--- r e f l e X i o n ---

[Xion X2]

You ventured through the portal and have taken your fated leap into the unknown. To a place where dreams and reality merge as one...




(Actual shot of side panel above)

To start, the name of the project is pronounced the same as "reflection," just with an X, instead. I came up with the project name based on a particular theme that I had in mind and then thought, “You know, what would really set it off is to spell it a little different, and hey, my name fits perfectly!”

To get the wheels turning, I designed a logo and custom graphic specifically for this project that captures part of my vision for it. The theme is galaxies and the reflection of light. I have always been fascinated by the stars, and with a little help from a buddy of mine, the theme was born. With this, I believe I have some unique concepts in mind that will give this project both life and a personality. Some of these concepts, which I feel are unique and have not seen done before, I will not be sharing until the later stages in the project. But I promise to keep this worklog interesting and will try to provide updates regularly. In addition, I want this worklog to be a two-way exchange. All constructive feedback and ideas are more than welcome as that’s how we learn.

I'll briefly state my objective with this latest build before I get into the meat of the project.


My objective: To build a machine that pulses with life and personality and that exudes excellence.


My personal belief is that the ceiling of creativity in this hobby hasn't even been approached yet. My intention is to show a PC's artistic possibilities, to give it a name and a likeness. An identity, if you will. To accomplish this, I plan to inject some of my ideas, have them blend with a particular theme, and then to execute that theme through precise and risky modding. I believe that both can be accomplished, so my goal is to build a machine that's both edgy and refined.

So without further delay, I give you:




__________________________________________________ _____



Sponsored by:

















Watch the unveiling of "refleXion" in 720p HD:

http://vimeo.com/10476537



Project Milestones/Progress:

I. Side panel design completed
II. Zero Gravity Chamber Conceived
III. Case Layout Design Completed
IV. Zero Gravity Chamber Waterjet Cut Completed
V. Side panel waterjet cut completed
VI. Zero Gravity Chamber design completed


Components:

Chassis: Cooler Master Cosmos S
Side Panel: Custom Waterjet
Front Panel: Custom Waterjet
Interior: "Zero Gravity Chamber" (custom SSD and pump mounting device); Custom Radbox Twins w/ MNPCTech Billet 240 grills

Hardware:
Intel i7 950
Foxconn Flaming Blade X58 (may change)
ATI HD5970 CrossfireX (4 GPUs)
SSD Raid0 x 4 (OCZ Vertex SSD x 4)
Corsair HX1000W PSU

Cooling:
Dual MCP350 Swiftech H20 system, dual-loop design
Swiftech MRC Radiators (2 x 240)
XSPC Reservoir DDC Top x 2
Dangerden H20(CPU, Chipset, GPUs)
Coolant: Fezer Clear (UV), Fezer Black (UV)
Tubing: 7/16" Tygon
Fittings: BP Rotaries, Straight-compression: ???

[Xion X2]

At this point, I'm still in the design stage. It's been a crash course in 3dMax for the last 3-4 weeks, and I feel that it's going very well. Going through a lot of renders right now which I will be putting up in the next few days. I should have some concept renders of the case and side panel design tomorrow.

Here are some photos of the hardware that's going in.

UPDATE 12/28/09 -- Upgraded to HD5970 CrossfireX (4 GPUs)

Geforce GTX 275 SLI (1792 MB editions). These were fun to shoot because of the shiny black finish.

[Xion X2]

Ok, a few more shots of the 275s.






That's it for now. Much more to come, so stay tuned.

[Neox69]

Subscribed!!! Can't wait...

[dingdong555]

Nice! FANTASTIC PHOTOGRAPHY mate, looks amazing!

[The Viking]

:O Just amazing photos!

[Xion X2]

(Post deleted by Xion.)

[millertime359]

Any reason why you are using a HK 3.0 LC instead of an LT? The photos look great. looking forward to this build.

[Xion X2]

Thanks, Miller. I bought the LC several months ago after reading through Martin's review where he tested around 20 different blocks. The LC was much cheaper at the time, with similar (albeit a little less) performance. I see that you have the LT plus the MCW60, so we'll have similar H20 components, looks like.

[slim142]

Looks Amazing

[Xion X2]

Thanks, Slim!

Still working on the side panel design. I broke from that for a while and modeled me an SSD.

[Anemic]

Niiice project! All SSDs and no old school harddrives? Its going to be faaast! ; ) Keep it up, very good photos and 3DMax pics

[The Viking]

Any reason why you are using a HK 3.0 LC instead of an LT? The photos look great. looking forward to this build.

Whats the difference between the LC and LT?
on another note, you have Veery nice pictures, and i can't wait to see what you do with the sidepanel and your case :-)

[millertime359]

Whats the difference between the LC and LT?

You can see in Vapor's review here: http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/...d.php?t=235916

The big difference is the pin density of the 2 blocks. The LC's pin matrix is less dense compared to the LT. This results in better flow rates, but higher temps.

