Sort of a "Sould I water cool?" but not really.

[BulkyZaNka]

Hi guys, 

Let's get to the point. I want to water cool because my PC tends to overheat, alot. I'm an experienced PC builder but water cooling is new to me. I watched tons of videos and read tons of forums about it, but still i'm not to sure what part to get. I am getting a new case to have better airflow and more space for rads... Unless I find a better case, it will have space for a 360mm, 140mm, 280mm and a 240mm radiator. But it might change if I find a better case. If it's worth it, I would like to get a 360mm rad for my CPU atm. I plan to also water cool my graphics card in the future. I will be changing my graphics card so there is no point to get a water block for it now. I also plan to overclock if I have stabe cooling. I am also looking to make a custom loop so there is room for expansion. If possible, I would like the price to stay under 175 euro but, I would aslo like it to be a powerfull loop. If anyone would have some spare time to sort of guide me in the right way of what to get.

 

Thanks.

[ShadowCaptain]

Your specs would be a good start

[Held657]

First of all tell us what components you are using right now and what components you want to get in the future. And I'm not sure if it's just me, but I can't really read from your text if you want a custom water cooling loop or an AiO with expandability or if you want an AiO for now and go for a custom loop later. So pls make that clear to me  .

[Karumu]

€175 is not really enough for a custom loop unless you get like a 140rad with a bay pump/res combo and a Raystorm block and some clear stubing such as: http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=WC-040-OE&groupid=962&catid=1532

[Held657]

€175 is not really enough for a custom loop unless you get like a 140rad with a bay pump/res combo and a Raystorm block and some clear stubing such as: http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=WC-040-OE&groupid=962&catid=1532

 

Well you can get a bit better than that, but yeah, it doesn't make much sense: http://www.caseking.de/cart_load/1cb925252fa0e3c6d2d344ef5aadf4c7 (it's a german site, but names are the same anywhere  ).

[BulkyZaNka]

Sorry guys I was never good with forums..

I am away from my machine atm so thats what I know.

I have a:

• Intel Core i7-2600K     I plan to upgrade my procesor after I upgrade my graphiks card.
• Amd Radeon HD 6850 Black Edition      I was looking at maybe switching to a GeForce Gtx 680
• Asus P8Z 68-V Lx
• 8GB Ram(Can't remember what speed)
• Novatech Gallaxy 3 Case    I am changing to probably a Corsair Obsidian Series 450D

I would like to make a custom loop but, if the price gets to high I would like an expandable AIO.

 

If 175 is not enough, how much will I need? Will I get atleast an ok for 200?

[Held657]

Sorry guys I was never good with forums..

I am away from my machine atm so thats what I know.

I have a:

• Intel Core i7-2600K     I plan to upgrade my procesor after I upgrade my graphiks card.
• Amd Radeon HD 6850 Black Edition      I was looking at maybe switching to a GeForce Gtx 680
• Asus P8Z 68-V Lx
• 8GB Ram(Can't remember what speed)
• Novatech Gallaxy 3 Case    I am changing to probably a Corsair Obsidian Series 450D

I would like to make a custom loop but, if the price gets to high I would like an expandable AIO.

 

If 175 is not enough, how much will I need? Will I get atleast an ok for 200?

 

Okay so first things first. Imo it makes no sense upgrading that CPU at the moment, because you get only like 5 fps more, sometimes even none (with a  i7 4790K). If you want to upgrade your GPU, don't go for a GTX 680, go for a GTX 770. They are the exact same card, but the GTX 770 is much cheaper. 

 

With the Novatech case you won't do any watercooling for sure, but I guess you already realised that yourself. But really, if you are using this case with a i7-2600K and the Intel stock cooler: No wonder it's overheating. A new case + new CPU cooler would probably do the job. 

 

Now, where do you live? The euro zone is big and hardware prices change from country to country a lot. Here in Germany I found a decent 360mm kit by Alphacool for 200€: http://www.aquatuning.de/wasserkuehlung/sets-und-systeme/interne-sets/17478/alphacool-nexxxos-cool-answer-360-ddc/xt-set?c=246 But in other parts of the EU you could pay the double of that.

[BulkyZaNka]

I live in Ireland but atm I'm in poland.

 

I know I won't water cool in that case so I start with a new case, then a new graphics card and then maybe a cpu.

 

I want to water cool because I want room in the future for a water cooled graphics card and overclocking.

[Held657]

I live in Ireland but atm I'm in poland.

 

I know I won't water cool in that case so I start with a new case, then a new graphics card and then maybe a cpu.

 

I want to water cool because I want room in the future for a water cooled graphics card and overclocking.

 

Okay so now I get confused. I know Ireland has the euro, but it would probably make more sense to buy off a uk website, meaning pounds. Do you have any irish website for watercooling?

 

EDIT: So I haven't found any irish website that offers watercooling components. Many european sites ship to Ireland, especailly the UK sites of course, but they all want like 20€ / 17 pounds for it. So if you buy the kit I suggested it would be 220€ from Germany or 185 pounds from the UK.

Edited August 5, 2014 by Held657

[BulkyZaNka]

Not really but I am in Poland now so I could buy it from Germany and get it send to Poland. Most big websites send stuff all around Europe. From what I know, it's cheaper in Germany than UK.

