I currently use a 758 motherboard and am thinking of moving to watercooling. The biggest dilemma is whether to watercool the 758, or wait for the Classified FTW3 to come out (when and if that ever happens). I've been thinking about getting the 760 Classified for a while now, but the budget is a little tight to splash on the 760 if there's a FTW3 revision coming out shortly. Would love EVGA to at least give us some clue about this new Classified board.. it's been a while now since it appeared at a convention with the X58 FTW3 board.

Also I am wondering if anyone has tried the Enzotech full waterblock for the 758 board, or if anyone is aware of any other full waterblocks for the 758 if I stick with that board, or if it is worth jumping to the 760 Classified now.



Thanks.

I bought the exact block for my board and wasn't very happy. Vreg temps were at 68c under load and northbridge was 55c. I switched to the 2 piece Bitspower block and temps dropped to 60c and 45c. My pump RPM increased about 200 when I made the switch. Hope this helps.

I made the jump to the 760 classy because I could get it for a good price. I don't plan on using any usb3 or sat 3 devices until the x68 and related stuff so theres really no reason for the ftw 3.


Also, if you go to evga's youtube channel, the latest video "how to properly isntall SLI" shows the new classified, the E770.

Exactly the same, different SB sticker.  A couple  USB/sata3.  If you dont plan to use usb3 or sata 3, zero reason to get it.


I'm also curious as to why you want the full board waterblock?  99.9% of people who water cool, even those who overclock the cpu well beyond what I do seem to forgo the VREG/NB block...I'm not sure what the practical application for full board cooling is?  I want to cool my full 760 too but I just can't think of a good enough reason why...

KMcCrackan
I bought the exact block for my board and wasn't very happy. Vreg temps were at 68c under load and northbridge was 55c. I switched to the 2 piece Bitspower block and temps dropped to 60c and 45c. My pump RPM increased about 200 when I made the switch. Hope this helps.

Wow that's not good. Thanks for posting your experience! Likely you just saved me a lot of heartache.

In my case I needed the block to get stability. With the stock vreg heatsink I saw up to 100c at full load. Tried all the regular fixes, redo thermal pad with new, add thermal paste, add 60 mm fan. Nothing worked very well and then the fan died on the northbridge and I didn't want to rma my board for a stupid fan. So at least for me I really had no choice.

Wazooty
I made the jump to the 760 classy because I could get it for a good price. I don't plan on using any usb3 or sat 3 devices until the x68 and related stuff so theres really no reason for the ftw 3.

Also, if you go to evga's youtube channel, the latest video "how to properly isntall SLI" shows the new classified, the E770.

Exactly the same, different SB sticker.  A couple  USB/sata3.  If you dont plan to use usb3 or sata 3, zero reason to get it.

I'm also curious as to why you want the full board waterblock?  99.9% of people who water cool, even those who overclock the cpu well beyond what I do seem to forgo the VREG/NB block...I'm not sure what the practical application for full board cooling is?  I want to cool my full 760 too but I just can't think of a good enough reason why...

My intention is that if I get a new mobo, I will be using it for the next 3-5 years or more. Although SATA3/USB3 is not a major requirement for me right now, in a year or so I may regret not taking that route, particularly when it seems the Classified 770 release could be any day now (or it could be months away - who knows?)

As far as full board watercooling goes, VReg temps in particular have been an issue on my 758 board (as it has for a lot of users) and I have gone to quite a lot of trouble to keep it manageable on my current air-cooled system. I will be clocking the CPU at minimum 4.0GHz (as I have at present), so it is an issue I feel I need to consider. My other rationale is that if I'm going to spend significant money on a new board and convert to water cooling, I might as well go the whole way, as I would certainly want VReg temps under control.

Of course my current system is perfectly capable of handling anything I've thrown at it so far, but that urge to build it better, faster, stronger than it was before is a mighty hard urge to deny.

Thanks for your comments.

KMcCrackan
In my case I needed the block to get stability. With the stock vreg heatsink I saw up to 100c at full load. Tried all the regular fixes, redo thermal pad with new, add thermal paste, add 60 mm fan. Nothing worked very well and then the fan died on the northbridge and I didn't want to rma my board for a stupid fan. So at least for me I really had no choice.

Nods - unfortunately that experience is not uncommon. My VReg temps weren't quite as bad under load, but not far off. I have also replaced the padding, added paste in the mounting part, stuck some small 10x10mm copper heatsinks along the base that fit just under the fins, and have a relatively high CFM 60mm fan blowing directly over it, and that has helped quite a lot. The NB I have also replaced pads and tim which helped a little, but not a great deal.

Aye, I've actually already ordered the block but I'm having second thoughts.  If I even so much as install it it voids the return policy so...

If it means anything, the temps on my 760 are much more manageable than my 758.

It was a hot day but the vreg on my 758 was hitting 100 c during some testing, that's with a 50mm fan attached to it.   This 760 hasn't gone past 82 with zero additional fans..  

I was basically in the exact same boat you are.  GOing from 758 to 760 (or 770 if it came out soon enough...), seeing the 758s vreg temps and deciding I absolutely want to watercool the entire board.

But now that I have the 760 I'm wondering if it's really worth making my CPU hotter by adding to the loop.

Wazooty
Aye, I've actually already ordered the block but I'm having second thoughts.  If I even so much as install it it voids the return policy so...

If it means anything, the temps on my 760 are much more manageable than my 758.

It was a hot day but the vreg on my 758 was hitting 100 c during some testing, that's with a 50mm fan attached to it.   This 760 hasn't gone past 82 with zero additional fans..  

I was basically in the exact same boat you are.  GOing from 758 to 760 (or 770 if it came out soon enough...), seeing the 758s vreg temps and deciding I absolutely want to watercool the entire board.

But now that I have the 760 I'm wondering if it's really worth making my CPU hotter by adding to the loop.

Thanks, good to confirm the 760 is a significant improvement over the 758 as far as VReg temps go. You may want to check about voiding the warranty though - I thought installing a water block would not effect the warranty as long as you can put the board back to its original condition (ie: reinstall the stock VReg and NB air coolers) ..unless of course the reason for the RMA is that your water block leaked all over the mobo LOL (touch wood).

Good point about making the CPU run hotter by adding a board block to the loop, although as long as the CPU is the first heatsink after leaving the rad, that would minimize the effect, but still, the water is going to run a few degrees warmer overall regardless.

Yeah the warranty I was referring to was the full board water block.  The return policy on water cooling stuff is that once it has been used at all, it can no longer be returned....