New on the Block

[cabmeister]

Hi
I have been reading with great interest most of the threads here and other forums and I am greatly impressed with some of the modifications ive seen in regards to water cooling .I have just completed my very first water cool system, infact very first anything in regards to puters and enjoyed it a whole bunch.Now having got my feet wet I am going to try to round up a little better Aqua cool system.Hopefully not as exspensive as my first,only the fact that I blew a CPU due to my ignorance in proper placing of the digidoc sensor (to far in,between the cooler & cpu mica plate).Any way I`m sure i will be able to get some very good input from some of you more knowledgeable and exspearianced people.

[Psychotic]

You didn't complete your very first water cool system. You bought a Koolance.

[Brad]

you still have to mount the block :P

[cabmeister]

I beg to differ Phychotic,although this Koolance system is pre balanced ,probably not to everyones likeing but it does have a market especialy for begginers like myself. After all is said and done you get all the seperate parts and a basic empty case,mount your coolers , fill and test for leaks then install your hardware etc. . So like y`all start with a pile of gear that just sits there and does nothing and end up with a working machine that is AS cool if not cooler also practicaly silent more so than a fan cooling screamer.

[Psychotic]

Alright, alright... so I was sort of playing on words. You didn't complete your first watercooling system because you didn't gather up all your watercooling components and integrate them into your case. You completed your first system that happens to be watercooled because you took the already set up system and hooked it up to the components which you put into your Koolance case. At any rate, I was just busting on ya. I agree that Koolance is a viable alternative for the beginner and it actually cools pretty well.

[Haddy]

welcome welcome...hope u have fun with ur new koolance...(coulda got better results for less, but ur right for newbs its good)....nice long sig u got there, its longer then ur post....

[cabmeister]

Hey Psychotic .
No problem at all , thats the way i took it ,and your absolutely right . As i said thats only the beggining ,the next one WILL be all my own work. Allready working on the mad plan of action just got to get the play $ together and away i go.As I see it first step first,case then build from there.Believe me I will be doing a whole bunch more research into every componant i decide on.Thanks Haddy for the welcome . OOOPS here comes that sig again

[Highvoltagepc]

Hiya Cabmeister,Welcome ,yeah, the silence of watercooling is the greatest (if you run your radiator fan at 7volts),but the performance is even better ,good luck on your new mad design,you've found the best place on the net to get into watercooling without all the hype and b.s. you may get somewhere else,welcome aboard!koolance is a good starting point-

[Brad]

the koolance isn't that bad for value. once you factor in the case, psu, fan control setup, fans, etc it is really quite alright

[decodeddiesel]

While I would never, nor have I ever bought a pre-fabbed kit such as a Koolance, it does seem to be a good value and a decent performer for the money. Congrats on your first, though small step into the relm of watercooling. But man you gotta trim that sig down a bit, I mean thats just rediculous and annoying. Seriously, if you want to put that much in your sig make a small web page somewhere with free hosting and put a hyperlink in your sig. As it is it reading about every piece of hardware in your rig at the end of each post really detracts from what you are saying as it takes up so much space it is hard to find what you typed and pay attention to your post.

[Haddy]

Originally posted by Brad
the koolance isn't that bad for value. once you factor in the case, psu, fan control setup, fans, etc it is really quite alright

yea but i would rather have something like this....it acctually uses everything one would normaly buy...but its already put together in a half way decent case....

[cabmeister]

Thanks decodeddiesel ,point taken as you will notice.
Allso all the others,thanks for your welcome . So cool to get unbiased suggestions and input ,if that carries on with any advise I will be seeking its a win win situation.

[decodeddiesel]

Thank you, your consideration is much appreciated.

[pHaestus]

I dont think I could put together a case as nice as the Koolance in terms of thermally controlled fans, dual pumps, overall packaging, and just general design for their price. And even if I could, they seem to actually stand by their products and warranty systems in the event of failure. I love water cooled computers but I am looking at being very busy over the next few years with my job. I will be keeping an eye on koolance and some of the other manufacturers and see how they progress. Even a low performance water cooling kit (that is silent) is better than high performance air (that is loud).

[Haddy]

Originally posted by pHaestus
I dont think I could put together a case as nice as the Koolance in terms of thermally controlled fans, dual pumps, overall packaging, and just general design for their price

fans, rheobus....dual pumps, get an ehiem and not that cheap stuff they use and then u wont have to worry about that. its quiet easy to make something just like that which preforms better for just about that same price...

[pHaestus]

Sure if your time is worth nothing and if you start with a cheap case. Using a quality case (~100), an eheim pump ($50) you already don't have much room for the rest of your setup. And you are going to have your whole case taken over by your heatercore (not buying anything else with the budget we have remaining) instead of a nice open interior like the Koolance.

