140.4 (SR-1 560) in a Silverstone FT-02 (in progress)

[Roman2K]

Wouldn't it be great to have a fully watercooled system in the beautiful Silverstone FT-02 with such a huge radiator as the Black Ice SR-1 560?

In this post, I will be describing what I am going through to get to that dream watercooling combination.

Photos & videos:

http://imgur.com/a/01aMs

Videos of the build fully assembled:

• Fully Watercooled FT-02 (SR-1 560, 100% EK, MCP35X, CH3F, 1090T, 5970)
• Fully Watercooled FT-02 - Noise Test

Personal story:

A few months ago I chose to get a Black Ice SR-1 560 to go with my Silverstone FT-02. I had no choice but to "mount" it externally, just sitting on top with screwed-on rubber feet and quick disconnects so as to be able to move the case and the radiator independently. That meant having the hoses go through a PCI slot via a G1/4" L-bracket and routed through the wide hole in the upper back. I found out the hard way that it just wasn't a viable solution as this PCI bracket leaked every time the hoses moved (unscrewing the fittings). I was so disgusted by this complete failure that I went back to 100% air-cooling. Only, the 5970 couldn't take it: an AC Accelero Xtreme wasn't able to cool it properly under load even with the 3 fans at 100%. I re-seated it twice, and every thermal pad was making proper contact, so I took it this Accelero wasn't optimized for the 90°-rotated design of the FT-02. I had to go back to liquid cooling, but after the bad experience I had, I definitely wasn't ready to go the external route again and settled with an internal GPU-only loop with a single 140mm radiator, very efficient (42°C on both GPUs under FurMark). That brought my confidence in LC back up and now that I sold my 980X, I'm moving to a cheap CH3F + 1090T system with enough money to go back to full LC (CPU, GPUs, MB) and most importantly, use my poor, abandoned 560 that cost me so much and is begging to dissipate heat. Of course, that meant modding the case, but I'm determined to succeed even though I couldn't find a story of somebody mounting a 560 in a FT-02, just the idea briefly mentioned back when this case was released.

Mounting problems:

From what I gathered up until now:

1. The SR-1 560 must be mounted at the bottom of the case, in place of the 3 180mm fans and their mounting brackets. Obiously, there's nowhere else to place it.

2. Once the fans removed, there is still no way to insert the radiator because of the ~1 cm-thick metal "bands" on each vertical edge, that support the side panel. It's not possible insert it diagonally either, since the hard-drive cage is in the way.

3. This radiator is *exactly* as long as the inside length (front to back metal panes) of the FT-02, so it is a super tight fit.

Modding:

There are 3 things to do in order to be able to insert the 560, one for each of the points above:

1. Remove the 3 bottom fans and their mounting brackets :

The fans are easy to remove. Their brackets, on the other hand, gave me a hard time: for each bracket, there are 4 clips in total, 2 on each side. One side is easy to unclip, while the other one seems to have its clips stuck to the external side of the bottom of the case. They have to be punched to be unstuck, and then unclipped, letting the bracket off the case.

2. Remove the hard drive cage:

There are 11 or 12 rivets to pop, including 4 in the front, which require to remove the skeleton of the case from its U-shaped shell. To do that, there are several screws attaching it to the skeleton, inside the case, they're easy to spot. Then, pop the rivets with a drill. 2 of them will have to be done diagonally as the drill is too close to the edge of the case but they do come out, eventually.

3. Remove the foam in the lower back of the case:

The radiator can now be inserted once rotated. One of the sides must then be pushed down so that the radiator is level with the floor of the case. This can't be done because the foam attached to the back of the case is too thick.

Removing it is the hardest job in the whole process. The glue Silverstone used is extremely strong. Attempting to remove it with fingers only, the foam comes off partially, but there's some foam left and most importantly, glue stuck to the wall.

I tried both warm water and nail polish remover with no luck. Eventually, I soaked the remains in warm water and dish soap so as to soften it, making it easier to peel it off with a spatula. There's a remaining layer of glue, very thin and not that sticky, but I simply couldn't get rid of it and the fact that it's even over the whole surface tells me that it was (and still is) there for good. There are now scratches and various marks but this trade-off is well worth it.

Status:

Extracted from one of the YouTube videos:

I just finished putting together my fully watercooled PC housed in a Silverstone FT-02B modded to accomodate a Black Ice SR-1 560 radiator, though with only 3 fans since the 5970 is 1.5cm too long.

