Alphacool NBX-i Northbridge Watercooling Block ONLY £2.50!!! @ Specialtech

What else would I need just to cool the Northbridge? (I have an atom PC - the CPU is passively cooled, but the northbridge fan makes an awful whirr it's mini-ITX case means I don't have much room to get a bigger fan in, so this looks interesting!)....I'm not versed in water cooling, so would appreciate someadvice on the minimum parts I'd need to connect this block to!

If i were you i would buy a northbridge heatsink, i used to have a Zalman one you can buy here:

http://www.thecoolingshop.com/produc...roducts_id/696

It worked well and doesnt make any noise as it doesn't use fans. Its under a fiver too! :D

I have absolutely no idea what this is. Water cooling a computer???

Should i have one???

You may want to read up a bit on watercooling before you buy one! lol

Like I say, I have a mini-ITX case...if you don't know what that means, the case is about 8" square! http://boxcarsolutions.com/ebay/imag...1.5ghz_002.jpg The hard disk sits inverted above the Northbridge fan (to a plate running across the case), meaning I can't get a bigger fan in there and *definitely* not a northbridge passive cooler - water cooling seems a good option.

Most computers are air cooled, any hot bits have a large block of metal (a heatsink) with a big surface area (lots of fins) and a fan to blow air over it. A water cooling system on the other hand places metal boxes (watercooling blocks like this deal) over the hot spaces and pumps cool water in one side and takes the water that's been heated by the hot spot out of the other to be recooled.

As well as watercooling blocks for the items you want to cool (CPU, Graphics card, northbridge) a water cooling system needs tubing to carry the water, a pump to move it and a radiator to cool it, this item on it's own is useless without the rest of the system.

Water cooling isn't particulaly complex but because it uses flexible tubing you can place it where you want (including outside the case).

I know what a mini ITX case is, i have built systems in them before. You could get that heatsink if you dont mind getting the dremel and doing a bit of modding to get it into shape. If not i forget the brand but there was another cheapo nb heatsink. I don't think watercooling would be necessary for such a basic system for starters you wouldn't fit it all in the case and it would probably cost more than the PC is worth.

Sorry, wasn't being patronising - I only learnt about mini ITX last week! (so I'm sure there's a fair number that haven't come across it).

As it goes, I've just ordered a 2.5" hard drive...this should free up a bit of space above the northbridge allowing me to get a larger heatsink in there - thanks for your comments.

BTW re the original deal - they're charging £9.03 postage!
freezing (no pun intended) unless you';re ordering a whole load of other stuff.

£9.03 p&p? I was ordering somthing else this morning and postage came to £4 something... when i saw this i sent them an email and they said they could add it on for just the extra cost of the item no extra postage :S Even if it was nine quid postage thats still not a bad deal considering it goes for £17 + P&P. Maybe if you order it on its own its expensive postage but im sure youre just no changeing to the cheaper postage option.

And sorry everybody i know thats a very noobish mistake not to put the postage costs!

what does it do and how do i cool it?

whats the nothbridge in my motherboard?