Project: Monolith [56K Beware]

[Istasi]

Project: Monolith

The Premise
Almost a year ago, I bought a Mountain Mods U2-UFO from our very own Philly_Boy. When I first saw it in person, my jaw dropped. This thing was monstrous! It seemed the epitome of case engineering. I also picked up some basic WC gear, and transferred my aging rig into this behemoth (Worklog (http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showthread.php?t=143126)). It hummed right along, but it's been over 2 years since I've upgraded the hardware. It's in dire need of a complete rebuild.

Something else which I wanted to change was the look of the UFO. Almost every Mountain Mods case I've seen looks strikingly similar. While the hardware inside is always impressive, and the case suited perfectly for WC, the face wasn't quite my cup of tea. Many cases have caught my eye over the past year, but I decided I wanted something to differentiate myself from the crowds. There's only one solution: modding. I am completely altering (more masking I suppose) the front panel of the U2-UFO. I want something more refined. Something simple. Something which set my case apart from the others I had seen. Project Monolith was born.

The Plan
The top and right (PSU/5.25) side of the UFO would be simple black panels from Mountain Mods. No fans, no windows. Simply black. The panel for the motherboard (left) side of the case would be dark gray smoked acrylic. It has very low visibility without light behind it, so it almost looks like just another black panel. However, when the case is lit up, you should be able to see the internals perfectly.

The biggest change is to the front of the case. I ordered another plain black panel from MM and have created a facade for the front panel. I drilled mounting holes just like the ones the side panels are mounted with, mounted the plain black panel using 7/8" standoffs. The front of the case is now just a plain black panel, with enough space to allow for airflow to the front fans, among other things. I will be mounting two Vandal black delrin switches to the front panel. Mounted to the back of the facade will be a slot-loading slim optical drive, facing up. I'm really excited about this part, how sweet will it be to seemingly load your discs into the top of the case?

Lighting will be all white and controlled from a rocker switch on the rear of the case. There is going to be a gentle white glow radiating from the gap in between the facade and the front of the case, and LED clusters illuminating the internals.

The cooling system is of course being completely revamped. Time to do away with the ghastly/cliche blue fluid with green SmartCoils. I will be using black Tygon, and if necessary black tubing springs. The final loop setup is in the air, but the base components will be a PA120.3, FuZion V2, DDC-3.1, EK Res, and fullcover EK block.

The Hardware
PC Components:
ASUS Rampage Formula X48
Sapphire 3870X2
4GB (2x2GB) OCZ ReaperX DDR2 1000
Intel Q6600 SLACR
SeaSonic M12-700W
Western Digital WD6400AAKS
Panasonic UJ-85J Slimline Slot-Loading DVD Writer
Razer AC-1 Sound Card

Cooling:
Thermochill PA120.3
DDC-3.1 w/ DDCT-01s
DTek FuZion V2 w/ Quad Midplate
EK FC3870X2 Nickel Plated
EK MultiOption 250
Tygon R3400 7/16" ID 9/16" OD
Scythe S-FLEX D 800 RPM 120MM

Goals

Silent - The rig in my sig is humming along dead silent on air right now with 3 S-FLEX D's @ 12v. I plan on running 4-5 @ 7v
Fast - Obviously. Not the fastest rig around clearly, but it should handle pretty much anything I can throw at it
Stylish - Rising above and beyond the standard UFO setup as well as the typical lighting/color schemes
Learn a few things along the way


As it stands...

The Workspace
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2246/2476958614_227678f4d3_b.jpg

The Case
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3203/2476959878_cccda56abd_b.jpg
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3075/2476960374_35d2e0c5bd_b.jpg
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2170/2476961068_6e7e5e7221.jpghttp://farm3.static.flickr.com/2385/2476147119_c797fcc6db.jpg


Questions
1. Currently I'm debating between running just the PA120.3 to cool everything. However, I have the MCR220 from my first WC setup sitting around. What are your thoughts on adding this to the loop? It creates some airflow questions which I'll address in question 2.

2a. With the PA120.3 as the sole radiator, I would have 3 fans pulling through it and a single exhaust on the motherboard side. There would be no fans on the other side of the case save for the PSU fans. I assume this much positive pressure will be fine because I'm going to be using such low CFM fans?
2b. If I do in fact add the MCR220 to the loop, would it be alright to have the three intake on the motherboard side and have two exhaust on the MCR220 be the only fans? Would positive pressure take care of removing the heat from motherboard components out of the back of the case?

