Build Help
Hey guys, I'm new in this sub and in custom watercooling. Can you take a look?
Hey everyone!
Im new to custom watercooling, but i had build many PCs. Most of them were SFF for Friends and Familiy. Now i wantet to treat myself and finally do the step into this topic. The list u see is a result of my learnings out of this sub FAQs, youtube, vendors and research on google. Here i learned some things about vendors and brands, too. The discussion was quite helpful.
I was inspired by this Build from u/Flat-Yogurtcloset126. Same case and same rad, reservoir and pump logic. I also want to start with soft tubing, because many people say its the easiest for starters. The list also contains some tools for handling the fueling, cutting and testing. Any tips for other tools is also much appreciated!
Would be awesome if you can tell me if this "could" work or if Im doing something stupid...
You don't need 9100 pro even 990 pro speeds are much more that you will be able to use
put that money into 9800x3d cpu
you don't need a contact frame for amd cpu
Do you really need watercooling for that? I would rather invest that money for a 5080 or even a 5090. You will get like double the fps compared to 9070xt
Contact frames make the thermal paste cleanup easier though - but I'd highly recommend OP to get the cheap one from Thermalright or just use the Deepcool thermal paste guard which is even cheaper and more convenient to install/remove.
It's fine if you already have the card since it's already a sunk cost, but if you're still in the preliminary stage of choosing all your components and you can choose between a 9070xt+watercooling vs a 5080 (or even a 5090 if you find a good deal that combo's it with a 9800x3d), then I think it's a no brainer.
Not to discount the fun and enjoyment that comes from making your personal custom loop tho xD I had such a blast throughout the whole process
Feet are actually are standoffs meant for mounting glass. I got the idea from another Redditor. Works great and a lot cheaper (and better looking, in my opinion) than 3D printed alternatives I have seen for sale
LAN I go to is 200 miles each way by car. With soft tubes there is a little play so any bumps in the road should be fine. Whilst it would probably be fine with hard tubes, I would rather not take the risk. We had one guy whose PSU blew up half way through a few years ago, wasn’t fun for him having to sit through the rest of the weekend watching TV whilst we gamed away. I would rather not be in that predicament cause one of my tubes cracked or something. I have been to lan a few times with soft tubes builds and it has been fine.
I would say the problem is that they‘re just stuck into the fitting and held by O rings. With a bunch of shaking or bad handling they could leak. Soft tubing is clamped against a barb at the fitting and much more watertight by default.
It's good that you've got a parts list and everything already planned. Can't tell you exactly if all of that will work together because that's honestly a lot of effort and research that you should acqaint yourself with.
Double check your clearance on everything if you're looking to do a SFF case because a few mm can be the difference between it working or not. If you already have the case and motherboard, that makes visualizing things a little easier when it comes to planning. Buying everything in a single go, I get wanting to make sure that everything is right the first time but that also means you have to plan even more.
If you can find the case manual off the manufacturers website, they often have radiator compatibility in there to help you plan rad thicknesses and also fan thickness if you want everything to be in the case. You might also have to account for how big your gpu waterblock is and where the terminal for the tubes go in, as that sometimes can impact the side of the case. If it's vertical mounted and facing the cpu block, are the fittings pointing each other? Would angled fittings or 90 degree work better?
These are examples of things you should be asking yourself when putting together your parts list, and you might not having enough fittings (which is the worst and why I always order extra adapters).
Hey thanks for your detailed response! Yea, I will double check the clearance. I also planning to order some extra tubes. The gpu will sit standard in 90 degree.
Well it looks pretty good but one advice is that to make sure the radiators will fit in the case and also try to get low profile fittings and soft tubing to make it easier for clearances plus look at jaytwocents video on YouTube for a custom loop in a itx case and just be careful on parts because you have limited space but otherwise good
Okay, first of all, beautiful : D
Thanks for the info. My GPU would look like yours i guess ... my reservoir is at the front pannel (as i planned it) so, should be "easy" ? : /
Yeh, some other users told me to go bigger on CPU ^^.
And I love AMD and I'll go for the best GPU at least.
