Project: Taking my sweet time (A+ Black Pearl)

[Jonni Nitro]

Let me start of by saying that I am taking me time on this project. I have a 4week old at home and so life is busy at the moment. So, there may not be a lot of updates. When I get some things done I will post more. I dont think that this case will be perfect, but hopefully it turns out decent. I really wanted one of these cases for a while, but wasnt willing to pay the price. I finally scored one at Fry's on clearance for 80 bucks.

I didnt take any stock photos but you can find them yourself if you dont already know what it looks like.

Goals:
Make a clean, simple system that isnt too flashy.
Be able to controll some of the noise.

First I wanted to be able to control the majority of the fans in my case in an attempt to control the noise while the system is idle. So I picked up a Sunbeam rhoebus and will be modding it into the from panel where the temp display and stock fan controller was. I am also relocating the HDD rack to the 5.25" bays to save room in the bottom of the case.



I will be using most of the bottom of the case to house my water cooling system. I havent worked out all the details yet, but I have a Swiftech MCR320 and a 320 Stacker. The cpu and nb will be the only items in this loop. I decided to air cool the mosfets. I am not going really extreme on the hardware, just whats in my sig. My wife has a friend that she introduced me to that has a really cool machine shop. He was able to make some cuts on his waterjet machine for me. I am pretty happy with the results. I plan to add some mesh behind the slots and maybe some foam behind that for some good filtering. I be replacing the side mesh window with a smoked acrylic one. The inside will probably be lit with some clear LEDs or CCFL.



I am going to try not to screw this case up so I dont have to paint much. I would like to keep the original finish of this case. The air for the radiators will be drawn in from the window side and exhausted through the motherboard side. This will keep all of the major heat exchaging components on the bottom of the case. I havent decided if I will be building a costum enclosure for the rads in the bottom. Also, I have an MCP655 already and I still need to find some place to put it.



So let me know what you guys think. If anyone has some ideas or advice feel free to chime in.

[Oli4v]

looking interesting ... ^^

case looks also a lot like lian li V2000 ...

[Jonni Nitro]

Yeah, its a V2000 rebrand. It has the same quality as a Lian Li, but I paid way less.

[NaeKuh]

oh u got rid of that front display :T

I had my cousin's read the water coolant temps, and RPM on the pump so he could visually see if his pump died or not. :P

[IanY]

Never mind the computer; congratulations on your child!

[Jonni Nitro]

Never mind the computer; congratulations on your child!

Thanks, it has been a life changer for sure.

BTW This is Oliver Scott my baby boy. He was 7lbs 10oz and 3 weeks early. My wife is about 6ft and 130lbs, she just ran out of room in there.

[theseeker]

Thanks, it has been a life changer for sure.

BTW This is Oliver Scott my baby boy. He was 7lbs 10oz and 3 weeks early. My wife is about 6ft and 130lbs, she just ran out of room in there.

Truly PRICELESS! Congratulations!
The case looks great.

[lkiller123]

Thanks, it has been a life changer for sure.

BTW This is Oliver Scott my baby boy. He was 7lbs 10oz and 3 weeks early. My wife is about 6ft and 130lbs, she just ran out of room in there.

Is that a case?!!
JKJK

[shazza]

Whoa ... congratulations on your beautiful baby boy. So sweet, and what a head of hair!

The case looks great ... really like the cuts as well. Good Luck with the project, but most of all, take time to enjoy your son.

[Devil_Dog]

Congrats an the new addition to the family. It is a true life changer and adjustment. I have 2 boys (2 & 4). I love every minute of it.

Build looks like it's going to be nice.

[dreamaxx]

what case is that it looks nice

[moogle]

what case is that it looks nice

As the title says it's an APlus Black Pearl case

[charles_h]

Looks like a great start.

Nice job on the side panel - I actually think the large mesh is rather interesting but I can understand you wanting to go with a more conventional window.

Looking forward to following.


Congratulations on the new arrival!

[Jonni Nitro]

I like the mesh side window as well, but my current case has the same thing and it doesnt really support good airflow. I also think the smoked one will just be a little cleaner looking outside and less dusty inside.

[Mr_Mike]

cant wait to see more

Congratulations on the new member of the family

[masska]

Congratulations to you and your partner. Your boy is gorgeous.
Will keep on checking your progress on the build

[dr-]

oliver scott is adorable! congrats on the new addition in the family!

i m kinda drawn to ur concept of a non-flashy design, kinda suits my tastes.

keep up with the gd wrk!

[Jonni Nitro]

Ok, at long last I am back. It has been forever since I updated this thread, and I am just now getting to the point where I can start working again. I will be off until the 27th of Sept. I will be going in for some ankle surgery later in the week, but I hope it doesnt completey kill my chance to finally build this case.

There have been some build changes, but not a lot. I am still keeping with my sleek/simple approach. You could call it "Anti-Bling", maybe.

I do have a few pics I snapped. I am using my old point and shoot for the worklog pics so they are a bit grainy. You guys will get the idea.

On another note, my son just turned 6 months old already. I can believe how awesome being a father is. He has changed so much. Im sorry but I have to show off.

At my first Dodgers game



6mo, 20lbs, 29.5in Yes, Im a big boy, but my grandpa is 6'8"!



Well, lets get back to my update:

Where the magic...uh..modding happens.



Shaving some of the uneeded holes on the mid shelf/plate



The motherboard tray still needs some touch up, but I filled a lot of holes that wont be covered be the motherboard.



Kepping with the whole, subdued, image I picked up these Bitspower matte black fittings.



Some mesh behind the side panel vents. Its not attached, think of painting it dark blue to match the coolant. I want some small pop of color.



More updates to come. I want to get as much done as possible over the next three days before my surgery.

[rjkoneill]

like matt black fittings are they a DIY job?

and love the grill on the side panels

[Jonni Nitro]

I got the matte black fittings from Jab-Tech. I wanted to do compression fittings, but they are just to dang exspensive and they dont make matte black ones. Im going to try and do some color on the mesh material. I dont want the case to end up being a flat black box sitting on my desk.

[shazza]

Yay!!!! You're back. Been hoping you'd update us. But before computer talk - Oliver Scott is getting big!!! And quite a handsome young man too.

[Jonni Nitro]

Shazza - Once I seen your worklog pop up I figured I better get busy on mine. After that newegg sale on this case I exptect to see a few more threads involving these cases. They are huge, but it still seems a little tricky to get everything pulled together and keeping it clean. This will be my first build where all the cooling parts are inside the case. I will be running stacked MCR320's with 1900rpm Scythe fans. Its about 5in thick plus I will need breathing room on the bottom for intake air.

[The Water Dog]

Realy nice what you have done there
Yeah, think its coming some more threads with these cases, you can get them pretty cheap if you are lucky

Looks like a great kid

[Arthur]

This Black Pearl is second one who making nice worklog with Black Pearl nowadays. First one was @shazza's case. I really likes his worklog too. Should I start my own worklog with my bloody V2000?

I hope your case will be nice. You got talent out there LOL.

PS: You have a great son. Congratulations.

[Jonni Nitro]

Should I start my own worklog with my bloody V2000?

Lets see it, I am always looking for ideas.

I am going to keep this updated, hopefully. I dont know how much talent I have, but I am hoping for a nice looking case.