Long term Water cooling benching settup

[skull_fcuk]

Im looking for some recommendations with regards to the spec i'd need for a triple loop bench box. I'd be having the mobo on the top with the gubbins below, and 3 water loops for the CPU/ Chipsets & Mosfets & Ram/ GPU.
I'm hoping to lay my paws on Johnny Bravos' Swiftech 226W TEC Block for my CPU, and would like to make this a 'long term' investment, if such a thing exists in this arena :lol:. Well, at least viable for two or three spec upgrades.

So i reckon i'm looking for some hints for Rads, and pumps and blocks. This thing won't have to be quiet, just powerful (in the cooling sense) and if possible, have the ability to deal with more heat than it will concievably see, if you know what i mean.

Unless you think i'm going to be wasting money with H20, and i should maybe invest in alternatives like Phase.

I'm planning to have the (pestered by me) K404 do some vmodding on my P5K-E mobo and my 8800GT card, so i'm sure extra cooling (compared to a draughty Antec 900 Case) won't go amiss.

This Rig will live in my Garage, so noise and exposed PCB's won't be a problem, neither will noise.


Ideas and nudges are welcome. :biggrin:

[Stocky]

I don't think that a good watercooling system really goes out of date. There are only ever very small improvements now in that area, so a good bit of kit will stay generally good for a long time making it a worthy investment :)

[skull_fcuk]

Yeah, i just want some advice in making the best decisions first time. I understand that quality usually ='s cost. That's ok. I don't expect to get it all at once. Not without a divorce soon after ;)

will a decent 120.3 rad be enough to cope with a 226W Tec?

[Thickbrit]

I think a good practical setup for the relatively new enthusiast wanting a good balance between 24/7 use and benching use,which is fairly easy to do and offering improved yet sensible cooling in all aspects is a well tuned s/s phase for cpu,tec/s for gpu/s on a pa120/3,and water for mosfets and northy on a separate pa120/2.This is pretty much how my 24/7 box is,when it's not barebones on my desk.Thermochill rads are the best,172w tecs are great for gfx with Danger den blocks,although it's important to get correct psu,usually a meanwell or similar.I use ddc ultra pumps,but others are just as good and i say a well tuned phase unit,because tuning purely for benching is not the same as for long term 24/7 use.This is all of course just my opinion and others may disagree or have alternative ideas.

[K404]

I wouldnt blow a lot of money on watercooling FETs or the NB as mounting holes and the area surrounding the heat source changes frequently. A cheap NB loop would be ok, but I mean CHEAP.

I wouldnt watercool the RAM at all- waste of time.

Keeping the heat dumps seperate is good thinking though :)

[Stocky]

I'd highly recommend Thermochill rads, although if you plan on running more than one TEC you'll probably be wanting a litttle more than a 120.3 for cooler temps.

I say this as I was running a 120.3 (front of a CM Stacker) with a 320W Swiftech block and the water used to get warmed up quite quickly.

[skull_fcuk]

I read somewhere that you can use a 1kw PSU instead of the Meanwell seperate PSU. Something like the Enermax Galaxy 1000w. Spare power as it where, allowing the TEC to be fed solidly.

I (on hindsight) agree with you Kenny, about the Fets. And i suppose RAM cooling is a bit OTT. Hmmz. 4Qman, that sounds like a tempting settup. When you say 'Tuned', do you mean purpose built? I take it once a SS Phase is built, it isnt flexible like a tuneable Fan?

I will still use this for gaming i'm sure, but the HTPC i'm building for Mrs Skull will be taking the burden as the 24/7 internet gateway. So 4Qmans ideas seem the most appealing so far.

*trundles off to look at the For Sale board, and drool over LD's Phase unit again :)*

[Thickbrit]

A tec psu will need to supply the appropriate voltage and ampage.Tecs come in many different voltages and can be powered by many psu's,but something like a meanwell is preferred and probably cheaper than a 1kw.
A single stage phase unit is not usually very flexible,you can tune it to handle very heavy loads for benching,but then it may well cause floodback (bad)when run at stock/idle,or you can tune it to not have floodback at stock/idle,but then it will not handle as high a heatload.It can be a tricky balance,although some degree of flexibility can be incorporated with the use of varying fan speeds,via a rheostat or controller.So once tuned to a particular heatload,considerable changes to that heatload can be problematic.

