Which one is right for you? 

AIO cause I don’t have to build the loop or manage it lol

Just did my second hardline water-cooling build, its not about practicality, its about the satisfaction of the build. Its a hobby after all.

I remember browsing the aquarium sections way back in the day trying to figure out how to rig up my own custom cooling solution. Custom cooling has come a long way, it is just too bad that everything is so expensive now. Aquarium section included.

"Custom PC Loop Cooling for Dummies." It's a handbook found at major bookstores. The book is located in the section containing guidebooks. You will also find the "MS-DOS for Dummies" handbook there. In the past, I built a custom cooling loop system. The loop included my CPU and two RTX 2080ti GPUs. Remember when SLI was the way to go? The tube bending is the hardest part of the assembly. I made a stand for my heat gun. It keeps the gun's tip at a set distance and perpendicular to my workbench. I added a simple temperature indicator to the bending guide and placed the guide below the heat gun so I knew when the tubing was ready for bending. My heat gun has variable heat allowing me to adjust the temperature to find the heat 'sweet spot' setting for bending.

Hardline/custom loop owner here. Much harder to maintain and build, more expensive, but I love looking at it and knowing that it's one of a kind, looks great and performs well

Having built both, I like the simplicity of the AIO. I’ve spent a ton of money making a few open loops and still have a box full of odds and ends for when I eventually make another loop.

I've built a custom loop a couple of years ago. The second PC I've ever built. It's amazing to look at something you've built yourself. I cleaned my loop last week for the first time and used the opportunity to upgrade the GPU. Maintenance is not that bad (at that point you know your loop). Planing and building was far more exhausting, especially if its the first time. If things don't go as planned or you make mistakes that destroy something, things can get expensive and frustrating.

Love your channel Jay! Have to say, I’m a total amateur with PC building but recently finished my first build: i9 13900KS, EVGA Classified mobo, 64G G.Skill DDR5 6400, 3 TB Samsung 990 M2 memory, and GIGABYTE 4090 OC, Corsair 170 AIO w/140 fans/RGB, Corsair 7000D w/3 140fans, Corsair 1500W power. Your videos were invaluable. This PC booted the first time, loaded BIOS update first try, Windows 11 (your install with minimal crap and no account work around is great). Running Adobe Photoshop, Lightroom, MW2 at 250 fps and with this cooling never exceeds 60-65C if it ever gets that high, usually 38-55C. Based on my limited experience, all this hype about custom cooling vs AIOs and mega “fannage” is just that “hype” unless your planning serious overclocking (why?? “Because its there” I guess). Anyway, keep up the good work and videos and many thanks!

I would love to see more water cooling guides. It's actually reason why I found this channel.

Both have places - but the AIO generally will focus on one component (ie CPU, GPU, and most recently (thanks to Team Group) NVMe drives, etc), while the custom loop can be expanded to include many devices, rad's, etc.

I really enjoyed making my custom loop on a heavily overclocked Xeon x5670 and I’m sure it performed better, but it’s just so expensive and overkill with todays chips. They’re already boosting themselves and not much OC headroom , thermals don’t seem to be the limiting reagent. On an Arctic freezer 280 AIO refurb I got from factory for $55 plus shipping on my R5-5600 and couldn’t be happier

I just put together my first open loop a few weeks ago using your videos as sort of a guide, Jay, and I'm super happy with how it turned out. There's a lot more creative freedom in making it yourself; planning the tube bends, choosing fittings, and coolant color, etc than with an aio. I would say, if you want to cool multiple components, and you have the coin, do a full custom loop. They're so much fun to build.

I love learning a little bit more about water cooling like this, I live in a high desert environment and summers here are way too hot for an air cooler so liquid is the only way to keep my rig cool. Sadly the next major hold up for me is price i never have a lot of money so AIOs are enough to keep my pc alive and gaming while also not spending all my money. Thanks Jay Phil and Nic for these info videos like this maybe one day I can go open loop but any more little info I can have is always welcome and definitely helps make decisions easier. 😀

Wish there were more vids like this. Its quite helpful if you are new to building a PC on what cooler to buy. Top work Jay 👍

Glad you’re doing better and recovering fast Jay. Great video as always. You and the team are top notch 🤘.