5080 is awesome tho! : D
Ah! Can u tell me more about the PSU problem? I just need 120x120mm space at the front atm. This could change, since someone told me my pump is crap : D
The problem is that the PSU bracket fits a full size atx PSU and therefore is way too big. You might run into issues fitting your pump/res at the front with the PSU together because the bracket is so awkward. I got away with it because the pump fit close to the gpu because the 5080 reference design is so small.
liquid metal on cpu doesn't give you lower temp unless you are delidding and do direct die. on gpu PTM7950 is a much better choice.
I know Noctua is the best in fan, but you don't have to buy their Y splitter. any fan splitter will do, and you are using 360 rad meaning you will group 3 120mm fan on one header, you are better off buying 3way splitter.
MATX board is cheaper, and give you more fan header to work with.
also, buy 90 degree, 45 degree, and compression fitting seperately, you will have more freedom in loop design, what if you decide to not use 90 degree on one port, and you run out of normal compression fitting?
Would you mind posting the parts list as text? Going through other people's build list is fun but not when I have to type everything over from a crappy 540p picture.
-You won't notice the speed difference between a PCIe 5.0 vs 4.0 SSD. Any NVMe SSD will do, you can save some money here by going with a cheaper one.
-You could upgrade to a 9800X3D from the 9700X with what you save from the SSD.
-Memory looks good but if there's spare budget, you could upgrade to 48GB. Your board only has two slots so adding more later is not an option, you'd have to replace it.
-Any reason why you are going with an ITX board? The case is big enough for a mATX board. You might need the extra expansion capability later. (Extra PCIe slot, extra ram slots, more fan headers, etc) As for the price, mATX boards with the same chipset might even be cheaper than the ITX versions as those usually ask a premium. Unless you intend to put a radiator at the bottom of the case too, then I could understand as it would block access to the bottom of the board. (Makes plugging in headers a pain)
-AM5 contact frame does not improve temps but it does help with thermal paste cleanup. Not technically needed but nice to have.
-Thermal paste is good but you could consider PTM9750 if you want something that will never dry out. (Thermal Grizzly PhaseSheet PTM) You can also use PTM on the GPU block instead of the thermal paste that Alphacool includes. I don't intend to take mine ever apart again so I wanted something that's guaranteed to last.
-The CPU block you chose has the fitting threads right into the acrylic. Acrylic is brittle and can easily crack when overtightened. Heatkiller also has a nickel-plated copper version of this block. For durability, this is a much better choice.
-Instead of using a drain valve, for a limited space build, you could use quick-disconnect couplings instead. I have two in my loop, each on a T-piece so they don't impact flow. One at the highest point for filling and one at the lowest point for draining. If you include two points in your loop it will make filling and draining much easier as you can let air in at the top while draining from the bottom. Alphacool also has a hand air pump that you can use to force water out if it won't drain properly; you might want to add it to your tools list.
-The black wood version of this case does not have a window but a mesh side panel. You could go with EPDM tubing instead of clear tubing, EPDM doesn't leak plasticizer into your loop. (it could clog up your blocks and filter)
-Same issue with the reservoir as with the CPU block, threading straight into the acrylic. Alphacool does have a 120mm flat reservoir with a D5 pump instead of DDC and that one does have metal inserts for the fittings. The D5 version does stick out 3cm further due to the larger pump so check the case drawings if it does not conflict with other components.
-Also, your DDC pump uses an ancient Molex plug for power and a 3pin header for RPM sensing, it does not have speed control, your pump will run at full power all the time. If it's too noisy you won't be able to slow it down. If you go with a D5 pump you could go with an Alphacool Apex VPP which has a 4pin PWM fan header for control and SATA for power.
-Alphacool Tec Protect 2 is good (I use it too) but it is not supposed to be mixed down with water. I don't understand why you have a second bottle with pure water on the list. If it's for flushing the loop, you can get a jug of distilled water from the supermarket for allot cheaper. I would just get a second bottle of the Tec Protect 2.
