Question Looking for some help with a custom loop cooler

[my_pc_build]

Hi,
Looking for some help with a custom loop cooler for the following build:

CPU
AMD Ryzen 9 3950x
CPU Cooler [current]
Noctua NH-D15
Motherboard
Asus ROG Strix X570-E Gaming ATX AM4 Motherboard
Memory
G.Skill Trident Z Neo 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR4-3600 Memory
Storage
Samsung SM951 512 GB M.2-2280 NVME Solid State Drive
Video Card
Gigabyte GeForce GTX 1080 8 GB WINDFORCE OC 8G Video Card
Case
Cougar PANZER EVO RGB ATX Full Tower Case (Case fans currently: 3 intake fans at front, one exhaust at rear, all 120 mm.)
Power Supply
Corsair RMx (2018) 850 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply
Monitor
Acer Predator XB271HUA 27.0" 2560x1440 165 Hz Monitor
Keyboard
Cougar DEATHFIRE EX Wired Gaming Keyboard With Optical Mouse

The Noctua is more than adequate for stock but I'm wanting to overclock.
Previously looking at AIOs, but I'm now thinking a thicker 360 mm radiator might be better - interested in the EK CoolStream XE 360 Triple Radiator.

1. Would that radiator fit in the above? (Thinking of putting at the front, for intake, adding 3 exhaust fans at the top.)
2. What other (EK) parts would I need to buy to finish adding this custom loop?

(Wanting something comparable to the EK KIT 360 RGB Liquid Cooling Kit. Happy to go with e.g. Noctua fans but would like to stick to other parts from one supplier.)
Is anything missing from the following list?

EK CoolStream XE 360 Triple Radiator
EK Velocity RGB AMD CPU Waterblock Full Nickel ('Should not be installed with any aluminium EK fluid gaming parts'. Am I good here? Do I need to buy separately an AMD mounting bracket / backplate?)
(Alternative to above ?? EK Velocity Strike RGB CPU Waterblock Matte Black Silver any advantages to the latter over the plain Velocity?)
EK-XRES 140 Revo D5 RGB PWM Pump/Reservoir Combo (Do I need to buy any mounting brackets ?)
EK-STC Classic Fitting 10/16 Black *6
EK DuraClear 3/8ID 5/8OD Tubing 3m
EK RGB 4-Way Splitter Cable
EKWB EK-Cable Y-Splitter 3-Fan PWM (10cm)
EK-ATX Bridging Plug 24 pin
Noctua 120mm NF-F12 Industrial PPC IP67 Q100 3000RPM PWM Fan *3
1 L distilled water

3. Finally, never done liquid cooling before - should I worry about leaks?

Thanks.

 

[my_pc_build]

I would recommend putting the radiator outside of the case. (There's a few options for this.)
The radiator itself will fit at the front inside the case, but it's pretty hard to then fit the reservoir and pump in the space that's left.
I went with a kit (EK-KIT X360) - cheaper and no need to worry about getting all the right bits

 

[Karadjgne]

Wait, what? The Cougar Panzer evo is a Full Tower case, it's massive on the inside. Absolutely no reason to externally mount anything. You can set it up a few different ways, top or front mount, push or pull or both with no issues.

 

[my_pc_build]

Hi Karadjgne,
Thanks but I think there are some issues - Your photo shows a much slimmer radiator and a shorter graphics card (possibly a smaller form factor mobo as well - is it ATX?) - plenty of room in the case for that scenario, but my system is really quite different.
Top: well with this motherboard, due to the proximity of the vrms and cables at the top, a 60mm thick radiator just won't fit on the inside - look at top left in this photo

https://imgur.com/EFdMZLO

(I took the photo whilst I'm doing 24 hr leak test - hence the cable mess and paper towels everywhere!).
View: https://imgur.com/EFdMZLO

Front: yes, the radiator will fit, but it's 60mms thick - if you really don't like the look of the radiator outside the case you can squeeze the reservoir between that radiator and an ATX motherboard (in this system it would have go above the GPU as there isn't enough room between the end of the card and the radiator), but I don't recommend that.

 

[Karadjgne]

No. Look at the pic more closely. That's a radiator mounted sideways. At least 120mm wide, and doesn't infringe on the mobo in any way. MATX mobo's and ATX mobo's are the same size width, mATX are 3" shorter on the bottom. So if you look where the ram is, you can see the edge of the mobo. The gpu plate extends well beyond that. The only difference is that builder opted for a vertical gpu rather than horizontal and hard tubing not soft. And you are thinking 2 dimensional. That builder opted for a res/pump combo, attached to the bottom of the case, so it can be moved out away from the rear and any gpu cables or other obstructions next to the mobo. 3D thinking. With a minimum need for 86mm from the front of the case, and obviously 120mm +, plenty of room.

