TechTuber Builds Custom Direct-To-Die Watercooler For GPU; Performs Better Than AIO Cooler

TechTuber TrashBench recently conducted a groundbreaking watercooler experiment, directly pumping water onto the die of a GPU for the first time. The unconventional method raises a simple question: why do we need metal at all? TrashBench aimed to create a custom, 3D-printed GPU "waterblock" without a traditional metal block sitting atop the silicon, ensuring the pump doesn't leak.

Despite the simplicity of the goal, the process proved challenging. Initially, TrashBench used a dead NVIDIA RTX 3060 as the prototype, successfully creating a workable direct-to-die model before testing it on a GTX 980 card. The first trial and error phase concluded with using a more powerful RTX 2060 as the test subject. For comparison, TrashBench measured performance against a conventional AIO cooler from Arctic.

The direct-to-die custom watercooler significantly reduced temperatures by 8°C across Unigine Heaven and Cyberpunk 2077 benchmarks. Running the custom watercooler at -28°C water, the RTX 2060 dropped to a cool 13°C, while the AIO cooler peaked at 39°C. Although the performance of TrashBench's custom watercooler was less effective on a CPU, the results proved that the direct-to-die method works well, provided it is executed correctly.