[Project] Cogent Paradigm

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04-10-2009, 12:08 AM
Olly_K

[Project] Cogent Paradigm

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/cp.jpg

OK so I've come up with a new project name, specs are as below:

Hardware:
Core i7 920 D0
Asus P6T-Deluxe
Corsair TX 750 PSU
2x XFX GTX 295
3x2GB OCZ Reaper PC3-1800Mhz
Pioneer BDC-S02BK
3 x 30GB OCZ Vertex SSD RAID 0
Auzen X-Fi Prelude 7.1
Mountain Mods U2-UFO CYO

Watercooling:
3 x Thermochill 120.3
Aquacomputer CPU Block
2 x Aquacomputer GTX295 Blocks
3 x DDC 18w Pumps
3 x EK 100 Res Tops

Sponsors:
I've never had a freebie from any company and this build will be no exception. The only sponsor is ME !

Currently this is how the hardware stands ! :

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/current.jpg

**Update 14/03/2009**
Something I've been a little weary about, stripping down my GTXs 295 and putting the AC block on:

First up, I needed to identify what I needed to do to remove the main full cover:

Some screws here:
http://www.ollyk.com/blocks/1.jpg

And here:
http://www.ollyk.com/blocks/2.jpg

Some more here:
http://www.ollyk.com/blocks/3.jpg

And then we get down to the PCB:
http://www.ollyk.com/blocks/4.jpg

One PCB removed:
http://www.ollyk.com/blocks/45.jpg

Undoing the screws on each PCB, releases them from the cooler sandwiched in the middle:
http://www.ollyk.com/blocks/5.jpg

I've heard bad stories about the internal SLI ribbon from breaking, or not going back on again so I decided to try to keep both PCBs together:
http://www.ollyk.com/blocks/6.jpg

Appling the thermal pads:
http://www.ollyk.com/blocks/7.jpg

After applying the thermal grease to the cores, trying to get the block in the middle of the cards was a pain. I wanted to ensure good contact with the block so I took the sli ribbon off to check:
http://www.ollyk.com/blocks/8.jpg

Flipping it over to put the other PCB on:
http://www.ollyk.com/blocks/9.jpg

Other side on and secured:
http://www.ollyk.com/blocks/10.jpg

Lower angle:
http://www.ollyk.com/blocks/11.jpg

Backplate re-attached:
http://www.ollyk.com/blocks/12.jpg

**Update 27/03/2009**
My 3 OCZ Vertex are here !

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/ssds1.jpg

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/ssds2.jpg

I have some VERY, VERY interested benchmarks for these babies which I'll share with you a bit later on :)

UPDATE: OK here are the benchies:
http://www.ollyk.com/cp/SSDATTO.jpg

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/HDTACHSSD.jpg

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/HDTUNESSD.jpg

Now that the Disk IO is sorted I can sleep at night !

**Update 30/03/2009**
MM Case is here, but there are problems. I actually ordered a triple back and they sent a standard back. Awaiting email from them. Not happy:

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/case1.jpg

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/case2.jpg

Also decided to flush my 2 new rads out. Remember kids - ALWAYS FLUSH YOUR RAD ! I just poured boiling water from our kettle through it (our kettle filters the water when you fill it up) :

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/rads.jpg

And this is what comes out :

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/radcrap.jpg

Trial fit of one rad in the case, just to judge how much space I have between the mobo tray and the rads, as I need to sort placement for the pumps and res':

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/case3.jpg

**Update 03/04/2009**
Coolant is all here. The yellow (more gold in person is Primochill gold dye bomb, in clear feser.
The pink is much more puple in person, and the blue is light in person. So hopefully it will look ok:

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/coolants.jpg

Tom's going to be working on some custom brackets soon so I can mount my res' to my rad.

**Update 04/04/2009**
Decided to sort my other 2 rads out and fit them in the case, along with braiding the fans that will be the ones I end up using:

Bit of soldering to join all 3 fans to one header. Each fan draws .2 amp and the Kaze Master can handle 1A per channel so its all good:

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/braidfans1.jpg

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/braidfans2.jpg

Both rads fitted with gasket and fans, ready to be fitted into the case:

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/braidedfans1.jpg

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/braidedfans2.jpg

And a couple of shots of the rads in the case. Looks OK, just need to figure out what I want to do for fan grills for the front:

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/caserads1.jpg

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/caserads2.jpg

**Update 14/04/2009**
Mountain Mods have shipped my replacement panels, by US Post so it will probably take ages to arrive. Got my custom brackets made from Tom @ Chilled-PC so I could started to place the reservoirs. Only done 2 though as I need another bracket.