[K404]

The thing about Meanwells is insane price for what they offer- a Tagan 480W can supply 28A on the 12V rail, and its a lot more versatile than a Meanwell. Sure- a Meanwell is rock-solid but.......

mini-rant: ATX PSU spec is crap and years out of date. the 3.3V line can go bye-bye- use the 5V line with some voltage regulation. The only thing to use 3.3V is some standby stuff on the mobo. draws...probs not even an amp. 1.7V x 1A= 1.7W of power in the conversion. Use a FET with a heatsink to deal with it.

the 3.3V line accounts for ballpark 100W of a PSU rating- up to 30A. Bloat!

[/rant]

[elfy]

some tecs do operate on 13.8v 24v etc so a normal psu simply will not do there are some cheap alternatives to meanwells on ebay from japan, sounds dodgy i know but i bought my one fine

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/500W-13-8V-36A-Switching-Power-Supply-For-RADIO-PA_W0QQitemZ160194362494QQihZ006QQcategoryZ48708QQ ssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

[K404]

ok- granted. for higher voltages yea they're good. :)

[skull_fcuk]

The review i read of the Swiftech TEC Block showed diminishing returns when run @13.8v. It actually performed worse than a normal water block. It's sweet spot seemed to be 12v. My reasoning behind the Galaxy PSU is that it will provide a buffer of unused power, as it will be more than i need. I currently run an Enermax Liberty 620w PSU, and i'm beginning to wonder if this will become obsolete when i start using Vmods all over the place.

[weescott]

This is what you need:

http://www.weescott.co.uk/images/ocuk/pelt_loop.jpg

From a couple of years ago. 172w pelt. The HE120.3 got pretty toasty from this. Not the most powerful of fans though. If its just for benching then a Swiftech rad and Delta fans will be ideal. Thermochill rads are more geared for quiet operation.

[skull_fcuk]

I like your freeform layout there. very contemporary. If you're recommending a generic 400w psu, surely my 620w will be fine.

[sacha35]

For the cost and effort involved in putting all this together you would be better of going the Single stage route, cooling temps will be far better than any water/pelt setup that you could make, a good tunned single stage unit will give you better cooling and overclocks, you wont regret going the single stage route at all.

[skull_fcuk]

i'm beginning to think so Sacha35.

[weescott]

I like your freeform layout there. very contemporary. If you're recommending a generic 400w psu, surely my 620w will be fine.

There is a meanwell PSU powering the TEC. The generic PSU is for the pump and fans.

[skull_fcuk]

I see. That makes more sense then. *feels like a numpty*

I'm beginning to think that having a Phase is going to make more sense though. It will provide more room for voltage increase for the CPU.

[Thickbrit]

Yep,s/s phase for the cpu is what you want,but tecs are still a viable option for gpu.

[skull_fcuk]

I take it you need to spray electrical lacquer on the mobo before using a Phase cooler?

[weescott]

I use DC4 (dialectric grease), in the CPU socket, around the CPU socket, and 2 layers of Armaflex around the CPU socket.

[4Qman]

This stuff is the best
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Plastidip-Rubber-Paint-Liquid-Electrical-Tape-Black_W0QQitemZ310000500140QQihZ021QQcategoryZ5721 7QQrdZ1QQssPageNameZWD1VQQcmdZViewItem?_trksid=p16 38.m118

paint it on think and it peels off like tape so no mess :D

use this all around cpu socket and at base of caps and over resistors etc. Then cpu in and neroprene on and then grease around gaps around CPU. Evap on get benching.

[skull_fcuk]

Cheers, i think i'll see if they have any out here before i go buying ;)

[Johnny Bravo]

This stuff is the best
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Plastidip-Rubber-Paint-Liquid-Electrical-Tape-Black_W0QQitemZ310000500140QQihZ021QQcategoryZ5721 7QQrdZ1QQssPageNameZWD1VQQcmdZViewItem?_trksid=p16 38.m118

paint it on think and it peels off like tape so no mess :D

use this all around cpu socket and at base of caps and over resistors etc. Then cpu in and neroprene on and then grease around gaps around CPU. Evap on get benching.

so it worked out well for ya mate? :)

[Stocky]

TEC's generally run more efficiently at around half of their rated voltage, but as long as you have the power and the gear to remove the heat you'll be getting better temps with more watts. There are some power charts on XS, but they are a bit wishy washy...