Prototype Velocitop: pump block converter for EK Velocity CPU block

stanleyguan

SFF Lingo Aficionado
Original poster
Jun 18, 2020
114
321
Hello SFF community!

I'm here to showcase a prototype that converts an EK Velocity CPU block to a pump/block combo. It reuses the cold plate and jet plate of the existing block, and replaces the original acrylic/metal top to allow mounting of a DDC or EK-SPC pump onto it. After the replacement of the original top, the pump/block is 25mm (EK-SPC variant) or 25.5mm (DDC variant) tall (including cold plate, excluding pump). The purpose is to have a simple one-piece solution while retaining the performance of the original Velocity block since the cold plate is reused. At this time it is also relatively cheap to grab an EK Velocity block if you don't have one lying around.



Dimensions: 88x62x25mm (EK-SPC variant), 88x62x25.5mm (DDC variant)
Compatibility: EK-Quantum Velocity CPU block. Tested for Intel version. Needs to be verified for AMD but expected to also work. Note that RGB (if your block has it) needs to be removed.

The block can be made with acetal (delrin) or metal, perhaps acrylic as well. Here are some photos of an acetal prototype (EK-SPC pump variant; please note that the volute spiral shape is in the wrong direction in this prototype, which I had to correct with some manual sanding before testing CPU thermals and flow rate). Also included what it looks like in FormD T1 V2.






To assess the effectiveness of Velocitop I tested the flow rate with a King Instrument rotameter in a simple loop. I saw a 9-15% penalty in flow rate in the two pump settings tested which I consider quite good given the design constraints. As a point of reference, various DDC pump tops designs have flow rate differences of 10-20%.

To test CPU thermals, I ran an Intel i7 12700K stock with AIDA64 FPU stress test (~185W). CPU temperature was within ~1C of the original Velocity block.

Test data below for both flow rate and thermals.



This project was purely for fun and my desire to have a CPU pump/block combo for the EK-SPC pump, which I consider to be much superior noise-wise (I mean serious dead-silent) to DDCs. Since I don't expect to be running a side business my current plan is to make the design (.step) public for personal use and anyone who wants one can find a CNC shop. I made the prototype (just one piece) using Xometry Asia and it was less than $80. I understand that not everyone has access to cheap manufacturing like that, but I also don't want to deal with the risk of QA, shipping things from China, etc.

In the meantime, I do plan to order a final design of the SPC variant and a DDC variant for myself. A few folks over at #sff-gurus discord had expressed interest when I showcased it so I might ordering a few more for those folks just to give back to the community.

I will post the final .step files once I can verify that everything works.
 

articnova

Chassis Packer
Sep 28, 2020
16
25
Wow this is pretty cool Stanley. I'd be interested to know if there is any gains in temperature over the usual pump block combos like the barrow, aquanaut, and the lobo.

I personally love the SPC pump and am still using it now since I bought it back in 2018. Do you know if it's still possible to buy anywhere? I know EK no longer sell it but am curious if it was an OEM part that could be bought elsewhere. I found an aliexpress listing of a pump that looks similar but I've yet to pull the trigger on purchasing it.
 

blubblob

SFF Lingo Aficionado
Jul 26, 2016
104
127
I'm curious, did you by chance try what would happen if the flow through the EK coldplate is reversed? I've heard a lot of conflicting statements if this has any noticeable adverse effects on cooling performance and at least to me it seems it would simplify the fluid-path inside the block by quite a bit (and would lower its dimensions by another 6-7mm).

I've wiped up a quick 3D-model to show what I mean.
Unfortunately I don't have an EK-Velocity block at hand at the moment (plus: my CNC machine is broken :(), otherwise I would have tested it out myself.


Here is a link to the .step file if anyone is more than curious.
 

stanleyguan

SFF Lingo Aficionado
Original poster
Jun 18, 2020
114
321
Wow this is pretty cool Stanley. I'd be interested to know if there is any gains in temperature over the usual pump block combos like the barrow, aquanaut, and the lobo.

I personally love the SPC pump and am still using it now since I bought it back in 2018. Do you know if it's still possible to buy anywhere? I know EK no longer sell it but am curious if it was an OEM part that could be bought elsewhere. I found an aliexpress listing of a pump that looks similar but I've yet to pull the trigger on purchasing it.
Thanks! It should be pretty much the same as the best pump/block combos in terms of temps, since it has minimal loss of performance compared to regular CPU blocks. Though I haven't done a test against other pump/block combos, I expect it to be very similar to Aquanaut Extreme and LOBO.

