Running 2 H115i in same system. CPU&GPU

Thinking about using a H115i to cool a 6700K mounted to the top of my Air540 case in Push configuration. So far so conventional. I'm also thinking about using another H115i to cool an nVidia GTX1080 Founders/Reference card when the launch at the end of this month using a HG10 980. This would be mounted on the bottom of the case where the HDD trays are. I'd dremel out the opening for the H115i. This would also be in push configuration pushing air out the bottom. 3x 120mm front case fans and a rear 140mm as intake. I'll actually be moving the case feet and mounting the case on its side in the corner of my desk with its 'bottom and back' facing into the corner walls with the window panel side now being the top of the case, so in effect the front and back of the case will be intake and the two H115i units pushing air out on the left and right side of the case in this orientation.

 

Question 1, any word on whether the Pascal GPU PCB designs are compatible with the HG10 980 or will I need to wait for a refresh from Corsair compatible with the 1080's.

 

Question 2, is it possible to run and control two H115i in the same system with regard to USB header connection and Corsair Link. ie. Can I control both CPU and GPU H115i's from Corsair Link?

Yes, you can run both in one system (I also do two AIOs in my PC), however, the h115i is way overkill for the GPU. I have a 980 overclocked to 1440Mhz and it never gets above 35-40C on an H80i GT. Unless you already have both coolers, just stick with a 120 or 140mm rad for the GPU. The GPU will reach its physical OC limit before it reaches its temperature limit, that or your vRAM/VRMs will overheat before the core does. This will be especially true with Pascal which runs much cooler anyway.

 

I can't answer the Pascal question but I'm going to guess the bracket will not be compatible.

The hardware will work, but as both H115i will have the same USB serial number they are not USB compliant and you will need to set the kluge flag in the registry, see http://forum.corsair.com/forums/showthread.php?p=746122.

 

Were it my system I would use a pair of H110i which do not have this issue as they are CoolIT rather than Asetek. You may also like to read from http://forum.corsair.com/forums/showthread.php?p=795986

Thanks guys. I only initially selected the H115 because I assumed it must be the latest. I have zero issue with going for the H110i GT. Thats definitely the CoolIT one isn't it?

 

I wanted to use the 280 AIO on the GPU for quietness not that I expected it to do much better temp wise. Surely a 25mm thick 280 isn't much more of an extreme solution than a 50mm thick 120mm H80i GT anyway. So seeing as temp isn't my main driver (other than getting into that 45ºc range you mentioned) the extra capacity of the H110i GT gets me lower RPM's and less noise. The other main driver for me is aesthetics. I can't abide the aesthetics of the alternative which is a 50mm thick 120mm Rad with another 50mm of push/pull fans. Its a protuberance whether its up by the CPU mounted to the back fan opening or all on its lonesome mounted to the front or bottom of the case. Yet I think a 280mm Rad even with push/pull fans looks fine anywhere. (In my Air540 its possible Front or bottom only)

 

At the moment I'm thinking, H110i GT for CPU with Push &Pull fans mounted to the front of the case. In the case of the CPU cooling I'm thinking that Push/Pull while only adding a little extra capability will allow my to lower the RPM's and minimise noise from that unit. Then the H110i for the GPU mounted to the bottom of the case where I'll have removed the HDD Bays/Trays, With Push fans only. Already enough extra performance from a 280mm rad to be able to reduce the RPM's and noise without the need to add another set of pull fans. 2x Regular 140mm case fans on the top of the case as intake and 1x Regular case fan on the back extracting. So between Rad and case fans thats 4x on intake (6 if you include the pull fans) and between rad and case fans thats 3 on extract. Positive pressure. Of cousre in my orientation with the case on its side with the acrylic door being the top and the case in a left hand corner, thais puts all my intakes facing out into the room and the extracting fans pointing into the two corner walls.

 

My desire for the HG10 GPU kit is partially driven by the timings of my Oculus Rift which is the reason I'm building my first powerful PC in over a decade. (I've built powerful gaming rigs for friends and family over the last few years but none for myself) I want a Pascal card ASAP to be able to play the AAA titles that have had VR support added at max details, like pCars and Elite Dangerous. I know most VR titles built from the ground up for VR are targeting GTX970's but its the AAA's with developer added or hacked in support that I am most interested in. However, I also know that I'll be upgrading next year to a big chip 1080TI as soon as they launch. I want to be able to swap the HG10 from one to the other when that happens. (Even if a little dremeling is required) ie. Put the original air cooler onto the 1080 and sell it to my brother. This is also the point where the 'useless' extra capability of a 280 rad will become more 'useful' when I'm eventually running an overclocked 1080TI next year.

With regard to the case fans and rad fans on intake behind the grilles on my Air540 I've an idea based on acrylic light panels. I'll fabricate the light panels to fit the openings behind the grilles. Hole saw cut out the appropriate sized fan holes, Remove the fan blades, and with a disc grinder, cut the fan frames pretty much in half. The lightpanel is sandwiched between the two halves of the fan frames. Re-attach the blades. The blades are now lit with a continuous white light ring.

Thanks guys. I only initially selected the H115 because I assumed it must be the latest. I have zero issue with going for the H110i GT. Thats definitely the CoolIT one isn't it?