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/case4.jpg

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/case5.jpg

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/case6.jpg

Not sure where to mount the pumps yet, underneath the res's ? or underneath the mobo tray ? Opinions please !

**Update 15/04/2009**
New PSU is here. Everyone seems to have the Corsair 1000w but its quite expensive, so I plumped for the Cooler Master real power 1000w, was about £50 cheaper !

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/psu1.jpg

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/psu2.jpg

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/psu3.jpg

Guess I've got some braiding to do now !

**Update 17/04/2009**
Finally decided on going with the EK res tops and DDC pumps, I bought 2 but I'll buy the other one to top it all off. Also put some silver fans grills in the front and decided to power up the fans to see what it would look like.

Opinions always greatfully recieved :D

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/caseres1.jpg

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/caseres2.jpg

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/caseres3.jpg

**Update 21/04/2009**
Well all of the correct parts are now all here, so attached the triple MM back panel to the case :

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/caseback1.jpg

And Tom did a great job in making a new res backet for me to house all 3 res' closer together to not interfere with the graphics cards :

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/bracket1.jpg

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/bracket2.jpg

Res' attached:

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/tripleres1.jpg

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/tripleres2.jpg

**Update 23/04/2009**
Mobo tray all assembled. Trust MM to send silver blanking plates and not black. No matter, I'll spray them.

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/mobotray1.jpg

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/mobotray2.jpg

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/mobotray3.jpg

Mobo Tray mounted in case: (ignore the tubing on the 120.3, it keeps spewing water on my SSD's :( Those rads hold a lot of water !

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/case7.jpg

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/case8.jpg

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/case9.jpg

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/case10.jpg

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/case11.jpg

**Update 24/04/2009**

Well, my 5 1/4" 2.5" Caddy came today:

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/ssdcaddy1.jpg

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/ssdcaddy2.jpg

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/ssdcaddy3.jpg

Of course, SSD's dont generate heat, so I disconnected the fans:

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/ssdcaddy4.jpg

So, 3 drives and 1 more space to fill....another SSD? Maybe, but I think I'll buy a 2.5" 500GB 7200rpm HDD and use that for my games instead of the 3.5" 400gb I have at the moment:

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/ssdcaddy5.jpg

**Update 24/04/2009**
Tubed up all 3 loops and added coolant. I can't believe the Feser Yellow is called Yellow, its more like green but i quite like it:

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/3loops1.jpg

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/3loops2.jpg

**Update 05/05/2009**
Whilst waiting for the new mobo to turn up, I changed the front grills to the black ones. I didnt like the way the AC Ryan grills reduced the airflow, I think this looks better anyways :

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/blackgrillscase.jpg

**Update 06/05/2009**

New bits are here. I replaced the yellow (yeah right feser !) with green and also decided to go all BitsPower and spend £120 on fittings:

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/newbits1.jpg

Fixed my new WD Scorpio Black 7200RPM 2.5" HDD to the caddy:

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/scorpioblack.jpg

Unboxing the mobo, I realised why I hate EVGA, their packaging is terrible :

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/evga1.jpg

The board itself however is of top quality:

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/evga2.jpg

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/evga3.jpg

Made a start straigh away taking the old blocks off:

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/evgablocksremoved.jpg

Good to see EVGA use a good amount of paste under the chipset block, ASUS take note !

NB and SB chips cleaned:

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/evgablocksre...ndcleaned1.jpg

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/evgablocksre...ndcleaned2.jpg

EK Acetal blocks fitted:

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/ekblocksfitted.jpg

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/ekblocksfitted2.jpg

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/ekblocksfitted3.jpg

CPU block retention system also in place:

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/ekblocksfitted4.jpg

OK so finally finished the tubing. Was quite complicated working out the routing. I sat and stared at it for a good hour before making any cuts.

1st 2 loops together:

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/newtubing1.jpg

CPU loop tubed up and all coolants added:

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/newtubing2.jpg

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/newtubing3.jpg

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/newtubing4.jpg

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/newtubing5.jpg

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/newtubing6.jpg

And the good thing is it POSTS !

Many of the eagle eye'd among you will spot something I need to replace. Look at one of the pumps/res

**Update 12/05/2009**
OK so I'm pretty much nearing completion on this now. I need to do a little bit more cable braiding and management, and clean those damn perspex panels as they're really dusty !