For SPC pumps, it is probably easily to find them as a pump/res combo on eBay instead of the pump by itself. There are Syscooling pumps that are very similar to it in design and noise level (I think they're called P60 / P67, perhaps depending on what top they come with), but I haven't run those long term to vouch for their longevity. IIRC they are also incompatible with EK SPC pump tops.
 
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stanleyguan

SFF Lingo Aficionado
Original poster
Jun 18, 2020
114
321
I'm curious, did you by chance try what would happen if the flow through the EK coldplate is reversed? I've heard a lot of conflicting statements if this has any noticeable adverse effects on cooling performance and at least to me it seems it would simplify the fluid-path inside the block by quite a bit (and would lower its dimensions by another 6-7mm).

I've wiped up a quick 3D-model to show what I mean.
Unfortunately I don't have an EK-Velocity block at hand at the moment (plus: my CNC machine is broken :(), otherwise I would have tested it out myself.


Here is a link to the .step file if anyone is more than curious.
Nice work! Short answer is I don't know. If I were to guess the difference is probably minimal, but one would have to test that.
 
  • Like
Reactions: NinoPecorino

blubblob

SFF Lingo Aficionado
Jul 26, 2016
104
127
Amazing build! Does it compatible with Velocity AM5?
As far as I know the mounting plates for the EK-Velocity are interchangeable. Due to the fact that the Velocitop is wider than the Velocity in one direction you'll only be able to fit it in two orientations (if the mainboard permits) - with the inlet/outlet either facing right or left - as the block overlaps the screwholes slightly in the top or bottom orientation.
 

JUNCHEOL PAK

Case Bender
New User
Apr 13, 2023
2
0
VELOCITY AMD COOLER SOCKET NOT COMPATILE WITH THIS SHOULD BE
As far as I know the mounting plates for the EK-Velocity are interchangeable. Due to the fact that the Velocitop is wider than the Velocity in one direction you'll only be able to fit it in two orientations (if the mainboard permits) - with the inlet/outlet either facing right or left - as the block overlaps the screwholes slightly in the top or bottom orientation.

Hello SFF community!

I'm here to showcase a prototype that converts an EK Velocity CPU block to a pump/block combo. It reuses the cold plate and jet plate of the existing block, and replaces the original acrylic/metal top to allow mounting of a DDC or EK-SPC pump onto it. After the replacement of the original top, the pump/block is 25mm (EK-SPC variant) or 25.5mm (DDC variant) tall (including cold plate, excluding pump). The purpose is to have a simple one-piece solution while retaining the performance of the original Velocity block since the cold plate is reused. At this time it is also relatively cheap to grab an EK Velocity block if you don't have one lying around.



Dimensions: 88x62x25mm (EK-SPC variant), 88x62x25.5mm (DDC variant)
Compatibility: EK-Quantum Velocity CPU block. Tested for Intel version. Needs to be verified for AMD but expected to also work. Note that RGB (if your block has it) needs to be removed.

The block can be made with acetal (delrin) or metal, perhaps acrylic as well. Here are some photos of an acetal prototype (EK-SPC pump variant; please note that the volute spiral shape is in the wrong direction in this prototype, which I had to correct with some manual sanding before testing CPU thermals and flow rate). Also included what it looks like in FormD T1 V2.






To assess the effectiveness of Velocitop I tested the flow rate with a King Instrument rotameter in a simple loop. I saw a 9-15% penalty in flow rate in the two pump settings tested which I consider quite good given the design constraints. As a point of reference, various DDC pump tops designs have flow rate differences of 10-20%.

To test CPU thermals, I ran an Intel i7 12700K stock with AIDA64 FPU stress test (~185W). CPU temperature was within ~1C of the original Velocity block.

Test data below for both flow rate and thermals.



This project was purely for fun and my desire to have a CPU pump/block combo for the EK-SPC pump, which I consider to be much superior noise-wise (I mean serious dead-silent) to DDCs. Since I don't expect to be running a side business my current plan is to make the design (.step) public for personal use and anyone who wants one can find a CNC shop. I made the prototype (just one piece) using Xometry Asia and it was less than $80. I understand that not everyone has access to cheap manufacturing like that, but I also don't want to deal with the risk of QA, shipping things from China, etc.

In the meantime, I do plan to order a final design of the SPC variant and a DDC variant for myself. A few folks over at #sff-gurus discord had expressed interest when I showcased it so I might ordering a few more for those folks just to give back to the community.

I will post the final .step files once I can verify that everything works.
VELOCITY AMD COOLER SOCKET NOT COMPATILE WITH THIS SHOULD BE SMALLER