Custom water cooling
Custom water cooling: loops built by hand
A custom water cooling loop cools processor and graphics card through its own circuit of block, pump, radiator and tubing. NoMadPC builds such loops by hand in the workshop near Frankfurt, with an open parts list and real photos instead of renders.
AIO or custom loop?
An AIO water cooler is a closed, ready-made system for the processor, low-maintenance and fitted in most of our systems, for example the Arctic Liquid Freezer III 360 in the Tower Gaming. A custom loop is built from individual parts, can cool processor and graphics card together and is designed for low temperatures and quiet operation under sustained load. In return it needs more planning and more care.
Direct-die: the cooler right on the chip
In our custom loops the processor is delidded and the cooling block sits directly on the die, with no heat spreader in between. We use direct-die blocks from Thermal Grizzly. This lowers CPU temperatures significantly and creates headroom for overclocking.
Two examples from the workshop
The parts lists are open, so you know what is inside.
- NoMadPC Signature: AMD Ryzen 7 9850X3D delidded with direct-die cooling, factory liquid-cooled RTX 5090, custom loop with 360 mm radiator and EK Quantum Torque fittings, ASUS ROG Crosshair X870E Apex, be quiet! Light Base 900 DX
- Flickzy Loop (for Flickzy, Fortnite pro at GodLike Esports): Ryzen 9 9950X3D delidded, Thermal Grizzly direct-die, Alphacool Aurora D5 pump with reservoir, Corsair XR7 360 mm, EK Quantum Torque with soft tube, be quiet! Silent Wings Pro 4
Maintenance
A custom loop is not a finished product you can forget about. Coolant, tubing and blocks should be checked regularly; how often depends on the coolant and usage. For questions about care, your fixed point of contact is the same as at purchase.
Matching systems
Frequently asked questions
If low temperatures, quiet operation under sustained load and headroom for overclocking matter to you, yes. For most gaming PCs a good AIO is enough and needs far less care.
The processor is delidded, meaning its heat spreader is removed, and the cooling block sits directly on the chip. This lowers CPU temperatures significantly. We use direct-die blocks from Thermal Grizzly.
For example direct-die blocks from Thermal Grizzly, Alphacool D5 pumps, Corsair XR7 radiators and EK Quantum Torque fittings. Every loop has an open parts list.
Yes. Coolant, tubing and blocks should be checked regularly. An AIO is closed and practically maintenance-free.
Talk to us. Custom loops are one-off builds; whether and how a loop fits your system is clarified during the consultation.
Your own loop
We build custom loops as one-off builds. Tell us what you have in mind, and we tell you what makes sense.