Just a few newb questions

Do water cooled systems run quiter then fan cooled systems?
Is it worthless to water cool if you won't over clock?
What is the minimun size radiator, and reservoirs to cool (80mm, 120mm singles, etc) duel 8800s and a high end CPU.
When talking about pumps, what does the term "head" mean?
Is the Swiftech MCP350 3/8in or 355 Water Pump good? Im looking to fit water in a real tight place (silverstone Lascala SST-LC03)

Thanks guys!!!

First off, watercooling isn't cheap.

A good quiet W/C solution is going to take a like bit of room up. The nice part about making W/C efficient is that you can use nice flow low speed fans that don't make tons of noise. You just normally need a pretty good amount of space.

W/C in small cases isn't easier either, dual 8800's are going to put alot of heat out, and the kit for them alone is going to be expensive. A nifty trick i've seen with SFF cases is putting the pump directly over the CPU block so you have the best flow right there, and save some much needed space.

They make dual 80mm rad's and single 80mm rads (not worth much though). With a CPU and two GPU's being watercooled, I would recommend at least a 120mm single, if not more.

Head pressure is the distance the pump can push, normally measured in PSI, or inches/feet and this determines the power of the flow, it can be a 900 GPH pump but have a low head pressure, and vice versa.

I would recommend waiting for others to reply on this as well, because I'm no expert.

Quote: Originally Posted by Italianninja Do water cooled systems run quiter then fan cooled systems?

Only if you design them that way. Generally, water cooling systems use case fans to cool a radiator, unless you're getting into exotics like geothermal cooling. The pump also makes noise. Traditionally the radiator fans have been bigger than the fans used on CPU heat sinks. No more. It's rare to see a HSF nowadays that doesn't use either a 92mm or 120mm fan, however, with water cooling you are able to change the size of the radiator. This allows you to use larger, lower RPM, or less fans to transfer the same amount of heat (because there is a tradeoff between noise and performance, obviously).

Quote: Originally Posted by Italianninja Is it worthless to water cool if you won't over clock?

Pretty much... unless you just want the "cool" factor or are trying to achieve near-silence. Expect to pay a hefty price for off-the-shelf items to satisfy this goal.

Quote: Originally Posted by Italianninja What is the minimun size radiator, and reservoirs to cool (80mm, 120mm singles, etc) duel 8800s and a high end CPU.

Reservoir size is irrelevant. Radiator size, I wouldn't go below a dual 120mm setup to achieve any goal with water cooling, whether it be performance or noise reduction with that setup.

Quote: Originally Posted by Italianninja When talking about pumps, what does the term "head" mean?

Head is the total mechanical energy per unit weight of the flowing fluid. Not much help, eh? Head varies with flow rate and an equal amount of head by the pump is necessary to overcome the head loss of the fluid loop. Pump head is proportional to pressure gain across the pump. The pressure gain across the pump balances the pressure loss caused by the geometry of the flow loop.

When talking about a pump rating of head, what is usually meant is shutoff head. This is the maximum height that a pump can push a fluid (usually water), and occurs at a flow rate of 0. In simpler terms, attach the inlet of a pump to a body of water and attach the outlet with a long piece of vertical tubing. Turn the pump on and measure the maximum height of the water. That's your shutoff head. Generally, the higher the head rating, the better a pump can work against resistance.

Quote: Originally Posted by Italianninja Is the Swiftech MCP350 3/8in or 355 Water Pump good? Im looking to fit water in a real tight place (silverstone Lascala SST-LC03)

Yes. I have a 350 and its the best pump I've owned. Haven't tried the 355 but I hear it's louder...but also flows more water.

I second Anon on the dual 120 rad. Also everything Anon said about pumps was dead accurate.

Silence is worth it in my opinion, but if that is your goal, watercool everything, CPU,GPUs, and Chipset.

Then also get some silent case fans for minimal case air flow for the other components, RAM etc.