The Victim

You may recognize this case from another Virtual-Hideout review. The case is the Cheiftech Matrix and was sent to us by Directron.com. You can find our review for it here. The hardware inside is an ABIT AD7-MAX2 motherboard with an AMD XP 2200+ CPU. The computer was using a rather expensive heatsync, and was getting idle temps of 46c on average. This beautiful case will be the new home of the Swiftech's H20-8500 kit. Being a full tower case, there is plenty of space for the kit to be istalled. The kit should also install into a mid-sized tower as well, as long as you have two free 5.25" bays.

Installing the Radiator

The Cheiftec Matrix uses special clips for mounting 80mm exhaust fans. The fans on the radiator are too thin to plug into the clips, so I had to find another place to mount it. The easiest place was above the PSU in the upper half of the computer. I detached my PSU, then removed the plate from the computer. The fan mount above the PSU is designed for a 92mm fan, so I had to drill four holes in the plate to attach the 80mm radiator. The whole process was very simple and took about 10 mins. After I mounted the radiator and fans to the plate, I replaced it in the computer and re-attached my PSU.

Mounting the GPU Waterblock

The video card that I am using is the GeForce 4 TI 4600. Once again, I am using hardware from an old review, as you can see the Thermaltake GeForce 4 Copper Heatsink already installed on it. I removed only the heatsink, but left the ramsinks in place. Using the hardware in the bag labeled "GeForce 4" I installed the waterblock to the GPU. You can see how this was done in the third picture below. It used 4 sets of nuts and bolts with springs to ensure equal pressure over the surface of the chip. Once installed, the block was un-movable, and I was positive it would stay in place. I almost forgot to mention that I put a thin layer of the included Arctic Alumina between the waterblock and the GPU before I bolted it to the card.

Mounting the CPU Waterblock

The CPU waterblock was the easiest part of the system to install. After pulling the motherboard, I removed the old heatsink. After cleaning the top of the CPU with rubbing alcohol, I put a thin layer of the included Arctic Alumina over the chip. The waterblock mounts to the CPU just like any other heatsink. After clipping both sides to the motherboard, you loosen the two screws to tighten the block down. This works because of springs that are between the waterblock and the actual mounting clips. The result is a nice and tight mount to the motherboard.

Installing the 5.25" Tray Setup

Ok, I thought installing the CPU waterblock was the easiest part, but I take that back. The easiest part to install was by far the 5.25" tray setup. All you have to do is slide it in, and put in a few screws on each side - just like installing any 5.25" drive. The setup does take up two 5.25" bays, so if you have a mid-tower, that only leaves you with two spots for larger drives. If you dont mind losing 2 bays, this kit is awesome!

Installing the PRS Kit

Normally, you would install the kit into the back of your case. I decided to take this installation a bit further, and install it directly into my PSU. In a previous article I wrote up instructions on how to do this, and it can be found here.

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