Dead Men Walking

dMw Chit Chat => The Beer Bar => Technology Section => Topic started by: Galatoni on October 11, 2014, 04:50:38 PM

Title: Radeon Sappire R9 290X Cooling solutions
Post by: Galatoni on October 11, 2014, 04:50:38 PM
Hello. I bought a radiator, er I mean 290X and now its out of warranty i'm thinking of adding heat sink and cooling solution. I already have a H10 Corsair cooler for my CPU and have heard of using (another) of the same series of Corsair coolers and a Kraken to cool my graphics card. This is an idea I like but for two things:


Couple of things i'd like to stress though is that i'm not expecting to add another card at any point, and i'm not a fan of overclocking (though i MIGHT dabble ;) ). I like the idea of liquid cooling in isolated units (like the H10) and I'm not a fan of the potential problems that are brought about by having multiple components in a single cooling loop. I like the simplicity of having one device for one purpose when it comes to peripherals.

What do you guys think?
Title: Radeon Sappire R9 290X Cooling solutions
Post by: Chaosphere on October 11, 2014, 08:18:51 PM
So you're using 1x H100 to cool the CPU, and you want to add another all-in-one unit to cool the GPU, but presumable something like a H80 (1x120mm rather than the 2x120mm of the H100), correct?

If so, then it can work, but you will struggle with that case.

Basically, any configuration with that case will leave one of the radiators either (a) starved for air or (b) taking in warm/hot air from the other rad. The only way to avoid this is to use both as intakes, which then cooks the internals (i.e. everything apart from the CPU and GPU cores gets toasted... which is bad :P).


IF you could fit the 1x120 radiator to the SIDE panel as an EXHAUST, it could work ok. But I am very doubtful it will fit, as it is likely to just clash with the PCB of the graphics card.

So honestly, with that case I would avoid it. You either need a custom water loop, or you need to get some aftermarket air cooler for the GPU (or make one yourself).


I once tied some 120mm gentle typhoon fans to a GPU with soem cable ties, and it worked fantastically :D
Title: Radeon Sappire R9 290X Cooling solutions
Post by: Galatoni on October 11, 2014, 09:10:07 PM
It's actually just a h10 on my cpu. So that's just the one 120. I've got two front 120s and two top 120s and the side. Case is fairly.well ventilated. They've all got fans in presently. But that can change.
Title: Radeon Sappire R9 290X Cooling solutions
Post by: lionheart on October 11, 2014, 10:14:42 PM
I have an R9 290 and use one of these (http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=HS-068-AR&groupid=701&catid=2330&subcat=787) ,works a treat. Mind you, my case is the size of a caravan.
Title: Radeon Sappire R9 290X Cooling solutions
Post by: Galatoni on October 11, 2014, 11:06:20 PM
Quote from: Chaosphere;389149So you're using 1x H100 to cool the CPU, and you want to add another all-in-one unit to cool the GPU, but presumable something like a H80 (1x120mm rather than the 2x120mm of the H100), correct?

Yea my bad. Its not a h100 (my original mistype of h10 was still wrong) I have the H60 which is still a single120mm slot. I can see why that was confusing. Sorry about that. Got my number muddled.

QuoteI have an R9 290 and use one of these (http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=HS-068-AR&groupid=701&catid=2330&subcat=787) ,works a treat. Mind you, my case is the size of a caravan.

I have a pretty big case, so that's not a worry. Those do look like very interesting kits. Do they come with absolutely everything you need?

I've a feeling i'm going to move the CPU radiator to the top fan mounts and use the rear 120mm for the graphics card instead... i'll have to get the tape measure out!
Title: Radeon Sappire R9 290X Cooling solutions
Post by: lionheart on October 11, 2014, 11:45:10 PM
Yea they are complete kits. They have a back plate which attaches to the bottom of the card which cools the VRMS,  something the Kraken set up lacks.
Title: Radeon Sappire R9 290X Cooling solutions
Post by: Chaosphere on October 12, 2014, 01:36:35 PM
With a H60, 1x120 radiator, you should have no troubles fitting that device lionheart posted into your case, but when you do you got to think about air movements, and make sure both radiators (CPU and GPU) are getting a supply of cool air without cooking the inside of the case. I would just put both as exhausts on the top of the case, and have the front, rear, AND side fan mounts as intakes - that'd work pretty well!