Custom loop help thanks

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natej315

Gawd
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Feb 16, 2005
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I have a Thermaltake P3 case
ryzen 7 3800X cpu cooled by corsair h100i and 2 120mm fans
gpu is this msi 3080 https://www.newegg.com/msi-geforce-...oc-lhr/p/N82E16814137686?Item=N82E16814137686

what block do I need for GPU? Thanks
thinking of using this bracket and relocating my corsair h100i or mounting a 240mm? Rad to the front and making a small custom loop for gpu what pump, Rad, Res, Fluid, Additive using soft tubing

https://www.amazon.com/Bykski-Radia...3S4F3PW/ref=pd_lpo_2?pd_rd_i=B083S4F3PW&psc=1

thanks

or do I get a cpu and GPU block and make one big loop 360mm rad?

how much tubing?
 
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There is no one right answer, that's part of the fun of custom loops. You get to decide for yourself.

That said, I'll give you some of my opinions.

GPU Waterblock:
Fullcover GPU blocks are always a little tricky, as you have to make sure they fit the specific GPU you have. For founders editions and reference layouts this is pretty easy, but when you start getting into AIB custom board designs, it gets a little bit more difficult.

Your MSI Ventus board is an AIB custom model.

I just searched on the compatibility checker on EK's webpage, and they unfortunately do not make a block for this GPU, nor do they plan to.

EK is far from the only vendor of GPU blocks, but they do make more blocks for custom AIB board layouts than just about anyone else, so if they don't make one, chances are it will be trickier to find one.

And there I go, proving myself wrong right off the bat.

It looks like Alphacool makes one. Their page doesn't specifically mention the "plus 10G OC" version you have, but chances are it is the same layout as the regular Ventus 3080.You may be able to search and find it at a retailer stateside, but if not, you may have to have it shipped from the manufacturer in Germany. This one is pretty nice too, as they include the backplate, which most block makers will sell separately. Usually you need it too. It's not voluntary.

I also checked Watercool.de, but they didn't have one.

But this was the only one I found in my quick search.

Usually when it comes to custom loops and video cards, you want to have water cooling in mind when you choose the GPU to buy. Reference and Founders edition boards (not the same thing) are generally pretty easy to find blocks for, but custom AIB designs are more difficult. Unless they have relatively high volumes, many of them don't get water blocks at all.

In your case, we lucked out and found one. (hopefully)

This is the trick with GPU blocks. The manufacturers rarely tell you if their board is reference design or not, in the specs, so it is difficult to know, and takes hitting forums and other resources to research, every time. Sometimes you just have to take a risk and order something close enough (from Germany or Slovenia) and hope it fits when it arrives. This is the situation you likely find yourself in, but I'm feeling pretty good about this particular one fitting, despite the lack of the specific model name on the website. Just don't blame me if it doesn't. You have been warned :p

Loop configuration:
In almost all cases, it is better to have both your CPU and GPU in the same loop.

The reason for this is that usually both your CPU and your GPU are not at full load at the same time. Lets say you have two 240mm radiators. If you separate the loops and have one radiator for each block, your performance is going to be limited by that one radiator. If - for instance, the GPU is at 100% load, and the CPU is at like 30% load, the GPU can now take advantage of capacity from both radiators to get a lower temp.

So, in the combined loop, the average temp of the blocks will be the same as in the separate loops when both CPU and GPU are at 100% load at the same time. Whenever one of the two is at a lower load than the other, the combined loop will perform better.

So, worst case, the combined loop performs the same as the separated loops. Most of the time it performs better.

Separate loops are mostly done for aesthetic reasons, like, if someone wants multiple coolant colors or something like that.


How much Tubing:

Are you going hard tube or soft tube? Most people these days go hard tube, but honestly the soft stuff is easier to work with.

Unless you are doing something extreme and large, a single box of Primochill Primoflex Advanced LRT (10ft) will be enough with some to spare. I can't tell you exactly how much hard tube to go with though. I've never played with the stuff.

Don't forget your fittings. If you use barb fittings (soft tube only) you only need to match the ID of the tube you have selected. If you go with compression fittings, you have to match both the ID and OD. Be careful when you read the listings, as hard tube compression fittings and soft tube compression fittings are NOT the same, and often it can be difficult to find which is which in the description.

Also, you may want to get some 45 and 90 degree bends, as they will make your life a lot easier, but they do add to the budget. Fittings and bends tend to add up in surprising ways.


General things to look out for:

1.) Don't mix metals. There are some aluminum blocks and radiators out there, but most are copper. Copper performs better, but is also more expensive. If you go copper, keep your loop all copper. If you go aluminum, keep your loop all aluminum. Otherwise you can wind up with what is called "galvanic corrosion", in which the different metal types results in corroding the blocks and/or radiators.

2.) When it comes to fluids, simple is better. The shimmery and opaque ones are really for show purposes only, as the microparticles start gumming up the works. Coolant can have color (but never food coloring, it is mostly sugar which gums up the works and attracts bacterial growth) but generally stick to the translucent coolants. You'll thank me later.

3.) It's easy to buy some relatively cheap pre-mix or concentrate. I like EK's Cryofuel (the transparent ones) and they generally get the balance of surfactants, corrosion inhibitors and growth inhibitors right, so you don't have to worry about that. Just dilute them as prescribed with Distilled Water. If you choose to formulate your own, there are many ways to go. Simple Distilled water and a Copper Sulfate additive like PT Nuke used to be popular back in the day. As is plain Distilled with a silver kill coil. First time you'll have a lot of information overload with all the parts going together, so it's probably better to just use a premix/concentrate the first time. Get more creative in the future.

For a first time build, I'd watch this OLD Jayz 2 Cents video. It may be almost a decade old, but it still captures just about everything a beginner might need in one video in a pretty structured fashion. I'm generally not a huge fan of his, but I found this particular video helpful when I did my first build.



(of course, a lot of this is not relevant if you are doing a hardtube build)


Good luck, and feel free to ask questions.
 
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