New System Build - Help / Sanity Check

[CremeEgg]

I'm planning a new build in the 5000X iCUE and a full hydro setup. This is my first build of this type and wanted to check that I've got everything I need and ask for advice on how best to connect up all the fans/lighting etc. as well as if there is anything else I should consider with building this custom loop.

 

I've seen some amazing diagrams in the forums before and I know there is plenty I can learn by asking the community first.

 

This is my current shopping list:

• 1x AMD Ryzen 9 5950X 16 Core AM4 CPU/Processor
  
• 1x AMD Ryzen X570 ROG Crosshair VIII Dark Hero AM4 PCIe 4.0 ATX Motherboard
  
• 2x Corsair Vengeance RGB PRO Black 32GB 3600MHz AMD Ryzen Tuned DDR4 Memory Kit
  
• 2x WD Black SN850 1TB M.2 PCIe 4.0 NVMe SSD/Solid State Drive
  
• 1x ASUS NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090 24GB ROG OC Strix Ampere Graphics Card
  
• 1x Corsair 5000X RGB Black Mid Tower Tempered Glass PC Gaming Case
  
• 1x AX1600i 1600W Titanium Modular Digital ATX PSU/Power Supply
  
• 1x Corsair Type 4 Gen 4 PSU Red Sleeved Cable Pro Kit
  
• 1x XC7 RGB (1200/AM4) - Black
  
• 1x XG7 RGB STRIX (3090, 3080, 3070)
  
• 2x XR5 360mm Water Cooling Radiator
  
• 3x ML120 PRO RGB 120mm 3 Fan + Lighting Node PRO Pack
  
• 1x ML120 PRO RGB LED
  
• 1x XD5 RGB Pump/Reservoir Combo - Black
  
• 3x XF Hardline 14mm OD Fitting Four Pack - Black
  
• 1x XL5 Performance Coolant 1L - Red
  
• 1x XT Hardline 14mm Tubing
  
• 1x iCUE Commander PRO Smart RGB Lighting and Fan Speed Controller
  
• 1x 90° Rotary Adapter Twin Pack - Black
  
• 1x XT Hardline Bending Toolkit (12mm & 14mm)
  

 

In terms of fans I am thinking 3x top with radiator, 3x front, 3x side with radiator, 1x rear. Maybe a bit overkill, open to opinion on that.

 

Thanks in advance.

[JonKrmr]

I would put in a drain valve in the cooling loop......

[LeDoyen]

Talking of drain, 1l should leave just a bit of coolant in the bottle after you're done, depending on tube runs.

Maybe grab a spare bottle :)

 

About the ram, did you grab two kits of 32? it's usually better to get a 64gb kit, because there's no guarantee you'll get the same exact sticks when it comes to memory chips otherwise.

A matched kit, you're sure to get it booting up.

 

Now with such high power components, airflow is never overkill. do populate!

I don't know the case, but i would try top and side exhaust, and front intake, see how it goes.

maybe keep the back fan as exhaust too. The backplate of 3090s tend to get toasty even with a waterblock. your SSD will want some air.

[sfasciacarene]

Why do you use 2xSN 850 1TB instead of 1 of 2TB?

[sfasciacarene]

Now with such high power components, airflow is never overkill. do populate!

I don't know the case, but i would try top and side exhaust, and front intake, see how it goes.

maybe keep the back fan as exhaust too. The backplate of 3090s tend to get toasty even with a waterblock. your SSD will want some air.

 

I perfectrly agree, you can also consider to use a pcie-4 cable in order to mount vertically your gpu, this will give you better temps for your ssds and chipset too.

[CremeEgg]

Thanks for the replies everyone, answers below.

 

I would put in a drain valve in the cooling loop......

 

Good point, thanks, will look at those.

 

Talking of drain, 1l should leave just a bit of coolant in the bottle after you're done, depending on tube runs.