Look I am not saying that I am a Koolance fanboy; I am just saying that I have many man hours and much more than $200 in my cooling rigs when the case, H2O, fans, and controllers are considered. Most of us do. And yet you continue to see claims that the setup is not "worth the price". C'est la vie.

[DodgeViper]

cabmeister, your doing well by asking and getting different idea's of what works and what does not. I used a Chevy Chevette heat core. Its the same core that Danger Den sales. If your handy and willing to do the work yourself you can really have a nice system that you will be proud to own. Welcome...

[cabmeister]

Thanks DodgeViper.
Ive seen the pics of your handy work and that fan shroud on your rad is a work of art also the overall neatness of your case layout is something to aim for . All though metal work is not quite what i`m used to ,my background as a cabinet maker does help and with a few differant blades for my exsisting tools it should not be too difficult to try to do some of the things ive seen accomplished on these forums and others. Compound angles/radius work etc. I`m used to , as for brazing/soldering and stuff like that it will be a case of practice , practice, and more yep you guessed it , but as allways musn`t run before crawling .As for the Koolance project ,I`m pleased with it and it suits my needs for now at least.One thing i have put into the data bank is if ive got to put everything including the sink into a box , I have to make sure theres plenty of overhead for space,the 601 koolance after you get all the hardware I have in it with cableing etc. ect. it tends to be a little on the cramped side.Another lesson learned .

[Haddy]

Originally posted by pHaestus
Sure if your time is worth nothing and if you start with a cheap case. Using a quality case (~100), an eheim pump ($50) you already don't have much room for the rest of your setup. And you are going to have your whole case taken over by your heatercore (not buying anything else with the budget we have remaining) instead of a nice open interior like the Koolance.

Look I am not saying that I am a Koolance fanboy; I am just saying that I have many man hours and much more than $200 in my cooling rigs when the case, H2O, fans, and controllers are considered. Most of us do. And yet you continue to see claims that the setup is not "worth the price". C'est la vie.

its the american way man..build it bigger better....and more costly..

[Brad]

cab, just used the koolance for your current system, then when you need to upgrade, semi retire it to a secondary computer and build a new one using DDen components

[cabmeister]

Brad
Yes thats was the intention,just to carry on with this as my main rig.My other machine which is used for strictly gaming,(have to chuckle there a little 55 and gaming no less) will be the one i give the new W/C home to. I use this rig for all other purposes other than gaming , mainly CAD and making CD`s for my boys also running of day to day stuff like correspondance ,paying bills and general crap like that.The only plans I have in upgrade hardware wise would be another Epox 8kha+ MB (Bioistar at presant) and a Ge force 4 . Probably will leave the CPU as the XP1900+.I am working towards getting a fact sheet together on most of the stuff for the new project and of course will be asking for some input on my plans.

[cabmeister]

Still Loads to learn but is this what you meant Mr.decodeddiesel.

[Fixittt]

Well CAD, glad to see your here. I personally dont have anything against the coollance. I am actually quite fond of pre mades and kits. I would be biased if I said otherwise. while not buying a complete kit. at the time. nd I did peicve it all toghter, I have the very first Intercooler (With SPIR@L of course) made.

I love this case that Dtek sells. Its laid out nice, works great. And priced right.


So, what kind of cad do U do? I do a little CAD/CAM myself, not that I am very good at it.

[cabmeister]

Hi Fixittt
Thanks for the welcome .I took a peek at your site and my, ain`t I got a bunch to learn .My CAD work is very basic and really one of a kind ,in the Custom cabinet making line .I do use AutoCad 2000 for some of my more complex projects but mainly use DesignCad 2D . Thats the one i started with and i find it a bunch quicker for the simple jobs.I don`t use CAD in my day job but i do use it in my spare time to earn $ for my puter upgrades etc. .Of course in the engineering and mass market production furniture industry AutoCad is the way to go with the linkage to the various CAM machinery out there.Also I have been plodding away at the 3D side of AutoCad but a much steeper learning curve , although it gives a great deal of satisfaction if the end result comes together well. Them blocks you have developed look mighty fine ,and being totaly new to the Aqua cooling scene ive heard good mention of the spirals all over the place.

[Fixittt]

Why thank you kind sir. LOOK Brad a gentalman You could learn alot from him LOL Just kidding with ya Brad.

im new to autocad I have done a few things in it, mostly portraits.
I have been learning Solid Works, its great for doing renders of 3d parts.

here are some of my works. First the autocad stuff.
a pic of my wife and her sister. Which I made on my cnc mill for my moter in law at xmas.


now a clock I did for one of the guys I worked with at a machine shop. Another xmas present.


a portrate I did for my boss and his wife at the machine shop.
done in painted acrylic milled can be lighted.


A solid works render of a block I made. (just playing with it)


Now the finished machined part.