX 260 as mine get here on Wednesday.

Did you get the GT200 mounting hardware for the MCW-60?
 
Monkeypillow said:
I'm very interested in how many & what size ramsinks you end up using to cool your GTX 260 as mine get here on Wednesday.

Did you get the GT200 mounting hardware for the MCW-60?
Click to expand...

I ended up getting the Ezontech (I think) 7.5 gram copper sinks... I wanted to get the full 260 plate that swiftech made but heard it was having some compatibility problems with the 55nm versions.. I just got the standard 8 pack which I hope is enough :)

Ya I had to buy that at another place as jabtech didnt have it, was quite annoying as I got raped on shipping.
 
Ogre67 said:
I ended up getting the Ezontech (I think) 7.5 gram copper sinks... I wanted to get the full 260 plate that swiftech made but heard it was having some compatibility problems with the 55nm versions.. I just got the standard 8 pack which I hope is enough :)

Ya I had to buy that at another place as jabtech didnt have it, was quite annoying as I got raped on shipping.
Click to expand...

Well, I'll be cooling two cards, so whatever you end up using, I'll buy double.
 
Monkeypillow said:
Well, I'll be cooling two cards, so whatever you end up using, I'll buy double.
Click to expand...

I should hopefully have it assembled by sunday and ill post up some pics of the fit in the HAF 932 top mount. If theres clearance im probably gonna order another MCR320 to stack up there, of course depending on temps.
 
I dont see why not, but for the paltry sum of 6 more dollars I would just go with the copper, unless you think those would cool better.
 
Ogre67 said:
I should hopefully have it assembled by sunday and ill post up some pics of the fit in the HAF 932 top mount. If theres clearance im probably gonna order another MCR320 to stack up there, of course depending on temps.
Click to expand...

So what did you end up using? What model numbers of heatsinks did you buy?
 
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