Water on a budget

[The Anti Rice]

Is it possible to water cool for under 100 dollars, what kind of quality could i get for 100, im a DIY person on a budget, just spent 1900 on the machine, now i want it cool...

[jimmyang]

Yes, you can get a wc rig for that price but it wouldn't perform.
Get a good HSF and it performs as well as a normal WC rig

ThermalRights, Zalman and also Swiftech offers the best.

[notoriousformula]

how about this one (http://www.pc-extreme.co.uk/view.asp?ID=28)

Cheers.

[The Anti Rice]

You guys are going to have to forgive me for I am a cooling n00b.

What is HSF?

How could I add a vid cooler (FX5600), and a chipset cooler(nForce2)?? Is there a res that only takes up one 5.25 bay? I have a full tower(SOHO) case but i would still like to see my components...

Is the kit in the posted link a decent cooling sys...I didn't see a price...? I may just be blind though...

Oh and ive been on this board for like 3 days or so, and I must say its one of the best, most helpful boards Ive ever seen.

:2guns: That smiley rocks...

[killernoodle]

This (http://www.aquastealth.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=9&HS=1) one is better, and much more upgradable. It is 95, so that is within your price range. It also has a heatercore style radiator, so that is better than the previous kit. The slitedge is a good performer, and the pump is pretty strong. Watercooling the northbridge is not necessary on an nforce2, and watercooling the GPU is more money spent, but works well.

[notoriousformula]

nice find killernoodle :)

[The Anti Rice]

Ok so the second kit is a good kit huh? It doesnt look like much..but hey looks arent everything.. The slitedge is a good water block? The res looks as if it is a 5.25 bay res....?

It has a customiser option..since I am new to the water cooling, which fan is the better fan.. the Delta 130 or the sunon 90? Also whats the difference between masterkleer and tygon tubing?

Thanks for the help so far guys...

[notoriousformula]

also check out this new offer from Asetek (http://www.asetek.com/default.asp?showPage=nyhederPro/visnyhed.asp&param=databaseid,nyhedid&myvalue=1,227&contentSection=1&menuID=-1)

Asetek is very proud to introduce the new DYO [Do-Your-Own] WaterChill™ components product line. With a little handy work any end-user can now get his hands on the high performance & quality water cooling components in the world - at the market’s LOWEST prices!

The WaterChill™ DYO series, based primarily on the existing high-end WaterChill™ components, represent dramatic price reductions up to 50% - when compared to the existing factory assembled WaterChill components.

Already matching and exceeding the competition on issues of component performance and quality the WaterChill DYO series - priced for example approx. 30 - 50% below all competing cooler blocks - will without doubt become the demanding end users preferred water cooling equipment worldwide.

[The Anti Rice]

So which one is the better setup?

I like the looks of the first one, but the performance of the second one seems worth noting, the third setup I am a little wary of since I am a watercooling n00b...but honestly...which setup is the most bang for the buck?

[jasonruiz]

Originally posted by The Anti Rice
Is it possible to water cool for under 100 dollars, what kind of quality could i get for 100, im a DIY person on a budget, just spent 1900 on the machine, now i want it cool...

Itcan be done but it'll take A) TIME B) PATIENCE. Generally for under $100 if you buy a kit your going to get crap. If youlook around (Ebay is great for this) you can come across some great deals.

I had a similar goal. I wanted the bestperofrmance I could get for UNDER $120 . Here's what I was able to piece together.

1) Swiftech MCW327 waterblock ($6.00, mistagged at Fry's...don't expect this kind of luck)
2) Swiftech MCM 300 + CriticCool Relay ($27.00 + shipping on Ebay...from all the reviews I've read this unit manages the same or better performance as the Eheim 1250 in a smaller package...but I've seen read about severalpeople building around pumpslike the via aqua which can be had under $20...not as good but they'll do)
3) Chevy S-10 heatercore ($2.00+$5.00 shipping on Ebay)
4) OCH H2O kit ($52.00 + $10 s/h
a) OCH Z4 waterblock
b) OCH G4 gpu waterblock
c) inline 12v pump inside
resevoir
d) 6x6 resevoir w/ 120mm fan
and shroud

TOTAL SPENT: ($102.00 but that's for pretty much everything I need for two setups, I'm figuring in another $15-$20 for extras like tubing etc. )

I figure if I don't use both i can sell one and come out way below the targetprice.

I'm not expecting this setup to rival some of the better setups I've seen around here, but I think it'll perform a lot better than kits like the Tt Aquarius)
It was my first try at watercooling and I didn't want to spend a fortune on it.

[jasonruiz]

I have no experiance with these kits BUT they look interesting. For $95 for the basic setup, it looks like a deal, the Waterblock got a pretty good review at Overclockers.com.

http://www.aquastealth.com...

They also have a 3/8" kit starting at $65, but I wouldn't expect too much from that. The 1/2" kit comes with a Via Aqua pump already setup for 1/2" tubing, a pretty slick heater core, the BeCooling Slit Edge waterblock, and tubing/clamps etc.

While it's not a high-end system, for the price, I think it might be a good starter system. The rewview says the block works well with moderate power water-pumpsas long as the other componants don't unduely restrict flow. Since they piece together the kit themselves, you'd think they made sure all the compoants worked well together.
Like I said I have noexperiance with these,maybe some more experianced users might have an opinion.

[killernoodle]

Dont forget you can always upgrade a 1/2" system because that seems to be the standard nowadays. I would never buy a koolance, or innovatek, or anything 3/8" because they are more difficult to upgrade in the future. The only things I see wrong with the kit at aquastealth is the fact that the pump is a via. I had 2 via aquas stop working within three months, but this was probably due to the tubing arrangement I had in there. I had the outlet of the pump go directly to the res and the waterblocks right before the inlet. This caused massive cavitation that eventually caused the little vias to rattle and die. I fixed this problem with my new setup.

In an inline setup, however, you can route it however you like as long as you put the t-line just before the inlet of the pump. It should last a long time.

I would still recommend the aquastealth over any of the smaller, lower quality setups... especially the thermaltake setup that is selling for a similar amount.