First looks - CoolIT OMNI A.L.C. meets NVIDIA GeForce GTX 480

[Perfectionist]

Aren't there already dedicated 480 coolers that would probably fit it better tho?

[borandi]

Aren't there already dedicated 480 coolers that would probably fit it better tho?

Waterblocks, yeah, like the EVGA ones. But I don't want to mess with a WC setup if/when I build it. Air coolers, not that I've seen that are suitable for 3/4 in a case.

[Perfectionist]

The first post says "the world?s [sic, looks like Hexus have a Unicode problem with american/eu apostrophe codes] first universal liquid cooling system"

[barrolde]

Any ETA for the UK market? I may need a few for the GTX480.

Hey Borandi - its looking like arrival in UK for early June. Will let you know more as soon as I do.

Regarding the bang for buck discussion - SRP of this system including the interposer plate of your choice is 199.99 USD. I expect it to be a little higher in Europe (as most things normally are) but it still should be in under 200 GBP.

When you compare that directly to the purchase price of a DIY setup its competitive on price alone. Then take into consideration the fact that you don't have to do any work, its got warranty and you can upgrade to your next GPU for 50 or 60 GPU again without draining or getting yours hands dirty and the value proposition is even better.

That said, OMNI won't be for everyone. Building your own loop is fine too and there are certainly pro's and con's of going that route just like anything else. We've never taken away from that - DIY loops are the original cool and if you are willing to spend the time to learn how you can get great results. To that end, we will make our universal block available w/ 1/4" and 3/8" barbs as well. We are advocates of all types of watercooling but feel that a sealed loop is the way of the future as it appeals to a much broader audience.

Cheers,

Barry

[Perfectionist]

Fairly unsurprisingly, this is what the denizens of Overclock.net have to say about closed loop watercooling, via google: http://overclock.net/water-cooling/6...50-last-2.html

Also found this, which seems interesting:
http://aavidthermalloy.com/technical...oop_liquid.pdf
page 3: " A corrugated Fluorinated Ethylene Propylene (FEP) tube that was specifically developed for long life liquid cooling systems was chosen [9]. [..] enabling factory sealed liquid cooling systems that do not need to be refilled during a typical computer system lifetime of 5 to 7 years. [..]For the 0.5 m length of tubing used in the system, the anticipated loss of coolant is less than 10 g over seven years of operation. A 15 cm3 flexible accumulator is provided within the pump to accommodate up to 15 g of coolant loss. "

Anyone a bit more read up on the subject able to give us a real comparison pros/cons of pre-closed loops and manually done ones? One thing I don't get is how manually set up water cooling systems are not closed, have the other ones had the sealing done industrially and if so wouldn't it be possible to do the same to manually set up ones too, the main advantage seems to be that it doesn't need refilling versus no cpu/PSU/northbridge cooling or customisability?

[miniyazz]

Normally, manually-set-up loops have either a reservoir or a T-line, preventing accumulation of bubbles. It takes somewhat more effort to set up a truly sealed loop - not only ensuring the contents are bubble-free, aren't going to corrode things, or block waterblocks (dye), but also making sure the contents remain bubble-free (e.g. as the temperature of the loop increases during operation, the water can hold less dissolved gases, so bubbles spontaneously form as these gases are released, so the water has to be degassed before sealing the loop). It is however quite possible to set up a sealed loop at home as long as you account for all these factors (and more that I've forgotten about, no doubt) but most people don't bother with the hassle.

[barrolde]

Normally, manually-set-up loops have either a reservoir or a T-line, preventing accumulation of bubbles. It takes somewhat more effort to set up a truly sealed loop - not only ensuring the contents are bubble-free, aren't going to corrode things, or block waterblocks (dye), but also making sure the contents remain bubble-free (e.g. as the temperature of the loop increases during operation, the water can hold less dissolved gases, so bubbles spontaneously form as these gases are released, so the water has to be degassed before sealing the loop). It is however quite possible to set up a sealed loop at home as long as you account for all these factors (and more that I've forgotten about, no doubt) but most people don't bother with the hassle.

True Story.

[Pob255]

Well there are a couple of intresting points the gadet show video raises http://forums.hexus.net/gadget-show-...-they-mad.html

If CoolIt can get some video card partners onboard then we could see some video cards shipping with the interface plate pre-applied, that should in theory bring the price down a bit.

The other major point is that this is an attactive thing for prebuilt pc sellers to look at.
A sealed loop can be shipped inside a pc, where a normal water loop couldn't be so easily, and the reduced weight compaired to a large custom air cooler also reduces the chance of damage to the pcb.
I can see someone like Dell using these in their XPS and alienware systems

However the price is still a bit too high, when you think that a sealed loop cpu cooler is around £50-60 and this is basically the same, granted the block is massive and it includes 1 interface plate.
remove the interface plate from the price and you're still looking at around twice the cost of a sealed cpu loop which is just is a bit too much for most people.

[Perfectionist]

Are there any negatives to using a sealed loop at all? I'm a bit confused why Scan's 3XS systems don't use em if they are so much better

[HW_90]

Are there any negatives to using a sealed loop at all? I'm a bit confused why Scan's 3XS systems don't use em if they are so much better

lower flow because they use 1/4" tubing not 3/8" or 1/2" like the normal open loop, parts aren't as easily changed, GPU sealed loop + CPU sealed loop costs more and gives considerably worse results

[Perfectionist]

ahhhhhhhh! Thanks a lot, that definitely explains it if it's less performance.

[barrolde]

ahhhhhhhh! Thanks a lot, that definitely explains it if it's less performance.

As of right now its looking like a little less performance yes but we have yet to see how the block is going to work with a copper 240 or 360mm rad. It might be pretty close.

Even still there are lots of advantages to the sealed loop as mentioned above - no maintenance, upgradeability, lighter, easier to ship etc etc.

Cost is a factor - sealed CPU loop is less expensive than DIY CPU loop. Sealed GPU loop is closer to the cost if not the same as a DIY loop but the real distinguishing factor is whether or not you want to take the time to research, build and maintain your own loop. If you do, fantastic.. nothing wrong with that. If you don't, we have a solution for you too.

Cheers,

Barry @ CoolIT

[jjgreenwood]

I really like the idea of this as I'm not into building my own pc's or overclocking but would like to add a gtx 480 to my pc which would sit next to the exisiting one. So the big question is can I get an sli version an idiot like me can install.

[barrolde]

I really like the idea of this as I'm not into building my own pc's or overclocking but would like to add a gtx 480 to my pc which would sit next to the exisiting one. So the big question is can I get an sli version an idiot like me can install.

You would be able to either two 120mm loops or a 240mm loop that supported two cards. Stay tuned for some availability date around computed (first week of June).

the installation is easy - we'll put some vids up so you can see exactly whats involved.

Cheers,

Barry

[YerBuddy]

You would be able to either two 120mm loops or a 240mm loop that supported two cards. Stay tuned for some availability date around computed (first week of June).

the installation is easy - we'll put some vids up so you can see exactly whats involved.

Cheers,

Barry

Hey Barry,

Any update on availability? It's a bit past the "first week of June."

[jjgreenwood]

past the 1st week in july now....