Overall I'm really happy with the way its turned out. It can play crysis warhead on high settings, and still keep cool enough. Although Im not too happy with the overclock, I'm looking at getting the EVGA Classified and a Xeon W3540

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/almostfinishedcase1.jpg

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/almostfinishedcase2.jpg

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/almostfinishedcase3.jpg

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/almostfinishedcase4.jpg

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/almostfinishedcase5.jpg

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/almostfinishedcase6.jpg

**Update 23/05/2009**
So as most of you know I bought the EVGA Classified. So I had to buy all new chipset waterblocks.

Lets see what we have then !

The Classified. What a board:

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/classifiedstandard.jpg

Taking off the standard heatsink assembly, I didn't expect to find such a bad job of thermal paste. Sure, there was lots of it, but not on the actual chip !

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/classifiedpaste.jpg

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/classifiedpastecloseup.jpg

No matter, all cleaned:

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/classifiedpa...seupleaned.jpg

And the NB and NF200 chip all cleaned:

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/classifiedpastecleaned.jpg

Fitted the Koolance block, imo looks better than the Bitspower offering :

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/classifiedkoolancenb.jpg

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/classifiedkoolancenb2.jpg

Mofset / VRM removed and Koolance block fitted :

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/classifiedkoolancevrm.jpg

And Bitspower barbs fitted :

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/classifiedbpbarbsjpg.jpg

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/classifiedbpbarbsjpg.jpg

Fitted the board to the MM Mobo Tray:

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/classifiedmobotray.jpg

And put the 295 GTX's in and the Creative Labs sound card:

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/classifiedmobotray2.jpg

Started to tube up the white stuff:

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/classifiedwhitetubing.jpg

And then added the red loop:

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/classifiedwhiteredtubing.jpg

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/classifiedwhiteredtubing2.jpg

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/classifiedwhiteredtubing3.jpg

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/classifiedwhiteredtubing4.jpg

And the last loop, black tubing:

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/classified3tubes.jpg

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/classified3tubes2.jpg

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/classified3tubes3.jpg
04-20-2009, 06:41 AM
septim

nice parts. this build is coming along nicely...
04-20-2009, 07:14 AM
tuanster1119

Really nice build... I've been considering a similar setup so I'll be keeping an eye on this.
04-20-2009, 07:15 AM
Baleful

Love that case, I have one just like it.
04-20-2009, 07:43 AM
septim

Quote:

Originally Posted by tuanster1119

Really nice build... I've been considering a similar setup so I'll be keeping an eye on this.

yeah, post it so we can all admire it...:up:
preferable a site without major downtimes for now...:D
04-20-2009, 08:46 AM
dro

great pics mate
luv the way u showed step by step on how u remove the 295 pcb
sic~:up:

+subscribed+
04-23-2009, 12:58 PM
Olly_K

thanks guys, first post updated :)
04-23-2009, 01:55 PM
ILikeCosmosS

thats really nice i really like your res bracket
did you just solder the 3rd center piece of the 3rd z-bracket to the other two?
04-23-2009, 02:41 PM
BlueAqua

Nice clean setup. I really like the Horizon horizontal motherboard setup on the Mountain Mods cases.

sub'd
04-23-2009, 02:59 PM
Chicken Patty

subscribed, this is coming out gorgeous so far :up:
04-23-2009, 07:37 PM
armeniandave

Quote:

Originally Posted by ILikeCosmosS

thats really nice i really like your res bracket
did you just solder the 3rd center piece of the 3rd z-bracket to the other two?

That's not my Z-Bracket, but it sure looks similar! :shrug:
04-23-2009, 09:45 PM
jpm804

Nice MM Case...

Quick question did you choose the anodiized option for your case or is it just powdercoated?
04-23-2009, 10:28 PM
Olly_K

Quote:

Originally Posted by ILikeCosmosS

thats really nice i really like your res bracket
did you just solder the 3rd center piece of the 3rd z-bracket to the other two?

Its one whole piece, I didnt make it as I dont have the tools or the skills !

Quote:

Originally Posted by BlueAqua

Nice clean setup. I really like the Horizon horizontal motherboard setup on the Mountain Mods cases.

sub'd

Thanks, I really had to go for a horizon because those graphics cards with the AC blocks on it weigh a ton !

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chicken Patty

subscribed, this is coming out gorgeous so far :up:

Thanks :)

Quote:

Originally Posted by armeniandave

That's not my Z-Bracket, but it sure looks similar! :shrug:

Dave, I tried to get your brackets from all over the UK but no one had them in stock. So I got a custom one made on a CNC machine

Quote:

Originally Posted by jpm804

Nice MM Case...

