Watercooling Setup Linking together help

[Burty117]

Hello All,

I have decided on the following:

Cooler Master Eisberg 240L Prestige
Alphacool 35271 NexXxoS XT45 Radiator 120mm
And I'm deciding on a GPU block at a later date (when the new Nvidia cards come out).
I was hoping to set it up as:

Pump, Reservoir is built onto the CPU block which makes this all very easy (supposed to anyway) and is upgradable so you can add an extra few items to the loop.

I was hoping to mount the 240mm radiator it comes with to the top of my case and the extra 120mm radiator to the back of my case, I was hoping having the 120mm radiator cool the water before it entered the graphics card block would help yield better results and thus the fans can run at a slower speed. I'm not trying to break any records and certainly don't plan on overclocking a whole much, I just find water cooling much quieter in general compared to a multi-fan heatsink and a load of case fans plus the 2+ fans on the GPU.

My question is, can this be done? I'm rubbish at checking the tubing sizes and what I need to actually connect it all up (preferably white hose).

Any advise would be very much appreciated!

 

[Burty117]

Unless getting this kit for the same amount of money would be better?

http://www.watercoolinguk.co.uk/p/Alphacool-NexXxoS-Cool-Answer-240-LTST-Full-Kit_30211.html

 

[Jad Chaar]

I think you should ask red1776. I think he has some experience lol.

 

[Burty117]

I did but he hasn't replied

 

[MrBlkfx1]

Maybe dividebyzero will help ? I don't know enough about water cooling to really offer any assistance.

You may want to check out this guide as well.
https://www.techspot.com/community/topics/the-watercooling-guide-from-a-to-z.180876/

 

[Jad Chaar]

Maybe dividebyzero will help ? I don't know enough about water cooling to really offer any assistance.

You may want to check out this guide as well.
https://www.techspot.com/community/topics/the-watercooling-guide-from-a-to-z.180876/

Wow my respect meter for DBZ just went through the roof lol. I was already at like 110%.

 

[dividebyzero]

Burty117
I'd go with the Alphacool NexXxos kit if you have the option, since you have to option to further upgrade ( reservoir, pump etc.). The Laing DDC that comes with the Alphacool kit is pretty much bulletproof, and you will be able to add other blocks to the loop without worrying about the added restriction adversely affecting the cooling properties of the system or overwhelming the pumps capabilities.

As for setup, a quick diagram using my rudimentary MS Paint skills:

Placing the 120mm radiator between the GPU and CPU allows the system to shed some/most* of the GPUs heat buildup before the water comes in contact with the CPU.
* I'd recommend a push-pull fan setup for the rad. Externally mount the rear fan (and possibly the rad) if you run into clearance issues with the 240mm rad+ fan above.

 

[Burty117]

Thanks DBZ, this is why your one of the most respected guys round here I thought the alphacool system would be best for this task, nice paint work btw

So just to confirm, the water comes out of the reservoir to the GPU first then to the CPU and not the other way round? Is there a particular reason for this? Not arguing, just wondering what the differences would be, I guess water will hit the gpu coldest because it goes through the double radiator?

I'm probably going to be using a GTX 780 (my girlfriend is also a massive gamer and has way to much money to spend for my birthday) so I need to wait until I guess some Copper blocks are released for it, it's also going to be a hazwell setup, are the new sockets compatible with 1155 CPU blocks? Sorry for all the questions! You have the terrible burden of remembering a hell of a lot of useful info

 

[dividebyzero]

No worries.
Reservoir/pump >>> GPU block >>> 120 Rad (if used) >>> CPU block >>> 240 rad >>> back to reservoir.
That would be my personal preference, mainly because the GPU would benefit more from the cooler water from the 240 rad ( the reservoir wont dissipate heat) since that is the hottest surface that requires cooling.
Having said that, there isn't a great deal of difference either way. The GTX 780 pulls 200-220W max, and I doubt that a Haswell chip would contribute any more than an Ivy Bridge ( say 70W stock / 130W overclocked) - both are well within the capabilities of a good 360mm radiator (or 240 + 120 ).

One thing to note is that in stock positioning the Alphacool CPU block has the inlet at the bottom, so if you were to go CPU block before GPU you would have the outlet hose (going to the 120mm radiator or GPU if the rad isn't used) crossing over the inlet hose (coming from the bay mounted reservoir). You could end up with quite a tight situation, whereas if the inlet hose comes from below (rad or GPU) the outlet hose isn't affected - basically a straight line to the reservoir. Rotating the CPU block 90 degrees left of its usual orientation would solve this. You should be able to do this, but changing mounting orientation can affect cooling ability in some blocks - I'd drop Alphacool an email if you want to investigate this.

