Quote:
Originally Posted by i7monkey 
If I did go custom (which you guys are slowly convincing me of
), how the ^%@ am I supposed to know what I'm doing? Barbs? Compression fittings? ID's OD's? What is what damn it! lol
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That all depends on the final results that you want. I personally care about looks as well as performance. I'd imagine that part of the reason you chose the 800D is because it looks nice as well as having room for a good sized loop internally. There are tons of 800D builds all over the web. Some are very simple and some go all out. I'd look for them and get some ideas.
Some research and patience will go a long way. This will prove essential when putting your rig together and is very important since you live in Canada, assuming you order from the US. You don't want to buy some parts and be short a fitting or two. Careful planning is the key.
Charlie has put together a good list of parts. You really can't go wrong with any of the stuff he has picked out. Some things are based on preference and not solely on performance, but the difference is negligible.
Tubing is based on preference. I'm using 7/16", but a lot of people use 1/2". I actually think 1/2" looks better in larger cases. There are a few cpu blocks that are so close in performance that either would be a good choice. The XSPC rasa is frequently recommended because of it's price and performance. However, I think it's ugly and would go with an EK hf or in my case, I'd like to buy the new Aqua Computer block because it's not so common and still performs well.
When it comes to fittings, that's basically a price thing. Compression fittings look better but cost about 3-4x as much as standard fittings. With compression fittings, you need to mach them to the tubing you use. ID and OD need to the same for both. With standard barbs, you can use 7/16 tubing over 1/2 barbs or same size tubing on barbs.
Radiator brands is once again preference. I have a feser 480 but wouldn't buy another feser product. Not because it performs bad, but because the finish on my rad is terrible and I expect a lot more out of a $150 rad. I like the fit and finish of Black Ice rads and would personally choose an SR-1, had I the opportunity to do things over.
Finally a pump is pretty much preference. The two main competitors are the mcp-655 (D5) and the mcp-355 (DDC). Some may argue the benifits of head pressure vs flow, either will be fine for the majority of loops. Most importantly, IMO, is placement. The D5 is bigger than the DDC and harder to find a good spot for it.
I personally don't like doing cookie cutter builds for people. I normally won't even post in a "build me a loop with X budget" thread. I'm giving my opinion here because I don't want you to make a mistake. I feel that in the long run, you'll be happier picking out your own parts and assembling the loop. I, as well as many on the forum, feel that you should do a custom loop and it seems that you are headed in that direction. With that being said, use the advice that we give, take charlies recommendations in to consideration, and do your homework.
