Planning my first custom loop

[silk186]

I just finished my system last night and have everything up and running. I will add a GPU next week and buy water cooling parts the month after.

 

Specs:

• LIAN LI O11 EVO RGB white
• AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D
• Thermalright Peerless Assassin 120 SE
• Gigabyte X870E AORUS PRO ICE
• Corsair VENGEANCE RGB 2x32GB 6800
• WD Black sn850x 2TB & 4TB
• Super Flower LEADEX VII GX 1000w

I will be going with Bykski and Barrow, unless i find a better price on a pump res combo, unless I find a better price on something:

 

My issue is ... too many choices. 

First, loop layout. Do I put the pump res in the front of the case or in the back. I'm not having luck finding a ton of examples for the evo RGB.

Next, parts selection, so many choices.

My plan is 3x 360 rads. I was going to go with a distro plate, but ... it will require me to put the front post back in the case, not sure if I want to go that route.

Where is the best place to get this kind of info and is there any site or software for planning the loop path. Obviously, I'm going to need a lot of fittings, but how many and which ones I don't know.

Where can i find a comparison between radiators, CPU blocks, GPU block and pump from Bykski and Barrow?

 

If I understand correctly, uni inf fans are 25mm so i can fit 40/45mm rads

 

[NorKris]

is it ur pc?

[PDifolco]

1 hour ago, NorKris said:

is it ur pc?

If yes OP should keep it like this, it's magnificent 

And really a 3x360 loop for a 9800x3d is useless, only thing that may benefit of a loop is the non yet existent GPU...

[silk186]

1 minute ago, PDifolco said:

If yes OP should keep it like this, it's magnificent 

And really a 3x360 loop for a 9800x3d is useless, only thing that may benefit of a loop is the non yet existent GPU...

yes, i built it 2 days ago and just finished setting up all of the software.

Water cooling is never necessary. One of the reasons for upgrading is that my laptop is annoyingly loud. That and fans dying and overheating while gaming. Noise is a major reason, that's why I want to do a custom loop. It's also why I bought a larger case. Another reason is that parts are much cheaper in China and I finally have expendable income.

[NorKris]

the no intake fans (no reverse blade fans mentioned in specs)  and the fans on the cooler the wrong way  might make it noisy

 

 

[PDifolco]

35 minutes ago, silk186 said:

yes, i built it 2 days ago and just finished setting up all of the software.

Water cooling is never necessary. One of the reasons for upgrading is that my laptop is annoyingly loud. That and fans dying and overheating while gaming. Noise is a major reason, that's why I want to do a custom loop. It's also why I bought a larger case. Another reason is that parts are much cheaper in China and I finally have expendable income.

Your TR PA120 shouldn't make much noise anyway

Now for the GPU noise will depend on the model you get, some are silent, and you'll need a waterblock, which doesn't exist for all models, especially on new cards

[NorKris]

3 minutes ago, PDifolco said:

Your TR PA120 shouldn't make much noise anyway

 

max fan speed can make abit of noise  

[PDifolco]

2 minutes ago, NorKris said:

max fan speed can make abit of noise  

Just put the speed down, the last 20% of speed is 90% more noise for 10% performance

A 9800X3D is 120W max, and don't get hot anyway, I suppose even 50% speed is ok

[NorKris]

9 minutes ago, PDifolco said:

Just put the speed down, the last 20% of speed is 90% more noise for 10% performance

A 9800X3D is 120W max, and don't get hot anyway, I suppose even 50% speed is ok

but again   no air    (my colleague's  9800x3d got 75c with the same cooler and airflow...) 

[PDifolco]

4 minutes ago, NorKris said:

but again   no air    (my colleague  9800x3d got 75c with the same cooler and airflow...) 

You mean fans orientations are bad ? On the cooler definitely, for the rest not sure as LL makes reverse fan blades

I was talking about properly installed fans anyway

[NorKris]

2 minutes ago, PDifolco said:

You mean fans orientations are bad ? On the cooler definitely, for the rest not sure as LL makes reverse fan blades

I was talking about properly installed fans anyway

 

cooler be singing

 

 

[jaslion]

Op just so you know air is the quetest way of cooling. Pump noise is a real thing. Especially when you start doing a BIG loop like you are. You can cool a 4090  + 9800x3d on a single 360mm rad AND have it be quiet and the pump can then also be running much slower which makes a big difference.

 

Also if there's current nosie issues witht he pc that is because your fan config is wrong.

 

The thermalright cooler is blowing air inwards to the case and every single fan you have is moving air out. The fans are fighting against negative pressure and themselves here. Since it's an o11 these are actually made to have all fans as intake and nothing in the back. That or have some in some exhaust just NOT all exhaust as that just doesn't work.

 

Also keep in mind watercooling is a project that keeps going. Stuff needs maintenance but you can keep it quite maintenance free.

 

It's also TERRIBLE for upgrading as it's super hostile.

[silk186]

On 3/8/2025 at 7:54 PM, jaslion said:

Op just so you know air is the quetest way of cooling. Pump noise is a real thing. Especially when you start doing a BIG loop like you are. You can cool a 4090  + 9800x3d on a single 360mm rad AND have it be quiet and the pump can then also be running much slower which makes a big difference.

 

Also if there's current nosie issues witht he pc that is because your fan config is wrong.

 

The thermalright cooler is blowing air inwards to the case and every single fan you have is moving air out. The fans are fighting against negative pressure and themselves here. Since it's an o11 these are actually made to have all fans as intake and nothing in the back. That or have some in some exhaust just NOT all exhaust as that just doesn't work.

 

Also keep in mind watercooling is a project that keeps going. Stuff needs maintenance but you can keep it quite maintenance free.

 

It's also TERRIBLE for upgrading as it's super hostile.

Thanks for the info. It is my laptop that is annoyingly loud. I have a big fish tank in my livingroom, so I can't hear my desktop at all. It has 10x120 uni-inf fans. 6x intake + 4x exhaust.

 

In terms of rad thickness, what is recommended for the o11 evo RGB?

[jaslion]

31 minutes ago, silk186 said:

Thanks for the info. It is my laptop that is annoyingly loud. I have a big fish tank in my livingroom, so I can't hear my desktop at all. It has 10x120 uni-inf fans. 6x intake + 4x exhaust.

 

In terms of rad thickness, what is recommended for the o11 evo RGB?

If you cant hear it then I REALLY wouldnt do it.

 

Else rad thickness doesnt matter since you want 3 360mm ones.

[silk186]

On 3/8/2025 at 6:19 PM, NorKris said:

the no intake fans (no reverse blade fans mentioned in specs)  and the fans on the cooler the wrong way  might make it noisy

 

 

I have 6 intake and 4 exhaust fans. I followed a guide on the CPU cooler fans, I'll check it out tomorrow.

[NorKris]

1 hour ago, silk186 said:

I have 6 intake and 4 exhaust fans. I followed a guide on the CPU cooler fans, I'll check it out tomorrow.

are they reverse? hard to tell from pics but looks like normal fans

[silk186]

7 hours ago, NorKris said:

are they reverse? hard to tell from pics but looks like normal fans

yes

[silk186]

Ordered and waiting to ship:

• 3x Bykski 360mm x 40mm RC Series Radiator
• 1x Bykski Armored End Port GPU Waterblock (N-IG5080ULOC-X)

 

Still needed:

• Pump - Alphacool (VPP APEX) black or iceman (655 D5) white 360 pump res combo
• CPU block - Alphacool Core 1 or Core 1 LT
• Barrow fittings and coolant

 

Does the Alphacool Core 1 include the AMD performance offset?