First-time building a custom loop. Stick to kits?

[3link]

I want to transition from AIOs to a custom loop build.  However, I have been watching a lot of videos on the subject and I'm a little intimidated by everything that could go wrong. 

 

I have found that there are several all-inclusive kits that are advertised as being friendly to first-timers like myself.  I've got my eye on this one from EK.  But I haven't been able to find many reviews for it.  I also found  this one from Corsair and this one from Thermaltake but the reviews for those two are not so great.

 

I suppose I have two questions.  First, does anyone have any experience with these kits (particularly the EK one)?  Second, as a general matter, are these kits just a waste of money?  Am I better off just using EK's configurator?

Oh wait.  That's three questions.  Fuck.

[RONOTHAN##]

Piecing together a custom loop isn't quite as hard as piecing together a computer, since there's a bit less to worry about for compatibility. You basically just need to make sure that all your radiators will fit, the blocks will fit what you're planning to put them on, and that the fittings are all the same size as your tubing. You would need to do the first two with the kits anyway, so might as well try to save a few dollars and piece it together. They aren't a huge premium going for them, and there are sometimes when it is cheaper to buy the kit, so if you would rather not worry about how many fittings to get and such, sure get one, but most of the time it would make more sense to just piece it together yourself. The EK configurator is a pretty good option, especially for a beginner, but I would mainly use that for figuring out what parts to get, then price shop among other retail sites to try to save some money (custom loops are expensive to begin with, might as well try to save a few dollars somewhere)

[SorryBella]

1 minute ago, RONOTHAN## said:

The EK configurator is a pretty good option

Well so does their kits available in more market, even their older kit is still gonna give you more upgradability than AIOs.

 

And Imo, youre pretty much on track. Pick something compatible with a good radiator and reliable pump and fittings, and youre going to be off to the races.

[rafe_28]

I am doing my own first custom water loop once parts arrive and i dont think Kits help. They are just another way of buying parts but woth less flexobility. Only speaking for EK there. Maybe u get some discounts when buying kits somewhere else. And u need to learn about the parts anyway to build and understand what your doing so why not do that before a purchase and maybe get some other parts that fit you better which you wouldnt get in a kit.

[Ravendarat]

The first loop I did I ordered all my own parts, I ordered my rad and tubing from primochill and ordered a bunch of fittings and a cpu block from bykski, bought a distro plate/pump from somewhere else and ordered my gpu block straight from evga. No idea if I paid more or less than buying a kit but I liked the fact that I was able to get everything I wanted, also I was able to order some extra fittings and what not without spending a fortune as I bought them in bulk from ali express