Everything went wrong... Water Cooled 8K Camera Final Test

The video documents Linus and team attempting to water cool a RED 8K camera during a final test. It opens by outlining the ambitious project and the intent to reassemble and leak test a complex cooling loop before installing it into the camera. The crew describes their parts list, including a radiator, a pump, and custom cooling blocks, and they discuss the difficulty of bending heat pipes to exact specifications. They encounter multiple mechanical hurdles, such as sourcing precise fittings, dealing with under and overbent hoses, and struggling with gasket sealing. The team performs iterative leak testing, using teflon tape and a leak tester, and experiences a leak at various joints that forces them to adjust and reseal several components. Eventually they manage a functional assembly, reassemble the camera, and power it up to run a full temperature and acoustics test, comparing the water-cooled setup against the camera’s stock cooling. The results show sensor temperatures around 39 degrees Celsius and noise staying well below the office ambient level, indicating a successful cooling improvement. The video closes with reflections on the process, acknowledging both the chaos and the likely real performance gains, and teases related cooling projects and product shoutouts from Micro Center and partners. Throughout, the team interleaves humor and candid banter, underscoring the trial-and-error nature of hardware tinkering at this scale.

Topics · technology · hardware · DIY · engineering