Crikey! That's a lot of heat being dumped into one loop!
I'm about to build a similar setup (with a 980X, and two GTX480s) - BTW, are you using the EVGA pre-fitted waterblock GTX480 "FTW" cards? How are you setting them up for SLI (by switching around the barbs?). Can you post a picture of your layout?
Edit: Ah - just read, you said you were using after-market EK blocks for the GTXs? Make sure your power supply is beefy enough for all that kit! I'm going for the Silverstone 1500W 80plus-silver PSU - it hits its sweet spot at about 800W load...
I'm going to use a separate loop for the gfx cards - now I'm thinking of going for two, I'm definitely going for a quad-rad... these things are HOT, and you'd have to have some meaty fans to get enough air through a 360 rad with all that in your loop... (I know it must be cold in Norway, but I doubt you live in an igloo... your ambient temps will have to be quite low.) If you don't mind a high (say 10 deg C) deltaT (water temp - ambient air in) and 2000+RPM fans, you probably could - at a push - deal with that (would be very noisy).
Check out
Skinnee Labs to see the charts of amount of heat dissipated from various radiators and fan combinations and speeds. I'm not sure, but a conservative estimate (judging by how much power these GTX480s use at full burn) would put them dumping 2 x 300W == 600W
of heat into your loop... Then add 200-300W (is that right?
) dumped in by your O/Ced 920, it's getting up there...
As CPUs are a little more sensitive to running temps, I'd definitely go for a dual loop system. Check out
my build list (now adding another GTX480 into the mix, if I can get my hands on one) - I've also plumped for the XSPC dual bay dual loop res. I was going for a more flexible system that could be tuned down for quiet operation as well, but cranked up for serious O/Cing.
So I'd go for your third option: two separate loops - but I'd stick the MB blocks in the CPU loop...
BTW, in your second option:
Quote:
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Everything in a single loop as above, but with two single 120mm rads between the CPU and the rest - probably a bit too much for the pump?
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..it doesn't matter where you stick your rads in the loop (i.e. before/after/between components) - the water will quickly reach thermal equilibrium, so positions of components will make no significant difference to their temps.
Let us know how your build goes!
ATB,
4rkon