[TittySambo]

I want to make this case

Since the recently released Titan is partially marketed as a low tdp great performance card for small form factor gamers,
I set out to see, if I were to purchase a Titan, what case could accompany it.

I really like the idea of Falcon Northwest Tiki (not shown), but
(1) the case is not for sale
(2) I wanted to go a step further and really showcase the Gtx Titan.



The GPU is almost always the most expensive component in a computer, and I think cases housing $1000 GPUs should do a better job really showing off what matters.

How would you guys suggest building a case like this?

I can imagine purchasing a custom made acrylic box for the top,
but I have no idea where to get and how to work with brushed aluminum or whatever else the body of the case will be made out of.

I have a bear saw and a drill, but anything heavy duty I will have to use the college's machine shop.

The inside: If you've seen the Tiki, AW X51, Bolt, or Revolt, the innerd arrangements are nothing new.

- Asus Deluxe ITX mobo
- 2x8GB ram
- Silverstone SFF 450w psu
- Scythe Shuriken ver 2 cpu cooler
- i5 2500k?? (not sure how well cooler will fare)
- SSD(s)





Although, I'm thinking a 60mm fan could be connected to the PSU so that air comes into the PSU, then goes up into the GPU casing.

Other SFF towers for reference:

Spoiler: Warning: Spoiler!

Falcon Tiki


DigitalStorm Bolt


iBuyPower Revolt


AW x51

 

[yoi]

well . the design idea is cool , ill give you that , the problem will be , the PSU and some space for a HDD or SSD (wich in my opinion if im gonna build something like that , ill just put only one SSD with a huge size like 500gb , the rest is an external HDD)

... in my mind i would suggest you build it as a skeleton , then when everything is in place , cover up with some panels or bent panels , the top part its not that hard , depending on how you want it to look , like a whole U bent or just a little acrylic box

... and another thing , you have to build it arround the hardware you are going to put there , so u might as well get a regular size PSU in there easy

, try to find one modular and custom sleeve them with exact bends and leinghts

visualizing it , this build will be awesome! . if you need help with Solidworks or anything like that , im at your service

 

[AlderonnX]

Its gonna get hot in the top

 

[pcfoo]

I would separate the case compartments.
Let the top have minimal air flow from the bottom. You can have the GPU breathe on its own. probably with a circular whole for intake on the side.

Raise the case with little feet, and let the PSU exhaust below the case, so in itself it is also breathing independently - its own intake, its own exhaust.

Laser-cut your own I/O plate to let the air from the mobo exhaust too - no need to force exhaust it, the large intake fan ontop of the CPU cooler will be enough to push the hot air out.

 

[TittySambo]

Quote:

well . the design idea is cool , ill give you that , the problem will be , the PSU and some space for a HDD or SSD (wich in my opinion if im gonna build something like that , ill just put only one SSD with a huge size like 500gb , the rest is an external HDD)

lolol yeah I realized after desiging the case I had completely overlooked on storage. At that point it was too late to include 3.5 inchers, so I was left with SSDs, which happened to fit the with of the PSU (aka the width of the case) perfectly.

It is my understanding though SSDs get more expensive as storage size increases? Wouldn't it be cheaper to RAID 0 two smaller SSD drivers?
Quote:

u might as well get a regular size PSU in there easy

True words, but will it be necessary? From what I've read the Titan max load pulls 450 watts, and the Silverstone SFF 450W can actually give 500W easily (the people who made Falcon Tiki use this PSU for this reason). I'm guessing the 500-450 = 50 can cover the rest of the system? Though I'm not sure how things will fare when I start overclocking.

The DigitalStorm Bolt and iBuyPower Revolt both use 1U 500W server PSUs, but the Tiki people also said they are uncontrollably loud, so I ultimately decided on the Silverstone SFF 450W.
Quote:

Its gonna get hot in the top

Yeah I imagine it will to an extent, but if I have an open back and an open front for the acrylic box, will it be any different from a GPU sitting on a test bench? A test bench doesn't have anything blowing on GPUs either, and the acrylic tunnel will serve as a "wind tunnel" with a blower style cooler?

If anything, this case can serve as a single pci slot test bench. I don't think it'll be too much of a problem.
Quote:

Raise the case with little feet, and let the PSU exhaust below the case, so in itself it is also breathing independently - its own intake, its own exhaust.

I would prefer not to rotate the PSU to face down, since that will make the case wider. Purely from a cosmetic standpoint, I think if the case gets any wider, then the GPU will look proportionately smaller, and less appreciated than the case, which is opposite of the point of this case. I want to make a case that serves as a "pedestal" for an extreme GPU.

Otherwise, as you said, I didn't think about compartmentalizing. I think it's a good idea; I'll be making those changes.

 

[TittySambo]

Anyone know where is the best place I can get aluminum platings? (or possibly custom order an aluminum box?

Does this look like a good website?
http://www.customaluminumboxes.com/id96.html

 

[yoi]

if im really doing a case like that , just for me ... i would strip open the PSU and just remove the "case" from it and build it inside of the case itself lol , i bet i can save alot of space like that for sure , enabling to put a regular decent PSU lol

 

[TittySambo]

Quote:

if im really doing a case like that , just for me ... i would strip open the PSU and just remove the "case" from it and build it inside of the case itself lol , i bet i can save alot of space like that for sure , enabling to put a regular decent PSU lol

Ohhh that's actually a great idea! I am definitely doing that; could probably fit a full size PSU if I do that.

 

[yoi]

i will steal your design and make something in Solidworks , and see how it looks

 

[TittySambo]

The Lian Li PCQ12 has a very similar layout as what I am envisioning, albeit needing a few major mods to become fully what I want.

http://www.lian-li.com/v2/en/product/product06.php?pr_index=605&cl_index=1&sc_index=25&ss_index=64

I was hopeful at first but it seems more and more like it might be cheaper to buy aluminum and bend it myself than pay $150 for it on ebay

 

[yoi]

yeah , depending on the thickness , you just need a big lumber and some clamps and use your own strength lol . www.onlinemetals.com could be your suppler