3. Is there anywhere that has PA120.3 shrouds/gaskets in stock? These are impossible to find!

Short To-Do List
1. Mount power/reset switches. Will be mounted vertically, at the top center of the facade. Will require to drill holes directly behind them on the front of the case because the power buttons on the stock UFO front are not actually centered like these will be.

2. Wire fans. Custom cable lengths, connectors, etc.

3. Wire lighting. Change molexes to 3-pin so I can dim them, wire to rocker switch, etc.

4. Wait for hardware.

The hardware should be arriving tomorrow, with most of the water cooling parts getting here early next week.

Have at it.

[Istasi]

Day 1 in soldering was an exercise in fail. Wrong guage wire for 3-pin and the crimper is a piece of crap. I ended up scrapping the work I did.

Looks like the hardware won't be arriving tomorrow, UPS says they haven't even picked it up yet despite their estimated delivery date of 5/09.

[Anemic]

Subscribed!

[[XC] NetburstXE]

Subscribed!

[Soulwind]

Wow that looks interesting. Can't wait to see how it all turns out.

Maybe think about doing (or having done) some air-brushing on the top / side panels?

I'll be looking forward to seeing a "unique" MM UFO case (I love mine, but they do tend to look all alike).

[Istasi]

Thanks for the interest guys.

Any thoughts on the questions I had in the first post? I'm really debating whether or not to add that MCR220.

[[XC] NetburstXE]

Any thoughts on the questions I had in the first post? I'm really debating whether or not to add that MCR220.

I'd add it. Even if it doesn't help, it certainly won't hurt.

[Anemic]

NetburstXE;2976436']I'd add it. Even if it doesn't help, it certainly won't hurt.

+1

If you have the space, why not?!?

[Istasi]

If I want to keep noise to a minimum though, the only fans I will have in the case are the three intake on the PA and the two exhaust on the MCR. Will mobo temps stay reasonable with no exhaust fan on the motherboard side?

[Soulwind]

If you configure them right it should be fine on sound.

I'm running a PA120.3 (3 120mm fans), a PA120.2 (2 120mm fans), the 120mm case fan, and 4 80mm fans (currently using the 'diamond' pattern top).

Run everything at 'near-silent' levels. Got plenty of air-flow, temps are good, and the loudest part of the entire rig is the pumps (or maybe hdd...about the same)

[Istasi]

Alrighty, guess I'll throw the MCR220 into the mix. Might throw HR-09's and HR-05's onto the MOSFETs and NB/SB just to make sure they're cooled adequately in the low-airflow environment.

Everything should be arriving early next week. Over the weekend I'll mount the power buttons.

[Istasi]

Nice little surprise today...

What's this?
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2392/2479240862_d3d0f94270_b.jpg

My package from SideWinder Computers showed up! Tygon R3400, DTek V2, and Scythe HDD Isolation Mount
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2153/2478433355_3c50f2e9c8_b.jpg

The FuZion in all of its glory...
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3048/2479243962_28fe9ecbf1_b.jpg

[MasterChiefElmo]

Looking good so far ill be keeping a eye on this project.

[Pellepel]

subscribed....its funny how your work space and the bed next to it is similar to my room.

[Istasi]

Lookie what we have here.

http://img138.imageshack.us/img138/4921/5122008002xx4.jpg
http://img356.imageshack.us/img356/8973/5122008008ox6.jpg

The crafstmanship and finish on the EK block is just top-notch. :up:
http://img149.imageshack.us/img149/7919/5122008009sh2.jpg

More to come!

[[XC] NetburstXE]

:eek2: What model C2Q is that?

[Istasi]

Q6600, grabbed it for $200 at MicroCenter. From what I've read, its stepping is supposed to clock quite well so I've got my fingers crossed.

[Istasi]

IT LIVES!!!

http://img218.imageshack.us/img218/1831/5122008028ew2.jpg

Threw it together on stock cooling on my desk just to make sure nothing was DOA. Pics came out really blurry for some reason. Already tore it back down, but everything powered up fine, the mobo detected the HDD and optical, so all's well. PA120.3 should get here tomorrow so I can start planning out the loop.

[disruptfam]

love new hardware :)

nice project mate

[Istasi]

Mo' stuff.

http://img186.imageshack.us/img186/360/5142008074aa6.jpg

PA120.3
http://img186.imageshack.us/img186/5489/5142008078gz1.jpg
http://img186.imageshack.us/img186/8581/5142008081cj8.jpg

Got all of my Thermalright kit today. Time to gussy up this mobo.