I don't mean to sound harsh, but that tubing in the pic is a mess. Pump outlet tube is short, res outlet is way long, if you moved the res up, cpu outlet would be way long. Seriously looks like no thought actually went into planning. Nothing to do with cabling, the tubes are everywhere. And if you planned on rerouting, a leak test prior would be pointless.

Any custom loop should be meticulously planned out. Hours of measuring, test fitting, design changes, component changes, fitting changes, etc. That can be cut down some with soft tube as it's flexible to a certain degree, but it's still a labor of art to get more than just the fit, but the look. You don't drop $600+ in materials and try and throw it in 10mins.

1mm clearance or 10mm or 30mm doesn't make a difference. Cleared is cleared.

 

[Zizo007]

Hi,
Looking for some help with a custom loop cooler for the following build:

CPU
AMD Ryzen 9 3950x
CPU Cooler [current]
Noctua NH-D15
Motherboard
Asus ROG Strix X570-E Gaming ATX AM4 Motherboard
Memory
G.Skill Trident Z Neo 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR4-3600 Memory
Storage
Samsung SM951 512 GB M.2-2280 NVME Solid State Drive
Video Card
Gigabyte GeForce GTX 1080 8 GB WINDFORCE OC 8G Video Card
Case
Cougar PANZER EVO RGB ATX Full Tower Case (Case fans currently: 3 intake fans at front, one exhaust at rear, all 120 mm.)
Power Supply
Corsair RMx (2018) 850 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply
Monitor
Acer Predator XB271HUA 27.0" 2560x1440 165 Hz Monitor
Keyboard
Cougar DEATHFIRE EX Wired Gaming Keyboard With Optical Mouse

The Noctua is more than adequate for stock but I'm wanting to overclock.
Previously looking at AIOs, but I'm now thinking a thicker 360 mm radiator might be better - interested in the EK CoolStream XE 360 Triple Radiator.

1. Would that radiator fit in the above? (Thinking of putting at the front, for intake, adding 3 exhaust fans at the top.)
2. What other (EK) parts would I need to buy to finish adding this custom loop?

(Wanting something comparable to the EK KIT 360 RGB Liquid Cooling Kit. Happy to go with e.g. Noctua fans but would like to stick to other parts from one supplier.)
Is anything missing from the following list?

EK CoolStream XE 360 Triple Radiator
EK Velocity RGB AMD CPU Waterblock Full Nickel ('Should not be installed with any aluminium EK fluid gaming parts'. Am I good here? Do I need to buy separately an AMD mounting bracket / backplate?)
(Alternative to above ?? EK Velocity Strike RGB CPU Waterblock Matte Black Silver any advantages to the latter over the plain Velocity?)
EK-XRES 140 Revo D5 RGB PWM Pump/Reservoir Combo (Do I need to buy any mounting brackets ?)
EK-STC Classic Fitting 10/16 Black *6
EK DuraClear 3/8ID 5/8OD Tubing 3m
EK RGB 4-Way Splitter Cable
EKWB EK-Cable Y-Splitter 3-Fan PWM (10cm)
EK-ATX Bridging Plug 24 pin
Noctua 120mm NF-F12 Industrial PPC IP67 Q100 3000RPM PWM Fan *3
1 L distilled water

3. Finally, never done liquid cooling before - should I worry about leaks?

Thanks.

Your Noctua is more than enough for overclocking a 3950X, its TR3 that needs water cooling because it uses more than 300W. My 40$ air cooler can cool 210W.
The Noctua and other best air coolers can cool up to 300W. 3950X reviews show that the max overclock for it is 4.1Ghz all core and then it would use 220W.

 

[my_pc_build]

No. Look at the pic more closely. That's a radiator mounted sideways. At least 120mm wide, and doesn't infringe on the mobo in any way. MATX mobo's and ATX mobo's are the same size width, mATX are 3" shorter on the bottom. So if you look where the ram is, you can see the edge of the mobo. The gpu plate extends well beyond that. The only difference is that builder opted for a vertical gpu rather than horizontal and hard tubing not soft. And you are thinking 2 dimensional. That builder opted for a res/pump combo, attached to the bottom of the case, so it can be moved out away from the rear and any gpu cables or other obstructions next to the mobo. 3D thinking. With a minimum need for 86mm from the front of the case, and obviously 120mm +, plenty of room.

