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[Mod/Build Log] [Beginner] Force1: SR-2, 3-way SLi Titans, Xeons, 3000W of power, LianLi, Water, and Copper

127K views 847 replies 114 participants last post by  PedroC1999 
#1 ·



This is my first official build log. Take it easy please
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UPDATED main post 12/30/2013

Due to the crazy number of changes that have occurred with this rig, I am going to post a brief evolution of it and shortcuts to progress:

- IN THE BEGINNING, Force1 was going to be a watercooled x58 Classified Board, i7 920, three GTX 480's, and a 1500W PSU in my old school LianLi Aluminum case... all because I bought a 670 for my other rig (leaving three gtx 480's nliying around unused)

- THEN, my primary system died, so I had to pull the x58 and 920 for it. Force1 evolved into an SR-2, dual Xeon X5679's, and quad GTX 480's with dual 1500W PSU setup. The LianLi case was modified for the SR-2 to fit in an inverted mount with PCI-E Slots at the top and I/O panel at the bottom.

- NOW, three 480's my two 670's have found a new home... I picked up a 780 Classy HC for my other system and 3 Titans have found a comfy home in Force1... along with a little 2 GB 670
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. So if I complete the case before I get the Titans, two 670 FTW 4Gb cards and a 480 will be installed temporarily so I can get the titans and water blocks. If it looks like it will take to long to acquire the Titans, I will just get one or two more 670's (though I don't want to) no need since I have the Titans
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. The two 1500W Silverstones will still be in the system because I already fabbed everything up for them
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not to mention now with modded BIOS's and 1.4+V I will need all of that power on tap. That is where I'm at for the configuration and I don't think it will change again lol but you never know
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Force1 Project Links/shortcuts

LianLi Case Modding
- Initial Case mod (see below in this 1st post)
- Adding the SR-2 mobo tray
- Fitting the SR-2
- Acrylic Back I/O panel and Top cover
- Initial Acrylic case divider
- Acrylic divider update
- Back inner beauty plate and mystique paint demo
- Case Divider placement with vertical fins attached
- Updated HDD/PWR LED's and Power switch
- Pump divider, beauty plate, and possible front fan placement.
- ST1500 PSU window side blow hole intake vent

Force1 Logo Selection
- Initial Designs

Paint and Color
- First Paint update
- Case primered white

Silverstone Dual ST1500 PSU's
- Initial Fitting (towards the bottom of the linked post)
- Second Fitting (towards the bottom of linked post)
- PSU cutout/mount area on acrylic back panel
- 3rd Final Fitting with case divider in place

Watercooling
- The Radiator (see below in this post)
- Koolance All-in-one unit mod
- SR-2 MIPS blocks
- NATEMAN Doo Full Copper Block Set
- MIPS board blocks and XPSC Cu Ed Blocks installed
- CPU and board block copper tubing 1st attempt
- White Epoxy painting of Tube test (looks like powder coating!!)
- Inlet and outlets for external radiator
- Initial Dual MCP35x Pump placement on divider
- Loop from koolance res to pumps through divider and back out
- Pump divider update and new tubing

Graphics Cards
- TITANS Arrived!
- Titan Hybrid (water/air) cooler initial design idea biggrin.gif
- Titan MCW82 Block Fitting painting update 1
- Titan 90* turn using Swiftech SLI bridge's
- Titan Hybrid Cooling Update 2 (new window fitted)
- Titan ambient lighting ideas 1 (below the SLI Bridge update)
- Titan update (lighting, copper tubes and tubing brackets)
- Titan update and decision to use my creation or Heatkiller's creation (poll included)
- Titan Pipe work and Placement update
- Titan Pipe work and Placement update 2
- Titan Trio complete
- ELWire in top Titan
- GTX 670 Cooler Mods First Fitment of the Cooler
- GTX 670 plumbing
- Titan copper conduit for power delivery setup #1 (a few other ideas I'm tossing around)



