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Thought I would throw up my log - not expecting to impress anyone - so down the road if I have questions or if someone wants to see a function-over-form build... they can see this one.
![smile.gif]()
I've probably built about 100-200 PC's over the years, but haven't built a water-cooled rig since the first socket-based Celerons were released - and it was a horribly ugly and cobbled together piece of crap.
THE CONCEPT:
Something that is much more overkill in the cooling department than in the actual hardware department - to be used primarily as a ludicrously overpowered work computer (if it weren't for running a VM for compatibility testing... I could use a 486 and notepad for most of my work). However, since it will also be used for gaming when time allows, I also want decent performance that will either allow for multiple screens or a 30" single display - to be determined later because I can run on one or two 24" displays I already have in the meantime or possibly use TB to use my 27" iMac as a display.
I'm not going for 'pretty' although aesthetics will be considered where budget and time allows - but I am looking for good performance with as close to total silence as possible. As you might have guessed by the name... where possible everything will be purchased in black, with black and more black as accents... although I'm not going to replace/paint anything that comes in nickel/chrome or raw copper - I don't have the time or the skill to make this have a good result. Besides that, if I can afford to replace functional parts for pure aesthetics... then I could afford to increase the performance and just leave the appearance as it is.
THE BUDGET & PARTS:
I'm keeping the budget pretty small (at least in comparison to many of the incredible builds I've had the pleasure of following here) but also fairly flexible. I'm going to try to stay under $4K for everything... and the farther under that mark without compromising cooling potential and operational silence the better - i.e. the sooner I can upgrade the display(s).
Parts on hand:
Since almost everyone posting in this forum has more experience than I do (in watercooling at least) and significantly more experience and talent in modding - please feel free to comment, give advice, and point out where I'm being stupid... I'll try to accept it all gracefully - although I can't guarantee success in that endeavor.
![biggrin.gif]()
And if you're someone considering something so 'pedestrian' as my build... feel free to ask me any questions and hopefully some of my discoveries and stupid mistakes will help you avoid some of your own down the road.
![smile.gif]()
UPDATES COMING SOON!!!
So it's not really fast, it certainly isn't cheap - and I'm working hard to make sure that it actually is going to be attractive this time around. However still going for performance and silence over beauty if there's a compromise that absolutely HAS to be made in that area!
![biggrin.gif]()
THE CONCEPT:
Something that is much more overkill in the cooling department than in the actual hardware department - to be used primarily as a ludicrously overpowered work computer (if it weren't for running a VM for compatibility testing... I could use a 486 and notepad for most of my work). However, since it will also be used for gaming when time allows, I also want decent performance that will either allow for multiple screens or a 30" single display - to be determined later because I can run on one or two 24" displays I already have in the meantime or possibly use TB to use my 27" iMac as a display.
I'm not going for 'pretty' although aesthetics will be considered where budget and time allows - but I am looking for good performance with as close to total silence as possible. As you might have guessed by the name... where possible everything will be purchased in black, with black and more black as accents... although I'm not going to replace/paint anything that comes in nickel/chrome or raw copper - I don't have the time or the skill to make this have a good result. Besides that, if I can afford to replace functional parts for pure aesthetics... then I could afford to increase the performance and just leave the appearance as it is.
THE BUDGET & PARTS:
I'm keeping the budget pretty small (at least in comparison to many of the incredible builds I've had the pleasure of following here) but also fairly flexible. I'm going to try to stay under $4K for everything... and the farther under that mark without compromising cooling potential and operational silence the better - i.e. the sooner I can upgrade the display(s).
Parts on hand:
- CPU - 3570K Core i5
- GPU - Diamond 7970
- 16GB Corsair Vengeance 1600 RAM (2X8GB)
- LG BDRW drive.
- 2X Corsair Force 60GB SSD
- 1X WD Raptor 600GB HD
- CaseLabs M8 w/various options
- ASUS Maximus V Extreme Motherboard
- 2X AlphaCool UT60 radiators
- Additional Diamond 7970
- Additional 16GB Corsair Vengeance 1600 RAM Kit
- XSPC Raystorm CPU Block (Black Edition)
- 2X XSPC 7970 Full Copper Blocks
- Swiftech MC35X Pump + HS
- Bitspower Fittings (various) all in Black.
- Bitspower Reservoir
- Corsair AX1200
Since almost everyone posting in this forum has more experience than I do (in watercooling at least) and significantly more experience and talent in modding - please feel free to comment, give advice, and point out where I'm being stupid... I'll try to accept it all gracefully - although I can't guarantee success in that endeavor.
And if you're someone considering something so 'pedestrian' as my build... feel free to ask me any questions and hopefully some of my discoveries and stupid mistakes will help you avoid some of your own down the road.
UPDATES COMING SOON!!!
So it's not really fast, it certainly isn't cheap - and I'm working hard to make sure that it actually is going to be attractive this time around. However still going for performance and silence over beauty if there's a compromise that absolutely HAS to be made in that area!
