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 okgg.org > Forum Index > Modding > Subtlety Goto page 1, 2, 3, 4, 5  Next


Color scheme for the outside panels/bezel
Flat black with "subtlety" in glossy black
88%
 88%  [ 8 ]
Glossy black with "subtlety" in flat black
11%
 11%  [ 1 ]
Total Votes : 9

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Nikola
Hung Like a Flea


Joined: 22 Mar 2009
Posts: 790
Location: Edmond, OK
Subtlety  Reply with quote  

Alright, so here's my current build which is stalled in the waiting-for-moniez-to-buy-watercooling phase. The whole theme for the build was subtlety in design yet the hardware is anything but subtle. I'd had an idea for a Lian-Li PC-71B build for almost 4 years now and this is what I eventually decided on.


Specs:
Intel Core i7 920
eVGA X58 3X SLI Mobo
6gb Corsair Dominator PC1600 DDR3 @ 8-8-8-24
2x BFG GTX 295 Quad-SLI
X-Fi Titanium "Fatal1ty" Pro sound card
2x 74gb WD Raptor RAID 0 - OS drive
300gb VelociRaptor - Apps/Games drive
CoolerMaster UCP Ultimate 1100w PSU
Lite-On Blu-Ray ROM/DVD burner

Dell 3007WFP-HC 30" monitor @ 2560x1600
Logitech G15 and G5
Logitech Z-5500


So far I have all of the hardware, including the monitor Very Happy, minus the Z-5500 speakers. This setup is smoking fast, but I'm still debating on whether or not to trade up to 2x GTX 295s so that I can push Crysis a little harder @ 2560x1600. I absolutely cannot wait to get this thing on water, I was able to hit 4.2ghz on the stock cooler and run 3DMark06 and 3DMark Vantage back to back and then loop 3DMark Vantage for 2 hours with no problems; unfortunately it dies on Prime95 and linpack but I'm confident that won't be a problem at all on water.


Forgive the bad pictures, my camera sucks and despite my mother being a professional photographer I am incapable of taking a good product shot.

This is the front panel after I smothered it with way too much Bondo. It was my first experiment with bondo and while it ended well, I did WAY more sanding than I should have had to. Idea was to smooth the front of the case and make new air vents on the side of the front panel. You can also see the new vent cuts here



I should have trimmed down these other shots, but anyways here are links so the page doesn't take 2 years to load.

Front after initial sanding and reset hole drilling was finished, with Bulgin Vandal switches in a test fit.
http://img8.imageshack.us/my.php?image=stp63371.jpg

Back after initial sanding - Here you can also see the cutouts I made for the new front grills, these will have modder's mesh behind the cutouts to make the new vents
http://img8.imageshack.us/my.php?image=stp63371.jpg


I disassembled the frame entirely and drove it down to Golden, Colorado to Powder Coating Specialties where they did an excellent job on the interior of the case. There are a few blemishes, but nothing serious or in any visible areas and considering this was their first PC case to do it was more than acceptable. I went for a Fine Texture finish 10% Gloss Black and it looks great in person.

Case frame
http://img26.imageshack.us/my.php?image=stp63377.jpg

Bad close up on frame
http://img27.imageshack.us/my.php?image=stp63379.jpg

Rear interior
http://img12.imageshack.us/my.php?image=stp63380.jpg

Various parts before I riveted it all back together
http://img24.imageshack.us/my.php?image=stp63383.jpg

Mobo tray
http://img18.imageshack.us/my.php?image=stp63385.jpg

Here's a special window I found, not sure which Lian Li case it goes with by default, but it fit the PC-71B perfectly
http://img16.imageshack.us/my.php?image=stp63386.jpg

Partially put together with my CM UCP Ultimate 1100w PSU... This PSU is an absolute monster and it's going to be a nightmare hiding all of the extra wiring
http://img21.imageshack.us/my.php?image=stp63389.jpg




This coming Tuesday I should be able to order my 3x120mm radiator so that I can get the top panel cut and sanded. At that point the top panel, both side panels and the front bezel should all be ready for paint. I'm still on the fence for color scheme on the outside though so I welcome opinions.