I have dual Silverstone ST1500W PSU to ensure the video cards of my choice, x5679's, and all my watercooling gear have all the juice they could ever want for this project. The ST1500's actually run at a decent efficiency in the 30-60% load range
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I decided that I would be using an external radiator setup after building my "Supa Troopa" setup. It had two 140 rads, a 280, and a 240 mounted inside of a Stormtrooper case. I didn't want that for this build so I decided on this:



The 670 box is for reference.... this thing is ginormous! Its a Watercool MO-RA3 420 Core Radiator. A thing of beauty really (to me anyway). I have some Koolance 1/2 ID 3/4 OD quick disconnects (picture above) to hook it to the box.




At first I thought I would incorporate the rig into a desk, cabinet, or wall with some acryilic... but I just couldn't stand the thought of my old-school LianLi PC-7077A full tower case going to waste. Seeming how i had this shiny new Dremel 3000 and various tools laying around I started modding the case lol. Here is what the case looks like out of the box:



Unfortunately I didn't get to snap any pictures before I started cutting. Didn't intend on doing what I did but you ALL know how that goes. Once you start it is hard to stop! I decided to do the ever so common motherboard tray flip. I almost didn't do it because the back of the LianLi case is formed from the same piece of aluminum that the bottom of the case is. This required me cutting the entire back of the case loose from the bottom. I measured the length of the aluminum at the top and cut the same distance from the bottom.







The result was actually better than I thought. I don't have any "forming" tools here so I just cut a piece of aluminum bar and riveted it to the new bottom and back. I drilled new holes in the top for the factory rivet locations and put everything in place. I then test fitted the top and side covers to ensure that the case frame remained in form.

I was going to add an aluminum cable channel up to the top from PSUs, but the SR-2 is too long for that. So cabling will be tucked behind the board where it extends past my mobo tray. I will be building a divider to separate the top from the bottom of the case as well.

After spending enough to build a nice system on fittings in my Supa Troopa build, I decided that I wanted to try out copper tubing for this build instead.


 
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#2 ·
Well, the Rampage Extreme mobo in my other rig died last night so looks like the x58 setup that was going in this project will be replacing my Rex in the Stupa Troopa build.
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Time to figure out what I want to put in project Force1 now. I'm thinking I may go with the SR-2 with dual X5690 Xeon's and mod the case again to fit it. We'll see.
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. I still can't believe that the x5690's are $1k each used. Its crazy that you pay that much extra for the high multiplier on the chip. :/
 
#4 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by Shadow_Foxx View Post

That is a big case and rad! I would love to see some SR2 action
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well... I suppose you will see some SR-2 with dual x5679 Xeon action indeed good sir.
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. I think I will be getting the SR-2, CPU's and an SR-2 mobo tray next week
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. Looks like I need to pick up another Raystorm copper block and an SR-2 block lol
 
#5 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by kpforce1 View Post

well... I suppose you will see some SR-2 with dual x5679 Xenon action indeed good sir.
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. I think I will be getting the SR-2, CPU's and an SR-2 mobo tray next week
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. Looks like I need to pick up another Raystorm copper block and an SR-2 block lol
I will be watching
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#6 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by Shadow_Foxx View Post

I will be watching
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Yes! I have my first stalker
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haha j/k but I do appreciate the interest in the build. The Folding bug is quite ridiculous... can't think of a better benchmark than one that supports a great cause
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. Before my other rigs board crapped out I wouldn't touch it once I started folding
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just because I was getting what I though to an awesome 33k ppd lol.... I can't wait to see what the SR-2 setup with the 3 x 480's and possibly a 670 will do
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#7 ·
***Update***

I got the SR-2 and Xeon X5679's over the weekend. I was hoping to get the SR-2 motherboard tray so I could do some fitting/fabbing in the Lan-Li case but it didn't show up. Hopefully this week
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. I also decided to run a dedicated 240V outlet on its own circuit for this project considering that it will have 4 GTX 480's now lol... I know they are ******ed but hey, I found the 4th new for $170 shipped. Picked up another Swiftech MC82 block and full cover heat sink for it as well. Oh, I also picked up a "Watt Meter" just because I'm sure that I Really don't want to know what kind of power it will pull from the wall.... atleast with the 240V the PSU(s) will be a little more efficient (I hope haha).

