Good watercooling kit for under $300??

dipstick · Feb 15, 2003, 07:02 PM

I have a limited budget of $300 and I really want to go watercooling if only for the noise reduction. So, I know nothing about watercooling or what to get and I would appreciate some input on what's good. A friend of mine suggested the Exos watercooling kit, and although it looks real sweet, I don't know how it would perform. I would like to also be able to cool my gfx card, although that is not 100% necessary. I have a pretty big server case so room shouldn't be a problem. Thx for any help.

Nuke209 · Feb 15, 2003, 10:09 PM

try... http://www.xoxide.com/

Vampyromaniac · Feb 16, 2003, 08:26 AM

If only for noise reduction, and not hard-core overclocking, take a look at the Thermaltake Aquarius II.

For about $150, about as much cooling as a pretty good heatsink/fan, but MUCH quieter

dipstick · Feb 16, 2003, 04:38 PM

Thx guys. I decided to go with the Koolance PC2-601 case with blocks for the mobo and vid card along with the cpu. It's the same case I have now, but atleast I'll be able to give mine to my brother now

I hope it works works good and lets me get afew more MHz out of my cpu and gfx card; I also went $60 over my limit...oops

Desert_Siege · Feb 19, 2003, 06:44 AM

I love this thing. Its quiet, looks kewl, its quiet, it works great, its quiet, its all self contained with very little assembly required, and did I mention its quiet. I hope you have at LEAST a 400W power supply if your going to do some mad overclocking and run this case...lol. Mine is a 480, as my old 400W crapped out. If you have a GF4 card, I hope you bought the GF4 extender clips for the video block or you won't be able to mount it. The hardware that comes with it won't work on the GF4's without some little extender clips. If ya need em, drop me a line. I got rid of the 4400 and got a 9700 Pro and don't need em anymore. Just to give you an idea of performance, I cool my 9700 Pro at 390/360 and this 1700+@1907 1.70V and after 3 hours of gaming, the CPU temp is 41C. After 4 minutes of idling, its back down to 38C, at least by my motherboard. I know for a fact that thermistor is reading 4C high though. I have a temp probe I use to do A/C work and after checking the BIOS temp, I removed the block and the Processor was 4C cooler than the Mobo was reading and was the exact same temperature as the block. Its not the highest performing setup you can buy, but its very reliable, easy to work with and very quiet. The only thing thats a pain in the ass is filling it up. That fill hole is very small and makes it hard to fill for one, and to bleed the air out for two. I put mine all together and let it run for 2 hours before I put my board and stuff in it. All the air was in the top of the resorvoir tank by then. I think you will definitely like it, especially if your using those loud ass delta's right now...heh.

dipstick · Feb 19, 2003, 04:05 PM

Awesome, thanks alot for the input; I can't wait to get it. I have a Truepower 550w so it's good to hear it will be enough. Also you said I don't need those extender clips with a R9700, right? I don't wanna get the case and be waiting for more parts. Thx again, it's awesome to hear it's very quiet. I need to sleep on peace

DaSnIpE · Feb 19, 2003, 10:39 PM

Good stuff, I'm presonnally thinking of getting a Kooldance EXOS this summer, hehe.

dipstick · Feb 19, 2003, 11:02 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by DaSnIpE
Good stuff, I'm presonnally thinking of getting a Kooldance EXOS this summer, hehe.

I was gonna get the same thing, but then I seen that the case was $30 more and it pretty much the same, so I said what the heck. The Exos is just as good though; reviewers seem to really like it.

Desert_Siege · Feb 20, 2003, 04:26 AM

It mounts right up with the hardware that comes with it. But you DO have to remove the metal shim under the stock heatsink from the 9700 and thereby void the warranty. Be VERY VERY careful removing the shim. Its just glued on, but if you slip, you will almost definitely knock one of the small SMD resistors off the top of the chip and either spend an hour trying to find it and fix it, or pray like hell you can RMA it. I would personally recommed you use a small straight razor and start at one corner and work around VERY slowly until 3 sides are loose. It will pull up and pop off then, but don't pry too much on the top of the chip. It may not hurt it, but it made me nervous as hell. It seems to work pretty well, but I don't think my card has any hardware monitoring capability so I can't get you any VPU temps, but I can tell you my water temperature went up 1-2C after putting the 9700 in the loop. Which cooler did you get, the 100 or 200 watt? I opted for the big bastard...lol. It works pretty well, is machined and finished on the bottom to a mirror finish and I swear the sucker must weigh almost a pound...lol. It has been a pretty tight fit on the 8K7A+ I had before and barely clears the caps towards the back of the socket on this KT3 Ultra2-R and actually sits up against them (heh...maybe cools the caps too...lol) but it fits. The retention bracket is very nice and very sturdy and you can't overtighten it. When it is tight enough, it clicks and won't turn anymore and will scare the **** out of you if you aren't expecting it (crushed core anyone)

Good choice and happy and quiet running to ya dude

dipstick · Feb 20, 2003, 04:43 AM

Very good to hear, thanks for all the info. I have already modded my R9700 and the shim is long gone

I also went with the 200 cpu block since it wasn't much more than the cheaper one...I guess I made a good choice. Btw, do you think I'll need additional tubing? And if so, do you know the size of it? There are afew of them. Thx alot for all the help, I really appreciate it

PS. Thanks for the heads up on the 'click'. I probably would really **** myself when I heard it

Desert_Siege · Feb 20, 2003, 05:03 AM

Mine came with enough to hook up a vid card, chipset cooler, CPU cooler and 2 hard drives I think...lol. I think I still have almost 4 feet of it left. And good job on the 9700, my first try went the way of the RMA...lol. Have fun.

