my watercooling build

[Elganja]

Computer
-i7930 @ 3.80 Ghz (long story... but the i7920 is no longer with me)
-EVGA X58 SLI Mobo
-2x EVGA GeForce GTX 480 Hydro Copper FTW (gtx 295's are gone)
-Corsair 1000HX

Parts
Case:
-Corsair 800D (got the 10% off... still mad at myself missing the deal a few weeks ago)

Waterblocks ordered:
-Swiftech Apogee XT Extreme Performance CPU waterblock
-EK EVGA X58 Chipset Waterblock (only place that had them in stock)
-12G Artic Silver 5

Radiators:
-Black Ice GTX 360 Radiator (Loop 1)
-Black Ice GTX 240 Radiator (Loop 2)

Pumps:
-2x Swiftech MCP 355 12v DC Pump
-2x EK Waterblocks EK-DDC X-Top Rev 2

Reservoirs:
-2x XSPC Single 5.25" Bay Reservoir

Hoses and Fluids:
-12 feet of the Red (Loop 1)
-12 feet of the Blue (Loop 2)
-Blue Fluid
-Red Fluid

Fittings (I know I will have extras... just how my head works):
-10x Bitspower Compression Fittings 45deg
-10x Bitspower Compression Fittings

Temp Sensor Stuff:
-Bitspower G 1/4in. Temperature Sensor Stop Fitting
-Bitspower Matte Black T-Block
-Bitspower Matt Black Male to Male G 1/4 Fitting

Fans and Fan Controllers:
-Scythe KAZE MASTER ACE 5.25" Bay Fan Controller
-2x Cooler Master 120mm Blue LED Case Fan
-3x Cooler Master 120mm Red LED Case Fan

Loops
-Loop 1, Both GTX 480's
-Loop 2, CPU and X58 Chipset

The next 3 posts will contain all the pictures... please do not quote this or the following posts (or clip the part you want to quote)

 

[Elganja]

Before, computer on air with a TRUE Ultra Extreme, push pull, lapped pretty loud setup

Bottom of the 800D, this a picture of the drive cage that I need to remove, my gtx240 radiator will go here (cpu loop radiator)

hole cut for radiator fan intake (you're looking at the bottom of the case here)

6 drilled rivets, 2 sanded down then punched out rivets, 2 screws, and some muscle = drive cage removed.

mounted the gtx240 radiator, the hole I cut matches very nicely and a 140mm magnetic fan filter covers it nicely as well. The fans on top of it, have blue led's

tubing ran to the gtx240 radiator, man was it a tight fit... but no kinks

psu mounted and the necessary cables were ran through to the otherside

gtx360 mounted and tubing ran, another tight fit... no kinks though... fans will have red led's

 

[Elganja]

a pump with the stock top

new ek top (fittings were changed around a bit as you will see later)

view of the reservoirs and pumps

close up view of the pump and reservoirs

no kinks! luckily to fill the top reservoir I will just remove the optical drive above

no kinks here either. dumb luck allowed me to have just enough slack, to be able to pull the reservoir out to fill it

 

[Elganja]

chipset waterblocks installed

cpu block installed and some tubing ran (note the routing changed later on as you will see)

motherboard installed and some more tubing ran... had to change the routing for the chipset and cpu so it wouldn't interfere with the rear fan and gpu

most of the tubing at this point was ran, just not connected as I waited for more parts to arrive

out with the old (2 gtx 295's) and in with the new... 2 EVGA GTX 480 FTW Hydro copper's

everything installed and working... in terms of fan flow, everything is intake except the 3 fans on the top radiator which are exhaust

how the tubes will be ran on the backside... nothing will overlap (although there is ample wiggle room)

front view of the case...
-fan controller settings are as follows (left to right)
--1 thru 3, top 3 fans
--4, bottom 2 fans on one knob
--temp sensor 1 - HDD cage (used one of the supplied thermos)
--temp sensor 2 - Loop 1 Fluid
--temp sensor 3 - Loop 2 Fluid
--temp sensor 4 - case temp (used one of the supplied thermos)
-all fans are run at 50% (trying to keep it quiet)

in it's final place... picture is a little over exposed

 

[Elganja]

During this build i think i ran into every single problem someone can imagine... was it "worth" it? I'm not sure... lol

 

[wetomb]

It looks worth it to me. Very nice :thumbsup:

 

[MentalIlness]

Very nice man.