Quick question did you choose the anodiized option for your case or is it just powdercoated?

Its the anodized black option. Its like a brushed alu effect.
04-23-2009, 10:32 PM
bazx

looks just beautiful Olly

you dont have to turn it on to enjoy the look of this unit
04-24-2009, 12:09 AM
Olly_K

thanks Baz, I'll get some more points for the team when its up and running :)
04-24-2009, 01:17 AM
dreamaxx

Wow, some amazing hardware in there!
04-24-2009, 01:45 AM
jagass

Nice parts...Good luck to your new project...
04-25-2009, 10:30 AM
Olly_K

more updates :D
04-25-2009, 10:35 AM
breathemetal

Very nice build
04-25-2009, 11:09 AM
Sadasius

Very nice build. Where did you get that caddy for the SSD's?
04-25-2009, 11:20 AM
Olly_K

thanks for the comments, the caddy I bought in the UK but Im sure you can get it elsewhere:

http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Jou-J...ata-II-and-SAS
04-25-2009, 11:28 AM
ILikeCosmosS

wait you can get 2.5 conventional HDD's that are same as caviar blacks
know you have got me thinking
i really like your build :)
04-25-2009, 11:53 AM
Olly_K

hmm yeah, I'll get a 320GB Western Digital WD3200BJKT Scorpio Black methinks :D
04-25-2009, 04:15 PM
Oli4v

this is very nice ;) and clean looking, especially the pump-placing ;)
04-26-2009, 08:13 AM
Grinch

very nice! love the MM cases :)
04-26-2009, 01:56 PM
MomijiTMO

lol each 295 gets its own loop. Spoilt little things they are ;)
04-26-2009, 10:23 PM
Olly_K

LOL yep, total overkill but everything runs nice and cool :)
04-27-2009, 10:04 AM
Rise

wow, beautiful build!! Although I think you should try to cool the chipset as well and add a 4th loop :D Anywhere for you to squeeze in a 120.2?

I really like the colors too. Even though the colors aren't exactly as they were supposed to be, it looks fantastic!
04-27-2009, 10:10 PM
Olly_K

thanks, I did think about cooling the chipset, but I would just put that in the CPU loop it think. The only reason I didnt is because I didnt think I was going to keep the motherboard for very long
05-06-2009, 01:46 PM
Olly_K

few updates for you guys :D
05-07-2009, 12:06 AM
dr-

Quote:

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/newtubing6.jpg

And the good thing is it POSTS !

Many of the eagle eye'd among you will spot something I need to replace. Look at one of the pumps/res

hmm, i figure the top pump has the 45s in the wrong direction. you are routing backwards, then forward again...you could just rotate the top res anti-clockwise and use 1 45
05-07-2009, 12:08 AM
Olly_K

yeah, I need to change setup on that connection. thats not the original problem though. I snapped one of the res clips on the bottom pump/res :(
05-07-2009, 12:42 AM
dr-

Quote:

Originally Posted by Olly_K

http://www.ollyk.com/cp/newtubing4.jpg

ah...finally i saw that...haha. i was so engrossed in the looping that i did not notice that. perhaps you should consider these?

http://www.performance-pcs.com/catal...ducts_id=22144

or maybe you could wait for charles to put these sweet res holders up for sale :D

http://www.murderbox.com/uploads/10.mb.009.0900.jpg
05-07-2009, 08:18 AM
Olly_K

they do look good, although for the time being I think I'll just stick to the replacement EK ones !
05-23-2009, 05:13 AM
Olly_K

updated the first post with classified and koolance blocks :D
05-23-2009, 05:48 AM
dreamaxx

In those first pics, is the purple fluid actually UV pink? :)

I wasn't eagle eyed, I couldn't see what was wrong with those res's. :(
05-23-2009, 05:52 AM
tuanster1119

Wow really nice build. I love the color scheme and pump placement. Well done!
05-23-2009, 06:30 AM
Olly_K

Quote:

Originally Posted by dreamaxx

In those first pics, is the purple fluid actually UV pink? :)

I wasn't eagle eyed, I couldn't see what was wrong with those res's. :(

This was a mixture of fluid. I think it was UV black mixed with some purple. (I didnt have enough of either so I added them together !)

Quote:

Originally Posted by tuanster1119

Wow really nice build. I love the color scheme and pump placement. Well done!

