I know people are probably tired of me posting today so I'll keep this short. For several reasons I'm back on the idea of a prefab wc setup. So for the hydro pimps out there. Which cpu block would you reccomend for the Koolance PC2 system as the one they sell seems kinda weak compared to some of the others I have seen. Thanks in advance.

Innovatek rev. 3

Innovatek X-flow

Zalman

In that order.

Thanks AntiM I'll give all of them a good look.

The only issue I can see right now with the blocks listed are the size of the fittings. They all seem to be 3/8 or 1/2 in internal diameter while the tubing that comes with the system seems to be 1/4 inch internal and 3/8 external. I could swear I read another post here about adapters for different size tubing/blocks but I can't find it. Any info?

I'm most certain that the Blocks, AntiM listed, are compatable with the system you are describing...He would never miss one like that.

I wouldn't think so either. But in the interest of "measure twice, cut once" I'm going to check the tubing diameter of the Koolance system tomorrow at a local shop that carries the pre fab cases. Also I'm not trying to step on anyones toes here since I'm totally new to the whole water cooling thing but everything I've seen so far shows 1/4 inch internal diameter and 3/8 outside diameter tubing on the Koolance system and 3/8 inch ID 1/2 OD connectors on both the Zalman and Innovatek blocks. It also appears that is the case with most blocks. Again not trying to get into a pissing contest with anyone just trying to get all the info I can before I do this.

Koolance is 1/4", Innovatek is 8 mm or approx. 5/6". All measured inside diameter. The tubing might stretch enough to cover the compression fittings. If not you can use adapters. HighspeedPC sells a 6 mm (1/4") barb that will fit the Innovatek blocks. I believe it will probably fit the Zalman as well.

The blocks listed are by far the best match for the relatively low flow of a Koolance system. Any block designed for 1/2" or even 3/8" will suffer greatly in a low flow system. The rev. 3 performs great with smalll pumps.

Thanks again for the information AntiM. I'm not trying to be an ass about all of this but it's a substantal investment of time and money and I want to be sure of the details before I buy. I'm one of those annoying people who hate having to go back and re purchase things or alter orders if at all possible to avoid. That's why I tend to be so tenacious about getting all the info before hand.

The chipset coolers specify North Brige however I am running KT400A/8235 chipset and I am wondering if the chipset coolers are more or less universal. The fittings seem to be the same as those that are on the chipset heat sink right now.

Get anything but the stock Koolance block, its pure crap, i've told you that in 2 other threads already. Innovatek blocks are kickass, get one, you wont be dissapointed!

No offense taken Computersmith. I don't jump off half-c0cked either. A little homework before hand (and a cheap plastic fitting) can save you a lot of grief in the long run.

Not all northbridge mounting holes are universal. If the distance between the holes is 2 & 1/8" most chipset coolers should fit it. I still don't recommend northbridge coolers on Via chipsets. Stock coolers or a good passive sink will usually work just fine on them. I am starting to rethink their use on nforce2 northbridges. But still, only in the extreme. Up to you. The stock Koolance copper model should work just fine. And it's cheap.

But if you want to save on the overall heat load and back pressure your water has to cope with and still have a killer cooler. Sidewinder sells a high performance chipset cooler. http://www.sidewindercomputers.com/minochcokit.html

Thanks AntiM yeah doing the homework in this case not only saves a lot of grief but a 150 dollar mother board and a 100 dollar cpu. Thanks for the info about the chipset coolers, I measured the hole distance and it's about a 1/4 inch off from the measurement you gave me. I hadn't really considered the effect on the heat load the system has to deal with given the added temp of a chipset cooler. I'll probably stick with the stock aluminum chipset heat sink for now. The case has two 80mm blow holes in the back of the case so I'll probably get a couple of high cfm fans and put em in a push-pull config. Anyway it looks like that'll do it I've got everything book marked and ready to go just a matter of shifting funds and getting the parts together.

Now as for you Banana Boy if you'll go back and read I was not trying to argue the benefits (or lack there of) of the stock Koolance block. I was trying to make sure that I got the sizes for hose barbs/connectors correct before investing 250 dollars in a case/wc system and another 80 dollars in a cpu block only to find out that. Either they A: wouldn't work together at all or B: leaked like a sieve because of size differences. I don't know about you but I prefer to keep out of the tarfu or fubar zone when putting water around expensive electronic componenets.

TARFU = what? I know what FUBAR means but TARFU? WTF! Best think over what you are going to do carefully, very carefully before narrowing down your decision. Find out what you want in terms of performance v.s. price and then see what goes together and then narrow it down.

Things Are Realy Fooked Up = TARFU

Quote: Originally posted by Banana Boy TARFU = what? I know what FUBAR means but TARFU? WTF!