Hey Jay, been a fan for years and have always appreciated your input, and especially your honesty. For over 40 years I've built custom systems for myself and for clients. To me, the primary reason to build a custom system is that you are not stuck with inferior or proprietary parts, which is almost always the case with prebuilt systems from any manufacturer, including, and in some cases especially, Apple systems, which can feature elegant design, yet still be comprised of and compromised by inferior parts, always at a premium price. Although I might build a custom watercooled system for myself just to satisfy the ego, after watching this video I will never build one for a client. Forgetting the 5-6-X increase in cost for a 5-8% increase in cooling efficiency, I could never guarantee a custom watercooled system as I do my air- and AIO-cooled systems. The risk of increased support cost and catastrophic failure is just too great. I am surprised that no company has yet seen the potential for a better performing AIO utilizing superior parts and materials. Seems to me there would be a market for such a device, with a copper radiator and a higher capacity pump.

This is the only material I'm consuming to prepare for my fluid dynamics test due in an hour, I hope Jay hasn't led me astray

The cost is a non-trivial difference. I was pricing out a custom loop for my current PC build, and the loop components cost not quite the same amount as the rest of the components I was purchasing for the system rebuild / update. That alone moved me to an AIO for my R9 5900, and left the GPU air cooled.

I think aio is great for most. I think custom loops allow you to do a lot more and have greater capability. There is also the second kind of cool in that its one of a kind and such.

Much needed for dummies like me. Like I would've never thought about something like considering PETG tubing. Thanks for this.

For building something practical, AIO will always win out....but then by that logic just get an NH D15

Regarding the coolant type, this is also true for automobiles. When the manufacturer says to use a specific type of coolant, abide by it or you run the risk of corrosion and potentially turning your engine into a boat anchor in time.

Got a Strix LC II 360 AIO. It's my first liquid cooler. I have it on a 13900ks. I'm extremely impressed, this thing is amazing, but temps can be a little unstable and now I see why. I ended up installing a thermal grizzly contact frame which evened things out a bit. That being said this breakdown is actually really cool, I haven't looked into Open Loop systems because I didn't understand the need for it aside from overclocking, but this clearly shows the benefits of going the extra mile. ONE DAY!

Great content and detailed info. This is why I love your channel 😊

Been running custom for 10yrs now, pretty much have moved the same hardware through different builds over that time. Only thing's I've added are spare rads, tubing, and pumps ( I have a hardware hoarding problem as well - lol). Now AiO's are just simple turn key options for watercooling - I tend to suggest them for people that want an easy option to get started.

Just use a Noctua NA-FC1 to generate a PWM signal for the pump. Only require SATA power, and works like a charm. Ramping speed up and down helps a lot when filling and bleeding, particularly when you got two or three D5-pumps in series.

Would have loved a side by side comparison of real world performance. I know the custom loop performs better, I've had both on the same system. But seeing that here would have driven the point of the video home.

Great educational video, I really enjoyed it. And I love the ending

Hmm, i've had the same AIO since 2015. No issues yet. I've always used AIO's and love them. Simple, cheaper, easy to install.

I did my first custom loop last year and likely wont do it again. It was fun and I love it but its wicked expensive. However my loop now will last me at least 5 years. After this im going back to either an aio or air.

I love the idea of open loop (custom water cooling), and enjoy watching you do it. I did it for a few years, but I got tired of the maintenance and monitoring. I thought about AIO, and water cooling is required for some hardware, but the liquid will eventually evaporate and the pump will eventually die. I ended up stepping down my performance and went back to all-air, since swapping out a fan is a lot easier, and I worry a lot less.

my custom loop has been re-purposed from skylake to 5900x which only needed a block change, already had 700mm (360+240) worth of rad so my upfront cost has actually saved me a lot in the long run for upgrading and cooling.

