Water loop for next rig.

[baron5]

Hey guys, I have recently sold my i7 rig and am looking to build a nice system once the gulftowns and nvidia gtx 470/80 are out, hopefully within a few months. Anyway, i am going to go for a w/c loop this time round, i've always wanted to try water even if it will set me back a bit it will be a good experience to set one up. This is what i have narrowed it down to so far.

Swiftech MCP355/laing ddc 18w with EK X-TOP rev.2
Thermochill PA120.3 radiator with Xigmatek 1500RPM/60cfm fans
Swiftech XT or EK surpreme HF acetal (i know XT is overall better)
EK 150mm res

heres a pic of how i was thinking of arranging it.

The corsair 800d is great for this because i can internally mount everything, if i choose another case i will probably go with a 140.3 rad external. I chose to put the pump there so it will cool from underneath, also it will be easy to mount through the fan grill.

What are your thoughts guys?
But also, i was thinking about adding GPU block for my cards later down the track would the mcp355 be powerful enough? I know it has more head pressure then the d5 but it seems the d5 offers better flow with lesser head pressure. Also because of this i am unsure whether to use the Xt or the EK since if i add the GPU blocks later on the EK will have less restriction and improve my flow rate, is this right?

 

[Burn]

As of right now I think the EK Supreme HF is better, but Vapor @ XS has yet to reveal his results... But he has said it's better (by a decent margin, too). So I'd go with that.

And yah the ddc3.2 (mcp355) will be plenty even if you add blocks down the road. Will either block flow won't be a problem; GPU blocks don't react as much to flow like CPU blocks do.

What NB Block do you have/are you getting?

As for your layout, if there is room, move the pump into the 5 1/4" bays, and stick the res above it on the side of the 5 1/4" bays or a little to the left... I dunno if you know what I'm talking about, but that'd make it look a lot cleaner.

edit: or to save space just get this top
http://www.sidewindercomputers.com/xsacreforlad.html

 

[baron5]

I know what you mean, i was just worried that it may overheat in the bays because there wont be any airflow. I was thinking about the combined top/res but i saw somewhere that its better to use a dedicated res where space isnt an issue, also use a big as possible because it increases capacity. But wouldn't this also increase the resistance on your loop?

 

[Burn]

But wouldn't this also increase the resistance on your loop?

The reservoir top? Nope, its actually the best (well, that's debatable but its up there) aftermarket top you can buy for the ddc pumps

The reservoir top and a dedicated reservoir both do the same thing... they are just meant for filling/bleeding your loop. So really it just comes down to personal preference and cost.

And the pump will be fine in the bays, that's where I have mine.

edit: oh and one thing you might want to consider investing in is a drain line. If placed correctly they make draining your system a LOT easier. Draining mine is a huge pain (i dont have one)...