Specifications:
- Motherboard: ASUS Crosshair III Formula
- CPU: AMD Phenom II 1090T (CCCBE CB 1022BPMW)
- RAM: Corsair Dominator GT 2000 MHz C8-8-8-24
- GPU: ATi Radeon HD5970
- Sound card: ASUS Xonar DX
- SSD (OS): Corsair F120
- HDD (storage): Hitachi 5K500.B 500 GB
- Media R/W: LG CH8LS10
- PSU: Be Quiet! Dark Power Pro P8 1000W

Watercooling equipment:
- Pump: Swiftech MCP35X (PWM controlled)
- Radiator: Black Ice SR-1 560
- Reservoir: XSPC Single Bay
- CPU waterblock: EK Supreme HF v2 - Acetal + nickel
- GPU waterblock: EK FC5970 - Acetal + copper (not nickel plated as bought before the other ones)
- Motherboard waterblock: EK FB ASUS CHIII - Acetal + nickel
- Radiator fans: NoiseBlocker BlackSilent Pro PK-3
- Exhaust fan: Scythe Gentle Typhoon AP-15
- Fan controller: Sunbeam Rheobus Extreme
- Fittings and adapters: TFC and BitsPower

Modding of the FT-02 detailed on XtremeSystems.org: http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/....php?p=4743338

I am thrilled with the silence and excellent temperatures so far. With everything at stock under full stress load:
- CPU socket (Prime95 small FFT) : ~35°C (cores allegedly ~25°C)
- GPU cores (FurMark): ~35°C
- Northbridge (Prime95 small FFT): 30°C
- Southbridge (Prime95 small FFT): 31°C

Definitely worth all the money and time that went into this build!

[Church]

At one point i also considered FT05 && SR560 .. but after seeing how much it might required moding i gave up. Anyway, good luck! Subscribed.

[Roman2K]

@churchy

At one point i also considered FT05 && SR560 .. but after seeing how much it might required moding i gave up. Anyway, good luck! Subscribed.

Nice to see other people interested in this kind of project . As for the modding required: unless something else gets in my way, it's actually not that much. The most annoying part is removing the glue .

Also, I foresee not being able to insert every screw through the bottom grills, to attach both the fans to the radiator and the fans + radiator package to the case, as not all fan holes align.

Anyway, thanks for your support .

[pokazene_maslo]

Don't forget to post photos. I also have an FT02.
Good luck!

[Biffa]

You might want to move this to the build log section if thats what its going to turn into

[Tetrafluorometh]

Tried acetone on the glue? It cleans off armaflex tape easy, just stick some on let it soak then rub it or peal it off. Can also try the heat with hot airgun hair dryer then add acetone let it soak and remove

[Church]

i'd be careful with acetone. It's very powerful solvent, it might dissolve paint.

[Roman2K]

Test fitting:



More photos are available in raw form in this Google Docs collection.

---

@pokazene_maslo
I will post some properly this week-end. In the meantime, they're available raw in the gallery linked to above.

@Biffa
You're right, it would be more appropriate in the build log section. I'll have to ask a moderator to move it as I can't seem to be allowed to do it myself.

@churchy
I don't care much for paint, especially in this area that's covered with the radiator and cables coming out of the PSU. Having the area cleaned to the best of my ability is more important in my eyes. As you can see in the photos, the square area is full of scratches now, I think that's a trade-off that was well worth it.

@Tetrafluorometh
I tried nail polish remover. I didn't check whether it's made of acetone. That and the dryer is an excellent idea. However I hadn't checked this thread coming back from work so I tried something else: dish soap with warm water to soak the remains of glue and foam, and then a dirty old spatula (that has been used to clean up dog poo for decades, but I'm just glad it was there ) to peel it off. That worked decently as you can see in the photos. There's a remaining layer of glue, very thin and not that sticky, but I simply couldn't remove it and the fact that it's even over the whole surface tells me that it was (and still is) there for good.

[Tetrafluorometh]

Ask the missies for her nail poish remover, that or black head cleaner (face wipe stuff) can do it as well. Looks good dude

[Roman2K]

Ask the missies for her nail poish remover, that or black head cleaner (face wipe stuff) can do it as well. Looks good dude

Thanks for the suggestion but I had already tried that and failed . I did manage to get rid of the junk satisfactorily enough though (I described how above and in the original post).

[mingbogo]

Great! I have a FT02 and I like very much. I was waiting for see if I want to upgrade to TJ 11 but was disappointed to see it cannot accomodate 2 560s internally. Unfortunately, I have decided long ago not to mount rads inside my case, so I am a fan of externally mounted rads. I have modded my FT02 to have two tripples mounted on the back side, which I think it turned out very well, as it does not look out of wack like some of the cruely mounted exteranl rads. I have been too busy and lazy to post pictures of it but I hope to do that sometime. Have fun!

[cstkl1]

to help OP

SR1 560 rig on FT02

http://translate.google.com/translat...342608&act=url

[rps1975]

Nice one! This is similar to my first build, though I have the RV02B-EW and an SR1-560. Got the rad in the bottom fine, just waiting on the UK post for my stuff to turn up. I will have to keep an eye on your log for inspiration!