I'm hoping to get the SR-2 and Xeons up and testing this week to ensure I don't have duds/DOA's. I've also been slowly putting my x58 system together in my storm trooper case... I lost the stand-off's for my EK supreme Gold backplate grrrrrrr. Had to make some out of a derlin spacer I had laying around. Needless to say my fingers are sore from sanding 4 of them to the right height. When I get the x58 system up and runnig I can devote all of my geek time to the Force1 build.
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I found a MIPS SR-2 block from a fellow OC.net member and I hope to get that in my grubby little hands sometime soon as well if all works out.
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Back to work
Kp
 
#9 ·
GL with the build.

480s....
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#11 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by Fuganater View Post

What size tubing is that?
3/8 Copper tubing. I thought about using a little larger but I had 3/8" ID tubing on my other rig in spots along with a million fittings (3/8" ID also) and I never had any flow issues. 3/8" copper will be cleaner for what I want to do with the build as well I think.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Dmac73 View Post

GL with the build.
480s....
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Thanks Dmac73!
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I'll need all the luck I can get haha
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Uliena View Post

Grats on great hardware tulee. I think this will be build worth of following.
I'm glad that you think so Uliena... I do appreciate it. I really hope that others can enjoy it as much as I will building it
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On another note. My SR-2 motherboard tray was delivered yesterday but I have to drive 40 miles to go pick it up. I forgot to have it shipped to my other address. Duh! :/ Also the mystique flip flop paint looks amazing on the swiftech 480 cover and the EVGA backplate... much better than I would have thought. I am still trying to decide on the paint scheme for the project.
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With the tower being aluminum, I could get crazy and polish it to a mirror shine... or paint it black and use the mystique paint, or paint it high gloss white, or outside of the case gloss black with the inside white and the copper tubing mystique..... ***sigh*** just too many options lol.

Any input on the color scheme would be appreciated
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The 4th 480 block, cover, and backplate should arrive tomorrow along with my other Copper raystom CPU block.
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#12 ·
I got the mobo tray yesterday
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I already did a rough cut and placed it into the case to see how it fits. I'll have to modify the back panel a bit. I'll post pics soon

***edit*** pics below
 
#13 ·
Alright, here are the pics

First couple are of how the tray came.... it really was a nice piece and very sturdy. It was made to have an outside shell cover it via screws. I was suprised at the quality coming from fleabay lol



I had to drill all out the 50 or some pop-rivets i used to put the old tray in with... ended up with a bare shell of a case
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.... then I cut the majority of the fleabay SR-2 tray apart and did a test fitting in the Lan Li.... oh, and cutting a steel formed tray with a dremel takes FOREVER!! lol I forgot to grab my jigsaw so had the use the good 'ole dremel and a cutting disk


You can see in these pictures that I really will not have to do that much modification for it to fit right. I'll drill holes up top for rivets, reposition the front tray support and rivet it, cut the back of the case to fit the new 10 slot SR-2 tray, fab up a new bolt on back cover, and a few small things.


And I'm still trying to figure out what the color scheme is going to be.... need ideas.... :thumbs: till next time
 
#14 ·
subbed!
 
#15 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by kpforce1 View Post

I found a MIPS SR-2 block from a fellow OC.net member and I hope to get that in my grubby little hands sometime soon as well if all works out.
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Kp
according to the tracking it's arrived, got any pics of it? I want to make sure it arrived safely
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H3||scr3am
 
#16 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by H3||scr3am View Post

according to the tracking it's arrived, got any pics of it? I want to make sure it arrived safely
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H3||scr3am
Well of course they arrived unscathed H3||scr3am
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Yet again another fabulous transaction with an OC.net member
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Thanks again

Glad I was able to find the MIPS block set in North America somewhere vs Europe lol
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#17 ·
Got packaged on my leather couch, and arrived on yours
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glad to see it arrived in great shape
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I never got a chance to use it, so let us know the temps
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subbed!