You just got me wondering if I should water cool the ASHLEY rig in my sig.

Hmm....

 

[CurseTheSky]

Looks very clean. I'm surprised you ran the tubes around the back though - I thought most people try to hide the wires but show off the tubes.

 

[ViviTheMage]

sweeeeeeeet. I've always wanted to do watercooled, but it seems rather pointless, when I don't OC.

 

[Elganja]

Looks very clean. I'm surprised you ran the tubes around the back though - I thought most people try to hide the wires but show off the tubes.

a few things:
-was going for a very clean look
-don't like seeing tubes go across the middle of the case and such
-still need some airflow for the radiators (to feed the fans on them)
-maybe i'm crazy :hmm:

 

[Elganja]

some info on temps:
the lapped TRUE push pull was a very efficent, albiet loud, setup.

Before:
CPU
-45C Idle
-68-70C Load

GPU (GTX 295's)
-58-60C Idle
-75-80C Load (fans running at 100&#37

After
CPU
-41C Idle
-54-56C Load

GPU
-47C Idle
-54C Load (playing bc2)

Keep in mind, i have the 360 on my gpu's and the 240 on my cpu/chipset...

Overall I'm pretty happy, but I have te be honest... i expected cpu temps to be ~15C difference and that is what it is now...

 

[WoodButcher]

You'll find you can keep very good temps even w/ an OC with your fans running at a slow speed. My reason for being underwater,,,


edit- very nice work BTW.

 

[aigomorla]

During this build i think i ran into every single problem someone can imagine... was it "worth" it? I'm not sure... lol

if it makes you feel better.

By far its one of the nicest first attempts ive seen.

LOL... now im gonna let greed own ya in about 2 weeks.
(meaning i should expect you to pm me going im bored and want more () )

Oh i know the perfect place to start... Quick Disconnects, so you can swap cards fast or drain that loop fast, and a Sli-Bridge..

Im gonna aigo ya... watch.. its a given on this forum with water builds.

Overall I'm pretty happy, but I have te be honest... i expected cpu temps to be ~15C difference, but it is only ~10C cooler underload

Water works better as you increase heat load.
So you can raise voltage more and increase OC if that is your wanting.
Or you can go on silent mode, and run the fans a lot lower and get equal performance off a true with a lot less noise.

 

[Interitus]

How did you like the EK board blocks?

I'm kinda torn here on those or the Enzotech EV-X58. Think I just like the silver look better heh.

 

[Elganja]

How did you like the EK board blocks?

I'm kinda torn here on those or the Enzotech EV-X58. Think I just like the silver look better heh.

they're fine... but keep in mind there are no standoffs. So you have to be careful...

 

[Elganja]

if it makes you feel better.

By far its one of the nicest first attempts ive seen.

LOL... now im gonna let greed own ya in about 2 weeks.
(meaning i should expect you to pm me going im bored and want more () )

Oh i know the perfect place to start... Quick Disconnects, so you can swap cards fast or drain that loop fast, and a Sli-Bridge..

Im gonna aigo ya... watch.. its a given on this forum with water builds.

Quick disconnects do look sexy... 6 months down the road when i have to flush/change the fluid i may invest in something like that

for the sli bridge, I actually had one that was 1 inch long. It was a little short and I didn't want to chance it. I've been eye'ing the koolance adjustable one though...

Water works better as you increase heat load.
So you can raise voltage more and increase OC if that is your wanting.
Or you can go on silent mode, and run the fans a lot lower and get equal performance off a true with a lot less noise.

I kind of want to do both. For now I haven't overclocked the new cpu... I want to do a proper burn in first (large fft's for 24 hours, then 50 passes of Linx max memory) before I start OC'ing it (4-4.2Ghz is my goal)

I also like it quiet... I'm shooting for 50% fans all the time (~1200rpm) with reasonable temps (~60ish). I think it's doable for sure

 

[bleucharm28]

VERY clean and very NICE