The victim.
http://img186.imageshack.us/img186/4120/5142008090vk5.jpg

The offenders.
http://img186.imageshack.us/img186/4161/5142008089yf4.jpg

Stripped bare.
http://img155.imageshack.us/img155/5695/5142008120lv0.jpg

HR-09's installed.
http://img155.imageshack.us/img155/2388/5142008126yp5.jpg

Funny story. I was installing the HR-05 onto the NB, and it seemed awfully difficult to push the pushpins into place. I persevered, however, until *POP* one of the pins shot up and hit the ceiling. On the installation guide it showed washers in between the pushpin and mounting arm, so I naturally used those. Apparently that creates way too much force :p:
http://img155.imageshack.us/img155/7029/5142008133yg8.jpg

Clearance between HR-05 and ReaperX's. Barely any. Had to use the 2nd and 4th slots.
http://img155.imageshack.us/img155/4641/5142008137am0.jpg

First fan done w/ custom-length wires.
http://img155.imageshack.us/img155/5860/5142008141ne1.jpg

My high-tech fan testing station. :yepp:
http://img155.imageshack.us/img155/9255/5142008145ai8.jpg

My friends are convinced I'm building a bomb. :rolleyes:
http://img155.imageshack.us/img155/8936/5142008149ne4.jpg

Hopefully finish up the fans tomorrow and wire some of the lighting too. And if I find time to go out and grab some distilled, clean my WC components.

[disruptfam]

very nice mate

i really like they look of all the thermalright hs's (more pics of the mobo with your ram in please) :)

look forward to updates

[Istasi]

Ask and you shall receive :D

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2402/2493112219_63224c63f9.jpghttp://farm4.static.flickr.com/3199/2493111701_9fe867cac6.jpg
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2405/2493931270_c11dc21a3a.jpghttp://farm3.static.flickr.com/2380/2493930100_7b25f4d0fc.jpg
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3251/2493929514_ae49dcec5f.jpghttp://farm3.static.flickr.com/2266/2493109095_4e8646ea8a.jpg

[disruptfam]

:up::up::up::up::up::up::up:

cheers mate!!:D

[Snyxxx]

I love the Seasonic M12-700 PSU. I use the same. Single rail, 4 PCI-E plugs (SLI) and quiet.

Pictures are great, thanks for posting them. I like the consistent look of everything.

[IanY]

Holy skyscraper city! I would stick a TRUE on there and forget about water cooling!

[kinghong1970]

ha ha ha... for some reason, it DOES remind me of the skyscrapers in HK...

[Istasi]

I love the Seasonic M12-700 PSU. I use the same. Single rail, 4 PCI-E plugs (SLI) and quiet.

Pictures are great, thanks for posting them. I like the consistent look of everything.

Yeah, I knew the SeaSonic would be a top-notch unit coming from building 3 systems with Corsair HX's. Only problem I have is that there's a cable with a single 6+2 pin PCI-E connector, but there's no cable with a single 6 pin PCI-E. So, as it stands I have to run the 6+2 pin and another cable with 2 6-pins. Might have to chop off the extra PCI-E connector to tidy it up.

I'm a big fan of uniformity in systems, so full ThermalRight kit was a given. And I got a nice deal on the ReaperX's so I figured why not?


Holy skyscraper city! I would stick a TRUE on there and forget about water cooling!

Haha, but then what would I put on the 3870X2? :p:

One of my buddies is coming over today to help out so hopefully we can make some good progress.

[Istasi]

Didn't get as much done today as planned. Got distracted by this bad boy. :D

http://img260.imageshack.us/img260/631/5152008002copyrz2.jpg

It dominates my desk. I have no idea how to use all of this space.

http://img260.imageshack.us/img260/9118/5152008015copydu9.jpg

So far I have been nothing but impressed. First, the sheer size just blew me away. I've never regularly used anything larger than a 20", so this was quite the shock. After calibration with my Spyder2, the color and image are also extremely vivid and clear. Dell has never ceased to impress me with their monitors. I've only tried out AudioSurf and TF2 so far, but :shocked: The good old X1900XT chugs right along at ~25 FPS in TF2 with the bells and whistles on and AA cranked. Turned the AA down and it ran smooth as butter. Can't wait to see what the 3870X2 can do with some showcase games. Obviously I won't be playing Crysis at its highest settings, but I'm not a big fan of Crysis anyways.

Ended up just cleaning the rads.

http://img260.imageshack.us/img260/7661/5152008019copymp4.jpg

[Snyxxx]

Only problem I have is that there's a cable with a single 6+2 pin PCI-E connector, but there's no cable with a single 6 pin PCI-E. So, as it stands I have to run the 6+2 pin and another cable with 2 6-pins. Might have to chop off the extra PCI-E connector to tidy it up.