H3||scr3am
 
#18 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by H3||scr3am View Post

Got packaged on my leather couch, and arrived on yours
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glad to see it arrived in great shape
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I never got a chance to use it, so let us know the temps
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subbed!
H3||scr3am
For sure! And I just saw your "SR-2 can do 5 GiggleHertz" in your avitar lol.... that is great. That is why I wanted a set of x5680's or equivalent (or better) so I could shoot for 5+ "GiggleHertz" lol
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Hope the x5679's i got are up to the task
 
#19 ·
sadly the 5Ghz is only when my turbo clock kicks in... but it's worth some points in HWbot
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http://www.hwbot.org/submission/1038496_h3llscr3am_cpu_frequency_2x_xeon_x5650_5000.23_mhz

it was 3rd place until about 2 weeks ago
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but it's hard with 2x lol, the others are getting on top because they use a single CPU board to take my crown
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lol and LN2 etc
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But good luck on the 5Ghz + stable... not sure if it'll work 24/7 but best of luck on getting it to
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just watch the temps... maybe consider getting a water chiller....

H3||scr3am
 
#20 ·
Ok, I've done some more fitting today.... keeping everything square so there is no tweaking of the mother board and video cards turned out to be much harder than I anticipated lol. However, I did get the tray in position and modified it for my dual PSU plans
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. Look how perfectly the top video card fits... can you say acrylic window in the top of the case with some ambient lighting??
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Oh yes




After fitting the SR-2 and a gtx 480, I decided to fit the 1500W PSU and a dummy PSU to see how the dual 1500 W PSU's would fit at the bottom
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. Looks like I need to do a little more trim work on the motherboard tray that butts up agains the PSU's. Two ST1500 Watt Silverstones will fit beautifully down there though! Yes! I am also going to make a mount plate with a handle so I can install and uninstall both PSU's from the back of the case... cause there is no way with what I have planned that I would be able to take the out from inside the case lol
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And did I mention this SR-2 is HUGE!! Pictures do not do this thing justice at all. I'm stress testing my x58 i7 920 rig today along with trying to work on Force1 and doing house hold choores/cleaning... hope I can make some more progress today and update you all on my work. Untill next time folks!

Kp
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#22 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by Fuganater View Post

My god this rig is gonna be huge and heavy!
Honestly, the Lan Li case is a full tower so it isn't as rediculous as some of the other options that natively fit the SR-2 form factor... this will probably be on of the "smaller" cases that is housing one of these lol.

I will agree on the heavy statement... luckily the radiator(s) are not going to be in the case. They are going to be external hooked up via quick disconnects and 8 foot of tubing. I'm going to have to put caster wheels on this thing for sure
 
#23 ·
What kind of external rad setup are you going to have? I built my own rad stand and it works out quite nicely. You can use better fans/rads than I did to get better results with such hot GPUs. Also you can make it taller and wider to fit your needs.
 
#26 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by Fuganater View Post

What kind of external rad setup are you going to have? I built my own rad stand and it works out quite nicely. You can use better fans/rads than I did to get better results with such hot GPUs. Also you can make it taller and wider to fit your needs.
A massive watercool radiator


Quote:
Originally Posted by TheReciever View Post

put waterblocks on them and get 7 480's folding
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I have water blocks for the 480s
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and I will be folding with them... hence the dual 1500W PSUs
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Quote:
Originally Posted by milkychipz View Post

Be sure to provide a few benchmarks of the overclocking you'll be doing on those chips, a request for 3DMark11 in particular please.
Will do once everything is up and running... may be a bit but I'll get there.
 
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