I always used AIOs with my Intel builds… never wanted the maintenance that comes with custom loops. However… I just went with a 7950x3D build and my first air cooler in forever… the Noctua NH-D15. Pretty awesome when you can run a 30 min all core burn test and peak at 89C. Yay for thermal efficiency.

It would have been nice to see the temp difference between the AIO and the custom loop.

The end of the video was the best "sell" for air cooling I have ever seen (I am an AIO user) Thanks Jay and team for breaking my heart!

I wanna know your thoughts on the Alphacool AIO’s! They use off the shelf parts like copper radiators and DDC pumps, and they’ve got quick-disconnects for adding pumps, rads, or linking other loops together. Been considering a dual 360 setup from them and combining the loops for my next build, seems like the best of both worlds

I've probably been very lucky, but I'm still using my 2015 Corsair H105 AIO. Yes, a couple of years ago I completely disassembled it because it was making air noise, replaced the hoses with food grade silicone hoses that will withstand from -60C to 200C which I attached to the pump and radiator with fuel hose clamps and of course changed the coolant. I transferred it from one PC to another and am still using it. I might buy a new one but I want to see how long it lasts. 😅

Custom Loop, Very excited to learn How to do this well. Jay your last personal Rig/System is Beautiful! Thank you for the amazing content and honesty put into your channel, You and It are greatly appreciated!!

Thank you for the comparison video, Jay. Hard to believe, been building since about time the same as you, maybe a year or two before. And I have never done a custom loop. And now everyone else in my house has AIOs except mine. Lol

I was honestly surprised to see the ID of the AIO tubing. I knew it would be a decent bit smaller than the OD but not by that much.

This definitely made me check my AIO and my temps. Going on 5 years old and seemingly fine. Pump temps are fine though the actual CPU temps are a tad higher than I'd expect.

Been running my first AIO the CAPTAIN 240EX WHITE since 2016, so far still going strong with no issues. But I do keep a eye on it a lot more just in case.

I love stuff like this !!! thanks for the educational video Jay and team!

Should probably also comment that a water loop does NOT need to be as expensive as Jay here implies. The main item you look for really is just the cpu water block or plate as that has to fit. (but you can still get cheaper options than EK, even older ones can be modded to work). But everything else you can get from local stores. I mean a water pump, go to your local pet store and pick up an Eheim pump, you can get tubing there as well (though I prefer Tygon 2475 or 3603 depending on what fluid I'm using). Barbed fittings can be found at home depot/hardware store as well as the clamps. for a radiator you can go to a local junk yard, or if you're friendly with your HVAC guy see if they are replacing any units and pull something from there. Fans can be anything as well (old computer fans, bathroom fans, or whatever). It's NOT rocket science. Biggest item is to check galvanic corrosion tables (ideally using all brass/copper for example for metals). and then some distilled water & water wetter (auto store usually). It may not be 'pretty' but it works.

Had a custom loop for about 4 years now. Was a fun experience building it, but for my new build next week i'll go for an 360mm AiO for the 7800x3d and air cooling for GPU and the rest of the case :) I've had a really minimum leakage on one of the hosepipes due to it not sitting straight on the fitting after warming up and bending a bit. Luckily i saw it immediately and nothing bad happened, also cuz my liquid is UV reactive green :D

Great looking setup. I also has the same concern for my tv when I moved. It was all good 👍🏼

Alpha cool has a nice aio with the LT solo pump block. All copper and fill port on the block. Got that and then when I was ready I turned it into a custom loop it was a great beginner watercooling setup.

I would love to see you look at expandable AiO (Alphacool has one) as well as how to include a GPU waterblock into it as well. I'm guessing it is able to accommodate a GPU waterblock and an extra radiator since it claims to be expandable.