The LT is able to transfer heat better than the LC is.

[Linuxfan]

Going to be a nice build... subscribed!
Professional clean photos, what did you use to do it?

[Xion X2]

Niiice project! All SSDs and no old school harddrives? Its going to be faaast! ; ) Keep it up, very good photos and 3DMax pics

Thanks, Anemic!

Yep.. all SSDs this time around. I'm going with Raid0 on the 4 Vertex drives which should net me somewhere in the range of 500-600 MB/s, I'm hoping. I've seen a few other guys who have been able to hit that with 3 drives and on the on-board controller, so that's the minimum that I'm hoping for.

The Vertex drives I'll use for the OS, and the two Core drives will be used for file storage/gaming.

Whats the difference between the LC and LT?
on another note, you have Veery nice pictures, and i can't wait to see what you do with the sidepanel and your case :-)

Thanks, Viking! I should have some renders of the side panel up shortly. Either tonight or some time tomorrow is the goal.

The LT has slightly better performance, but to me it wasn't worth the difference in price based on what I saw in Martin's testing. I think the LT came out first out of 20 or so blocks, and the LC was like 3rd or 4th in his testing which was well above average. And at the time, the LT was almost double the price of the LC. Also, the only LTs I saw at the time came w/ the copper top which clashes with the color scheme I have going.

The LT is certainly an outstanding block, though. Best on the market, probably, and the LC is among the best out there.

The big difference is the pin density of the 2 blocks. The LC's pin matrix is less dense compared to the LT. This results in better flow rates, but higher temps.

Yep. At the time, better flow rates were key to me because I had planned on running blocks for both the northbridge and mosfet in line with the CPU. Haven't decided for final that I'm still doing that as it's been difficult to find mosfet blocks for this board.

Going to be a nice build... subscribed!
Professional clean photos, what did you use to do it?

Thanks, Linuxfan!

Photos were taken w/ a Nikon D40 and 35mm 1.8 Nikkor lens. For light, I have two 1000w 24x20 softboxes.

[millertime359]

Both Vapor and HES's reviews put the LC about 1 to 1.5 degree of the LT, so its not a huge difference in most people's standards, but this is XS.

That sucks about having issues finding a block for the mosfets.

[nigelke]

hmm looks intresting
going to follow this

[Xion X2]

So as the intro to the project states, I decided on the Cosmos S for this build after some extensive deliberation. Other cases that I considered were the new Corsair Obsidian, the Zalman GS1000 (was VERY close to getting this one,) or a few of the newer Lian Li series. When it came down to it, however, I saw in the Cosmos much of what I was looking for when it comes to aesthetics. It had smooth curves and a futuristic look about it which I think meshes well with my theme. Seeing as I'm not quite ready to design a case from scratch, it fit my current needs better than any other.

And, I mean, come on.. "Cosmos".. is there a more perfect name for a case based on a galaxy theme such as this one? In the end, there was no other choice.





Cooler Master does a great job with their packaging. To my delight, after opening the box I found the case wrapped in a nice polyester cloth all coddled like a baby.






Nice! There's something about the care that goes into packing that gives me a warm fuzzy feeling inside, like what I'm about to get into has a lot of love and care given to it.

Ok, now it's time to get naked.

















You and your dirty mind.. I know what you were thinking.

So now it was time to get her in my studio, under the lights, and behind a camera.








The basic structural design will remain, but I plan on modifying quite a bit of it (especially that red streak across the front.. that's one of the FIRST things I will get to as it completely clashes with my color scheme.) The entire front will have a custom laser-etched panel along with a glass window that looks into the dual water pumps. The current side panel with the mesh will be completely replaced with a solid side panel that is waterjet ready. The renders will lay all this out in more detail.

That's all for today. I'm continuing work on the side panel design and will try to have some renders up in the next few days. I'll be looking for some feedback as I haven't decided on a final design just yet.

Til then!

[sniperbob]

Beautiful pictures man! cannot wait to see how this log pans out!

[zeropluszero]

i love the cosmos.
which is why i own one.

[millertime359]

That's a black edition too isn't it. Nice

[W34513]

subbed

[Xion X2]

Beautiful pictures man! cannot wait to see how this log pans out!

Thanks, sniperbob! Stay tuned, because there's a lot more to come. Starting... now.

i love the cosmos.
which is why i own one.

Excellent choice!

That's a black edition too isn't it. Nice

Just the standard Cosmos S. It won't really matter, though, because I'll be repainting the entire thing.

subbed

Cool.


First concept shots of the side panel. These are likely to change quite a bit as I experiment with some different colors and shapes. The original color of the side panel graphic was mirror/chrome, but I'm having some difficulty getting max to render that color/effect. The black acrylic turned out nice, though.









Special thanks to my buddy Mark for helping me come up with the design!

[W34513]

that side panel will be soooo good looking if you can pull it off! not that i doubt, just sayin. This build is going to turn out amazing!