Desert_Siege · Feb 20, 2003, 05:10 AM

Cut your tubing for each connection about 3-4 inches longer than you really need it. It makes it SO much easier to work with if and when you disassemble it for upgrades and the tubing is easily routed. If your case is windowed, you can also buy some dye additive that is safe for the pumps that will glow different colors under a black light if you like that sort of thing. Mine is blue, and matches the blue LED's in my Antec True Blue 480 PS pretty well. Have fun and let me know how it goes.

dipstick · Feb 20, 2003, 03:22 PM

Good to hear and thx for the very helpfull tips

Feb 15, 2003, 07:02 PM	#1
dipstick HardwareHeaven Extreme Member Join Date: May 2002 Location: USA Posts: 3,609 Rep Power: 71 System Specs	Good watercooling kit for under $300?? I have a limited budget of $300 and I really want to go watercooling if only for the noise reduction. So, I know nothing about watercooling or what to get and I would appreciate some input on what's good. A friend of mine suggested the Exos watercooling kit, and although it looks real sweet, I don't know how it would perform. I would like to also be able to cool my gfx card, although that is not 100% necessary. I have a pretty big server case so room shouldn't be a problem. Thx for any help.

Feb 15, 2003, 10:09 PM	#2
Nuke209 DriverHeaven Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: St. Paul Posts: 568 Rep Power: 0	try... http://www.xoxide.com/ __________________ 2006 Subaru Impreza WRX

Feb 16, 2003, 08:26 AM	#3
Vampyromaniac confutatis maledictis Join Date: May 2002 Location: somewhere dark Posts: 5,974 Rep Power: 77 System Specs	If only for noise reduction, and not hard-core overclocking, take a look at the Thermaltake Aquarius II. For about $150, about as much cooling as a pretty good heatsink/fan, but MUCH quieter __________________ *Digitalis 3.3* Athlon 64 3000 // ASUS K8V SE Deluxe // 1024MB PC3200 (2-2-2-10 1T) ATI All-In-Wonder 9700 Pro // 20" Dell 2005FPW (DVI) M-Audio Revo 7.1 + Philips Acoustic Edge // Klipsch ProMedia 2.1 320/16 Western Digital WD3200KS + 120/8 Seagate 7200.7 NEC ND-3550A 16x DVD±RW + Lite-On 52x24x CD-RW Antec Sonata case // 480W Antec TruePower personal bests \|\| Aq'3: 46796 \| 3D'01: 20461 \| 3D'03: 6336 \| 3D'05: 2677 \| PC'04: 4605 \| PC'02: 7691,9092,1250

Feb 19, 2003, 06:44 AM	#5
Desert_Siege Professional Slacker Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: KY Posts: 274 Rep Power: 0	Works great...been using one for almost a year I love this thing. Its quiet, looks kewl, its quiet, it works great, its quiet, its all self contained with very little assembly required, and did I mention its quiet. I hope you have at LEAST a 400W power supply if your going to do some mad overclocking and run this case...lol. Mine is a 480, as my old 400W crapped out. If you have a GF4 card, I hope you bought the GF4 extender clips for the video block or you won't be able to mount it. The hardware that comes with it won't work on the GF4's without some little extender clips. If ya need em, drop me a line. I got rid of the 4400 and got a 9700 Pro and don't need em anymore. Just to give you an idea of performance, I cool my 9700 Pro at 390/360 and this 1700+@1907 1.70V and after 3 hours of gaming, the CPU temp is 41C. After 4 minutes of idling, its back down to 38C, at least by my motherboard. I know for a fact that thermistor is reading 4C high though. I have a temp probe I use to do A/C work and after checking the BIOS temp, I removed the block and the Processor was 4C cooler than the Mobo was reading and was the exact same temperature as the block. Its not the highest performing setup you can buy, but its very reliable, easy to work with and very quiet. The only thing thats a pain in the ass is filling it up. That fill hole is very small and makes it hard to fill for one, and to bleed the air out for two. I put mine all together and let it run for 2 hours before I put my board and stuff in it. All the air was in the top of the resorvoir tank by then. I think you will definitely like it, especially if your using those loud ass delta's right now...heh.

