I'm new to overclocking and cooling, but i've reading like its my job. Can anyone recommend a system, or tell me if air cooling will suffice? Here's the detail I guess you would need:
A) Q6600 with 24/7 overclock ~3-3.3GHz
B) 2-4 HDDs
C) 1 vid card.. 2600XT or 8800GTS (along those lines)
D) Ambients in my un-air-conditioned home max about 85F in the summer, but then that's only a few weeks of the year.. i live in the bay area.. close to the water. annual average is probably 67-72F
E) I'd like to have the PC in an entertainment cabinet, however it has poor air circulation. I'm willing to add fans or whatever to help cool the cabinet too (it needs it... PS3, cable DVR and AVR are running hot in there)
I'm under the impression that my system is going to be hot, and that means I need to cool it, but that means more noise. I don't want a noisy machine in my living room. I'm not firm on water, I'm just under the impression that it would be quieter than a bunch of fans... maybe not, i don't know.
Thanks for any help or direction
Need a Watercooling Recommendation
Moderators: NeilBlanchard, Ralf Hutter, sthayashi, Lawrence Lee
Watercooling doesnt actually give you anything more than aircooling, other than looking cool, or so you can brag about your WC setup. If done properly, air can cool just as well as water can.
You still need a bunch of fans in a WC setup, but you also need a pump, and usually a larger case. So in all you end up with just as much noise as you would have aircooling, plus the noise from a pump to have to worry about. Not to mention the excess space and cost requirements of watercooling.
I have seen some extreme WC setups where people dont use fans, and cool the water by burying a tank under the house, etc, but these are faily complex and extreme setups.
theres not really any reason you need to OC the cpu, i mean unless you just want to. You would still get good framerates with an 8800gts and a stock C2D, and be able to cool it very easily while keeping it quiet. The thing with OC'ing in your circumstance, is your in an area that isnt climate controlled (ie: no a/c), and putting the system in an area with limited airflow, and then your trying to overclock it without it being loud. Something has to give, and the easiest thing is to just not OC the system.
Not sure what style of case you want, but see'ing as how you want it in the same cabinet as your PS3 and DVR, i'd assume an HTPC style. So i'd say go with the Antec Fusion/NSK2400. Use either Nexus or Scythe S-Flex 1200rpm fans, and use a fan controller to slow them down. put a scythe ninja on the CPU if it will fit on your motherboard, if not go with one of the thermalright tower heatsinks that accomidate a 120mm fan. Put a thermalright HR-03 on the video card and put a 92mm nexus fan on it and undervolt the fan. The hard drives will be the hardest part to quiet since you have so many. Too many to enclose them all in acoustic dampening boxes which require them to be in 5.25" bays. You might be able to jerry rig up some sort of suspension of the entire 3.5" HD bay assymbly, otherwise the only other option is to get some foam dampening, like the acoustipack products. Make sure you get a motherboard with a passive cooling solution on the northbridge.
You still need a bunch of fans in a WC setup, but you also need a pump, and usually a larger case. So in all you end up with just as much noise as you would have aircooling, plus the noise from a pump to have to worry about. Not to mention the excess space and cost requirements of watercooling.
I have seen some extreme WC setups where people dont use fans, and cool the water by burying a tank under the house, etc, but these are faily complex and extreme setups.
theres not really any reason you need to OC the cpu, i mean unless you just want to. You would still get good framerates with an 8800gts and a stock C2D, and be able to cool it very easily while keeping it quiet. The thing with OC'ing in your circumstance, is your in an area that isnt climate controlled (ie: no a/c), and putting the system in an area with limited airflow, and then your trying to overclock it without it being loud. Something has to give, and the easiest thing is to just not OC the system.
Not sure what style of case you want, but see'ing as how you want it in the same cabinet as your PS3 and DVR, i'd assume an HTPC style. So i'd say go with the Antec Fusion/NSK2400. Use either Nexus or Scythe S-Flex 1200rpm fans, and use a fan controller to slow them down. put a scythe ninja on the CPU if it will fit on your motherboard, if not go with one of the thermalright tower heatsinks that accomidate a 120mm fan. Put a thermalright HR-03 on the video card and put a 92mm nexus fan on it and undervolt the fan. The hard drives will be the hardest part to quiet since you have so many. Too many to enclose them all in acoustic dampening boxes which require them to be in 5.25" bays. You might be able to jerry rig up some sort of suspension of the entire 3.5" HD bay assymbly, otherwise the only other option is to get some foam dampening, like the acoustipack products. Make sure you get a motherboard with a passive cooling solution on the northbridge.