 

I wanted to use the 280 AIO on the GPU for quietness not that I expected it to do much better temp wise. Surely a 25mm thick 280 isn't much more of an extreme solution than a 50mm thick 120mm H80i GT anyway. So seeing as temp isn't my main driver (other than getting into that 45ºc range you mentioned) the extra capacity of the H110i GT gets me lower RPM's and less noise. The other main driver for me is aesthetics. I can't abide the aesthetics of the alternative which is a 50mm thick 120mm Rad with another 50mm of push/pull fans. Its a protuberance whether its up by the CPU mounted to the back fan opening or all on its lonesome mounted to the front or bottom of the case. Yet I think a 280mm Rad even with push/pull fans looks fine anywhere. (In my Air540 its possible Front or bottom only)

 

At the moment I'm thinking, H110i GT for CPU with Push &Pull fans mounted to the front of the case. In the case of the CPU cooling I'm thinking that Push/Pull while only adding a little extra capability will allow my to lower the RPM's and minimise noise from that unit. Then the H110i for the GPU mounted to the bottom of the case where I'll have removed the HDD Bays/Trays, With Push fans only. Already enough extra performance from a 280mm rad to be able to reduce the RPM's and noise without the need to add another set of pull fans. 2x Regular 140mm case fans on the top of the case as intake and 1x Regular case fan on the back extracting. So between Rad and case fans thats 4x on intake (6 if you include the pull fans) and between rad and case fans thats 3 on extract. Positive pressure. Of cousre in my orientation with the case on its side with the acrylic door being the top and the case in a left hand corner, thais puts all my intakes facing out into the room and the extracting fans pointing into the two corner walls.

 

My desire for the HG10 GPU kit is partially driven by the timings of my Oculus Rift which is the reason I'm building my first powerful PC in over a decade. (I've built powerful gaming rigs for friends and family over the last few years but none for myself) I want a Pascal card ASAP to be able to play the AAA titles that have had VR support added at max details, like pCars and Elite Dangerous. I know most VR titles built from the ground up for VR are targeting GTX970's but its the AAA's with developer added or hacked in support that I am most interested in. However, I also know that I'll be upgrading next year to a big chip 1080TI as soon as they launch. I want to be able to swap the HG10 from one to the other when that happens. (Even if a little dremeling is required) ie. Put the original air cooler onto the 1080 and sell it to my brother. This is also the point where the 'useless' extra capability of a 280 rad will become more 'useful' when I'm eventually running an overclocked 1080TI next year.

 

FYI H115i is the exact same cooler as the H110i GTX, the latter is just the new name.

 

Also, make sure you have enough room to mount the GPU cooler, the tubes are very stiff and can be difficult to work with. In my 750D the 120mm just barely fits right. I even had to grab a GPU bracket to help with sag since it was tugging on the GPU.

 

http://i.imgur.com/sxqP6AE.jpg

I have zero issue with going for the H110i GT. Thats definitely the CoolIT one isn't it?

 

Yes, both the H110i + H110iGT are CoolIT, see http://forum.corsair.com/forums/showthread.php?p=839688.

 

My H110iGT tubes are also more flexible then my H80iGT ones and I expect the same is the case for other Asetek coolers.

 

FYI H115i is the exact same cooler as the H110i GTX, the latter is just the new name.

 

No they are not :eek:. Using CL4 the H115i can use an external temperature source to control the fans and the H110iGTX can only use the coolant temperature.

No they are not :eek:. Using CL4 the H115i can use an external temperature source to control the fans and the H110iGTX can only use the coolant temperature.

 

Whoops my bad, I did not consider that they switched manufacturers between the generations. They are both the Corsair 280mm AIOs that look identical though.

Whoops my bad, I did not consider that they switched manufacturers between the generations. They are both the Corsair 280mm AIOs that look identical though.

 

Oops again, both the H110iGTX and H115i are Asetek, see http://forum.corsair.com/forums/showthread.php?p=839688

 

They made the Asetek firmware I tiny bit better, but the CoolIT firmware still has the most facilities.

Oops again, both the H110iGTX and H115i are Asetek, see http://forum.corsair.com/forums/showthread.php?p=839688

 

They made the Asetek firmware I tiny bit better, but the CoolIT firmware still has the most facilities.

 

Ugh, I should just keep my mouth shut... haha.

Aside from the other reasons to get a H110i (GT), the flexible hoses Ray mentioned may be quite crucial. With two coolers, you may not be able to simply tuck the excess hose length away.

 

Cooler selection aside, if you are determined to put one in the bottom as exhaust for the GPU, I would suggest putting the other on top as exhaust for the CPU. The advantage of using "fresh" intake air on cooling is slight at best and often nullified by the additional temperature increase from dumping all that CPU waste heat onto your board, memory, GPU, etc. You also mentioned a preference for low speed fans and most people feel the same. When you put that 280mm on the front as the intake, you may find yourself in the position where you need to run an elevated speed simply to get air into the case. Don't underestimate the effect the radiator has on actual fan flow volume. At 500-700 rpm, you would be lucky to move more 20-25 cfm through the radiator - for both fans combined. The Air 540 is such a nice open case. You can set up two low speed radiators as exhaust (top and bottom) and all you will need is a gentle breeze from front to back to supply them. I wouldn't be surprised if your rear exhaust felt cool on your hand as it trickled out the back. This would also eliminate the need for push-pull on anything. Two more fans is two more fan making noise and I don't think they are needed. If I can keep a 5820k@4.5 under 60C with 500-800 rpm, you shouldn't have difficulty with most other CPUs.