Options are:
Flat black with subtlety logo on the mobo-side panel in glossy black with the L in subtlety in purple continuuing across the case side to side.
OR
Glossy black with sublety logo in the same spot in flat black, L in subtlety in purple same as above.


Last edited by Nikola on Wed Apr 15, 2009 2:57 pm; edited 2 times in total

Post Fri Mar 27, 2009 11:37 am  View user's profile Send private message AIM Address ICQ Number
Brules
M F C E O


Joined: 23 Mar 2003
Posts: 11074
Location: Konnichiwa, bitches.
 Reply with quote  

Wow that is one hell of a machine. My PC is jealous!

I have a Q about the watercooling.....why? If you can get 4.25 on air, just how much more could you get on water? Ie: will the investment = the return?

Super cool though no matter what, cant wait to see your final product.
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Post Fri Mar 27, 2009 4:38 pm  View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail
Nikola
Hung Like a Flea


Joined: 22 Mar 2009
Posts: 790
Location: Edmond, OK
 Reply with quote  

Well, I can hit 4.2 on stock cooling, with a TRUE 120 I'm sure I could hit that stable so my ROI will be almost all glory/pride/etc.

Haven't run a water rig in 4 years now and while it was a pain in the ass I do miss it. It's almost all aesthetic at this point for me though, just seems like a waste of case when dealing with a full-tower to not put water in it.

I may add a poll just to get more responses, but speak up if you have opinions on the exterior paint job! I'll post a pic of the subtlety logo I decided on and show placement, etc later tonight.
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Post Fri Mar 27, 2009 4:50 pm  View user's profile Send private message AIM Address ICQ Number
LightningCrash
Smile like Bob, order your free LC today


Joined: 03 Apr 2003
Posts: 5020
 Reply with quote  

G15 and G5, that's the same KB/Mouse combo I use

If you're a linux guy, I have some scripts for the G15 LCD

Post Fri Mar 27, 2009 6:23 pm  View user's profile Send private message
LightningCrash
Smile like Bob, order your free LC today


Joined: 03 Apr 2003
Posts: 5020
 Reply with quote  

Brules wrote: Wow that is one hell of a machine. My PC is jealous!

I have a Q about the watercooling.....why? If you can get 4.25 on air, just how much more could you get on water? Ie: will the investment = the return?

Super cool though no matter what, cant wait to see your final product.


Celsius/Watt is really, really good on air units these days.
Investment is usually much more than the return for water these days.

Post Fri Mar 27, 2009 6:29 pm  View user's profile Send private message
Nikola
Hung Like a Flea


Joined: 22 Mar 2009
Posts: 790
Location: Edmond, OK
 Reply with quote  

LightningCrash wrote: G15 and G5, that's the same KB/Mouse combo I use

If you're a linux guy, I have some scripts for the G15 LCD


I am, but not on this box Confused
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Post Fri Mar 27, 2009 7:12 pm  View user's profile Send private message AIM Address ICQ Number
Nikola
Hung Like a Flea


Joined: 22 Mar 2009
Posts: 790
Location: Edmond, OK
 Reply with quote  

Here is an artist's rendering of what the outside will look like. Right side panel has the l in purple (it's red but use your imagination!) and it continues across the front panel and onto the other side panel with the window.



Let's all thank my friend Alex from NY for his beautiful depiction of my finished case.
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Last edited by Nikola on Tue Apr 14, 2009 12:24 pm; edited 1 time in total

Post Sat Mar 28, 2009 1:56 pm  View user's profile Send private message AIM Address ICQ Number
Brules
M F C E O


Joined: 23 Mar 2003
Posts: 11074
Location: Konnichiwa, bitches.
 Reply with quote  

I voted for flat w/ gloss as the gloss will show scratches easier and be harder to maintain over the long run, especially if you ever go to a lan! Smile
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Post Sat Mar 28, 2009 2:15 pm  View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail
LightningCrash
Smile like Bob, order your free LC today


Joined: 03 Apr 2003
Posts: 5020
 Reply with quote  

nobody on this forums goes to the LAN, silly mod

Post Sat Mar 28, 2009 8:42 pm  View user's profile Send private message
Nikola
Hung Like a Flea


Joined: 22 Mar 2009
Posts: 790
Location: Edmond, OK
 Reply with quote  

Well the forumz have spoken and I'm going to go with Flat Black and glossy black lettering with purple accents.

