Watercooling my xbox 360

[Navi]

Hey all,

I'd like to start by saying that this is a great community, and it's even better that it's based here in the Great White North

Some people may say that I'm the biggest idiot in the world for trying this. But, I will say that I will try it because I can :P. Also, if all goes well, I may end up watercooling my desktop.

For the CPU/GPU waterblock, I intend on using the one from XSPC (assuming Goalieman doesn't sell his to someone else, then I'm screwed)
XSPC - Performance PC Cooling

From what I've read thus far, it's generally a bad idea to mix metals (copper and aluminum) in one loop, which leads to galvanic corrosion. My question then is, how likely is such corrosion to occur if the block is copper and the rad is aluminum but some sort of additive (water wetter?) is added? Or is it best to just keep one metal throughout the loop (copper in my case)?

Going from there, which radiator would be best suited to the job (copper/aluminum, brand)? The rad Goalieman is selling seems to be fairly common in other watercooled xbox 360s (the Magicool Extreme Slim-profile 2x40mm), which helps keep everything internal. Or, should I go the external route and try to rig the rad off the back of the console, near the fan exhausts? This way a larger rad could be used, maybe 1x120 or maybe 2x120. Would also be easier to keep the resevoir outside if necessary but should be possible to mount internally if the rad is outside.

For the pump, the Swiftech MCP355 also seems to be quite common in watercooled xbox's. Would this pump be sufficient or are there alternatives that I should consider?

Clearly, I have lots of reading to do about it still, and will do so in the meantime. But I'd rather take the advice of some fellow Canadians, rather than blindly follow someone else's worklog and not learn much out of it.

Thanks in advance, I look forward to the replies.

[Synth]

1. Avoid mixing metals - stick to copper throughout. It's just not worth the trouble of mixing and using anti-corrosion agents.

For liquid, I tend to use straight distilled with PT Nuke. Keep it simple, maintenance- and worry- free.

2. For the pump, I would suggest an MCP350 (lower heat dump, but more than sufficient flow for your application) or a DDCPX-Pro from DangerDen (great little unit).

3. As for the radiator, that's your call. Whatever works best with your loop arrangement (as long as it is copper) should work.

Keep us posted, I love seeing water-cooled consoles

[Navi]

Thank you very much for the reply, Synth.

I was pretty sure I was going to end up sticking with one metal, your reply reaffrirms that.

The Danger Den pump is much more appealing, as it's a bit cheaper at ncix, but it doesn't seem to be carried by Dazmode (wanted to buy from them, oh well).

I have another questions if that's alright. How much of an effect on heat transfer would there be when using 3/8" vs 1/2" tubing? I would think 3/8" is easier to bend and whatnot, which may be more suitable in the small confines of a console.

Unfortunately, I do not see this project coming to completion before March/April, I'll be quite busy with school but will be buying parts as time goes on, hopefully some used parts will become available before then.

[Synth]

I use 3/8" ID (1/2" OD) tubing, exclusively.

The difference in cooling and flow rate between this tubing and 1/2" ID (3/4" OD) tubing, is, in my mind, negligible... and yes, the smaller tubing bends easier and is perfect for tight spots (or complex setups).

I love the 3/8" Feser tubing Dazmode carries.

Cheers!

[Squeetard]

If you use non-conductive coolant and insulate the metals from each other (plastic tubing) You will have no problems with galvanic corrosion.

[Navi]

Thanks for the replies fellas. I have another question (surprised? :D) Many of the rads I've been looking at seem to have brass tubes with copper fins. When one refers to "copper rad" are they referring to a rad with copper tubes or copper fins? If brass is ok then the Magicool one looks fine, assuming it handle the thermal output of the 360, which it seems to be capable of (judging by the number of folks who already use it in their 360s). Thanks again, really appreciate it! P.S. Goalieman, if you see this thread, please sell the water gear to me :D

[JD]

I don't feel it's really worth the trouble/money to do this. I seriously considered it many times and never ended up going forth.

You can just upgrade the fans to the Whisper Max and bolt-mount the heatsinks. That should effectively eliminate the chance of it RROD'ing, and it'll run cooler. See here: http://www.hardwarecanucks.com/forum...n-upgrade.html

If you seriously want to watercool it though, I'd suggest buying the Lian-Li case and using that. It has a 120mm fan in it already, so mounting a single 120mm rad would be effortless. Also tons of space inside (due to having a 120mm fan), so getting the pump and reservoir in there wouldn't be a problem.

[Navi]

I can't argue with ya there, jdrom. It's quite expensive.

I really like the Lian Li case, but I've been reading about it and, due to the aluminum construction, it seems to hinder the wireless range with the controllers.

You do raise an interesting point though. Perhaps I will just get a regular 120mm rad now and just leave it hanging off the back of the console, and whenever I can buy the Lian Li case (for relatively cheap) I'll pick it up.

Hopefully there's a HWC member that has this case and is willing to sell it to me......

Thanks for the reply, jdrom.

EDIT: Goalieman has kindly informed me that the block has been sold. Therefore, this project has been postponed until I can find another block. I will continue researching about watercooling, I still feel the urge to do so

[Patlabor]

There are a few kits here Water cooling systems, pc liquid cooling kit, cpu, video card, hard drive

[Navi]

Hey all,

Thus far I've been unable to locate a waterblock for the 360 (in Canada). Then I started thinking, what if I make my own? That way I can use a design similar to the XSPC one, except extend it a bit to cover the ram bricks that are usually hidden underneath the stock gpu heatsink (something the XSPC block doesn't do).

I thought of the idea today in class, I'm going to try sourcing some copper locally and try to get the channels made (is that referred to as milling? I wish I had a drill press, would be easier/cheaper). I was thinking of using acrylic/lexan as the top, so you can see the water move about, or would using another block of copper and bolting it down on top be better?

I'll be googling for now, it seems that not many people make them anymore.