Project BLACK ICE
Summary
Build log for my dream game system. I do not consider myself to be an expert in the OC area but I have built my fair share of rigs and this will be my 3rd watercooled system.
Objective
Complete a high performance gaming rig with optimum watercooling NO external radiators and NO extensive case modifications while keeping the rig neat, clean, and not so hard on the eyes. My last rig was the opposite where I modified a Cosmo S case and had a 4x140mm radiator externally off the back. My goal this time will be to fit a 3x120mm and two 1x140mm radiators inside the case.
Today's participants from the hardware corner....please feel free to offer your recommendations and thoughts should I need to make some last minute roster changes...after all this is my dream system
Hardware! (Click to show)
Today's participants from the watercooling corner. H2O! (Click to show)
Last from the fans, lighting, misc corner. Fans & Lighting (Click to show)
Starting Thoughts
I am really going to do my best to not modify the 800d case. This is a personal challenge for me to see how creatively I can get all of the components in there without having to reingineer the case itself. I also hope this will server as a template for entry level watercoolers out there that want to dive into this fun and fascinating world but may be intimidated by some of the more advanced build logs out there.
Eventhough this is just the beginning of the log it's not official without some sort of proof so here is a shot of my treasure chest!
I know they are not in the picture but I assure you I have the 690's in my possession (or I should say my wifes). I will get a pic of them up Friday night when I get back from business. I will be officially starting this build on Saturday and am hoping to get a large portion of it done and posted by the end of the weekend.
Thanks for following in advance and I hope my log can help someone out how so many of these threads have helped me in the past!
Cheers,
Antjel
Friday June 22, 2012 The Good and already the Bad! (Click to show)
Monday July 2, 2012 And now for something completely different...oh wait yes more logging (Click to show)
Ok so it took a little while to get my board replaced and during that time I ordered some M3x0.50x50mm screws among other little goodies to help me along...
While I was waiting for all the fun stuff to arrive I took the liberty to flush my RADs...Everyone has their own process for flushing and I found this way on youtube and liked the idea since last time I was filling and shaking with vinegar and water for days trying to get everything out.
Radiator Flushing Video
I ran each of of my radiators for 30min-1hr with distilled water. Surprisingly these Alphacool UT60s were pretty clean straight out of the box. My previous XSPCs had a little more bits and pieces come out. However, I wouldn't endorse skipping the flushing process on either.
Moving on I also mounted my MCP35x2 pump. As you can see in the pic I managed to keep in line with my no mod mantra and utilized the existing holes on my hard drive cage. I was also lucky enough to find holes to line up and not obstruct either of the two tooless rails!
I also chose to mount the Corsair Link in the lower HD slot. Here is a shot of it. It comes with two additional smaller modules one for the LED light strips and the other for the Fan and Temps sensors. I will be adding an additional Fan module "Cooling Node" to support the pump as well. Apparently there is some issues with the fan controller and pumps at this time so I may be running at full speed all the time at first but I think I can handle that until a new version of the software is released.
Lastly I had to break down and mod a little. For those of you familiar with the 800d there is a fan cover over the HD bay. Since my pump is now feeding into it I decided to put a hole and a grommet in it to feed the lines out. This was done with a dremel (poorly, I hope Mr. Armageddon isn't watching!). I used a spare grommet for the 800d I had and viola it almost looks like it belongs there
Final Thoughts
I have started dry fitting everything to finalize my plumbing. The EVGA x79 blocks were just released so I had to grab them and add them to the build. They will be arriving this week and then I will be mounting everything, running the plumbing and starting my leak test. I am really excited to kick this build off, those 690's are haunting me and I can't wait to see what they can do.
Edited by Antjel - 7/2/12 at 7:31pm
Summary
Build log for my dream game system. I do not consider myself to be an expert in the OC area but I have built my fair share of rigs and this will be my 3rd watercooled system.
Objective
Complete a high performance gaming rig with optimum watercooling NO external radiators and NO extensive case modifications while keeping the rig neat, clean, and not so hard on the eyes. My last rig was the opposite where I modified a Cosmo S case and had a 4x140mm radiator externally off the back. My goal this time will be to fit a 3x120mm and two 1x140mm radiators inside the case.
Today's participants from the hardware corner....please feel free to offer your recommendations and thoughts should I need to make some last minute roster changes...after all this is my dream system
Hardware! (Click to show)- Corsair Obsidian 800d
- EVGA x79 FTW Motherboard
- Intel 3930k
- Corsair Dominator 16gb
- Two EVGA 690 GTX Vid Cards
- Corsair AX1200 Power Supply
- Corsair Force GT 480gb SSD
- Lite-On Blu-Ray burner
Today's participants from the watercooling corner. H2O! (Click to show)
- MCP35x2 Pump
- FrozenQ Fusion core Bay reservoir
- Primochill Pro LRT UV Blue 1/2" ID 3/4" OD
- One - UT60 3x120mm Radiator
- Two - UT60 1x140mm Radiators
- Two - Koolance 690 waterblocks
- Swiftech APOGEE HD Ultimate Extreme Performance Water Block - Black
- Fill port, drains, valves, flow sensor, temp sensor and assorted bitspower compression fittings.
Last from the fans, lighting, misc corner. Fans & Lighting (Click to show)
- Corsair Link Fan and Lighting module
- Corsair AF140mm Silent Fans
- Corsair AF 120mm Silent Fans
- Modright sound dampening material.
Starting Thoughts
I am really going to do my best to not modify the 800d case. This is a personal challenge for me to see how creatively I can get all of the components in there without having to reingineer the case itself. I also hope this will server as a template for entry level watercoolers out there that want to dive into this fun and fascinating world but may be intimidated by some of the more advanced build logs out there.
