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Guides and Info |
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Now the Watercooling Matrix has shown you what you can fit in your case or given you an idea of the best cases around are, how do actually build a water-cooled system? The first thing to think about is the balance between silence and performance. If you're making the move from air cooling to reduce noise or fed-up with all those fast spinning fans in summer and would like to take advantage of the reduced noise water-cooling can offer then you'll need to think about opting for large radiators (the bigger the better) and slow spinning fans. Don't think this will reduce cooling performance though - you can reduce the fan speed to a minimum and still get great cooling that can cope with overclocked hardware. If you're going for gold and intend on pushing that quad core as far as it will go then you'll also need large radiators and may want to think about water-cooling chipsets and mosfets too. However opting for fans that can push a lot of air will increase performance just as it will with an air cooler. In fact some radiators are designed with high air flow in mind. If you'd like to do both of the above then this is easy too - just add a fan controller to your system. While your watching DVD's or surfing the net, turn your fans right down for silent running. When gaming or benchmarking crank them back up again! you can even get programmable controllers that alter fan speed with temperature so do the "cranking" for you! Below is a list of some great sites to get you launched into the world of water-cooling. If you're aiming for a high performing custom loop then there are no easy shortcuts other than to do your research and make sure you know the ins and outs of barbs, tubing, clamps, coolant and the main hardware components. However, a fantastic way to make sure you get all the components you need in the first place to start with a kit that includes all the necessary bits. You just have to read the instructions and put it together! As water-cooling is relatively modular, many kits allow for expansion and upgrades just like hardware in your PC. Just make sure the tubing is either 3/8" or 1/2" internal diameter and you'll be able to grow into water-cooling as you're knowledge and needs expand. Also avoid the cheap kits. Many of these, especially the pre-installed kits don't perform very well and in some cases not even as good as a high end air cooler. martinsliquidlab.com - In-depth reviews of the latest components overclockers.com - link to very useful article on watercooling over-clock.co.uk (click here for specific guides) - UK based informative shop and forum. watercoolinguk.co.uk - UK based shop and forums xtremesystems.org (liquid cooling forum section) |
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