LOL... Sorry about that there are three stages - snafu=situation normal all foked up, tarfu=things are really foked up, fubar= well you know what that is.

Yeah I'm going to email the a few support people to try and make sure it's all gonna work right.

Wow thats some small tubing. You could almost mistake that for wiring.

I don't think any of us here would just jump into something, especially watercooling, which could produce catastrophic results to high-price computer components, without alot of research beforehand. Make sure you post some pics of that rig once its up and running. I haven't seen many setups with 1/4" tubing. Good luck....chancecs are you'll need it.

First I would just like to say to Anonymous I am not directing this directly at you as I understand that your stating (what I agree) seems to be a fundamental flaw in the Koolance design. Namely the lack of at least 3/8” or ½” ID tubing and a more powerful pump. However I am sensing a trend in quite a few replies and this is a trend which I have noticed other people who post going through not just on this forum but on a great many other forums. That trend is people not reading an entire post or any back-story before jumping into the fray. Frankly at this point I am tired of having to respond multiple times in order to keep answers on track. Also if I get booted for this forum then so be it as it would be my hope that this little rant will inspire some people on this forum to actually pay attention to what is being written before they run there mouths off.

First let me give you a little background. I am 34 and have been dealing with computers since I was knee high to a duck. For you old school riggers you will know what I am talking about when I say that my father worked for and gave me my first introduction to computers back in the day at a little company called Control Data. That was the day when most computers would just fit inside my living room and the rest of the cooling/storage/terminal equipment would take up the rest of my apartment. I have also been working in the IT sector for 14 years now and have done everything from the most basic of basic service/support/config etc, all the way to running the help desk for a major magazine publisher.

The point of the above is that while I may be totally new to extreme cooling/water cooling/etc I am by no means anywhere near a newbie in regards to computers. Now I may not be the smartest SOB in the world but I know when people responding to a word or a sentence in a post and totally disregarding anything that might negate there "well thought out" response. So for those of you in the cheap seats let me explain this one last time. I DO NOT have the time or the space or the tools to make the modifications to my case to allow for a diy water-cooling system. Nor do I have the inclination right now to try and make the necessary adjustments in the above lacking areas to put together an ideal diy water-cooling system. Now is the Koolance rig the best in the world? No it is not. Would I prefer to be able to build up an ideal system using "better" (better in quotes because that is always a very subjective thing) parts? Yes I would. Would I like to be able to pick and choose the size of the tubing and the water block etc? Yes I would. HOWEVER I DO NOT HAVE THAT LUXURY AT THIS MOMENT. So continually ignoring all of these facts which I seem to have to repeatedly go over and simply saying in effect "that's gonna sux d00d" is not helpful. It's kinda like going back to '78 or '79 and telling Woz and Jobs that "d00d you should really be using 'xyz' circuit board cuz that one's just junk an it's gonna fry", or trying to tell Draper back in the early ‘70s about this great way to build a box that will do what his little toy whistle does and it will only cost him 500 bucks and take a month to build and will do a better job. Doing these things wouldn’t be at all productive and ultimately not really very true huh?

So lock it, delete it, do what you want but if you have any integrity at all and want to decrease the level of fluff in the forums I suggest you let people see this. Those with intelligence may not agree with 100% of what I've said but I believe they will agree that I have a valid point. I believe they will also agree that this point should be conveyed to everyone on this board. The rest will wallow in there own ignorance and there's really no hope for them anyway. Good night and good luck.

Pair a Koolance Exos with any of the blocks I mentioned and you will have a kickass system. The Koolance block itself can perform very well.

The Innovatek kit held the top spot in a majority of reviews for a very long time. And it did it with 5/16" tubing. You don't need giant tubing for good results. The difference between a good block design and a poor one can be several degrees. The difference between 3/8" and 1/2" tubing can be less than one degree. A system needs to be balanced.

http://www.overclockers.com/articles373/ Notice which kits are sitting on the top of the chart.

I have no doubt AntiM. As I said "better" is relative to the person and application. I just detest having to repeat myself is all .

Peace.

Computersmith, you seem to be overly sensitive and for some reason and have taken offense where none was intended. I mean what I say and that is all. If I say "Wow thats small tubing," thats exactly what I mean, not "Wow thats small tubing so it must really suck." You shouldn't read into things so much. I was sincere when I said that not many people have low-flow systems and would be interested in seeing more. I never said the small tubing was flawed or anything negative towards your setup at all. If I wanted to you would have read:

"Small tubing is bad. Try larger tubing and buy all the stuff yourself."

This wasn't the case. Take literal things literally and stop attaching connotations when there aren't any. G'day.