Maybe grab a spare bottle :)

 

About the ram, did you grab two kits of 32? it's usually better to get a 64gb kit, because there's no guarantee you'll get the same exact sticks when it comes to memory chips otherwise.

A matched kit, you're sure to get it booting up.

 

Now with such high power components, airflow is never overkill. do populate!

I don't know the case, but i would try top and side exhaust, and front intake, see how it goes.

maybe keep the back fan as exhaust too. The backplate of 3090s tend to get toasty even with a waterblock. your SSD will want some air.

 

Good point, I'll get another bottle, would be a real pain if I spilled some or had to make adjustments and I ran short.

 

With the RAM, I couldn't find a single kit of 64GB 3600 C18. Maybe I missed it somewhere.

 

Why do you use 2xSN 850 1TB instead of 1 of 2TB?

 

Performance, the 2TB is slightly slower in write speeds. I'll be using this for work as well as gaming and other things, so trying to max out where I can.

 

I perfectrly agree, you can also consider to use a pcie-4 cable in order to mount vertically your gpu, this will give you better temps for your ssds and chipset too.

 

I've not found any decent PCIe 4.0 riser cables out there yet, from what I understand running the traces that long needs repeaters built into the cable.

[sfasciacarene]

With the RAM, I couldn't find a single kit of 64GB 3600 C18. Maybe I missed it somewhere.

Actually there are no really problems to use two kits. If you want be sure just use each stick witch right dimm slot on your motherboard (e.g. B1 A1 for one kit and B2 A2 for the other one).

 

Performance, the 2TB is slightly slower in write speeds. I'll be using this for work as well as gaming and other things, so trying to max out where I can.

Nope, higher the size higher the performace because higher the size higher the DDR4 chace. Moreover, the SSD on M.2 slot not directly connected to the cpu will be slower because the link between the cpu and chipset is gen4x4 lanes. But the chipset controls a lot of things (M.2, sata, usb, ethernet, wifi etc.,) so is tipically busy.

By the way if you want to max out the performace you should consider the Samsung 980 Pro not the WD.

 

I've not found any decent PCIe 4.0 riser cables out there yet, from what I understand running the traces that long needs repeaters built into the cable.

I am using "LINKUP" pice-4 riser cable with 20-cm length, I have alse tried the 30-cm lenght without any kind of issue. It perfectly works in pcie 4 mode.

[CremeEgg]

Nope, higher the size higher the performace because higher the size higher the DDR4 chace. Moreover, the SSD on M.2 slot not directly connected to the cpu will be slower because the link between the cpu and chipset is gen4x4 lanes. But the chipset controls a lot of things (M.2, sata, usb, ethernet, wifi etc.,) so is tipically busy.

By the way if you want to max out the performace you should consider the Samsung 980 Pro not the WD.

Normally yes, however in the case of the SN850, the write speeds are fastest on the 1TB model, it is 5300MBps vs 5100MBps on the 2TB model.

 

The Samsung is a good shout though and its a really difficult choice to make, the prices are pretty similar, the Samsung does win in latency and writes in a lot of workloads, but the WD dominates in reads. (https://www.storagereview.com/review/wd_black-sn850-nvme-pcie-4-0-ssd-review)

 

On the other point, interesting, I'll have to look more into that, I thought there were some changes in the 5000 series, but I might have missed some of the details.

 

I am using "LINKUP" pice-4 riser cable with 20-cm length, I have alse tried the 30-cm lenght without any kind of issue. It perfectly works in pcie 4 mode.

 

I will take a look for them, thanks for the heads up.

[sfasciacarene]

Yes, in the paper is 5300MB/s Vs 5100MB/s but they are peak values, you should consider the ability to sustain such speed for more time. By the way, the peak values are not really relevant during usage, especially for such high values.

