Great new utility released by EKWB for configuring a custom loop for your PC: https://www.ekwb.com/news/custom-loop-configurator-by-ek-water-blocks/
 
You have a good chance to have your full purchase price refunded and a chance to win a MSI GTX-1080 Sea Hawk EK X!!!
 

 

I would love to win one of those MSI boards. I disagree with their advice of using a single 240 mm radiator for my intended build. I just don't think it will be enough. I was planning on using two 360 mm radiators in this case which should be here on Friday: http://www.newegg.com/Pro...px?Item=9SIA7TD4602092
 
Some of their recommendations weren't in stock and I had no option to remove them or change their recommended parts for parts of greater cooling capacity. I wanted a larger reservoir on the same pump/res combo they wanted for my loop and had already picked it out before using the configuration utility. I still want the same GPU block and backplate they recommend but I'll have to purchase them separately along with the pump/res I want. There is a nice discount if you purchase the parts through the configuration utility but since I can't change anything I have to order my parts by themselves. I am still looking at over $350 for my Block, Backplate and Pump/Res.

I would have liked to leave this new GTX-980 ti Classified board air cooled but even at the factory REF model clock speeds I am getting throttling at only 58°C. The ASIC on it is pretty good sitting at 78.9 but this throttling at such a low temperature has me scratching my head. My MSI GTX-980 Gaming 4G boards reached as high as 78-80° on air and they didn't throttle at all. IDK if there is anything in the BIOS that can change this or not. I submitted a support ticket to see if there has been a BIOS update that would address this issue and I am still waiting for a reply. I would like to be able to enjoy at least some decent performance from this video board while waiting for the GTX-1180 ti Volta to be released without having to dump another $400 or so to watercool it.

This is the reply I got:
 
"I don't think the throttling is caused by temps at all. The card won't begin to throttle until it is over 80C in temperature. What I'm thinking is that the power consumption by the cooler itself may play a role because it is still sharing the same power going to the actual PCB but the throttling is so small I wouldn't be concerned about it at all since a mere 13mhz won't even affect one FPS. You can also try locking the GPU clock and voltage by enabling K-boost so the  graphics card can operate at top performance at all times. The LN2 bios theoretically allows for more voltage and allows the graphics card to operate at subzero temperatures hence LN2."