Which one is right for you?

Stuck trying to decide whether or not to get an AIO versus a custom loop? Here is some information to help you decide!

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[mammothkiwi]

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

[hoseinqadam]

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

[justintolentino]

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.

[dienb]

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.

[AgentDraco]

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

[Itallcostsmoney]

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.

[yukeyyashiro]

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. 😀

[MaxQ]

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!

[andrewervin]

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

[jaxonburgess]

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.

[nukedathlonman]

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.

[JAndersonGhost]

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.

[grimdicer]

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 👍

[kylesullivan]

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

[sixbros]

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.

[drail]

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

[dasfahrer]

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.

[TheAJKid]

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!

[xXDarthBagginsXx]

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.

[RYDER-]

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.