Custom Loop Advice from experts

[LoWRiDeR82]

Hello gang,

I wanted to seek advice on a possible custom loop I'd like to put together.
Currently I have a H110i GT on an i7 4790k...I am not happy with the cooling performance though, and the cpu does tend to get hot like a beast. I'd like to keep this cpu for a couple more years though as it's doing pretty well in 4.6ghz.
I am thinking of selling the H110i GT and putting together a custom loop but I've been away from the custom loop world and unsure what the best parts to build one are.
Here are the criteria i'd like to follow:

1)It must be compact, and fit all in my NZXT S340 case.
2)It must be parts that I can reuse when eventually in a year or two from now I upgrade my system
3)I'd like advice on best waterblock that can fit LGA 1150 as well as future proof, Best 280mm rad with integrated pump (if such thing exists) , any way I can skip having a reservoir/pump just to reduce amount of parts that need to be fitted in the case?
4)at this stage i am only interested for CPU cooling and not GPU

Look forward to your tips.

 

[John Naylor]

Option A ... Grab a Swiftech AIO which is really a set of custom parts preassembled at the factory, add extra water blocks and rads as desired
Option B - Buy all the parts

from your Item 3). I'd suggest the Swiftech H240 X3 / or the older 280 model

Pump (CPU only or CPU + 1GFX) - Swiftech MCP 655 variable speed

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Pump (CPU, MoBo and dual GFX - Swiftech 35x2 w/ heat sink and fan

Swiftech Dual Extreme Duty Small Form Factor 12 VDC Industrial PWM Pump - White (MCP35X2-WT) - FrozenCPU.com

Swiftech Dual Extreme Duty Small Form Factor 12 VDC Industrial PWM Pump - White (MCP35X2-WT)

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Swiftech MCP35x2 Dual Pump Heatsink (MCP35X2-HS) - FrozenCPU.com

Swiftech MCP35x2 Dual Pump Heatsink (MCP35X2-HS)

www.frozencpu.com

Rads - Hardware Labs - I made a tool to figure ya rad size here

Radiator Size Estimator

www.overclock.net

Reservoir's - EK w/ multiport top and fill tube

Blocks... best to check whose top dog in the latest reviews

Bitspower Summit EF X CPU Water Block Review - Page 3 of 3 - ExtremeRigs.net

Bitspower Summit EF X EF-X CPU Water Block reviewed and tested vs EK EVO Alphacool Eisblock Koolance CPU-390 AquaComputer NEXT Watercool Heatkiller Apogee

www.xtremerigs.net

Thermalbench.com

Aqua Computer cuplex kryos NEXT CPU Water Block Review

The cuplex kryos NEXT from Aqua Computer is an extremely customizable water block with features including an integrated display with a 32-bit ARM MCU, the ability to fit the block to your particular CPU, an industry-first physical vapor deposited titanium coating, and excellent performance...

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for your particular CPU

 

[FreedomEclipse]

Before you do that... Consider upgrading the fans on your H110i GT and your case fans - Corsair ML fans are pricey but they offer some of the best performance as far as static pressure goes and your current fans might not be pulling in enough air to keep the temps down...

also consider getting rid of both your 660Ti's and go for a 1060 or 1660 - tossing those 660Tis will cut down on a lot of heat that's being generated inside your case. even if you throw out one card, that should drop temps down significantly.

Your case isnt the best for what you currently have. the airflow is being further restricted by your AIO mounted to the front of the case - If you were to throw that out and use a regular tower cooler then you would most likely see better temps IMO.

There is a lot of things you could do before resorting to custom water cooling.

 

[phanbuey]

I used to have this case (twice, once s340 and the other was elite - loved em) This case is sort of tricky to do water in due to the layout, but by design the pump res is meant to sit on the cable bar.