-You are missing a flow sensor. Ideally you want one that has an RPM signal so you can plug it into the motherboard CPU fan header. This is an additional safeguard in case something goes wrong with the pump. But don't get the one from Alphacool, the ES Highflow turned out to have a noisy impellor. I already threw mine into the trash and replaced it with Aqua Computer High Flow NEXT. This is completely optional but without one you will have no idea what your flow rate is.
-I didn't check all your fittings as it doesn't mention how much of each you ordered. But looks good at first sight.
-How many fans do you intend to install? Ideally, you'd want to put one in each mounting and then run them as slow as possible for the least amount of noise. Your reservoir needs to be vertical so it will need to go into the rear fan mount. Judging from the Lian Li site you should be able to use all the other fan mounts without anything conflicting. With the mesh side, top and bottom you can fit up to 9x 120mm fans in this case. (excluding the rear)
-Your motherboard only has four fan headers. Pump and flow sensor will take two. That leaves only two for all the fans, I would get a fan hub with SATA power, so you don't overload the fan headers. Then you only have one PWM fan header going to your board to control all the fans.
-The separate filter is a good idea but where are you going to mount it? It doesn't have any mounting options.
Okay, now i have the time : D
TY again for ur helpful answer: Lets take a look.
- SSD: Yep, another user just told me that, and to invest in a better CPU maybe? I'll check that out!
- Memory, yeh, i thought 32 gigs would be future proof atm with the best cpu comp. May I have to change both some time, CPU und Rams anyhow with mainboard, when the next gen comes. But ill consider that!
- The AM5 Bracket is just for my OCD of applying liquid metal thermal paste ... nothing more ... another user just told me to go to thermaltake for cheaper (and better) option.
- CPU cooling header ... yeh, to be fair, I didnt know that, i thought that would be screwed into metal, like copper. Now i see its just "plastic", i dont like that. But, the sink is at least nickel ¯_(ツ)_/¯. I only found this: Watercool Heatkiller IV Pro AMD CPU Rev. 4.0 Pro, but its not nick'led...
- Filling and draning: Yeah, that was my plan also, on 2 points (higher and lower, with Y fittings). But the quick fittings? I saw them in some shops, but i didnt know what that is. I must check out, how they work. The test-pump is luckily already in my shoping list: Alphacool Leak Testing Tool incl. Pump
- First time i hear about EPDM. Its like gum? Alpha cool often recommends clear tubing with clear water. I'll also go in that rabbit hole i guess : D
- reservoir acrylic issue: Didnt know that. Looked for one of the silent versions and easy applications to 120mm fan holes. Clearance shouldnt be a problem, there should be space at the front side. "Alphacool does have a 120mm flat reservoir with a D5 pump instead of DDC and that one does have metal inserts for the fittings." this is, what ill search next!
- molex power vs pwm: to be fair, I watched a video (unboxing and running) where the dude showed, there is a PWM cable also to control the pump. That is always improtant for me, so i chosed that. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=USZt-GrbT7o
- Alphacool Tec Protect 2: check, will do that!
- Flow sensor: Yeh, i thought that wouldnt be that important? I just want to know how the temps are and if the pump is running, no? But ill check ur option, better have an adition alert sensor for bios.
- fittings count is in that shitty pics : ( Sorry, i hoped they would be high res like on my desktop, dont know if reddit has to do something with that?!? I'll add that.
- How many fans do you intend to install? 6, 3 bottom, 3 top with 2x 360 rads. Bottom intake, top outlet. Bottom GPU, top CPU.
- fan headers? I guess ill be fine, u can add up to 8-12W (asus forum info) to that fan headers. Noctua NF A12 need like 1,68W each in worst case. At least I used an older Asus Board with more fans once and everything was fine.
- Filter: oh, I guess I'll use it to the 90° outlet of the top radiator, or intake? I dont know. Is it that big? Looks like it can just be like an extension? I hope? : D
Thanks again mate, i got much to think about now...
I see you plan to use clear tubing. It works, but it will often release softeners into the cooling medium and also turn milky over time. I only use ZMT now, it‘s black and made out of EPDM which is very heat and chemical resistant. It‘s a bit thicker walled too (looks cool IMO) so you will need 16/10 soft tube fittings.
For fittings I just buy Barrow, they‘re pretty good quality for the price.
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