Custom PC - UK (2021-09)

Solidly mounting the reservoir

with just the tubing connections,

as I mentioned before, was another

struggle, but I had to do it, as even a

basic mount pushed the reservoir

our further than I wanted it. Getting

the right angles on the fitting took

quite a bit of finicky pipe bending

(and a few zip ties) to make it all fit

well with a solid connection.

How long did it take you to

complete this build, from start

to finish?

Aaron: I’d already been using the

case for a while without getting into

modifying it. When I got started,

it probably took a good couple

of months to make this system,

between tweaking bits of it, waiting

for parts and figuring out what

finishes I wanted to use.

Are you completely happy

with the end result, or do you wish

you’d done some of it differently

in retrospect?

Aaron: I have a hard time

‘completing’ projects, because there’s

always something else I feel I could

do a little better, but I’m calling

this one done. I’m happy with the

result, and feel like the project has

lived up to the original concept

well enough.

of care was taken to ensure that no

electrical conductivity was present

between the plasma disk and the

case. One issue I later discovered

was that the open aluminium grille

surrounding it, even though there

is a gap, has a slight bit of electrical

charge to it while the plasma disk

is on. It’s not a major concern, since

the grille is also isolated, but it’s

something I’m aware of.

Corsair Hydro X Series XD3

RGB Pump/Reservoir C

Corsair Hydro X Series XC7

RGB CPU Water Block

Corsair Hydro X Series XR5

240mm Radiator

To enter your rig for possible inclusion in Readers’ Drives,

your build needs to be fully working and, ideally, based in

the UK. Simply send us a couple of photos on Twitter (@

CustomPCMag) or Facebook (CPCMagazine), or email

low-res ones to [email protected]. Fame

isn’t the only prize; you’ll also get your hands on some

fabulous prizes, courtesy of Corsair.

WIN CORSAIR HYDRO X

WATERCOOLING GEAR

WORTH

The Corsair Hydro X Series XD3 RGB Pump/ £151

Reservoir Combo features a high-

performance DDC PWM pump,

integrated RGB lighting and in-loop

temperature sensor to drive even the

most compact custom cooling systems.

It has a high-performance Xylem DDC

PWM pump controlled via PWM to

deliver the perfect flow balance for your loop. There are also

16 individually addressable RGB LEDs, which light up the

pump head to produce stunning, customisable lighting

effects to match your build.

The Corsair Hydro X Series XC7

RGB CPU Water Block combines

premium construction, vivid RGB

lighting and extreme cooling

performance to become the

centrepiece of your water-cooling

loop. It has a nickel-plated copper

cold plate and more than 60 high-

efficiency micro-cooling fins, which

efficiently draw heat away from your CPU, lowering operating

temperatures and allowing for maximum overclocks. You

can choose the AM4/LGA1151 or LGA2066 version.

The Corsair Hydro X Series XR5

240mm Water Cooling Radiator

delivers extreme custom cooling

performance, with a 30mm radiator

thickness and premium copper core. Its

dual 120mm fan mounts on each side are ready for

your most ambitious custom cooling build, and its 25

micron-thick cooling fins offer a high thermal transfer rate.

WORTH

£70

WORTH

£55

SYSTEM SPECS

CPU AMD Ryzen 5 3600

Case Deepcool Steam Castle

GPU AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT

Storage 1TB Intel 660p SSD, 4TB

Seagate BarraCuda hard drive

Memory 16GB ( 2 x 8GB) G.Skill

Trident Z Royal 3200MHz

Motherboard ASRock X570M Pro4

PSU OCZ 700W

Cooling 1 x 120mm XSPC radiator, 1

x 240mm XSPC radiator, 3 x Noctua

NF-A12 fans on the radiators, XSPC

D5 pump with acetal top, Bykski

CPU waterblock, Bykski GPU

waterblock, 170mm intake fan. All

radiator fans are in an exhaust/

pull configuration. Hard, soldered

copper tube with 90-degree fittings