I don't mean to sound harsh, but that tubing in the pic is a mess. Pump outlet tube is short, res outlet is way long, if you moved the res up, cpu outlet would be way long. Seriously looks like no thought actually went into planning. Nothing to do with cabling, the tubes are everywhere. And if you planned on rerouting, a leak test prior would be pointless.

Any custom loop should be meticulously planned out. Hours of measuring, test fitting, design changes, component changes, fitting changes, etc. That can be cut down some with soft tube as it's flexible to a certain degree, but it's still a labor of art to get more than just the fit, but the look. You don't drop $600+ in materials and try and throw it in 10mins.

1mm clearance or 10mm or 30mm doesn't make a difference. Cleared is cleared.

Hi Karadjgne,
Thanks,
1. The dimennsions of the XE 360 Radiator are: 400 x 130 x 60mm (L x W x H) .
What are the dimensions of the Radiator used in your image?
2. The dimensions of the Gigabyte GeForce GTX 1080 8 GB WINDFORCE OC 8G Video Card are H=41 L=280 W=114 mm.
What are the dimensions of the video card used in your image?
3. In view of the above, I would again state that mounting the XE 360 Radiator internally along the top of this case with this board is not possible - 60 mm down from the top encroaches on the boards heatsinks (visible in the above photo, top left - the Noctua fan there is 140x150x25 mm - there is plainly not another 35 mm space below the fan and the motherboards underlying heatsink).
For the rest, as the tone is sounding a little hostile I will just finish here.
All the best.

 

[my_pc_build]

Your Noctua is more than enough for overclocking a 3950X, its TR3 that needs water cooling because it uses more than 300W. My 40$ air cooler can cool 210W.
The Noctua and other best air coolers can cool up to 300W. 3950X reviews show that the max overclock for it is 4.1Ghz all core and then it would use 220W.

Hi Zizo007,
I am very impressed with the Noctua, however it is not adequate for overclocking the 3950x - 4.1Ghz on all cores is an underclock.
AMD clearly expects that the 3950x will perform better with a more powerful liquid cooler; I haven't read a single review that suggests otherwise. (There are of course reviewers saying 'the performance improvement over air is not worth the cost', but that's a different question.) I will soon find out!
Kind regards.

 

[Karadjgne]

Nah, not hostile at all.

1. Look at the image. Right hand side shows clearly a 360mm rad that's mounted sideways. Those are 120mm fans on that rad. Any 360mm rad is going to be 120mm wide at least.
2. The Gigabyte is 280mm long. Maximum graphics card length is 390mm. What's not known is how far past the pcb the shroud extends. Leaving at least 110mm to fit 60mm rad.
3. 120mm wide rads are not 140mm wide rads, there's a difference in clearance, especially towards ram and heatsinks. What I couldn't find, (and I looked) was any specifics on restrictions. Many cases state a maximum rad depth if there is need.

 

[my_pc_build]

Hi Karadjgne,
Thanks.

Are you saying that the XE 360 Radiator (400 x 130 x 60mm (L x W x H )) can be internally mounted along the top in the above system? You said that above, I've rejected that claim twice, you seem to still hold it - but with the system open in front of me I can assure you 100% it simply will not fit there.

If we can agree on that then I'm happy to discuss some issues with the radiator mounted sideways system that you recommend.

Kind regards.

 

[Karadjgne]

Not top at all. I've not mentioned top. I've been talking about front. I posted a picture above. If you look, it has a 360mm rad mounted sideways, on the right side. That's 120mm wide. Why you can't put a 280mm gpu + 60mm rad (= 340mm) in a space that case manufacturer says has 390mm of gpu clearance is beyond me.

I've done multiple custom loops, many in cases that claim not to fit 280mm rads, or 140mm fans etc. I've even stuck 240mm AIO's in pre-built cases designed for only a single 92mm exhaust.
Saw a mod a few days ago, dude used a couple of L brackets attached to the bottom screws of the exhaust fan, and attached a second fan for direct VRM cooling with a 120mm fan.

If you only go by what someone else (case manufacturer) says is possible, then you get what you get. But that is a Full Tower that'll fit 980mm worth of rads, with room to spare. In stock locations. A 60mm thick rad is easy. Just plan accordingly.

 

[my_pc_build]

Wait, what? The Cougar Panzer evo is a Full Tower case, it's massive on the inside. Absolutely no reason to externally mount anything. You can set it up a few different ways, top or front mount, push or pull or both with no issues.

Hi Karadjgne,
Thanks.

Does not the above quoted message say explicitly that the XE 360 Radiator (400 x 130 x 60mm (L x W x H )) can be internally mounted along the top in the above system - 'top or front mount ...'?

Kind regards.