Watercooled Lian-Li A05NB, bottom mount MCR320

**zoob** · 08-30-2011, 07:07 PM

Here is a cut + paste of my worklog from another forum

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The Lian-Li A05NB is one of my most favourite cases. It has a small footprint, quality finish, and just enough expansion ports for it to do everything I need.

My drive bay includes:
- 1 DVD writer
- 1 HDD hotswap bay, like the Antec Easy SATA dock
- 1 3.5" bay device, like the ASUS USB3.0 bay included with the P8P67 motherboard

Lian-Li has a few things like a replacement I/O module for the top panel that provides USB3.0 ports, but they're pricey. If I was to buy that, as well as the adapter for the motherboard header, it would be more than half the cost of a new A05NB!

Hardware to be installed:
i7 2600K
ASUS Maximus IV Gene-Z
4 x 4 GB Corsair Vengeance DDR3-1600 RAM
PowerColor 6850 Passive (this is subject to change)
Corsair AX750 PSU (possibly an HX620 depending on motherboard squeal)
Pioneer DVR-218LBK
Antec EasySATA hot swap bay

Cooling will include:
Switech Apogee XT
EK 150 res
Swiftech MCR320 - bottom mounted
DDC3.2 w/Petra top (potentially a DD CPX-1 instead depending on noise)
3 x Scythe Gentle Typhoon

General notes:
I like making my modifications relatively "clean" so that I can return my case back to almost stock configuration (see my old Q08 mod somewhere on this forum).

My tool kit currently includes:
- Cordless drill
- Set of Mastercraft drill bits
- Red Wiss snips
- Needle nose pliers
- Slide lock adjustable pliers
- Large flat metal file
- Small triangular metal file
- Mastercraft rotary tool

I don't have a jigsaw at the moment. They're really useful when cutting large amounts of metal. I dislike using a dremel because they're noisy. In my experience, most of the time a jigsaw will be faster and cleaner.

Aluminum breaks off very easily, so for some more 'precision' cuts, I've snipped the alu into strips, then use my adjustable pliers to bend and break it off. File the metal until you get to the desired line.

Motherboard tray
Easiest mod to this case to make it easier to mount your CPU heatsink/block.

Radiator mount
The barbs will be at the rear of the case. I had to sacrifice the PSU holder, but in the event I revert back, I'll probably end up putting a sheet of metal on the floor to seal it off.

Power supply mount
I left the hard drive cage holes intact so that if I desire to revert back to air cooling and for some reason want to use standard hard drives, I can mount the stock cage.

The stock cage mounting holes have the perfect setup to be used as a PSU mount. Was this deliberate?

Also, the AX750 has a whole gob load of mounting holes so you can mount either way. This allowed me to use it as a template for drilling out the new PSU mounting holes.

**zoob** · 08-30-2011, 07:08 PM

Lian-Li cases are so lots of fun to work with :thumb:

Had to add some more cuts for the motherboard tray. This lets me get to the four holes for the CPU mount, and also lets me tidy up the motherboard headers for the buttons/LEDs

Getting ready the radiator ready to mount the GT's. They're a pain in the butt because of the enclosed corners. Canadian Tire has a horrible selection of bolts and screws, and unfortunately for me it's the closest store (I seldom ever get to drive).

Needed to use the nut as a washer to prevent the screw from damaging the radiator fins. Turned out OK.

Now before proceeding any further, I need to figure out what to do about case feet. It seems I'm going to need to buy them from the USA. If I do this, I may as well go ahead and purchase some primer and flat black paint to give me some work to do, right? Any tips for a case painting noob? I know I should scuff it up and clean it with tack cloth, but maybe it's OK even without doing that if I get self-etching primer?

**zoob** · 08-30-2011, 07:08 PM

Some updates.

Tools for the day.

After removing the stickers with goo-gone, I lightly sanded the case, and then gave it a soapy shower down. No pics.

First I tried spray painting small parts. First time ever spray painting anything...
Primer, 20 min, flip, primer. No shots of primer. Woops.

Here are some small parts. Have trouble with this as I think I soaked it too much, and didn't wait for it to dry before flipping.

Then next the case. Also no progress pics, just final.

Some weird bubbles. Maybe I didn't dry the case off as well as I thought I did.

Woops! Too much paint... hard to control sprays on the inside of the thing. Maybe next time I'll drill out the rivets and do everything separately.

Looks like a success for my first paint job. We'll see how it holds up after drying overnight and stuffing some parts in to it.