Strange, mine came with four individual 6 pin PCI-E cables for the GPUs.

We have similar tastes. I have the same monitor and love it.

[systemviper]

wow, great work, Don't you just
love how the budget jsut keeps going up on
these projects. I have 2 MM cases and
there is so much space that you can
do A lot!

Keep it up! :up:

[Istasi]

Strange, mine came with four individual 6 pin PCI-E cables for the GPUs.

We have similar tastes. I have the same monitor and love it.

Do you think it would be safe to use one of the single PCI-E cables from one of my Corsair's? They're based on the same platform and have the same modular interface so I'm thinking it should work out, but I'm not sure.

[Snyxxx]

Would it fit on the PSU side? If so, I would think it should work.

[Sadasius]

Wow nice build and great pics. Will be keeping an eye on this! :clap:

[lokitexas]

Yeah....umm...stop playing games and get to work. I am REALLY interested in this one :)

[Istasi]

Would it fit on the PSU side? If so, I would think it should work.

They have all the same connections on the PSU side, so I'm thinking it should work. I'll ask in the PSU forum just to be sure. Or might just lop off the extra PCI-E on one and solder it up.


Wow nice build and great pics. Will be keeping an eye on this! :clap:


Yeah....umm...stop playing games and get to work. I am REALLY interested in this one :)

Haha, thanks for the interest guys. Probably won't get much done over the next two days. Going to two concerts in two nights, so I'll be pretty exhausted. Sunday I hope to finish all of the fan wiring at least, and some of the lighting. Need to pick up a 3/4" hole saw for the power/reset buttons and light switch. Maybe I can swing by the hardware store Saturday morning or Sunday afternoon. Once those are drilled, I can start getting all of the cooling gear mounted.

[Kilyin]

Which size Dell monitor is that?

[Istasi]

It's the 3007WFP-HC, so 30". Here's a little something I threw together just 'cuz I can :D

http://img221.imageshack.us/img221/1476/5152008022um2.jpg

[fungry]

Very nice :up: Those heatsinks on the ReaperX compliment with the HR05 IFX very well.

[Atal]

you lucky you!!!! very nice system!!!!!!!!!! looking forward to results :D

[Istasi]

Well, that was one of the most interesting experiences I've had yet. I decided to wire my switch to control the lights. Pretty simple, right? Apparently not.

http://img179.imageshack.us/img179/7133/5192008001si4.jpg
http://img503.imageshack.us/img503/9029/5192008002rm1.jpg
http://img301.imageshack.us/img301/9295/5192008004vq3.jpg
http://img518.imageshack.us/img518/8686/5192008007cb7.jpg
http://img148.imageshack.us/img148/6531/5192008008yg1.jpg

I flipped the PSU on, everything seemed to be fine. Flipped the rocker switch and 3 of the 5 LED's on the LED cluster went out. That seemed odd, but I didn't have much time to think about it because 2 seconds later, the hole wiring setup started smoking! There was smoke coming off of every wire. Holy sh*t. As quickly as I could turned the PSU off. The above pics are of the carnage that occurred on the switch wiring. The PSU is fine. I took that as a sign to stop for the day.

I did manage to finish all of the fan wiring though. Didn't wire them all the one connector because if I end up changing fan configurations this is much easier to rewire.

http://img171.imageshack.us/img171/9639/5192008010xp1.jpg

[Pellepel]

whoa what happened there? :eek:

[Istasi]

It all pretty much just spontaneously combusted. Probably just had some wires where they weren't supposed to be :rolleyes:

[Razor_Blade]

Wow, you may have just talked me out of doing that on my build...

[Istasi]

Don't be deterred, I'm sure it was just some terribly stupid mistake which someone will point out. Just make sure you know what you're wiring. And use a dummy PSU in a flame retardant environment :p:

[smee]

Don't be deterred, I'm sure it was just some terribly stupid mistake which someone will point out.

You put the red/black wire in with the wrong black one?
You should have put it in the red maybe?

[bigslappy]

sub'ed

[Istasi]

Whew. Huge update today.