[thobel]

anyone els eget one of those fake virus pop ups from the imageshack photos?

[zalbard]

Wow, this project makes me regret getting rid of Raven 2...
Looks really good, though, almost like it's designed to fit in there! So keep it up, I'll make sure to follow this thread!

[Roman2K]

@mingbogo
Wow, two 360's at the back of an FT-02!? I'd really like to see that, please post pictures when you have time .

@cstkl1
So that's at lease one more person putting an SR-1 560 in a FT-02. Thanks for that link, very interesting indeed.

@rps1975
Thanks. Are you planning on starting a build log for your RV02 + SR-1 560? I have only seen 480's on Raven's but no 560 yet. I guess it's about the same deal as the FT-02 when it comes to make it fit.

@thobel
I haven't had any pop-up running Chrome.

@zalbard
Thanks! It's almost a perfect match once room is made for the radiator. I'm glad you like it.

---

2 days ago I was ready to fill and start running the loop by jump starting a PSU: I had all blocks mounted (CPU, GPU, MB), all in the case, but once I powered on the PSU, 2 problems:

• The pump was making a loud noise -- which could be considered normal with air bubbles in the beginning -- but also a clicking noise and it felt like it wasn't moving much water (I have opaque hoses so I can't really tell). It's an MCP355 with an XSPC top. It has already done that on me a few months ago but after switching to an XSPC reservoir-top for a GPU-only loop, it worked like a charm. So I guess the top is faulty, as absurd as it sounds, it having no moving parts... I'll try another XSPC top tonight. If it still fails, it will be a good excuse to buy the 35X .
• Less obscure, but still a PITA: the CPU waterblock, EK Supreme HF v2, was leaking. I had to switch base mounting plates from the default Intel to the AMD one but like many people, I failed to place the o-ring back properly. It looks like it has been crushed in one of the corners, not quite ruptured but well cut / dented. I gave it another try and will test this evening along with the pump in a temporary loop.

[aerial]

Btw won't there be a problem with long video cards? Radiator + fans will be thicker than stock fans, and I have seen screenshots where longest cards barely fit.

[Roman2K]

Btw won't there be a problem with long video cards? Radiator + fans will be thicker than stock fans, and I have seen screenshots where longest cards barely fit.

That's exactly right. At first I had planned on having the fans below the radiator (on the side of built-in shroud) but that would have left "only" 28 cm for the video card. Mine (5970) is 29.5 cm long so I had no choice but to place fans on top, and leave one out. So I have only 3 fans out of 4. You will see what I mean in the pictures in the coming days.

[penguins]

I wanted to do this exact same thing, I even went to fry's to measure a rv02 and it came out perfect. glad I can measure!!
This is my favorite new case again : )

[IIcx]

I know its a little late now but I will tell you what I have done (still a work in progress).

I drilled the vertical piece right between the upper fan / case fan speed switches on one side and the power supply cup on the other. The 1/2" tubing routes with very gentle bends very nicely out through the cable hole in the back out over the top of the power supply. No breaks in the tubing to leak water over the power supply .

It is very difficult I might add to get a drill setup to get to this location. I used a flexible bit driver and a uni bit to access if I remember right. No way for a regular drill to get direct line of sight from front or back without a too large of a angle to drill properly. Even then my holes were not perfect but once the grommets were on you cannot tell.

I had metal shavings every where also so if you do this try to cover your inner bits with tape, plastic, paper or whatever you can. My 1/2" hoses route though 2 holes and 1 smaller hole has my fan power cables. All three hold have regular sheet metal grommets I purchased from a hardware store; 2 large 1/2" ID and 1 small 3/8" ID (i think). I currently have a 4 fan swiftech radiator external sitting on my desk sideways with gentle typhoon fans and air filters attached. I am in the process of designing a radiator box to replace what I have now.

Just a suggestion for anyone else that may have the same case / issue.



I diverge: Now if someone would make a double 4 fan radiator box with air filters and 5 1/4" slots for pumps, reservoirs and fan speed controllers I would be happy. Danger Den has the closest with a double 3 fan radiator box with odd open back

I have ideas in my head but have not made the mod yet. My current thinking is to make a box with 16 input fan holes, 8 per side blowing into the box with radiators side by side in back or possibly up top allowing air out. This should allow more air than a push / pull design. Front to contain pump reservoir fan controllers and other misc stuff in 5 1/4 " slots.

I have not found anything nice to cannibalize yet and may have to go it alone.

[Roman2K]

@IIcx
Thanks for the detailed instructions on drilling holes for an external radiator. At the time when I was considering mounting it externally, I had considered this option but it was too daunting of a task and then I found out about these G1/4" PCI brackets (if only I had known...).