Thanks :D
05-23-2009, 06:47 AM
pingpong1455

Nice build :up:

what did you use for red coolant ?
05-23-2009, 07:33 AM
Olly_K

thanks !

Its primochill with 2 red Dye Bombs but I'm going to be replacing it with some red primochill tubing and maybe black uv feser :D
05-23-2009, 09:44 AM
shazza

Olly ... Beautiful job! I can't believe I missed this one before today. I just can't decide which color scheme I like best - they both look really good. Obviously, the red/white/black looks great with the Classified. Nice job with your pump/res mounts.

This is my new favorite Mountain Mods build!
05-23-2009, 11:25 AM
Olly_K

Thanks Shazza !

To say I studied your build very carefully is an understatement !

I'm glad its your new favorite !
05-23-2009, 12:16 PM
xaxis

Bravo!!! :clap:

I hope you don't mind if I barrow your reservoir mounting technique... it's just perfect.

Beautiful build!
06-17-2009, 08:47 AM
Aielman

Very Sweet.
06-18-2009, 01:04 AM
Monkeypillow

Gorgeous stuff. It's a shame those brackets are custom; I could use some.
06-18-2009, 02:48 AM
CptDreadFlint

Quote:

Originally Posted by shazza

This is my new favorite Mountain Mods build!

I would have to echo this sentiment myself. The look of the that StarTech backplane looks awesome on your rig. Great job, Olly!
09-07-2009, 07:02 AM
Ketzer7

Olly,

About that Startech drive backplane..

Have you had any issues with it using the drives you showed?

Thinking about using one of these, but I noticed on Newegg a couple of bad reviews from people who bought one, mainly having to do with saying that Velociraptor and SAS drives don't work in it anymore (something about a new revision).

Was planning on using mainly SSDs in it which seem to work Ok from what I've seen, but a Velociraptor as a storage drive might be nice, but not necessary. Could use a laptop drive like you did instead.

Anyways, just wanted to see what your experience with it has been. Thanks.
09-07-2009, 07:05 AM
Olly_K

Hi mate, I didnt have a problem using the vertex SSD's. Im not even sure a velociraptor would fit even without the 3.5" casing as the drive is thicker than normal 2.5" hard drives. I use a 320gb WD Scorpio black for the 4th drive, and that also fitted perfectly. I bought mine when it first came out so I think im on the 1st revision.
09-07-2009, 09:27 AM
Ketzer7

Thanks for the info Olly.

I didn't realize that about the VR. I've got a couple of spare ones down in the ol' basement workshop but I never noticed about it being thicker than normal. Then again I never tried taking it off its sled. I'll go take a look now, thanks for the heads up :up:

That's interesting what you said about getting it when it first came out. Looking at the picture of yours, it has the single set of SATA ports which seems like the current rev. I guess the one people were referring to was this one with the dual sets of ports:

Dual port model

I'm confused by what the hell changed and why, honestly. But whatever, if it works with the SSDs and laptop drives, I'm set.

I got that exact same WD Scorpio drive you have and put it in my wife's MacBook and it's been excellent. Dead quiet and next best thing to an SSD in it, but I didn't want to spring for one of those just for her to surf the Internet and make crap for school with PrintShop ;)

Thanks again, definitely helps.
09-07-2009, 09:36 AM
Olly_K

Mine definately doesnt look like this :

http://c1.neweggimages.com/NeweggIma...998-037-04.jpg

Mine looks like this:

http://www.scan.co.uk/Images/Products/1063030-b.jpg

There is only 4 sata ports on the back, not 8 ! Weird really because at first look I thought that was the same as mine from the front and side !

I got mine from scan, here

The pics are correct but the title does say 8 port......wth ?
09-07-2009, 09:58 AM
Ketzer7

:) So you're as confused as I am..

Yeah, I'm not sure. As best I can guess, it used to have 8 ports and supported SAS drives, but then they changed it or something and now it only has the 4 ports and apparently doesn't support SAS drives or VRs anymore. The pictures on Newegg don't seem to have been updated for the 4 port version, which seems to be what they are selling now. :shrug:

Whatever, as long as you didn't have any issues with the SSDs and laptop drives, then that's good enough for me.

Thanks again mate, much appreciated :up:
09-07-2009, 09:59 AM
Olly_K

defo no probs here. Works really well. Really like the single molex power connector for all 4 drives too.

Good luck !
04-10-2010, 01:54 PM
GJS1

lol, I have an m1000 ontop of my wadrobe :)