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frankgehry
- Posts: 1424
- Joined: Sun Dec 12, 2004 5:00 am
- Location: New York, NY
I would get this stuff:
pump -
swiftech MCP655
radiators -
Black Ice GT Stealth 240
*swiftech mcr220 radiator
*thermochill pa120.2
fans -
nmb-mat FBA 12G12L-1A
*nmb-mat 4710KL-04W-B10
tubing -
tygon r3603 7/16 ID x 5/8 OD
d-tek fuzion cpu block
*swiftech apogee gt
swiftech mcres micro reservoir
I don't know what to get for the graphics card, but the swiftech would probably be a good starting point.
* = substitutions
pump -
swiftech MCP655
radiators -
Black Ice GT Stealth 240
*swiftech mcr220 radiator
*thermochill pa120.2
fans -
nmb-mat FBA 12G12L-1A
*nmb-mat 4710KL-04W-B10
tubing -
tygon r3603 7/16 ID x 5/8 OD
d-tek fuzion cpu block
*swiftech apogee gt
swiftech mcres micro reservoir
I don't know what to get for the graphics card, but the swiftech would probably be a good starting point.
* = substitutions
since you have a quadcore and a 8800, i'd recommend a thermochill PA120.2, if you have the money to spare for it though, its more than double the GT Stealth, but you'll get much better performance
Tygon is the best quality tubing you can get, but it is more $$$ like thermochill, so its budget here....clearflex is a great second choice
I would get a swiftech mcw60 for the 8800GTS (i think it works on the 2900 too) - it has low restriction, good cooling, and a fair price. Full body blocks from dangerden and EK are often overrated and have higher restriction + higher $$$. The memory chips shouldn't get too hot, but if you have room, get a fan to blow across the copper ramsinks
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As for the water vs. air, there are great HSF's out there (ultra 120, ninja, etc) but air cooling for your setup probably might be louder than a watercooling setup - it really just depends on what budget you're willing to spend. A quick estimate summary: pump ($80), CPU block ($60), GPU block + sinks ($80), tubing ($10-15), reservoir ($20), additives ($5), rad ($50-120) any accesories: clamps, fittings, etc.. ($5-10)...compared to a air-setup, cpu heatsink, gpu heatsink, fans
If you decide air cooling, i would get a Scythe Ninja + yate loon D12SL-12, yate loon case fans, Thermalright HR-03 for the 8800GTS + 92mm fan (silverstone FN91, akasa amber, nexus, arctic cooling are all decent)...
i would stick to air-cooling, since you can cool the 3.3 ghz Q6600 w/ a good CPU cooler, and the 8800 w/ the HR-03, all thats left is good case flow for the HDs...maybe 2-3 yate loons on a fan controller, then you're set
and by the way, YOU HAVE A PS3??!! how is it, since i was thinking about getting one later in the year...
Tygon is the best quality tubing you can get, but it is more $$$ like thermochill, so its budget here....clearflex is a great second choice
I would get a swiftech mcw60 for the 8800GTS (i think it works on the 2900 too) - it has low restriction, good cooling, and a fair price. Full body blocks from dangerden and EK are often overrated and have higher restriction + higher $$$. The memory chips shouldn't get too hot, but if you have room, get a fan to blow across the copper ramsinks
_____
_____
As for the water vs. air, there are great HSF's out there (ultra 120, ninja, etc) but air cooling for your setup probably might be louder than a watercooling setup - it really just depends on what budget you're willing to spend. A quick estimate summary: pump ($80), CPU block ($60), GPU block + sinks ($80), tubing ($10-15), reservoir ($20), additives ($5), rad ($50-120) any accesories: clamps, fittings, etc.. ($5-10)...compared to a air-setup, cpu heatsink, gpu heatsink, fans
If you decide air cooling, i would get a Scythe Ninja + yate loon D12SL-12, yate loon case fans, Thermalright HR-03 for the 8800GTS + 92mm fan (silverstone FN91, akasa amber, nexus, arctic cooling are all decent)...
i would stick to air-cooling, since you can cool the 3.3 ghz Q6600 w/ a good CPU cooler, and the 8800 w/ the HR-03, all thats left is good case flow for the HDs...maybe 2-3 yate loons on a fan controller, then you're set
and by the way, YOU HAVE A PS3??!! how is it, since i was thinking about getting one later in the year...