So Ive been researching rads for a few days now and ive basically driven myself mad. I had about an inch and half of rad space on the top of my case (LIAN LI PC-V2120B the case has 2x140's at the front and 3x120's at the top.), which is 38mm. So ill need a slim radiator if i were to opt for a 3x120mm setup, otherwise i can do a little case modding, and get a 2x140mm rad where i have a lot more space for a thicker rad and potential push/pull setups. Not sure which i should do? Most thicker rads seem the perform better and quieter due to less fin density but deeper surface area, but potentially less overall surface area compared to a 3x120 setup. also does anyone have any experience with the apogee drive 2? it seems to be a very decent block and the added benefit of the integrated pump. my other question is would either the 3x120mm setup or the 2x140mm setup be enough to cool an overclocked i7 3770k and a stock gtx670? (since my card doesnt overclock for crap i decided its not worth the instability to the tiny gain) or should i just bite the bullet and do both? if both would it be necessary for dual loops or could i run it as one or a split loop and split it via a res or something?
yeah im leaning that direction too, especially since i dont mind loud fans anyway since they will be PWM, Im thinking the AX360 by XSPC or whatever.
I'm not a WC guy but have done some reading and the general consensus seems to be a 1x240mm rad for each block in your system. Now that being said, swiftech showed their h220 running 2 extra rads and 2 extra water blocks for 7970s. As far as cost of doing it all I would imagine that going with an H360 (released soon after the h220) and just adding a gpu block for the 670 would be the most cost efficient. Swiftech is saying their h220 pump/cpu block is more than capable of running all but the most extreme set ups. It is also cheaper than the apogee drive II since they manufacture the entire thing. You could also install either the fan or rad on the outside of the case depending if you wanted to push or pull. Just my ramblings. Take it for what you will but know that I haven't done any more than the reading that you likely have done. I know we discussed the h220 in the other thread but in the off chance you didn't see this part of the video..... cpu+2x7970+2x240mm rad
Before I went "small" with my current and next build I was going to go all out water cooling and did a lot of research. I really liked EK products, but if you want to run your own custom loop(s) grab one of the kits like this or just part it out separately which is what I did. So, obvious things. You need: CPU block - Heatkillers, XSPC, and EK are my faves. GPU block - Unless you buy the EVGA Hydro Copper versions, you'll have to mount your own, same brands as above. Pump - Suggestion - MCP655 Res - Bay or Tube - depending how big you need/want it and what will fit in your case. You can also do a res/pump combo which is great, especially bay res so... something like this. Rad - Swifttech, Black Ice, or EK 3x120 if you are running GPU and CPU. Get fans made for radiators too. Push/pull setup if you have room so 6 fans. Tubing - Based on your fittings. Fittings - At what angles you need to make your loop efficient / look pretty. Hope that helps a little. Probably already knew most of it, just make sure all your metals match and that you use distilled water in your loop, with a kill coil somewhere in the system. I would highly advise against using dyes or dyed water as it can stain your blocks, tubing, etc. over time, and if you want your loop to have some color just buy colored tygon tubing. Also, if you don't do the res/pump combo, be sure to put your pump towards the bottom of your loop, that way your pump doesn't have to work so hard at pulling the water through, it just flows down to it. Gravity baby!
the 3x120 is the clear choice, in my opinio. Even if the 140 is a deeper radiator, look at the additional surface area you pick up when you go with 3 fans. An remember, you are picking up actively cooled surface area. Also, the 3 120s are going to give you faster air exchange than the 2 140s unless you go with something exotic on your fan selection. Finally, since you dont care about dbs- just as soggy said you can really boost up the efficiency of each fan by moving to 6 fans in a push pull arrangement. It will be far more than is necessary, you'll be blowing ice cubes out the back of your case!!! For my own tastes, bigger is better because i cant have noise in my system due to what I use them for. So, bigger slower and more aggressive airfoil styles that kill buffetting noise. Thats also much more expensive. Go 120s unless you need what I need.
I think you'd be OK with the 3x120. But I think a better solution would be to break it up with a 2x120/140 before the CPU that hits a 1x120 or 140 before the GPU. Or try to do a parallel loop so both blocks see the cooler water out of the rad. The lower it is the further it has to pump up too, it's very nearly a wash from an energy standpoint. That really only matters if you've got a pump that's going to have very low intake pressures. You can't put a pump more than 34 feet above water at air pressure because you can't pull more than a vacuum, for ex. So you put the pump at the bottom of a well because you can have way more than 1 ATM of pressure in a line. You also don't want to cause intake cavitation. In a computer case that's not an issue. It's much too short and the pumps aren't that crazy. The critical thing is making sure any air in the system finds its way out of the loop and, especially, keeping it out of the pump. That's why you put it low.
My recommendation is the 3x120, there is a much better fan selection of that size. Just make sure you get some effective fans, since the radiator does block alot of airflow, you need higher pressure fans compared to fans just blowing air into a case, but since a 3x120 you have to run a slim, it shouldn't be as crucial compared to running the 2x140mm. The 140mm is not the best choice, as it would need exceptional fans to match the performance, which are hard to find, were-as the 120x3 needs only decent fans, even tho the 120mm fans have some of the best selection and performance. (many people use 140mm to 120mm adapters to use 120mm fans on their 140mm radiators even) As far as the apogee drive 2, i have heard good things about it, as it is a solid Swiftech block, with a MCP35x pump build into it, which is one of the best.