[Held657]

Or you can buy it directly in poland: http://www.aquatuning.pl/water-cooling/kits-und-systems/internal-kits/17478/alphacool-nexxxos-cool-answer-360-ddc/xt-set?c=5981

[BulkyZaNka]

I find stuff like that costs alot in Poland. The other thing is that I don't want a set of thing because I will be getting Mayhems coolant, noctua fans and tubes. I'm looking mostly for a water block, rad, pump, fittings and res.

[Held657]

I find stuff like that costs alot in Poland. The other thing is that I don't want a set of thing because I will be getting Mayhems coolant, noctua fans and tubes. I'm looking mostly for a water block, rad, pump, fittings and res.

 

So shipping from germany? And what is your max budget for water block, radiator, pump, reservoir and fittings?

[Held657]

And how long will you stay in Poland? Do you have time to wait for components?

[BulkyZaNka]

For about 3 week but I have family here so they can always send it back to me.

[Held657]

For about 3 week but I have family here so they can always send it back to me.

 

Awesome. Wait a sec I'll make a list for you.

[Held657]

So I didn't realise that, but you actually save a lot with these kits (if you buy the kit I suggested in single parts it's 60€ more). So this is what I would theoretically suggest: http://www.aquatuning.de/AtsdCartSave/load/AtsdCartSaveKey/9ecb733479f6b81d9f1d6bc66edbe2ed

 

But it would be cheaper to get the kit and just throw away tube, coolant and fans ...

[BulkyZaNka]

Ok thanks! 1 more thing, are the fans in the kit good or are they garbage?

[Held657]

Ok thanks! 1 more thing, are the fans in the kit good or are they garbage?

 

Something in between. They are very cheap fans, but the performance is not that bad. Would be better to get other fans at least in the future. I know Noctua NF 12s are expensive, so I want to mention again: Get be quiet! Shadow Wings (Mid speed). They are high quality fans with good static pressure and they cost much less than the Noctua NF 12s. You will be very happy with them.

[BulkyZaNka]

For now I'm just going to be cooling a CPU so those should do but when I get my graphics card and I start overclocking I will get either the noctua or the Be Quiet!

 

Thanks all of you for the help. Especially Held657 for being so nice and actually finding a kit for me

[Held657]

For now I'm just going to be cooling a CPU so those should do but when I get my graphics card and I start overclocking I will get either the noctua or the Be Quiet!

 

Thanks all of you for the help. Especially Held657 for being so nice and actually finding a kit for me

 

Sounds reasonable. You're welcome. Say if you need something else  .

[ShadowCaptain]

Why do you want to watercool so badly?

Seriously I would rather spend that money on a better CPU and graphics card!!!

 

A simple AIO like an H100 gives fantastic looks and cooling and costs so much less, as well as as being a lot less demanding to build

 

Also when you come around to upgrading your PC again managing your custom look is a massive PITA

 

It also does not really provide that much better cooling... My 4770k wit h100i runs at like 45 degrees when gaming, and my air cool 780ti at 40-50 degrees too

 

Why spend 200 on cooling when you can buy a better PC?

 

Just my 2c, water cooling is really for splashing cash on creating great aesthetics or pushing super demanding systems

 

EDIT: Sorry to be THAT guy i just dont want you to spend 300 on a water cooling loop and use a mid range GPU when you could actually get a better PC for your money

[BulkyZaNka]

Because my PC over heats alot. I want liquid cooling because then I have room to expand to a new graphics card and to overclock. While I'm going to be getting that, I might aswell make it look good. I don't mind when something is more "demanding" to build, I like doing stuff like that. I do plan to get a new graphics card too.

 

1 more question, I know it shouldn't go here but it's not worth making a new topic for this, is it worth switching from Radeon to Nvidia?? Which one should I get?

[Held657]

Because my PC over heats alot. I want liquid cooling because then I have room to expand to a new graphics card and to overclock. While I'm going to be getting that, I might aswell make it look good. I don't mind when something is more "demanding" to build, I like doing stuff like that. I do plan to get a new graphics card too.

 

1 more question, I know it shouldn't go here but it's not worth making a new topic for this, is it worth switching from Radeon to Nvidia?? Which one should I get?

 

Here we go with the AMD vs Nvidia fight again  :lol: . It depends on what you want. Regarding pure performance AMD is currently more bang for the buck. Nvidia on the other hand makes more energy efficient and cooler cards (second doesn't matter if you watercool). Looking at software they both have different features to offer. AMD has Mantle, but that makes nearly no difference with a hight end CPU and could get useless with DirectX12. Nvidia has PhysX, bla bla bla. I have to say choosing between AMD and Nvidia for graphics cards is a personal choice. As I said, the price/performance is better on the AMD side at the moment. I can tell you that I'm super happy with my ASUS R9 290X DirectCU II and you won't find a Nvidia card that offers that performance for 430€.

 

So which card should you get? Well hard to say without a budget. Personally I think if you go with something like a i7 4790K you should get at least a GTX 780 or a R9 290. Performance wise they are pretty similar. Price depends on the country. Here in Germany the GTX 780 is about 80 - 100 € more expansive.

[BulkyZaNka]

Ok, thanks anyway. Was thinking about the R9 290 but I tought the 780 was better... Gonna go with the R9.