As far as I know, the spacing holes are identical between LGA 1155 and LGA 1150. Alphacool list Haswell compatibility in their specification, so between availability and your girlfriends cash surplus you should be good to go.

EDIT: GTX Titan blocks will work with the GTX 780. Same PCB, same layout. The only difference between them are that the Titan has 3GB of vRAM chips on the back side (top) of the PCB. From TechPowerUp's GTX 780 and Titan reviews...and side by side:

 

[Burty117]

Thanks DBZ, they really are identical PCB layouts, that makes life much easier! I will definitely be using the extra 120mm rad, so basically best way to do this is to go to th GPU first as that will A, stop the cross over of hosing and B, keep the graphics card cooler as the water will enter cooler and its the hottest part of the the setup so it all makes sense thanks for this info DBZ, I've had a check of my bank account and I'm probably getting it next week

I was also going to use corsair fans for the push pull configuration, and the 120mm radiator would be another Alphacool NexXxoS XT45 as its also full copper.

One last question, for the 120mm radiator, I guess I'd need some seriously long screws to go through 2 corsair fans and the radiator, how do I go about finding out what screws I need?

 

[dividebyzero]

One last question, for the 120mm radiator, I guess I'd need some seriously long screws to go through 2 corsair fans and the radiator, how do I go about finding out what screws I need?

Good news. You only need the screws that come with the radiator. Alphacool NexXxos radiators ship with some dual sets of copper plated hex head screws (use a 2.5mm hex wrench/allen key)- the same as ships with this 360 rad (fewer screws provided obviously). I am presently using the same radiator. A very well made piece.

The radiator may ship with an extra set of longer screws also (about 5mm longer), which are handy if the steel of the chassis where the rad mounts is thick or contoured. I use the longer screws because I have silicon vibration dampeners between the fans and the rad.
As for placement...MS Paint part deux

Alphacool radiators have a double skinned mounting lip. The bottom one isn't tapped with screw holes so you can't overtighten and punch through the radiator fins (nice design) - don't get too carried away anyway as it is easy to strip the threads of the screw

I'd also recommend getting DEMCiflex filters for covering the intake fans for both rads. Much easier than trying to unclog dusty radiator fins in future.

Here's the review link I grabbed the pictures from

 

[red1776]

I am using the Alphacool NexXxos XT line myself 1x 360mm, 2 x 240mm, and 1x 120mm. A bit of advice, don't forget to flush your rads out prior to install or you will have a line of solder flux/schmutz the shape of you jet plate sitting on top of the micro-fins.I apparently missed the flushing of one of them and found a not so insignificant amount of soldering debris as I described above.
On the lighter side beware of kids "checking your new rads out" I had some odd temperature fluctuation and trapped air about a week after I got them installed. I eventually broke out the BK5500 and found that one of the tank inlet caps had been pushed inside my XT 45mm x 360mm.

...and there it is...

Anywho, let me know about the C2 controller. It has your name on it if you need it

 

[dividebyzero]

On the lighter side beware of kids "checking your new rads out" I had some odd temperature fluctuation and trapped air about a week after I got them installed. I eventually broke out the BK5500 and found that one of the tank inlet caps had been pushed inside

Those little rubber caps are handy for just about anything (stopping for lengths of tubing, seals for spare pumps and fittings) EXCEPT keeping in place on the radiator. I think I replaced the rubber caps with the extra blanks and some Bitspower stop fittings about 10 seconds after the unboxing for just that reason.

 

[red1776]

Those little rubber caps are handy for just about anything (stopping for lengths of tubing, seals for spare pumps and fittings) EXCEPT keeping in place on the radiator. I think I replaced the rubber caps with the extra blanks and some Bitspower stop fittings about 10 seconds after the unboxing for just that reason.

Well thats my new procedure. My son explained that he was helping because "the little blue hat got out of the 'aidiator' hehe.

 

[Burty117]

Thanks for all the advice guys, very much appreciated!
Also Red, I'm afraid I wasn't able to stretch for the Cooler Master Cosmos II It was simply too big for the space I have, Instead I've gone for the Corsair 600T Special White Edition.
It still has a fan controller on though which I'll probably use to control all the fans in the case