Most aios have an aluminum radiator vs a copper one like alphacool which uses regular water cooling parts for an aio

Thats why i love my Be Quiet AiO cause it has a fill port and came with a small bottle of coolant with it such a great product

I have the EK solid white in my loop for a few years now. The longest I had it running without exchanging it was 2 years. So far I had no problems with it. Nothing has fallen out. Every time I took my loop apart it was perfectly clean, no residue in sight. What might contribute to that is the fact that i use glass tubes.

Custom can be bigger, generally has more liquid so it can take away more heat without actually heating up

I've been thinking about the feasibility of building my own 'AIO' using custom watercooling parts. Especially considering ek releasing the cpu block with a built in pump. In your video you mentioned this block will have the same orientation problems as an aio so why not use it for a custom aio for better block performance? EDIT: could be useful for test benches or one offs.

I just serviced my AIO a couple of days ago. It's an Alphacool Eisbaer Pro Aurora 360 and it was designed with maintenance in mind. Also the radiator is copper (and brass for the threads). It has a fill port in the pump housing, a quick-release connector in the tubing and you can easily unscrew the base plate. This AIO has all the relevant features in terms of longevity and maintenance and quality but when it comes to cost it's not more expensive than your typical mid-range 360 AIOs. Downsides are the clunky appearence, the noisy fans (I replaced them with Lian Lis) and the relatively low flow rate of the pump (compared to a custom loop).

When Jay brought up the "first open-loop build" about not having enough fittings i felt a little attacked. My first ever open-loop build i did i was short ONE FITTING. Luckily for me it was only a 3 hr drive to the nearest microcenter but man was it worth building it because now even to this day because of these videos i feel more and more comfortable about working on my computer and trying out of the box trouble shooting.

You should do another video on custom loops on how people can over spend when not needed. That’s interesting to me since how I’ve never built one.

Aio for £130 Takes 10 mins to install 90 percent of the performance The extra ten percent perf you get from loop is also unneeded by 99 percent of users

I really enjoyed this video...I built a custom loop for my cpu/gpu about 5 years ago and it still looks and works just like it did the day I put it in my system...I take it apart and do a thorough cleaning twice a year though...I think the biggest surprise when puttting it together was the cost of fitting! Jesus they can get expensive!

I can also vouch for the Mystic Fog I've been using the pre mix for a few months now and it's been going beautifully. No issues or weirdness and I have clear blocks. The concentrate I used prior however, I had issues with. I followed the instructions but had nasty gunk build up. So beware on that and possibly use more distilled water than recommended for it.

AIO all the way. Minimum maintenance, ease of upgradeability and close enough performance

Custom loop all the way. It’s addictive. Once you do it you can never have another build that isn’t custom

I work as a software engineer and never really touched Hardware much less cared for it. But I got interested by friends years ago. Came to your channel and learned and got excited to build my first computer. I built my first computer a while back using an AIO and then built one for my Dad as he needed a new computer and I was excited to do it again. I am probably going to give my current first build that has upgrades to a family member and then create a whole new build. I really want to do custom looping instead of AIO this time around to experience it and cool a much much more powerful build. This video really helps me know more details about it and comparing the two I still would need to do so much more research to make a final decision.

Great info here, thank you!

14:10 noctua sells a little USB pwm controller you can adjust with a trim pot. Even has an on-off clicky button on it.

I really would love to go with a custom loop just for the looks and it would likely be quieter than my current setup but I'm currently with an AIO. Kinda focused on my hardware itself before a custom loop since i decided to upgrade to a 3080 Ti before the 40 series launch.

Thanks Jay, I really settled for an AIO after building my new rig, because of the cost. AIO is working well, but definitely want to pursue an open loop. Just going to have to save up.

Since my AIO died on me last year, i thought i was through with it in terms with water cooling. But now looking into building my first custom loop. What i like about custom loops is the flexibility to accomodate other komponents. Where as AIOs are mostly for CPUs. But AIOs require less maintance compared to a Custom Loop. As for pricing i think it comes down to aestetics. But you can definitly spend more money on a custom loop.

