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pHaestus · 05-23-2002, 07:09 PM

I have heard a lot of talk about birrman's roundup, but have not seen any information about how he proposes to actually test the blocks or what equipment he is using. I am soon to start on the second Pro Cooling waterblock testing, which will (due to time and money constraints) be limited to a few popular blocks. If you are interested in my testbed, I am using:

1) Little Giant 3E-12NYS industrial pump. This is a big unit (200W heat but ~7.9 PSI)

2) flowmeter from mcmaster. This is in need of upgrade; it really affects the flow rate and is not digital so think of it as a crude approximation. I am still looking for a good replacement.

3) Water and air temperatures: wb inlet and outlet temps taken with Dallas 1-Wire probes that have been sealed with silicone and placed into 1/2" NPT caps. Radiator intake and outlet and also room temperature taken also with DOW sensors. Specs are 0.5C accuracy and 0.125C resolution.

CPU temperature: AMD Duron 1.0 (Morgan) at 1200MHz 1.9V (or more if I get around to vmod). CPU under temperature taken with DOW sensor epoxied under center of core. AMD diode readings taken from a MAX6655EVSys diode reader that interfaces with a computer via parallel port. 1C accuracy and 0.125C resolution on this one.

Pressure Drop: DPT measurement setup that I still have to get running. I will use PVC crosses to put the DOW temp probe and the DPT setup close to the wb inlet and outlet.

This all sounds terribly impressive, but the temperature readings are still not really that great (I really want 0.1C ACCURACY) and it is sort of a bastard setup in that it is higher quality than most general users are willing to put together but it remains much poorer than what is really needed. In the next few months I will likely upgrade the flow sensors and add a recirculating water bath to keep the water at exactly constant temperature (we have a VWR unit in our lab that I may try to appropriate if it keeps making strange noises). The temperature monitoring is troubling and will be very expensive to do right. I am for now satisfying myself with doing the best job I can with the equipment I have (replications, careful variation of flow rates, minimizing errors) and I figure the most pressing upgrade needs will be obvious once my test methods are established.

05-23-2002, 07:09 PM	#14
pHaestus Big Player Making Big Money Join Date: Aug 2001 Location: irc.lostgeek.com #procooling.com Posts: 4,782	I have heard a lot of talk about birrman's roundup, but have not seen any information about how he proposes to actually test the blocks or what equipment he is using. I am soon to start on the second Pro Cooling waterblock testing, which will (due to time and money constraints) be limited to a few popular blocks. If you are interested in my testbed, I am using: 1) Little Giant 3E-12NYS industrial pump. This is a big unit (200W heat but ~7.9 PSI) 2) flowmeter from mcmaster. This is in need of upgrade; it really affects the flow rate and is not digital so think of it as a crude approximation. I am still looking for a good replacement. 3) Water and air temperatures: wb inlet and outlet temps taken with Dallas 1-Wire probes that have been sealed with silicone and placed into 1/2" NPT caps. Radiator intake and outlet and also room temperature taken also with DOW sensors. Specs are 0.5C accuracy and 0.125C resolution. CPU temperature: AMD Duron 1.0 (Morgan) at 1200MHz 1.9V (or more if I get around to vmod). CPU under temperature taken with DOW sensor epoxied under center of core. AMD diode readings taken from a MAX6655EVSys diode reader that interfaces with a computer via parallel port. 1C accuracy and 0.125C resolution on this one. Pressure Drop: DPT measurement setup that I still have to get running. I will use PVC crosses to put the DOW temp probe and the DPT setup close to the wb inlet and outlet. This all sounds terribly impressive, but the temperature readings are still not really that great (I really want 0.1C ACCURACY) and it is sort of a bastard setup in that it is higher quality than most general users are willing to put together but it remains much poorer than what is really needed. In the next few months I will likely upgrade the flow sensors and add a recirculating water bath to keep the water at exactly constant temperature (we have a VWR unit in our lab that I may try to appropriate if it keeps making strange noises). The temperature monitoring is troubling and will be very expensive to do right. I am for now satisfying myself with doing the best job I can with the equipment I have (replications, careful variation of flow rates, minimizing errors) and I figure the most pressing upgrade needs will be obvious once my test methods are established.