Please share your thoughts on the upgrade ideas, including watercooling and the new case.
Please share your thoughts on the upgrade ideas, including watercooling and the new case.
I received a lot of assistance from the community when I started with watercooling. I’m looking forward to receiving some useful feedback on my upcoming upgrade.
Here’s what I currently have:
PCPartPicker part list
/ Price breakdown by merchant
CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor (Bought for $175.00)
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Extreme4 ATX LGA1155 (Bought for $120.00)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 (Bought for $40.00)
Storage: Samsung 840 Pro Series 128GB 2.5" SSD (Bought for $100.00)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" HDD (Bought for $50.00)
Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 970 4GB WINDFORCE 3X (Bought for $335.00)
Case: NZXT Phantom 530 (White) ATX Full Tower (Bought for $120.00)
Power Supply: be quiet! 530W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX (Bought for $80.00)
Case Fan: 2x Noctua NF-F12 PWM 55.0 CFM 120mm (Bought for $20.00)
Monitor: LG 34UM67 60Hz 34.0" (Bought for $420.00)
Keyboard: Corsair K70 RGB Wired (Bought for $150.00)
Mouse: Logitech G400 Wired Optical (Bought for $60.00)
Additional items: RayStorm D5 AX240 WaterCooling Kit (Bought for $330.00)
Total: $1920.00
All prices include shipping, taxes, and available discounts
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-12-14 08:09 EST-0500
The two radiators will work well for your build. With the size and thickness considered, each radiator occupies a similar volume, and the 280 might even take up slightly more overall. I suggest picking the one that suits you better or offers better cost efficiency, since it would mean buying fewer fans for the 280 compared to the 360, etc.
Regarding the fittings on your GPU block, you can use angled connections—either 45 or 90 degrees—to assist with the tubing bends. I have a 90-degree fitting and a standard compression type on my GPU block because they fit the routing I planned.
You should have enough space for the installation, so you shouldn’t encounter major issues.
I found this interesting since you mentioned wanting a "mild overclock." It seems a full liquid cooling setup might be too much when an aftermarket air cooler could suffice. Your existing cooler should handle a decent overclock and maintain stable temperatures.
I found this interesting since you mentioned wanting a "mild overclock." It seems a full liquid cooling setup might be excessive; an aftermarket air cooler could likely provide a mild overclock without much hassle. Your existing cooler should handle a decent overclock and maintain stable temperatures.
It makes sense now. I’d love to share my thoughts on the liquid cooler upgrade, but I’m not in the right place.
For the case options I put together during a recent search, here’s what I found:
Manu; Series; Model; Recommendations
BitFenix; Ronin; BFC-RON-300-KKWSK-RP; PCGamer
Coolermaster; MasterCase 5; MCX-0005-KKN00; Toms 2015 Editor Approved
Coolermaster; Storm Enforcer; SGC-1000-KWN1; Toms 2012 Editor Recommended
Corsair; Vengeance C70; CC-9011016-WW; PCGamer
Corsair; Carbide 200R; CC-9011023-WW; PCGamer
Corsair; Carbide 200R Win; CC-9011041-WW; PCGamer
Corsair; 100R; CC-9011075-WW; GamersNexus
Corsair; 100R-Silent; CC-9011077-WW; GamersNexus
Enermax; Ostrog GT; ECA3280A-BL; Toms 2013 Editor Recommended
Fractal; Define R4; FD-CA-DEF-R4-BLO-W; Toms 2012 Editor Recommended, PCGamer 2015
Fractal; Define R5; FD-CA-DEF-R5-TI; GamersNexus
Fractal; Design Define S; FD-CA-DEF-S-BK; Toms 2015 Editor Recommended
IN WIN; GT1; GT1; Hardware Secrets Golden Award
NZXT; Crafted Series; 921RB-001-RD; Overclocker's Club Gold Award
NZXT; H-Series; CA-H230I-W1; Must Have Best Value Award from TweakTown
NZXT; H-Series; CA-H440W-M1; PCGamer
NZXT; Phantom Series; CA-PH240-W1; Tweaktown Editor's Choice Award
NZXT; Source Series; CA-S220W-B1; Hi Tech Legion's Editor's Choice Gold Award
NZXT; Source Series; CA-S340W-W1; HardwareCanucks Dam Good Value Award
It seems this matches exactly what you're interested in.
Tell me about the topics you'd like to cover regarding the watercooling loop. I've worked with extensive ATX and larger loops, including my current mITX (all enclosed) setup.
This seems perfectly suited for me. Please let me know what you'd like to talk about regarding the watercooling loop. I've installed large, ATX and bigger loops in my current mITX (all enclosed) setup—see the sig line below. Thanks! I tried your Excel sheet and it shows a total loop TDP of 323 W (using the maximum TDP for the Gigabyte GTX 970 WF OC from this article: - under stress it reaches 240 W, but in normal gaming it's only 180 W? My CPU is 77W stock. I now understand my loop will have two radiators, one GPU block and one CPU block. Based on this, I expect a pressure drop of about 2.3 PSI. Looking at this, my D5 should handle running at 1.0 GPM on setting 4 without issue. Returning to your TDP chart, I think I'm within the safe range—240 W and 280 or 360 W should work. Right? What case am I planning to use? I’m not sure yet. I really want a Lian Li PC-08, but it’s quite expensive. So I’ll probably go with something proven like the Define S or the Corsair 540 Air. This loop model should fit both options. I also forgot to mention what components my current loop includes: ■ RayStorm Intel CPU Waterblock ■ D5 Dual Bay Reservoir ■ D5 Vario Pump ■ AX240 Dual Radiator ■ G1/4″ to 7/16″ Compression Fittings (Black Chrome) x6 Do I need any additional parts besides what I’ve planned?
You might manage well by adding just one 120mm or 140mm radiator on top of the 240 included. Of course, increasing radiator space only helps your delta, so if you wish for more, you're welcome to add it.
I’m aiming for a second beefy rad.
When taking that path, it's better to select the parts you need individually instead of buying the whole kit.