15:15-15:22 had me rolling 🤣🤣🤣 Love these types of videos. Thanks, Jay!

Very informative video Jay. Great work. Just an aside, if the copper has zinc in it, it’s brass.

Please please please do another Ultimate fitting guide and more water cooling guides in general! The 2 big reasons that I won’t do a custom open loop, is because of the discrepancy in sizes of pipes and availability. And the biggest one which you didn’t mention in this video but have in the past , YOU HAVE TO BUY EACH SINGLE FITTING AND THEY ARE NOT CHEAP and you need to hope you have enough. So you have to somehow plan and measure your entire loop without having any fittings.

I'll say about is ease of use for a new builder. Easy on my pocket too. Custom loops are better long term and I will get where I can make one.

I have a custom loop without a reservoir, I filled the loop with a small bucket, I used koolance quick disconnects though, that helped keep the air out

I got this plan to use the new EK combo block that is both Cooler, Reservoir and pump. Some EPDM tubing and a single radiator for a SFF build. Still couple times more expensive than an AIO, but it seems like a nice compromise that gives me good control over the form, maybe even use some printed brackets to keep the tubes nice and tight together. Originally considered solid tubing, but rubber seems good enough and way more maintenance friendly.

Thank you for the video. I like this a lot. Gracias

My Corsair H100i basically ran dry. When I saw my overclocked I7-8700K running at nearly 100c under Prime95, I pulled it held the radiator vertical with hoses at the bottom and shook it. I could hear water sloshing at the bottom, but not the top, There was barely enough coolant in it to fill the bottom tank in that position, Installed a 4 pipe air cooler, and the temps stay under 75c full load. Custom loop advantage: You can easily see the coolant level and add more if it gets low. With an AIO, you really need to record full load temps after install, then check and compare every year to make sure they're not climbing due to water evaporation. (I didn't realize this could happen, so I didn't check.)

Nice video Jay! And giving you an idea for next one it would be nice to see something about the coolants how they may differ between brands and the variations of the brands and pastels like you said may cloud up and UV variations

thanks i have learn alots of thing about the aio and custom loop !!

Gosh you said "when I started doing YT, all we had was non rigid" Dude, we are SO DAMN OLD! I remeber when you quit your job to YT Full time, I remeber when Hardline came about, I still remeber Skunkworks (RIP Case Labs). So much has changed! So old we are getting! When all the tubing would leach plasticizer, so you had to pick the right ones. I remeber my very first WC foray, was a kit, I want to say it was called like big something (EDIT: It was a Thermaltake Big Water 760i, back in 2007!). With a intergrated pump in a dual bay rez, Those were AIOs back then! So fun fact about quality as well. Although it has not been used in a decade, I still have my OG Raystorm Kit from XSPC. I have the Raystorm and the 240mm Rad! Its so damn crazy to realize I have been watching your videos for 11 YEARS!

I love the look that you get with a custom loop, but I swap parts out way too often so the convenience of an AIO is why I use them.

Excellent video Jay. Great to see you back in the saddle!!

My Soft line custom loop is 7 years old. I flushed it 2 years ago with no growth or clogging. I watched your videos and built it. The only problem I have had is my fans started buzzing from bearing failure a couple years back... Cats. Anyways thanks for the solid info.

This is so Important!!!! We just see people creating PCs. This is what we need. Please make more of these videos. I just learned something about the pumps today! the radius of the pipe walls! copper vs aluminium! The plate touching the IHS! Density of the cold plates! Tubing! The Fluid! I feel so PC Educated!

When I got started in water-cooling, you went to a junkyard to get a Jeep heater core because they were all copper and you bought an aquarium pump. You ran a T-line ( I still do) or made a custom res and sealed it with tons of silicone.

The only time I've built with water was an AIO for a friend and it hurt so bad to see him crush a few fins (no leaks thankfully, just cosmetic) when he picked it up! Also thanks for not doing computex videos! It adds a bit of variety into the tech youtube feed.