Made a trip to the hardware and picked up the last odds and ends that I needed. Most importantly: a 3/4" hole saw. First things first, mounted the power buttons.

http://img408.imageshack.us/img408/3808/5202008003tl6.jpg
http://img234.imageshack.us/img234/1156/5202008044yp0.jpg

As I said earlier, the power buttons on the original UFO front are not centered. So, in order for my buttons to fit on the new front panel, I needed to also drill out the original front panel. Tearing up a multi-hundred dollar case is fun!

http://img179.imageshack.us/img179/8306/5202008010tj1.jpg
http://img296.imageshack.us/img296/985/5202008011ji6.jpg

But that wasn't that last of it. When the 5.25 bay bracket was installed, it covered up half of the holes, so the buttons didn't fit.

http://img185.imageshack.us/img185/1015/5202008017fg1.jpg

Nothing that can't be fixed.

http://img86.imageshack.us/img86/5918/5202008024hx3.jpg

Not the cleanest job in the world, but nobody will ever see it behind the new panel.

http://img185.imageshack.us/img185/2456/5202008032am9.jpg
http://img408.imageshack.us/img408/4626/5202008034qs2.jpg

Here's the old UFO panel I used to test all of my bits/taps/techniques on.

http://img179.imageshack.us/img179/7236/5202008037xk2.jpg
http://img296.imageshack.us/img296/9701/5202008040xl2.jpg

Time to finish the front panel. This is one of the coolest parts of the project as far as I'm concerned: a slim slot-loading DVD drive tucked between my front panel and the original case. Here it is mounted to my front panel, I used double-sided foam adhesive to secure it, much like the foam pad you get with DDC's.

http://img86.imageshack.us/img86/8705/5202008051ae8.jpg

Now, onto the good stuff. Flushed the rads a final few times, and mounted them in the case. Also mounted the res, and ran a couple tubes. Loop order is going to be Res -> Pump -> Vid Card -> CPU -> PA120.3 -> MCR220 -> Res.

http://img86.imageshack.us/img86/156/5202008054ja6.jpg
http://img179.imageshack.us/img179/4374/5202008061ap1.jpg
http://img296.imageshack.us/img296/9325/5202008063jg9.jpg

And then, after all of this momentum, disaster struck.

http://img408.imageshack.us/img408/8996/5202008060tm7.jpg

One of the screws on the bottom of my FuZion was stripped. Try as I might, I couldn't turn it. There was no way I was going to wait another 2-3 days for a new CPU block, let alone send this one back for a replacement. After many attempts, fate tipped in my favor and the screw budged. With a little ingenuity and a lot of brute force, I managed to get it out. Put my quad nozzle in, and closed that sucker back up with a new screw.

Tomorrow: finish the loop and leak test.

[Snyxxx]

Looking good. Keep up the good work.

[smee]

One of the screws on the bottom of my FuZion was stripped. Try as I might, I couldn't turn it. There was no way I was going to wait another 2-3 days for a new CPU block, let alone send this one back for a replacement. After many attempts, fate tipped in my favor and the screw budged. With a little ingenuity and a lot of brute force, I managed to get it out. Put my quad nozzle in, and closed that sucker back up with a new screw.

Same thing happened to me when I got my V2, two of them stripped, I had to get pliers and grab the screws then turned them out slowly.
I then put four new screws in to replace the old ones, philip screws are much easier to work with. :up:

It's looking mighty nice!!! Can't wait for the final outcome!

[Anemic]

Looking awsome!!

[Istasi]

Got my new speakers in today. They blow my old Logitech Z-5300E's out of the water.

http://img55.imageshack.us/img55/3258/5212008001cf8.jpg

Got the hardware installed and then routed all of the tubing.

http://img242.imageshack.us/img242/6768/5212008003er9.jpg
http://img185.imageshack.us/img185/9586/5212008005bf4.jpg
http://img338.imageshack.us/img338/2910/5212008010fj1.jpg

Then it was time to head to the kitchen and leak test this sucker.

http://img182.imageshack.us/img182/3150/5212008014au6.jpg

Had a little drip on the bottom barb of the res and the intake on the pump, but a little tightening fixed that right up. Will leak test it overnight and then install the rest of the odds and ends. No lighting yet until I get my new switch in. I'll post what it looks like with all of the panels on tomorrow.

[lokitexas]

Cant wait to see more.

[Pellepel]

looking good. Liking the black tubes

[disruptfam]

wow very nice i missed the days of a single loop its super clean and uncluttered :)

next rig single loop for sure (well maybe lol)

[MasterChiefElmo]

any updates?

[Pellepel]

Yea any updates? BTW I just notice you are using those clips holder to hold the wires in place, where did you get those?

[oerekum]

Great build so far man! I love the layout of the case. I mean if you look at how effectively it uses air coming in.. it cooles the GPU and CPU first.. then blows over the mobo to cool anything else thats left!

[MasterChiefElmo]

I think this comp died!!!!