Reddit
reddit.com › r/watercooling › need help deciding what watercooling kit to purchase
r/watercooling on Reddit: Need help deciding what watercooling kit to purchase
July 5, 2022 -
Would appreciate it if anyone could suggest a simple watercooling kit for my first custom loop. I would like to do both my CPU and GPU and I wouldn't really be limited by budget, but I had trouble finding a waterblock for my specific card (Gigabyte 3080 Gaming OC).
Would also appreciate if anyone has any good large ATX case suggestions that would fit a custom loop. Currently have the Phanteks P500A but that's already very limiting in space with my GPU and 280mm AIO from Arctic.
Top answer 1 of 5
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If budget is not an issue then you can mix and match blocks, radiators and fittings from different brands. Just make sure all the metal components are made of copper or brass. For the case, I'm using Fractal Design Meshify 2XL. It can easily accommodate 360mm + 480mm radiator.
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Here is my water cooling part recommendations cheat sheet. For the block, I'm pretty sure either EK or Bitspower should make one. If not, then try Bykski (lower quality, but not "bad"). For the case, if you like Phanteks, the P600S is a decent case for custom loops. Obviously, you have the Lian Li O11 Dynamic Evo. Fractal Meshify S2 or Define R7 are good. Corsair 5000D and 7000D are good. If you want to get really spendy, you can get a Singularity Computers Spectre.
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Tom's Hardware
tomshardware.com › pc components › cooling
Best AIO Coolers 2026 | Tom's Hardware
June 17, 2026 - But if all you care about is keeping your CPU cool and your system quiet while adding some RGB lighting to your rig, ID-Cooling's FX360 INF is one of the best – and most affordable – 360mm options we've tested to date.
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Is water cooling better than fan/air cooling?
Yes, water cooling will undoubtedly net you far greater yields in terms of heat dissipation corresponding to top-notch cooling performance. However, air cooling benefits from maintaining a superior price-to-performance ratio while running a lower risk of failure.
tech4gamers.com
tech4gamers.com › home › reviews › coolers › best water cooling kits: custom, closed, d5, & budget
Best Water Cooling Kits: Custom, Closed, D5, & Budget - Tech4Gamers
Is water cooling worth it?
Water coolers require a steep financial investment and expensive, time-consuming maintenance, which is never-ending due to the variable individual parts involved. However, many enthusiasts love the challenges and the satisfaction of having a water-cooled setup, and for them, it is worth it.
tech4gamers.com
tech4gamers.com › home › reviews › coolers › best water cooling kits: custom, closed, d5, & budget
Best Water Cooling Kits: Custom, Closed, D5, & Budget - Tech4Gamers
Does my PC need water cooling?
Custom water cooling setups are generally only required for workstation-class PCs using industry-leading CPUs, or enthusiast-grade gaming PCs. Unless you’re using the highest-end 14th Generation Intel Core i9-14900K or AMD Ryzen 9 7950x CPUs in airflow-restricted chassis, you probably won’t require a custom water cooling loop.
tech4gamers.com
tech4gamers.com › home › reviews › coolers › best water cooling kits: custom, closed, d5, & budget
Best Water Cooling Kits: Custom, Closed, D5, & Budget - Tech4Gamers
Reddit
reddit.com › r/watercooling › first time water cooling. what's the best products
r/watercooling on Reddit: First time water cooling. What's the best products
September 6, 2021 -
Ok so I'm slowly about to start my water build.
A few questions.
what is the best CPU block for the price.
What are the best radiators to use in Australia as everybody says EK ones are shit.
I have a tuf 3090, what waterblock is best and is there any I don't have to cut my own heat pads.
Is there any pump and reservoirs I should avoid?
Cheers.
