I already own a Zalman Reserator 1 Plus and want to make use of it in my new build. I want to produce a powerful system that is as quiet as possible. I know that this is the hardest thing to achieve but it doesn't stop me wanting to try! I'm looking at building a new PC with the following components:

Antec P182
Abit IX38 Quad-GT
Intel Core 2 Quad Q9450
Corsair 620HX
4Gb DDR2 Ram (spec to be decided)
EVGA/BFG 512Mb 8800GTS
WD Raptor 150Gb in Scythe Quiet Drive (already own)
Zalman ZM-GWB8800 GTS VGA Water Block
Zalman ZM-NWB1 Northbridge Water Block for Reserator1
2 x Noctua 800rpm 120mm case fans


Now for the stupid/crazy part:

2 x Zalman Reserator 1 Plus (remember I already own one)

My plan is to run one Reserator for the CPU and the other will cool the graphics card and Northbridge. I understand the 8800GTS draws 120watts at full load and a Q9450 has a TDP of 130watts. And that's before I overclock! I would hope to be able to overclock a little even with a semi-fanless system. The PC won't be totally fanless as there will be two slow running 120mm fans plus the PSU fan.

In time I plan on replacing the noisy Raptor - but not until something considerably faster comes along.

My alternative and more rational approach would be to cool the CPU with a Noctua NH-U12P CPU Heatpipe Heatsink with NF-P12 premium fan. This would be a cheaper (£89UK) solution but a little noisier.

I would be most grateful for your comments and suggestions.

Seems to be a good idea. You would avoid the warmer water going to the GPU after cooling the CPU, by having two completely separate cooling systems. The two hotter components would not affect each others temperature.

Have you considered having a normal radiator in the middle of the circuit instead of having another reserator? Maybe it would be enough to cool down the water between CPU and GPU.

Thanks for your input. How do you think the Reserator pump would cope with an extra radiator?

The liquid temperature rise from any given PC heat sured is a couple degrees, so the typical practice of stringing waterblocks in series should be fine.

I find that higher radiator fan speeds have a large effect on cooling. Remember that air has much, much less heat capacity than liquid. So a relatively small flow of liquid is highly effective at cooling things, but a large flow of air is needed to take that heat away at the radiator.

Since the Reservator is a passive radiator with no fan, then your system might benefit from having another one. That would get more radiator surface area in contact with air. Or you could try to put a fan on the Reservator, or change to a radiator with a fan. If you did put a fan on the Reservator, you could make the fan thermally controlled so it only came on when things got hot. But to use a fan with it, you'd really need to have a shroud around the Reservator to direct the airflow over the fins, like putting it into a tube with the fan on the end of the tube. That would kind of defeat the purpose of having a fanless radiator.

Having given the subject more thought I am still comitted to the dual Reserator approach. Although air cooling will be more effective and other water cooling systems are more powerful, the Reserator is unique in being a totally fanless design. I've read about noise problems with the Reserator XT and the price difference means that a dual Reserator 1 Plus setup will cost me another £130UK

I have decided against the Abit board as I've read that it runs hot and don't want to have to deal with the additional heat. Furthermore the board reportedly doesn't overclock as well as the Asus P5K Premium Wifi which is my favoured choice (at least for today!). The Asus board uses the older P35 chipset but from what I have read there are no real world advantages of X38 over P35 in a single video card setup.

Back to the Reserator I have two options for connecting it all up.

Option 1:

Out of Reserator (A) -> CPU Block -> VGA Block -> NorthBridge Block -> Reserator (B) -> then back into Reserator (A).

Option 2:

Out of Reserator (A) -> CPU Block -> Reserator (B) -> VGA Block -> NorthBridge Block -> then back into Reserator (A).


Option 3:

Use Reserator (A) dedicated for the CPU
Use Reserator (B) dedicated for the VGA and NorthBridge



I'm favouring option 2 but I wonder if it actually makes any difference. Any thoughts appreciated.

Is there anyone else running a dual Reserator 1 setup?