Eventhough this is just the beginning of the log it's not official without some sort of proof so here is a shot of my treasure chest!
I know they are not in the picture but I assure you I have the 690's in my possession (or I should say my wifes). I will get a pic of them up Friday night when I get back from business. I will be officially starting this build on Saturday and am hoping to get a large portion of it done and posted by the end of the weekend.
Thanks for following in advance and I hope my log can help someone out how so many of these threads have helped me in the past!
Cheers,
Antjel
Friday June 22, 2012 The Good and already the Bad! (Click to show)
Well I am just getting started and even though you think all of those hours of research have paid off it only takes 1 min to realize your giant Corsair 800d isn't big enough for your EVGA x79 Classified. Oye! Well I will be swapping the bad boy out for the EVGA x79 FTW now. This is going to slow my build down a little but I can start mounting the other components in the meantime.
Speaking of other components I installed the FrozenQ Fusion Core Bay Reservoir. In addition I ran a fill port from the top of the case to the reservoir for easy access. However installing the tubing was the hardest part.
I only mounted the reservoir on the back side of the case. This did require the drilling of two holes since it seems you still can't get a reservoir that supports tooless rails. The good thing is drilling holes is an easy mod and because the mounting clips are oval shaped you can really just eye it and make the hole. Here is a pic of where I drilled my holes.
Since I only mounted the res on one side I noticed with the the front panel back on it wasn't resting flush. I solved this problem by using a little bit of sound dampening material I got on close out from Performance PCs. You can get a pack for $1.99 right now and it make great filler if you need just a little spacer or wedge. It's soft and anti-vibration to boot so you can't go wrong. WIN! You can see the material on the right in the pic below.
For the fill port I just used a 1" hole saw drill bit to install. With any luck this will be the last case modification for this build. In the pic below you can see how I ran the tubing from the fill port to the res.
The last pic shows the final look with the res and fill port on the case.
That's all for tonight guys. I am going to start planning my pump placement tomorrow and spend the remainder of tonight drinking to forget my big snafu with the mobo selection.
Cheers,
Antjel
Oh I almost forgot...As promised proof of the 690's and I will be going with the koolance blocks. I had already ordered them before the EVGA hyrdo's were released and I am looking into something more creative to do with the LED's off of the cards.
Speaking of other components I installed the FrozenQ Fusion Core Bay Reservoir. In addition I ran a fill port from the top of the case to the reservoir for easy access. However installing the tubing was the hardest part.
I only mounted the reservoir on the back side of the case. This did require the drilling of two holes since it seems you still can't get a reservoir that supports tooless rails. The good thing is drilling holes is an easy mod and because the mounting clips are oval shaped you can really just eye it and make the hole. Here is a pic of where I drilled my holes.
Since I only mounted the res on one side I noticed with the the front panel back on it wasn't resting flush. I solved this problem by using a little bit of sound dampening material I got on close out from Performance PCs. You can get a pack for $1.99 right now and it make great filler if you need just a little spacer or wedge. It's soft and anti-vibration to boot so you can't go wrong. WIN! You can see the material on the right in the pic below.
For the fill port I just used a 1" hole saw drill bit to install. With any luck this will be the last case modification for this build. In the pic below you can see how I ran the tubing from the fill port to the res.
The last pic shows the final look with the res and fill port on the case.
That's all for tonight guys. I am going to start planning my pump placement tomorrow and spend the remainder of tonight drinking to forget my big snafu with the mobo selection.
Cheers,
Antjel
Oh I almost forgot...As promised proof of the 690's and I will be going with the koolance blocks. I had already ordered them before the EVGA hyrdo's were released and I am looking into something more creative to do with the LED's off of the cards.
Monday July 2, 2012 And now for something completely different...oh wait yes more logging (Click to show)
Ok so it took a little while to get my board replaced and during that time I ordered some M3x0.50x50mm screws among other little goodies to help me along...
While I was waiting for all the fun stuff to arrive I took the liberty to flush my RADs...Everyone has their own process for flushing and I found this way on youtube and liked the idea since last time I was filling and shaking with vinegar and water for days trying to get everything out.
Radiator Flushing Video
I ran each of of my radiators for 30min-1hr with distilled water. Surprisingly these Alphacool UT60s were pretty clean straight out of the box. My previous XSPCs had a little more bits and pieces come out. However, I wouldn't endorse skipping the flushing process on either.
Moving on I also mounted my MCP35x2 pump. As you can see in the pic I managed to keep in line with my no mod mantra and utilized the existing holes on my hard drive cage. I was also lucky enough to find holes to line up and not obstruct either of the two tooless rails!
I also chose to mount the Corsair Link in the lower HD slot. Here is a shot of it. It comes with two additional smaller modules one for the LED light strips and the other for the Fan and Temps sensors. I will be adding an additional Fan module "Cooling Node" to support the pump as well. Apparently there is some issues with the fan controller and pumps at this time so I may be running at full speed all the time at first but I think I can handle that until a new version of the software is released.
Lastly I had to break down and mod a little. For those of you familiar with the 800d there is a fan cover over the HD bay. Since my pump is now feeding into it I decided to put a hole and a grommet in it to feed the lines out. This was done with a dremel (poorly, I hope Mr. Armageddon isn't watching!). I used a spare grommet for the 800d I had and viola it almost looks like it belongs there
Final Thoughts
I have started dry fitting everything to finalize my plumbing. The EVGA x79 blocks were just released so I had to grab them and add them to the build. They will be arriving this week and then I will be mounting everything, running the plumbing and starting my leak test. I am really excited to kick this build off, those 690's are haunting me and I can't wait to see what they can do.
Edited by Antjel - 7/2/12 at 7:31pm
BlackIce
(18 items) |
|
BlackIce
(18 items) |