Top answer 1 of 5
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Updated 4/16/2026 r/watercooling 's discord is a good resource. This is my personal recommendation copypasta. Order is sorta ranked, but don't take it as gospel...just my opinion and others may have a different view. CPU block: Optimus,, Alphacool Apex, Watercool Heatkiller, Aquacomputer, Thermal Grizzly, Bitspower Summit. I'm not a fan of monoblocks. GPU block: Watercool Heatkiller, Thermal Grizzly, Optimus, Alphacool Core 1, Bitspower, Bykski if on a budget. Reservoir: Watercool Heatkiller (great modularity and quality), Singularity Computers, Optimus, Iceman Cooler. For distribution panels (flat panel res): Alphacool, Stealkey, EK, Bitspower, custom made. Pump: D5 PWM or Alphacool VPP Apex. Only get a DDC 4.2 PWM if you are tight on space. Aquacomputer's D5 Next has a built in temp sensor, display and RGB. More $, but more features. Pump should always be below your reservoir. Radiator: Hardware Labs (GTS/GTX/L-Series), Corsair XR5/ XR7 or Bitspower SF/XF (rebranded Hardware Labs L-Series), Watercool Heatkiller Rad (L or S), XSPC, EK Surface rad S, P or X models. In general it is recommended that you have at least 240mm of radiator per water cooled component. With higher wattage and overclocked components, I recommend at least 360mm per component in order to achieve quiet operation. Watercool Mo-RaIV if you want an external rad. Fans: Phanteks T30 is the king of (120/140mm) fans, Noctua A12-25 and A14-25 Chromax is 2nd best, bequiet Silent Wings 4 are very good. Coolermaster Mobius is good. Arctic P12/P14 have the best static pressure/noise ratio per $. Phanteks D30s are decent RGB fans. Tubing: I recommend 14mm for tube size. It balances aesthetics, bend-ability and fitting brand choice. Corsair's PMMA tubing (acrylic) is easy to work with, decently priced, and comes in clear, satin, black and white. Brand doesn't really matter, but 100% get acrylic rigid tubing and NOT PETG! If you want to do soft tubing, black EDPM (EK, Alphacool, Watercool all offer this) is best. Clear soft tubing can fog in my experience. If you do go hard tubing, a bending kit can help with doing precise multi bend runs (Bitspower makes a great one). Free hand can produce great results with practice. Fittings: Barrow. Best price to quality ratio and better quality than the majority of other brands by a large margin. Best place to get Barrow fittings is from Formulamod.com or Aliexpress. You will save a lot of money going this route. Bitspower is also great, but expensive. EK Torque fittings are aesthetically very nice and are mostly high quality (but EK can't produce inventory ATM). Optimus fittings are obviously top quality, but also ridiculously expensive. Thermal Grizzly are new to the market but initial quality seems very high. Make sure to get a drain valve (or quick disconnect) and a water temp sensor. Koolance makes the best quick disconnect fittings. Fluid: Save yourself a lifetime of pain and regret and stick to clear fluid. If you want colored, fine, but don't bother with opaque or particle fluids. Aquacomputer DP ultra, Koolance 702 or 705 and Mayhems X1 are regarded as the best clear fluids. Cleaning your radiators before you put fluid in your system is very important! Tools: I would classify bending mandrels as optional but I would definitely get an Aquacomputer Dr. Drop or EK Leak Tester (leak tests your system with air) and Primochill Rigid Finishing Bit (must match your tube size) if you are doing hard tubing. After that, it's your standard bending insert (I recommend Bitspower's), tube cutter (a mini table saw is great for this), heat gun etc. Other hardware: It is HIGHLY recommended you invest in the Aquacomputer hardware ecosystem for controlling your fans and pump (3pin RGB as well). Aquacomputer sells many great pieces of hardware and their software is leagues better than anything from the likes of Asus or Corsair's iCUE. The Octo/Quadro are PWM controllers. They control your fans and pump through the Aquasuite software. The High Flow Next is a multifunction (flow, temp, fluid conductivity, etc) sensor with a display. The D5 Next is a D5 PWM pump with a display and water temp sensor. The Farbwerk 360 is an RGB controller (3pin, but also Corsair through adapters). 100% get an Octo or Quadro. Also, buy quality thermal paste like Thermal Grizzly Duronaut, Noctua NT-H2 or Kingpin KPX. Case: Often overlooked, but your case determines a lot when it comes to water cooling. You need enough space for your GPU block, reservoir, radiators, etc. The reason you see everyone with a Lian Li O11 Dynamic EVO RGB/EVO XL is because it has all of those things. Phanteks NV7/NV9 are good. Fractal's Meshify/North XL are good. Corsair 7000D/X and 5000X/D are ok. HAVN HS420 is very good, Hyte Y70 Touch Infinite is ok. If a case looks like it has bad airflow, don't use/get it. You are likely going to spend over $1k on a custom loop... if your case wasn't designed with custom water cooling in mind... you are wasting your money and your experience will be terrible. LMK if you have any questions. Updated 4/16/2026
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Best bang for buck, probably Bykski or Barrow... Ultimately there is a very small performance difference with higher end blocks and reservoirs. But the QC is not always the best.
Corsair
corsair.com › us › en › c › custom-liquid-cooling › water-cooling-kits
Custom PC Water Cooling Kits | Liquid Cooling Bundles
A custom loop water cooling setup routes liquid coolant through a series of connected components to draw heat away from your CPU, GPU, or other hardware. Unlike all-in-one coolers, a custom water cooling kit lets you choose each part individually, so you control the layout, capacity, and aesthetics ...
Titan Rig
titanrig.com › home › water cooling › water cooling kits
Water Cooling Kits - Water Cooling
TITAN RIG specializes in quality PC water cooling parts and accessories. Shop top brands like Alphacool, EKWB, Watercool, and more with a 90-day return policy.
Tech4Gamers
tech4gamers.com › home › reviews › coolers › best water cooling kits: custom, closed, d5, & budget
Best Water Cooling Kits: Custom, Closed, D5, & Budget - Tech4Gamers
February 3, 2026 - This is where water cooling kits come into play, which are complete custom loop sets with all the components that you need. After carefully testing the performance and convenience of several water-cooling kits, I have curated a list of the best options on the market, along with some recommendations for individual components.