I decided to go with an open loop design. For 2 reasons. One The individual components can be better, and two. Because of expandability. On the first point, being better components. Most, if not all aio's come with a radiator that is only 27mm thick. The Radiator that I chose was 60mm thick. So in effect doubling the size, and capacity of a an already large 480mm radiator. without taking up twice as much real-estate. From a business stand point. The current aio's include a lot. But in order to make it profitable. Corners have to be cut. So on one hand you get cheap and easy with an AIO. But on the other hand, it will never be as good as it could be. With an open loop, it will be as good as you want it to be. But it will never be as easy to maintain as a AIO. Since with an AIO there is no maintenance. Once it fails, replace it, and whatever parts it was meant to protect.

This video pretty much convinced me never to bother with open loop. I don’t need the hassle. 😁

Thanks...now you got me worried abt my 7 yo Corsair AIO! Temperatures still seem fine...but my computer is overbuilt for what I use it for (work mostly). Still...now I'm thinking I should be finding a replacement jic! Great info btw. Very informative.

Same custom loop since 2008 best solution for me!

I did my first custom loop 2 years ago with Thermaltake pastel colours and after about 3 months I noticed all the colour leaching out of the reservoir and planned to replace the fluid. Approximately 3 or 4 days later while sitting at by computer the first fitting after the pump blew the pipe out and dumped all the fluid into the case. I inspected the fitting and pipe and it was perfect, so what I believe happened was what ever chemical reaction that caused the colour to leach out pressurized the system. I contacted Thermaltake and they not only replaced the pump/res, radiator, fluid and pipe work they sent me a core P7 to replace the lost case. The point is that even when you do everything right you can still have problems. I wouldn't recommend custom loops for your daily computer, also shoutout Thermaltake for stepping up.

New to rigid tubingand loving it!

Great video! I would love to see more like this. Fittings guide would also be nice 😅

I use a 12v pond pump, keep the loop tolerance within 3 metre head pressure.

I've had both types of coolers. They both have their place. I went with an open loop and hard lines for the challenge and I like overkill. I'd agree with the cost factor. But here's the thing I've been running my EK blocks and pumps since 2015. You won't ever get an AIO to last that long. So cost over time works out better that way. As far as tubes and coolant go , I started with acrylic then changed to PTEG and finally went with copper tube ...from a hardware store. For coolant I run distilled water with flushes every 3 months . No fallout of dye etc . Happy days and it's cheap. All that said open loop isn't for everyone. But when it works it works well. If you want cheap cooling get an open airflow case some decent case fans and a good air cooler that suits your hardware.

I have my H100i and Ive had it for many years at this point and its been running nonstop essentially and hasn't let me down.

Before watching ok, AIO only cools one component, and the pump is usually weak, and it cannot be maintained or repaired, and the ASETEK licensing pumps up the price, the CPU AIOs usually come with 2-3 cables coming out of it, and need software running in the background to be controlled.

My Corsair H150i 280mm AIO has been running solid for 7 straight years now (Built it in Jan 2017 on an i7 7700K) still only hitting 61-65C under Full load. Using Thermal Grizzly Conductonaut as Thermal Paste between die/IHS and between IHS and Coldplate. No leaks no failure. Front mounted in the case. Have Not touched it in 7 years except from some dust spray cleaning of the fans and fins. That is a damn reliable AIO and as headache free as it can get.

Kindly do more videos on custom cooling, need more guides on choosing pipes/tubes and the different materials they're made from, fittings, coolant, rads ... etc

Went with an AIO for my 13900ks and it can cool 330w. Its awesome and little maintenance is a big win for me

Each has its uses. I have a custom loop in my personal system, but I usually put AIOs in customer systems because of the much lower maintenance needs.

I would love a video showing the do’s and dont’s of custom water cooling. Didn’t know about the glycol issue with PETG!