I have a 512GB and 1TB Samsung 980 Pro and a 2TB WD 850. I can assure you that the main difference is in which M.2 slot you put your SSD, only the M.2 slot directly connected to the CPU can really be able to reach such high values. Furthermore, the WD suffers more than the Samsung in the M.2 slot driven by the chipset. I suppose there are some firmware issues.

The 5000 series has 24 lanes of PCI-e gen 4, 20 is for "general purpose" (99% of the case 16xGPU 4xSSD) and the other 4 lanes is for the chipset x570 that can uses multiplexer and so in order to allow you use more than 4 lanes, but the bandwidth is limited at 4x4. For example, I have the Auros x570 xtreme with 3xM.2 SSD slot, I could use a raid mode, but if I use the raid mode on the 2 M.2 slots connected to the chipset, I will have no advantage at all because the bandwidth is limited. And I want to stress the point that the chipset has a lot of thing to manage, so it is really hard to use all the bandwidth for the SSD.

In conclusion, of course you can use whatever configuration you want, I want just be sure you are making the best choice for you 😊

[LeDoyen]

Actually there are no really problems to use two kits. If you want be sure just use each stick witch right dimm slot on your motherboard (e.g. B1 A1 for one kit and B2 A2 for the other one).

 

 

..But the motherboard only has one timing setting for all the ram. So if they end up being different revisions, it may not work, no matter where you slot them.

Being bought at the same time, there's good chances it won't be an issue, but if you can score a 64Gb kit when pulling the trigger, by all means do it ;)

[sfasciacarene]

Yes. but problems "may" (it is extremely rare) occure if there are incorrect transfer of information between RAM and CPU, and the CPU has two channels. So, since you have perfect matching you can use the double data bandwidth of the two modules without any problems. The kit of four modules is more intended for quad channel and so on. If you want to be sure you have just to pair the modules two by two for dual channel four by four for quad and so on and so far,. Moreover, nowadays you can also use "dual channel" mode with different RAM size if the CPU allow you. For example, you can use one stick of 4 GB and one of 8GB and you have 8GB that work as dual channel and 4 not.

 

The full working principle is not so easy to explain but you can find a little recap on: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multi-channel_memory_architecture

[LeDoyen]

it's more for the memory timings... that's where problems arise. if one kit has tighter timings than the other, and that's the one that the Bios reads and applies, you'll just fail to boot on DRAM error and revert to JEDEC timings.

It can happen on the same model sticks, with different revision numbers (different chip manufacturers or revisions) with different timings. That's why it's better to get matched sets of 2 or 4 sticks even for dual channel.

You can't time the two channels independently, they have to run all on the same settings.

[sfasciacarene]

The memory will be addressed by the CPU. For example, if you have 4x4GB memory sticks in a dual channel system and you try to read 8GB of RAM then, the CPU will read the 8GB in dual channel mode of the paired stick, so also if the motherboard set the timing of the RAM modules, they are paired two by two. Hence, for the CPU is like to see TWO modules of 8GB with a double bandwidth. In other words, it is suggested (not mandatory) to have the sticks of RAM matched in pair by the number of the channels in order to increase the bandwidth, in the worst scenario you will run with higher timing, but it is really hard to have RAM errors. Furthermore, to be sure you can just make a check and a stress, and you are fine. In my opinion such aspect is too empathize. I have made a ton of systems, of course I have always try to use a complete kit but also in the "ultra-cheap" update mixing 4 sticks of different brand, size and timing do never create system fault. My best RAM OC was using two different sticks and the system has run for years without any issue.

In other other words :) just take it easy, your suggestion are right but not mandatory this is my "claim".

[LeDoyen]

Never said it was mandatory ^^

it should work, hopefully. but paying for 3600mhz ram and only having it work at 3200 or 3000 is a loss of money and performance. Ryzen is already very fussy with memory timings, so, if there's stock on matched sets of 4, it's adviseable to take this instead of a 2x2.

[magarity]

Performance, the 2TB is slightly slower in write speeds. I'll be using this for work as well as gaming and other things, so trying to max out where I can.