I have put the watercooling on hold for a couple months until after I've moved back to Oklahoma which will hopefully be soon.


I did however make a new order at SVC for a TRUE 120 Black edition heatsink which is just... gigantic. I think there's less than 1/4" between the top of the heatsink and my side panel.

TRUE 120 Black


Anyhow, I did alot of cable management, but there's still alot more to be done (vid card power /cry). I have dual GTX 295s in the mail as I type so when those arrive I get to redo alot of this and then of course it will be painted in the coming two weeks hopefully which means I can put alot of this together for the tentative final result sans watercooling.



Here's a little taste of what I've been working on until a check clears for the 2nd GTX 285 I just sold. I absolutely LOATHE sleeving cables, and as I found out I hate sleeving SATA cables ALOT more. Finally, I hate sleeving power supplies that are already sleeved and were done shittily, granted not by most people's standards, but for mine and this build.

Crappy iPhone pics incoming:


Here are my Power/Reset and HDD/Power LED cables, and one so far unused SATA cable, that will run to my Bulgin Vandal switches. After sleeving them I'm glad I went with the heavier gauge wire to fill up the sleeving, but I foresee these being a pain in the ass to make them look nice.



Here's a closeup of my HDD cable management which I personally think looks good. I may go for a bit more minimalistic look and get left-angle SATA cables to plug into the hard drives and head straight back, but I really like seeing the sleeved cables. Looking for input here on whether or not you guys like seeing the SATA cables.



This is my big concern at the moment. I know I am redoing the sleeving on the main 24-pin mobo connector, the question is how. I am really leaning towards resleeving it the way it currently is done, and where it stops, I continue to sleeve each individual wire all the way into the molex connector. So it would be one giant sleeve exiting the PSU until approximately 2-3 inches short of the molex connector where it splits into 24 individually sleeved wires. If you are familiar with the "murdermod style" of sleeving, this is very similar, but I do not like the prospect of sleeving the entire length of cable that style, I think it's much cleaner and easier to deal with when you only sleeve the last few lengths of the cables. GIVE ME INPUT ON THIS!



Here's a nightshot of the case in it's current condition, unfortunately it will remain mostly blacked out until I get watercooling inside where the plan is to have only the water tubes glow, and of course the fans that you see in the picture.

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Last edited by Nikola on Tue Apr 14, 2009 12:26 pm; edited 1 time in total

Post Thu Apr 09, 2009 12:03 am  View user's profile Send private message AIM Address ICQ Number
Nikola
Hung Like a Flea


Joined: 22 Mar 2009
Posts: 790
Location: Edmond, OK
 Reply with quote  

More crappy iPhone pics!

Well, Thursday I packed up my remaining GTX 285 and shipped it off, Friday I dismantled the whole machine again and then Saturday it was back to working on it.

I got a couple new holes drilled in the front of the case to facilitate the depth of the bulgin vandal switches, I primed and painted my PCI rear slot covers along with the one off of my X-Fi sound card. More importantly however, I started re-sleeving my PSU to get what I wanted out of it.


First pics below are of my new SATA power cables for my 2 74gb Raptors in RAID 0. I had considered making this 3 long to accomodate my 300gb VelociRaptor but decided I would rather space it out to keep heat to a minimum.







And then here's where I spent the majority of my weekend working on sleeving...