You cant go with a 280mm rad and an integrated pump because you dont have enough room. A 280mm rad barely fits as it is (and only with fans pushing due to the IO cabling at the top front). You're pretty much stuck with a pumpres at the cable bar, or a pumpres mount along the back as a 120mm exhaust mount. You could do a 240mm with a pump integrated but the improvement of this over your h110 would be questionable.

that one is one of my favorite internet builds due to the fillport up top and the drain valve, but if you look around they're all kind of built the same way :

I would grab and EK or swiftech kit with the shortest pump res combo possible and mount on the top 140mm fanhole on the radiator. also with the res-pump mounted like that a fillport mod on top would be sweet too.

 

[HUSKIE]

Mine is here:

Radiator has drain port itself:
second picture bottom stop plug is my fill port. There is fill port on my r6 case.. I like this case

I would recommend Ek stuff @ OP get Ek kit instead

 

[John Naylor]

Before you do that... Consider upgrading the fans on your H110i GT and your case fans - Corsair ML fans are pricey but they offer some of the best performance as far as static pressure goes and your current fans might not be pulling in enough air to keep the temps down...

1. Over the years, a lot of out of date advice gets parroted down from the past into an era of computing to which it no longer applies. This has happened with High SP. With custom loops, static pressure hasn't been "a thing" since the 1990s back and a time when wwe had 30 fpi radiators With today's modern rads low - medium fpi, high SP fans provide nothing but more noise. Only AIOs will use extreme speed fans to mitigate against the lower heat transfer efficiency of their aluminum rads. You need SP to push air thru 30 fins per inch ... you don't need it for 8 - 12.

At the point the H100i reaches 55% load, I'd need 30 foot mice, KB and monitor cables as the box would have to be in another room.

Swiftech H220 vs Corsair H100i Noise Testing

When I stop to think about watercooling for a bit, I see two basic performance reasons why I like it . One reason is the performance of it, I can overclock higher than with air. The second and pr…

martinsliquidlab.wordpress.com

2. Corsair fans have an issue with too many PWM fans ganged on a single channel. If you have two rads or push / pull and 5 or more fans, you lose speed control.

The best PWM rad fans (going to be very exact spec needs)

www.overclock.net

3. If you want to rank fan performance, there are published sources. The Silent Wings 3 didn't come on the market till after the test but they are pretty much the equal of Phanteks. Noctua comes up next , but .....

What's the Best CPU Cooler in 2021? - Silent PC Review

Are you looking to buy a cooler for your precious CPU? You want it to be capable enough and look good, but also quiet; who wants loud fans droning in their ear all day? But how much do you need to spend exactly? Can you afford both decent power and near-silence within your budget? In

www.silentpcreview.com

.... take the Noctua fans off a Noctua Air, Cooler and at the same rpm, CPU Temps drop a whopping 6C

Phanteks PH-F140(XP, SP, SP_LED) Fans: Testing - Phanteks PH-F140 (XP, SP, SP_LED) Case Fan Review - Page 3

I usually buy a dozen or so phanteks each time they have the newegg special ($10) and free shipping. Usually they run about $14,99. We only use the SP versions and set up the fan speeds to run from 325 to 850 rm. That's enough to keep GPU temps at 39C and CPU temps in low 70s. You could use a MP fan which has higher rpm, but what's the point ? Having higher rpm, you lose the low speed fan control and the fan never break 850 rpm as it is.

The Corsairs are in the mid $30s .... Silent Wings, low 20s ... Noctua AF .... mid to hi 20s

 

[Nordic]

I have a swiftech apogee drive ii which is a pump and waterblock in one. It is pretty nice for a compact build.

 

[LoWRiDeR82]

Guys i haven't changed my rad, but I did get the rockit cool copper IHS delid kit and just installed it today with liquid metal. Holy shit, massive 20C difference under load. I am now using small ftts in prime 95 which is the worst thing you can probably throw at this chip that doesn't really like p95...and it doesn't go beyond 85C. I think if it stays so I am ok for a year or two until I fully upgrade my rig and pass to a new platform (with new case and everything). Do you think 85c tops (that's only 1 core the others are below 80, around 75 to 77c) for an overclocked chip @ 4.6ghz with 1.2vcore during small ftts prime 95 is a decent result?

Thanks to everyone that tried to help!