---

In the end I didn't bother giving the clicking MCP355 another try and bought a brand new MCP35X, what a change! I leak tested the EK Supreme HF (re-assembled with the partially crushed o-ring) in a temporary test loop and 2 excellent news came out of it:

• The EK Supreme HF doesn't leak anymore! Fortunately, the o-ring was still functional after re-mounting it, very carefully this time around. Had it not worked, I wonder if the o-ring of an old MCP355 would have fit? It's a lot thicker but seems to be about the same diameter.
• The MCP35X was a very good surprise, it gave be a good feeling throughout: excellent build quality, the built-in top is super nice looking and sturdy, smooth operation even at the full 12V. With just the molex plugged-in (no PWM), so running at 100%, it's almost silent, despite all the air bubbles in the 10 minute run. Also, it starts up more gently than the MCP355: holding it in my hand I felt it gradually speeding up, from shaky in the first 0.5 seconds to full speed within a few seconds. The MCP355 was more brutal, and generally louder. I didn't expect this at all, that made my day (and the 90€ worthwhile).

Yesterday I finished re-assembling the loop. Tonight I will fill it up and start it up again.


Here's when I am at right now:

(There's one radiator fan missing, I had to remove it because of the CPU waterblock leaking right on it.)

Nothing special except something I wanted to try out: I have assembled a fair number of loops in my time (about a year), every time with the pump making direct contact with either the case or a fan, thus spreading its vibration and increasing noise. Building a new loop from scratch was an opportunity to make the whole system silent, or at least as quiet as I can. I know the pump accounted for most of the noise in previous systems, and read stories about people suspending theirs to get rid of any vibration. That seems like the ideal thing to do. Only I didn't know how to go about it the proper way with rubber / elastic strings. Then I realised that I used to think compression fittings were holding hoses in a shallow manner. By now I fully trust compression fittings to hold hoses very securely, so much so that I know hanging the pump from one would never make the hose "slip out".

This lead me to hang the pump off the hose coming from the reservoir outlet. The outlet of the pump then leads directly to the radiator. Theoratically, any vibration should be absorbed by the hoses coming to and from the pump's inlet and outlet. Will this work as expected? (Answer tonight, but opinions are welcome.)

---

By the way, thanks to whoever moved this thread to the build log section!

[rps1975]

I dont really have time for a detailed build log I am afraid, I have 3 kids under 3 so I barely have time to read the forums! I might be tempted to take a few pics in the none to distant future however, depending on how well it does (or doesn't) work out!

[Roman2K]

I just finished putting my new build together. You can watch it in the following YouTube video (shot quickly, sorry):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9p3qUYD6LQQ

I just finished putting together my fully watercooled PC housed in a Silverstone FT-02B modded to accomodate a Black Ice SR-1 560 radiator, though with only 3 fans since the 5970 is 1.5cm too long.

It's still in a raw state. Every component is in place, the WC loop is apparently bled (run for several hours, case tilted and rocked in every orientation) but I have some cable management left to do before I can place the side and top panels back on.

Specifications:
- Motherboard: ASUS Crosshair III Formula
- CPU: AMD Phenom II 1090T (CCCBE CB 1022BPMW)
- RAM: Corsair Dominator GT 2000 MHz C8-8-8-24
- GPU: ATi Radeon HD5970
- Sound card: ASUS Xonar DX
- SSD (OS): Corsair F120
- HDD (storage): Hitachi 5K500.B 500 GB
- Media R/W: LG CH8LS10
- PSU: Be Quiet! Dark Power Pro P8 1000W

Watercooling equipment:
- Pump: Swiftech MCP35X (PWM controlled)
- Radiator: Black Ice SR-1 560
- Reservoir: XSPC Single Bay
- CPU waterblock: EK Supreme HF v2 - Acetal + nickel
- GPU waterblock: EK FC5970 - Acetal + copper (not nickel plated as bought before the other ones)
- Motherboard waterblock: EK FB ASUS CHIII - Acetal + nickel
- Radiator fans: NoiseBlocker BlackSilent Pro PK-3
- Exhaust fan: Scythe Gentle Typhoon AP-15
- Fan controller: Sunbeam Rheobus Extreme
- Fittings and adapters: TFC and BitsPower

Modding of the FT-02 detailed on XtremeSystems.org: http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/s...

I am thrilled with the silence and excellent temperatures so far. With everything at stock under full stress load:
- CPU socket (Prime95 small FFT) : ~35°C (cores allegedly ~25°C)
- GPU cores (FurMark): ~35°C
- Northbridge (Prime95 small FFT): 30°C
- Southbridge (Prime95 small FFT): 31°C

Definitely worth all the money and time that went into this build!

[Roman2K]

I have re-done the first video and added a new one showing how quiet the system runs :

• Fully Watercooled FT-02 (SR-1 560, 100% EK, MCP35X, CH3F, 1090T, 5970)
• Fully Watercooled FT-02 - Noise Test