6800GT on a Bigwater SE loop

The_Motivator · 04-January-06, 12:58 AM

ok... so i have a 6800GT that's currently got a big old NV Silencer strapped on to it, which cools both GPU and RAM.... now i'm switching to a watercooling setup with the bigwater SE unit, and adding a gpu block into the loop. should i bother with ramsinks, or just let the ram air-cool without them? i've heard mixed things, and i'd rather not spend the $20 to get ramsinks, mainly because i've already spent over $200 on watercooling(148+36+tax) and my bawls addiction(16.99), and i don't have much more to spend on this... any help would be appreciated. also, i'm under the belief that i should still keep a case fan or two going in there to help circulate air around all the little doodads that'd get passive cooling from the cpu hsf. help me figure this all out please

$SOLID$ Necro · 04-January-06, 04:44 AM

Well..it realy depends.

The realy hardcore will use Ram sinks made of all Copper with lots of very thin fins mounted with a very thin layer with AS Ceramique or AS-5 and a dab of superglue in the 4 corners to hold them in place. They will also mount a 80~120MM high flowing fan aimed right at them. The drawback is you have to be carefull, you can kock them off if you are not.

They will also increase the voltage, and that is why they NEED them, most ram does not get that hot at stock/mild OC speeds and volts.
(BTW, you should give the vid card Bios a tweek with NBITOR to raise the stock 1.4v to 1.5v since you are watercooling, otherwise all that extra coling goes to waste and you are missing out on very healthy bump in core speed)

Some people will use AS Epoxy for the Ram sinks, but then you will never EVER be able to remove them

Most commercial ram sinks with come with a thermal pad wich does not good a very good job of transferring heat, but are easy to install and look like they are doing something...

Did you also know that Danger Den makes Waterblocks for the 6800 that cover both the GPU and the memory?

If you have spent all that money and don't plan to Overclock and are just doing it for the quietness, or cause water is realy cool looking, then skip em' and save your 20$

The_Motivator · 04-January-06, 10:43 AM

i'm doing it for the OC potential, but for now, it'd be safe to get the loop installed, i take it, and put the ramsinks on once i get 'em, then OC?

04-January-06, 12:58 AM	#1 (permalink)
The_Motivator Apex Techie II Join Date: Dec 2005 Posts: 96	6800GT on a Bigwater SE loop ok... so i have a 6800GT that's currently got a big old NV Silencer strapped on to it, which cools both GPU and RAM.... now i'm switching to a watercooling setup with the bigwater SE unit, and adding a gpu block into the loop. should i bother with ramsinks, or just let the ram air-cool without them? i've heard mixed things, and i'd rather not spend the $20 to get ramsinks, mainly because i've already spent over $200 on watercooling(148+36+tax) and my bawls addiction(16.99), and i don't have much more to spend on this... any help would be appreciated. also, i'm under the belief that i should still keep a case fan or two going in there to help circulate air around all the little doodads that'd get passive cooling from the cpu hsf. help me figure this all out please

04-January-06, 04:44 AM	#2 (permalink)
$SOLID$ Necro Mastah Overclocker Join Date: May 2003 Location: Lima, Ohio Posts: 7,217	Well..it realy depends. The realy hardcore will use Ram sinks made of all Copper with lots of very thin fins mounted with a very thin layer with AS Ceramique or AS-5 and a dab of superglue in the 4 corners to hold them in place. They will also mount a 80~120MM high flowing fan aimed right at them. The drawback is you have to be carefull, you can kock them off if you are not. They will also increase the voltage, and that is why they NEED them, most ram does not get that hot at stock/mild OC speeds and volts. (BTW, you should give the vid card Bios a tweek with NBITOR to raise the stock 1.4v to 1.5v since you are watercooling, otherwise all that extra coling goes to waste and you are missing out on very healthy bump in core speed) Some people will use AS Epoxy for the Ram sinks, but then you will never EVER be able to remove them Most commercial ram sinks with come with a thermal pad wich does not good a very good job of transferring heat, but are easy to install and look like they are doing something... Did you also know that Danger Den makes Waterblocks for the 6800 that cover both the GPU and the memory? If you have spent all that money and don't plan to Overclock and are just doing it for the quietness, or cause water is realy cool looking, then skip em' and save your 20$ __________________ Join the PC Apex "Overclock and Benchmark" team today! Click Here! Necro's "Ultimate Links" Collection Click Here!

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04-January-06, 10:43 AM	#3 (permalink)
The_Motivator Apex Techie II Join Date: Dec 2005 Posts: 96	i'm doing it for the OC potential, but for now, it'd be safe to get the loop installed, i take it, and put the ramsinks on once i get 'em, then OC?