I definitely need a better soldering iron but I always find other ways to spend that money. My only remaining task for sleeving the PSU is to work on the 24-pin mobo wires. To be 100% honest I've never un-sleeved one of these before, just snipped off the ends and crimped on new ones so if anyone has some tips that don't involve buying a $10 tool to remove the pins I'm all ears.
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Last edited by Nikola on Tue Apr 14, 2009 12:27 pm; edited 1 time in total

Post Mon Apr 13, 2009 12:20 am  View user's profile Send private message AIM Address ICQ Number
Nikola
Hung Like a Flea


Joined: 22 Mar 2009
Posts: 790
Location: Edmond, OK
 Reply with quote  

The nice USPS man brought me some presents today!




And an upgrade for my other desktop, a G0 stepping Q6600 and an MSI Platinum P35 mobo.




On an unrelated note, is anyone interested in a used, but not abused, E6400 and Gigabyte DS3-965P combo?
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Last edited by Nikola on Tue Apr 14, 2009 12:27 pm; edited 1 time in total

Post Mon Apr 13, 2009 7:27 pm  View user's profile Send private message AIM Address ICQ Number
Shinare
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Joined: 17 Mar 2004
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Location: Up your butt with a coconut!!
 Reply with quote  

I am would you take $50?

Oh and resize your pics! Smile
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Post Tue Apr 14, 2009 9:01 am  View user's profile Send private message ICQ Number
LightningCrash
Smile like Bob, order your free LC today


Joined: 03 Apr 2003
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 Reply with quote  

I will pay $51

Post Tue Apr 14, 2009 10:39 am  View user's profile Send private message
Brules
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Joined: 23 Mar 2003
Posts: 11074
Location: Konnichiwa, bitches.
 Reply with quote  

Ignore the resizers! They are jealous of your size and are having flashes of penis envy.
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Post Tue Apr 14, 2009 11:53 am  View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail
Shinare
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 Reply with quote  

Thanks for resizing the pics, I can actually grasp what you are showing in them now. Lookn pretty cool mang!
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Post Tue Apr 14, 2009 1:05 pm  View user's profile Send private message ICQ Number
Bobacus
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Joined: 28 Dec 2004
Posts: 741
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 Reply with quote  

Shinare wrote: Thanks for resizing the pics, I can actually grasp what you are showing in them now. Lookn pretty cool mang!


Ditto that, real nice to be able to see the whole box in the pic with the video card, instead of just seeing the corner of the box.
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Post Tue Apr 14, 2009 3:17 pm  View user's profile Send private message
Nikola
Hung Like a Flea


Joined: 22 Mar 2009
Posts: 790
Location: Edmond, OK
 Reply with quote  

Thanks for the replies, and rest assured the only pics obnoxiously large will be the ones I don't want DanMan to see.

I ordered another box o' crap from performance-pcs.com yesterday, I'm hoping to have more heatshrink, T-SATA connectors and 6/8/24 pin connectors to play with by the weekend so I can actually put this thing back together and put those GTX 295s to some use.
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Post Tue Apr 14, 2009 3:34 pm  View user's profile Send private message AIM Address ICQ Number
Brules
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Joined: 23 Mar 2003
Posts: 11074
Location: Konnichiwa, bitches.
 Reply with quote  

I take it this PC will be imobile yes?

Otherwise order a weight belt if you plan on going to LAN's with it! Smile
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Post Tue Apr 14, 2009 3:48 pm  View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail
Nikola
Hung Like a Flea


Joined: 22 Mar 2009
Posts: 790
Location: Edmond, OK
 Reply with quote  

Hell yeah it's going to LANs. You're right though, it's a little bit heavy. I think the real pain is going to be hauling the monitor along with it, and then finding someone that will allow me to plug it all in without buying 2 seats Sad From my guesstimate this box should run something like 260-300w idle from the wall, so add in the monitor and it'll eat up the power.

Better than lugging my other box around though, it's attached to my 4tb external enclosure and it's still running 6 HDDs internal. As soon as money allows I'll be buying another external box for (5) 1tb drives since my media server is getting full and once that happens that machine isn't moving ever.
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Post Tue Apr 14, 2009 4:01 pm  View user's profile Send private message AIM Address ICQ Number
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