 

If you want to go wild on storage speed, Corsair just started pre-orders for their MP600 Pro that's supposed to be 7GB/sec read and 6.8GB/sec write. There's even a model with a water block pre-attached.

[LeDoyen]

If it has the same awesome firmware as the other MP600s, those speeds won't hold for long..

Anything with any piece of code from corsair is better left aside :)

For SSDs, i'd stick with reputable brands like WD, Samsung, Seagate etc..

[CremeEgg]

After months of scavanging parts and changing my mind on things here and there, I am down to my final list of components. Just waiting on my 5950X to arrive in the next couple of weeks. I've ordered more connectors and tubing than I will need, but it will get used in other builds.

 

• 1x AMD Ryzen 9 5950X 16 Core AM4 CPU/Processor
  
• 1x ASUS AMD Ryzen X570 ROG Crosshair VIII Dark Hero AM4 PCIe 4.0 ATX Motherboard
  
• 1x ASUS NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090 24GB ROG OC Strix Ampere Graphics Card
  
• 1x Corsair 30cm Red Premium Braided Sleeved Front Panel Extension Kit
  
• 1x Corsair 5000X RGB Black Mid Tower Tempered Glass PC Gaming Case
  
• 1x Corsair AX1600i 1600W Titanium Modular Digital ATX PSU/Power Supply
  
• 2x Corsair Commander PRO Digital Fan and RGB Lighting Controller
  
• 1x Corsair Hydro X Series XD5 RGB Pump/Reservoir Combo - Black
  
• 2x Corsair Hydro X Series XM2 M.2 SSD Waterblock
  
• 1x Corsair Hydro X Series XT Hardline Tube Bending Kit
  
• 1x Corsair Hydro X XC7 RGB Black Intel/AM4 CPU Water Block
  
• 6x Corsair Hydro X XF Black Brass 14mm G1/4" Hardline Compression Fittings - Four Pack
  
• 3x Corsair Hydro X XF Black Brass 14mm Hardline 90° Compression Fittings - Twin Pack
  
• 3x Corsair Hydro X XF Black Brass G1/4" 90° Rotary Adapter Fitting - Twin Pack
  
• 2x Corsair Hydro X XF Black Brass G1/4" Ball Valve Fitting
  
• 2x Corsair Hydro X XF Black Brass G1/4" Fill Port Adapter with Plug
  
• 2x Corsair Hydro X XF Black Brass G1/4" Rotary Y Splitter Adapter Fitting
  
• 2x Corsair Hydro X XL5 1L Red Water Cooling Coolant Fluid Premix
  
• 2x Corsair Hydro X XR5 360mm Copper Water Cooling Radiator
  
• 4x Corsair Hydro X XT 3x 1m 14mm Diameter Clear PMMA Hardline Water Cooling Tubing
  
• 1x Corsair Hydro XG7 RGB 30-SERIES STRIX Graphics Card Water Block
  
• 1x Corsair ML120 Pro RGB 120mm 1 Fan Expansion Pack
  
• 4x Corsair ML120 Pro RGB 120mm 3 Fan + Lighting Node PRO Pack
  
• 1x Corsair PCIe 3.0 x16 Vertical Riser 300mm Extension Cable
  
• 1x Corsair Type 4 Gen 4 PSU Red Sleeved Cable Pro Kit
  
• 2x Corsair Vengeance RGB PRO Black 32GB 3600MHz AMD Ryzen Tuned DDR4 Memory Kit
  
• 1x Corsair XTM50 Performance CPU / GPU Thermal Paste Kit - 5g
  
• 1x NZXT Internal USB 2.0 Expansion Hub (Gen 3)
  
• 1x Samsung 49" UltraWide Dual QHD 240Hz G-SYNC Curved HDR Gaming Monitor
  
• 2x WD Black SN850 2TB M.2 PCIe 4.0 NVMe SSD/Solid State Drive