Still haven't figured out what type of feet to order. Wheels or feet like this: MNPCtech Large Black Anodized Grooved Case Feet (Set 4) MNPCtech Large Black Anodized Grooved Case Feet (Set 4) [NMPC-CASEFT-SMBK] - $39.99 : DazMode, The Best Canadian PC Watercooling and Modding Store! ?

Here is some sleeving while I was bored. Didn't turn out amazing, but better than anything I've done in the past.

**zoob** · 08-30-2011, 07:09 PM

Piecing it together now.

Had to think of a good way to build a loop. My last DDC has only stock or XSPC res top which neither would work well in this type of loop. I opted for a DD-CPX1. Those things are low power, low flow, and quiet... but have a nasty hum if not decoupled properly.

I crafted a really shoddy pump mount from an old Antec drive bay piece.
Opted for clear tubing to give it a bit more contrast.

Very short loop.

Another angle.

Powered on to install Windows and test! It's quiet. All fans are running at 5V. The GTs are the 1850 RPM variant.

Pump growl is present but I have to see how it fares in a dead silent room with all of the panels on.

Filling this thing was easy. Pour water in, tilt a few times, pour some more water in, tilt some more.

**zoob** · 08-30-2011, 07:09 PM

Some more updates

Need to shave this down otherwise the front panel won't fit on.

Behind the mobo tray:

Inside the case:

Notes:
* Gentle Typhoon 1850RPM @ 5V exhibit a really strange fan motor resonance that transmits to the case. Very annoying, but I am hoping the bearings break in.
* The CPU I'm using is rather terrible. 1.415V set BIOS with 75% LLC to get 4.8 GHz LinX w/AVX stable. Hits about 83C in almost complete silence.
* To be able to access the PCI-E slot latch, I had to move the video card into the 8X slot. The height of the Vengeance RAM was blocking access... it was tough to fit.
* Not as pretty as other people's mods, but on the outside it looks like a stock A05NB save for the spray painted wood feet. I am going for function over form here.

**c.ruel** · 09-01-2011, 08:59 AM

Nice mod! I am thinking of doing some roughly similar with my mid tower lian li. Lots of good ideas in here ... might have to steal a few!

**zoob** · 09-15-2011, 05:39 PM

Thanks! Most of the ideas were borrowed from other builds on this forum, though I don't think many have the loop done this short.
The only disadvantage is the pump is tough to bleed and decouple.

Some updates!

I ordered a new Koolance top for a DDC3.25 I'm going to run at 7V. It is supposed to help reduce pump noise due to its mass. The CPX-1 is transmitting a vibration throughout the case which bugs me. It's only audible in a completely silent room, but it has a distinct tone.
Pump Nozzle & Reservoir Base for PMP-400 (60mm OD) - Water cooling systems, pc liquid cooling kit, cpu, video card, hard drive

The fans were also switched out for S-Flex E fans running at 5V -- no more fan noise. I chopped up an old Thermochill PA120.3 25mm spacing neoprene gasket which did not aid in the S-Flex motor noise, but at least it helps close up gaps.
The GT's even at 5V have a nasty motor growl that is amplified by having three in a row.

RAM will also be changed for G-Skill ECO DDR3-1600 CL8 1.35V for low profile spreaders. The gasket makes the fans sit just a little too high for the Vengeance RAM, and my G-Skill Sniper S.E. require 1.5V otherwise I get BSODs (even though they're rated for 1.25V). Maybe they're just harder to drive?

I've ordered a second Force 120GB refurb for extra storage of games. Not a fan of the new SF2 drives even though the price is coming down significantly. Was very tempted to go with a C400 256GB but I won't use the computer often enough to justify the cost.

Next step is to figure out what video card + waterblock to purchase... I hope next gen cards come out soon (yea right), or at least a good deal for a GTX580 or something pops up. This 6850 is hurting in comparison to my GTX560 Ti in my other rig.

This pump top has more options compared to an EK top, so I decided to go with this in case I eventually need to have parallel inlet/outlets.
It screams 'quality' and I'm very glad because it's my first ever Koolance purchase.

So with this in my system, the system is pretty much silent. My 5V Noctuas are actually the loudest component now. Gone are the fan growls after switching to S-Flex E's @ 5V, and gone is the CPX1 hum.

The pump top was about $40 and worth every last penny in my opinion. I didn't even need to cut any new tubing!

Now I have to find the motivation to sleeve this replacement pump.