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Welcome suggestions on first loop!

S

skypine27

Gawd
Joined
Apr 18, 2008
Messages
734
Hello water cooling nerds!

I'm about to build my first custom loop loosely based on this sample pic from Thermaltake:



The above pic is my exact case model (Thermaltake V51) and i plan on using that exact same pump/res combo and also the same mounting position (vertical, bolted to case floor). Hence I posted the pic. Here is the pump on newegg:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835106260
(I will be dumping the 2 x 120 mm intake fans on the case floor)

This is my current build that I'm planning on upgrading from a single 280 MM Corsair H110i GT AIO to a custom loops:



I'm going for looks (subjective,as i know people have picked on my plethora of case fans before) and silence. Despite the 10 x fans in there right now, they all run at a fixed 400 RPM each and are near silent w/ the case sitting on the floor.

I'm thinking of 3 x radiators, all Black Ice Nemesis low profile models:
http://www.performance-pcs.com/blac...-stealth-u-flow-low-profile-radiator-red.html

I could fit the 420 mm w/ 6 fans in push pull in the front of the case. And then up top I could fit the 280mm w/ 4 fans. Basically, reversing the location of the 420 and 280 in the sample pic I found on Thermaltakes website. By doing it this way, I can also fit a single 140mm rad in the rear exhaust port (with a single fan)

Any suggestions or comments? The sample pic is using 1/2" tubing. I guess this is ok over 3/8"?
 
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I would forget about the 140 in the rear, it would add too much complication for little benefit.
 
Ok, if I dont do the 140 in the rear, then I could mount the 420 up top and the 280 in the front, same as the sample pic. I'm uncertain if 2 x 420mms would fit (looks like they might hit each other in the sample pic), and I'm not at home right now to measure.
 
They appear to be using very slim radiators, about 20mm thick (appears slimmer than the fans).

You're not going to want to use 20mm thick radiators. You're going to want to use at least 45mm thick low FPI radiators for your fans. However, the top does look very limited in space, so you will probably be forced to use thin radiators for push/pull top, and then go with a thick 280 in front in push/pull.
 
Tsumi:

Im reading the sales pitch of the black ice nemesis models:
The Black Ice® Nemesis® 280GTS® scales performance by utilizing low-noise dual sub-800 rpm 140mm fans for even better performance with a reduced noise footprint. This provides casemod enthusiasts with a slim form factor dual fan radiator with the enhanced performance without the acoustic penalties.

This, to me, sounds like what I want, since all my fans are currently fixed at a very low rpm (400 rpm), including the 4 x fans on my Corsair H110i GT


Black ice 420 mm size:


In the spec sheet, it reads:
452mm x 153mm x 29.6mm (L x W x H)

However looking at the diagram, it seems the overall thickness is 31.5 mm.

You're right about the sample pic using an incredibly thin rad in the front. I would have to measure how thick a 420 mm I could mount there, and it would be a question of mounting a thin 420 and getting a full 6 fans on it or mounting a thicker 420 and only getting 3 x fans on it (in the area I drew a blue box marked fans).

The corsair H110i GT I have mounted up to (with 4 x fans) radiator dimension is: 140mm x 322mm x 27mm. So I believe the 31.5 thickness of a 280mm black ice low profile would fit there fine (with 4 fans as well, same like h110i GT). Will measure thicker fits when I get home. Though again it might be a question of whats better. A thick rad with only 1 set of fans or a thinner one with full push/pull fans?
 
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It is a 16 FPI radiator, which may not do well with your 400 RPM fans, even in push/pull. With your 400 RPM fans, I would be looking at radiators in the 8-10 FPI range, but those are generally thicker radiators. It will still work, it just won't be optimal.
 
Ok, thanks for the info about FPI. I had not thought of that. The Corsair H110i GT I'm running is 21 FPI and I'm OK with the temps using 400 RPM fans (of course the fans it came with were PWM models capable of turning 2500 RPM....) So I guess going to 16 FPI rads would be an improvement.

Are colored coolants still bad? Everything on the net says most people use distilled water + a silver coil? I like the look of Thermaltakes Red, but its 94% water and 6% glycol. Bad?
http://www.thermaltakeusa.com/products-model_Specification.aspx?id=C_00002609
 
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I would go with distilled water and nothing with glycol.

If you really want colored water, I hear Mayhems dye is good at not gunking things up and discoloring things.
 
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