Feb 19, 2003, 10:39 PM	#7
DaSnIpE Driverage Snipe Join Date: May 2002 Location: Montreal, Canada or NYC, USA Posts: 372 Rep Power: 0	Good stuff, I'm presonnally thinking of getting a Kooldance EXOS this summer, hehe. __________________ Antec SX1030 Case - Enermax 431 W Whisper PS - 4 Case Fans -ThermalRight AX-7 With Panaflo Ultra Fan - Sb Audigy / Logitech Z-560 Speakers / Sennheiser HD497 Headphones WD 80GB 7200 rpm HD - Samsung SyncMaster 955DF - LG 16x10x40x Burner / Pionner 16x Slot DVD View my rig http://nl.dodhq.net/Rig/

Feb 16, 2003, 04:38 PM	Thread Starter #4
dipstick HardwareHeaven Extreme Member Join Date: May 2002 Location: USA Posts: 3,609 Rep Power: 71 System Specs	Thx guys. I decided to go with the Koolance PC2-601 case with blocks for the mobo and vid card along with the cpu. It's the same case I have now, but atleast I'll be able to give mine to my brother now I hope it works works good and lets me get afew more MHz out of my cpu and gfx card; I also went $60 over my limit...oops

Feb 19, 2003, 04:05 PM	Thread Starter #6
dipstick HardwareHeaven Extreme Member Join Date: May 2002 Location: USA Posts: 3,609 Rep Power: 71 System Specs	Awesome, thanks alot for the input; I can't wait to get it. I have a Truepower 550w so it's good to hear it will be enough. Also you said I don't need those extender clips with a R9700, right? I don't wanna get the case and be waiting for more parts. Thx again, it's awesome to hear it's very quiet. I need to sleep on peace

Feb 20, 2003, 04:26 AM	#9
Desert_Siege Professional Slacker Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: KY Posts: 274 Rep Power: 0	No....you won't need the clips with the 9700. It mounts right up with the hardware that comes with it. But you DO have to remove the metal shim under the stock heatsink from the 9700 and thereby void the warranty. Be VERY VERY careful removing the shim. Its just glued on, but if you slip, you will almost definitely knock one of the small SMD resistors off the top of the chip and either spend an hour trying to find it and fix it, or pray like hell you can RMA it. I would personally recommed you use a small straight razor and start at one corner and work around VERY slowly until 3 sides are loose. It will pull up and pop off then, but don't pry too much on the top of the chip. It may not hurt it, but it made me nervous as hell. It seems to work pretty well, but I don't think my card has any hardware monitoring capability so I can't get you any VPU temps, but I can tell you my water temperature went up 1-2C after putting the 9700 in the loop. Which cooler did you get, the 100 or 200 watt? I opted for the big bastard...lol. It works pretty well, is machined and finished on the bottom to a mirror finish and I swear the sucker must weigh almost a pound...lol. It has been a pretty tight fit on the 8K7A+ I had before and barely clears the caps towards the back of the socket on this KT3 Ultra2-R and actually sits up against them (heh...maybe cools the caps too...lol) but it fits. The retention bracket is very nice and very sturdy and you can't overtighten it. When it is tight enough, it clicks and won't turn anymore and will scare the **** out of you if you aren't expecting it (crushed core anyone) Good choice and happy and quiet running to ya dude

Feb 20, 2003, 04:43 AM	Thread Starter #10
dipstick HardwareHeaven Extreme Member Join Date: May 2002 Location: USA Posts: 3,609 Rep Power: 71 System Specs	Very good to hear, thanks for all the info. I have already modded my R9700 and the shim is long gone I also went with the 200 cpu block since it wasn't much more than the cheaper one...I guess I made a good choice. Btw, do you think I'll need additional tubing? And if so, do you know the size of it? There are afew of them. Thx alot for all the help, I really appreciate it PS. Thanks for the heads up on the 'click'. I probably would really **** myself when I heard it

Feb 20, 2003, 05:03 AM	#11
Desert_Siege Professional Slacker Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: KY Posts: 274 Rep Power: 0	Nope....I STILL hav extra tubing...lol Mine came with enough to hook up a vid card, chipset cooler, CPU cooler and 2 hard drives I think...lol. I think I still have almost 4 feet of it left. And good job on the 9700, my first try went the way of the RMA...lol. Have fun.

Feb 20, 2003, 05:10 AM	#12
Desert_Siege Professional Slacker Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: KY Posts: 274 Rep Power: 0	One last thing, almost forgot..... Cut your tubing for each connection about 3-4 inches longer than you really need it. It makes it SO much easier to work with if and when you disassemble it for upgrades and the tubing is easily routed. If your case is windowed, you can also buy some dye additive that is safe for the pumps that will glow different colors under a black light if you like that sort of thing. Mine is blue, and matches the blue LED's in my Antec True Blue 480 PS pretty well. Have fun and let me know how it goes.

Feb 20, 2003, 03:22 PM	Thread Starter #13
dipstick HardwareHeaven Extreme Member Join Date: May 2002 Location: USA Posts: 3,609 Rep Power: 71 System Specs	Good to hear and thx for the very helpfull tips