Micro Center
microcenter.com › home › air and water cooling - current
CPU Coolers: Air and Water Cooling Kits | Micro Center
With abundant thermal headroom and low noise level, liquid coolers are a popular CPU cooling method for gamers, overclockers, and anyone else who needs serious cooling power for their high-end PC. Their relatively low profile also makes them easy to mount in a variety of PC cases. Although all-in-one models are the most popular, custom liquid cooling kits offer the power to build a fully customized cooling system.
Published July 25, 2024
ModMyMods
modmymods.com › water-cooling-kits › cpu-water-cooling-kits.html
CPU Water Cooling Kits - Water Cooling Kits ModMyMods.com - PC Watercooling Parts and Accessories
Water cooling is the most effective, comprehensive cooling solution for decreasing your computer's CPU and GPU temperatures. With our fine selection of complete watercooling kits, you can quickly and easily convert your air-cooled PC to a state of the art fully water cooled system.
EKWB
ekwb.com › shop › kits
PC Custom Water Cooling Kits – EK Webshop
EK custom water cooling kits are a perfect solution for those who are entering into a world of high-efficiency PC cooling and also for those who would like a fast solution.
PrimoChill
primochill.com
PrimoChill Home of Premium Computer Water Cooling – PrimoChill - KEEPING IT COOL
This is the home of Primochill.com. We are a Premium Computer Water Cooling company. Our selection includes Coolants, Tubing, Fittings and Water Blocks
PCPartPicker
pcpartpicker.com › forums › topic › 83055-best-custom-liquid-water-cooling-kit
Best Custom Liquid Water Cooling Kit - PCPartPicker
coolant mayhems hands down makes the best coolant. their colors are spot on and they have acceptable prices. i chose their ice white pastel coolant since you have a white/black color scheme. another option that would look good (in theory) is buying white fittings and getting black coolant (just ...
Linus Tech Tips
linustechtips.com › computer hardware › cooling › custom loop and exotic cooling
Good water cooling brands that are cheaper alternatives to EK - Custom Loop and Exotic Cooling - Linus Tech Tips
January 6, 2025 - I'm planning on making my first water cooled build and wanted to know what are some other water cooling brands that are cheaper/more affordable than EK but while keeping the same quality that I see from EK components. I plan on making it a mostly white build so I want to find some CPU and GPU blo...
Micro Center
microcenter.com › home › category - water cooling kits
Water Cooling Kits : Micro Center
Browse our whole selection of PC water cooling kits here. Micro Center’s lineup of AIO coolers features models from top brands like Corsair, MSI, and Thermaltake, plus socket compatibility for a huge variety of CPUs from both AMD and Intel. Looking to build a custom liquid cooling system?
Overclockers
overclockers.com › home › forums › hardware › cooling
Best Custom Water Cooling Kit. | Overclockers Forums
October 25, 2022 - There are full kits by Bitspower and ek but I can't speak to their performance since I've never tried them. Check out titanrig.com to price everything. They are having a big open box and refurb sale right now that might save you some cash. ... You will most likely only get a 100-200 Mhz gain with even a custom loop. It's rare to see a 300 Mhz gain from an NH-D15. It's just a great cooler. With that said, if you still choose to invest in custom water...
WePC
wepc.com › home › watercooling reviews
Best water cooling kit in 2026 - hard & soft tube options | WePC
January 4, 2024 - A water cooling kit brings you everything you need to make a start, often coming with a CPU block, pump/ reservoir combo, radiator, tubing, and the necessary tools to cut, bend, and deburr your tubing. For beginners, a water cooling kit provides a lot of reassurance, so let’s take a look over the best available.
Titan Rig
titanrig.com
PC Liquid Cooling | PC Water Cooling Parts, Modification: Titan Rig
Watercool HEATKILLER IV PRO CPU Water Block, AMD CPU (Socket AM4, AM5), ...
Noctua
noctua.at › en
Noctua - premium quality quiet cooling components
1 week ago - “People who are looking the best cooling efficiency and have room for it it’s a one way and since it’s clearly the best AIO liquid cooler to arrive in the lab to date the Platinum Award is in order.”
Best Buy
bestbuy.com › best buy › computers & tablets › computer cards & components › fans, heatsinks & cooling › water cooling
Liquid Cooling Kit - Best Buy
A black liquid cooling system with three 120mm RGB fans, silent dual-chamber, and customizable lighting. See all Water Cooling
Alphacool
shop.alphacool.com › en › shop › water-cooling-sets › internal-sets
Complete water cooling sets
With the Core Storm water cooling kit, Alphacool provides all the components needed to get started in the world of water cooling. The set is aimed not only at beginners, but also at enthusiasts.
PC Gamer
pcgamer.com › hardware › cooling
Best liquid cooler for CPUs in 2026: I've tried all the best AIO coolers and these are my top picks | PC Gamer
July 23, 2025 - If you really want to go all out, you’re maybe better off with a fully custom water-cooling loop, but they are complicated, expensive, require maintenance, and have far more points of failure. AIOs are simple, they’re all but maintenance-free, they're cheaper, and they cool exceptionally well—the 360 mm and bigger ones do, at least. If you want simplicity and low costs, look to the best air coolers, though they don't fare as well with the hottest CPUs you can buy today (looking at you, 14900K).