I'm also considering getting two Aqua Computer VRM coolers for the voltage regulators. I'm planning on overclocking but not planning on stretching the Quad too far. I'd prefer to overclock only as far as I can without upping the voltage too much. However with only one rear 800rpm fan will this be enough to cool the voltage regulators. I wonder if just a passive heatsink might be a better approach.

eh hm

just put one for the two video cards and one for the northbridge and cpu.

they take more heat than listed. I wouldnt overclock them though. that's bordering on being a little stupid.

you could put the whole line in tandem. I actually do not think it would hurt the pumps. so long as everything is leveled off, the pump keep churning away. What the reserator 1 needs is heat dissipation space and heat capacity. two in a row would work fine. short stubby pipe between two towers.

I heartily recommend my liquid combo vs anyone elses. 95% Poland Spring Steam Distilled water, 5% water wetter. Probably slightly less water wetter I used but thats just an approximation. The more pure water you use, the much better the water cooling system is. My system has been running for 3 years now. I did not change it last year, I did the first year. I am changing it this year. There really isnt anything to change though. The conditions of a 100 degree F system is so dinky compared to a car or motorcycle environment. Water wetter and I put a piece of Chiclets chewing gum on the blow hole once the system reeached equilibrium in a passive state (nongaming). I probably wouldnt put one on both towers as you have a pressure equalization issue.

I am assuming you are going to use Corsairs 620 psu for this. I couldnt see a quieter psu that can handle such a dual video card load. The non quiet thing in your system is going to be your psu. I wonder if it is possible to use two psu's. Then neither one would ramp up.

It's been a while so time for an update.

Sorry if there is any confusion. I'm only planning a single video card. I've actually purchased a BFG 8800GTS 512Mb OC. and plan on adding a Zalman GPU waterblock. I run two 19" LCDs (1280 - 1024) so the card should be more than sufficient for my gaming requirements, even for games such as Supreme Commander which utilise both displays.

I've changed the CPU to a Q6600 G0 Stepping and along with a Zalman CPU block and Northbridge block plan on overclocking it to 3.0-3.2Ghz. I may go higher if the two Reserators can handle the heat.

I've opted for an Asus P5K Premium over the Abit board. Reading into the matter there is little to gain by opting for a P35 board over the X38 chipset, particularly in a single card environment. The Asus P5K is reportedly a better overclocker and will run cooler than the Abit iX38.

Memory wise, I've now purchased 2 x 2GB OCZ PC2-8000. It was only a few pounds more expensive than Corsair PC2-6400 memory and considerably cheaper than Corsair's Dominator PC2-8500 memory.

My existing Raptor and QuietDrive will suffice until the new VelociRaptor is out - I don't think I will be able to resist this despite the high price!

I'm still planning a dual Reserator setup. The additional expenditure will be half what a new Reserator XT will cost and I'm confident it will offer better and quieter cooling. I plan on running a single loop (as in OPTION 1) but would love to hear your thoughts on this. Option 1 seems the neatest option as it requires only one hose in and one out of the case.

the reserator2 offers as good as cooling as xt it seems from reports and its silent (or near so if you consider the pump being quieter than any fan in a system) *of course this is assuming you have a good pump like I do.

the XT is kiddie shit

I say that probably your idea will work well. I m concerned about two levels of water. I would assume you are keeping the blow holes open, and then it wouldnt matter.

your dual tower would have to have more cooling capacity than xt or res 2.

I just see it as a bit cumbersome!

You're right about it being a cumbersome setup but I don't intend to take it to any LAN parties! I've space in the office and my current Res1 is out of the way behind a desk. Moving the PC will be a pain but no more so with two than the current one.

The problem with striving for silence is that I really notice PC noise and don't want something that is any noisier than my current setup (which is very quiet at present but only a P4 Northwood!).

I could get away with the single Reserator if I didn't want to overclock and opted for a cooler GPU.

I can't believe that I'm the only one with/ considering a dual Reserator setup so I'd be interested to hear from others!