Project: Defiant

[ShortAlieN]

Say What...?​

OK, I was trying to wait for a while before getting into this build, but I got a package in the post today and was not able to keep myself at bay anymore.

The little guy that pushed me over the edge:

Compared to the other two packages that have been sitting at home for the last couple of weeks, it doesnt seem like much.

"Why so excited?" you ask.

Well short answer... First thing that I have received from a Sponsor. BitsPower International was kind enough to help me with this next project and I am forever grateful. I was actually not expecting anything, but BAM! One little package makes my crappy week fade away and puts me in an incredible mood, so lets start things out right. Let us see what is in the boxes.

First the Little Box of Sunshine. Big Thanks to BitsPower for their help. Their products are second to none in my book.

I may not be a professional, but their products always shine with consistant quality and good looks.

Now I seen this case before and was considering it for my previous build, Xsesive, but the conditions were not right, but then this came out.

The White was too much, had to have it.

GASP! Taking one of the best cases on the market for air cooling and using it for water cooling?! How dare I.... oh yes, Defiant I am.

Couple of low profile radiators, a rez, and a fill port to add in there.

So that's the start, and I say "Not Bad" Hardware to order, designs to make, mods to do, things to paint or powdercoat... Where to begin? Guess I will just grab an armload of parts and head to the workshop. This build should be very fun and interesting, and will probably consume me for weeks to come.

Stay Tuned!

Much more to come!

 

[S_I_N]

sweet cant wait to see it come together.

 

[Hay11Mac]

Nice one m8, Can't wait to see mre updates

 

[sg12004]

nice one m8

 

[SieB]

Looking forward to seeing this all finished and what the air flow is like with the rad blowing into the case.

 

[bleddyn]

VERY interested in how this turns out as that is the case i want with the rad size i want to go in it xD. You are planning on having the rad inside right?

 

[ShortAlieN]

Thanks! Yes, everything will be tucked inside. I like to keep them clean

 

[ruthless_villain]

hmm looking forward to this If its anything like excessive then its all good

 

[daantjuh44]

This is gonna be uh-mazing !

 

[FunkyMonkey90]

I hope this will be as awesome as your last project

 

[ShortAlieN]

Hard to say for sure at this point. I'm watching how things go with EK's products right now. The motherboard and processor I was going to get were dependent on water blocks available for the motherboard. With the problems EK has been having lately with their nickle plating coming off, I think I'm going to wait a bit before I do order the parts. I have a ton of work to get done before that is really an issue though. Some painting, modding and a whole bunch of sleeving to take care of first. Hopefully EK gets their stuff figured out before I am in dire need of the Mobo.

 

[Karlos_the_n00b]

Really enjoyied your last build mate so looking forward to seeing this one

 

[Game Over]

Keep the Pics coming for the build. Cant wait to see what else you are putting in here.

Also, You have your own Bake Shop?

 

[ShortAlieN]

Bake shop? Nope, just the kitchen lol. Anyway, thought I would drop in for a quick update.

So after Emails, reading reports and doing some research I have come to the conclusion that EK still has my trust and I will go with their products for this build. Still debating on what GPU and motherboard I am going to use, but getting it narrowed down pretty well. The video cards are what I am kicking around right now. So many choices out there!

 

[ShortAlieN]

OK, so it was my birthday this week and... well didnt get much done before yesterday. Had a grand night for the b-day, drank heavily, still a few fuzzy spots. Anyway, decided to get some work done.

Started out by stripping the Case down to it bare nothings... easy boys, it's her first time.

After removing everything I was able to with just a screwdriver I made sure sure to use some good masking tape to protect the edges and corners. Safety first

A little dinner... Then dessert

A little Dremel work and I got the fill port in place and started doing some mock ups with the reservoir.

Tried a few different ideas, and none are final at the moment.

Found one that is somewhat appealing to me, but not sure how it is going to affect performance.

Did a bit of work and got the radiators in where they will be located.

So after working in and around the case for a few hours I still find it very appealing. The more I work on it, the more stuff I find I need to do. I try to plan each part of the build so that I have to make an order for parts as little as possible, but it seems nothing really goes the way I plan it and of course there are always little things that throw a wrench into the gears.

A friend of mine is working on machining me out some nice mounts for the reservoir, EK is shipping me some different O-rings for the res because it has an end cap that refuses to quit leaking. After dealing with EK's customer service I decided that I will still use their blocks for this build. Good customer service is a key selling point for me, I like to be treated like a person.

One thing I am having trouble with is a good quality white sleeving for the cables and wires. The color bleeds through really easily with the brand I have and I need to find some different stuff. If anyone has a good reference for high density weaved sleeving I could really use some.

Have a Nice Day

 

[S_I_N]

yeah I can see it bleeding thru on the pumps sleeving that bytes for sure. But its looking good so far mate keep us posted..,, oh and have ya put a thought to maybe double sleeving??? that is if you cant find better.

 

[ShortAlieN]

yeah I have, that's actually the only reason that the sleeving is still on the pump. I'm going to try to get in touch with Silverstone and see if they will let me know what they used to sleeve the panel connectors and fan wires. It's really quite nice sleeve, but I have no idea where I could get some.

Might change out the 360 radiator for a different one as well. It's seems quite restrictive to me, but I only have the RS360 to compare it to.

 

[rwiuviberwVFIUBER]

This is epic, another RV02 user

 

[ShortAlieN]

Ok, so I went over to MDPC-X and ordered me up some new cable sleeve. Hope that its worth it, cause I cant send it back! Nah, but I have heard good things about their stuff so I have high hopes. Hopefully some more parts show up this week so I can get some more work done on this thing.

I did get tired of not having a proper work space for building computers and such so this weekend was devoted to such a thing. I didn't take any pictures for progress shots, but after getting some stain on the first major portion I took a few photos late tonight. I will be finishing this up by next weekend so that I can get back to work on Defiant.

Went to the lumber yard and got two very nice pieces of Red Oak 3/4" board to build it. Stained it to match.

While I await parts, pieces and goodies this week I will be finishing the work desk. Needs some trim, a couple of shelves, granite top and a bit of touch up I'm sure.

Things sure are busy around here...

 

[ShortAlieN]

I'm sore and tired!

Ok, now that my little whine session is over. I waited for parts and some new sleeve this week, but nothing showed up yet. It's quite surprising how long it takes for items to arrive from Europe. Then I realized yesterday that I didn't finish checking out when I was ordering the power supply. By Thursday I was wondering where my stuff was... come to find out my brain was on vacation last weekend when I was ordering parts. I hope that I gave MDCP-X the right address, that would suck. Anyway. I did receive some new O-rings from EK the other day, so good news there. I did get some good news Friday, but I'm going to save that one for a surprise.

I did get my new work desk mostly complete and in place.

Worked on it from about 7:30pm Friday night until 4:30 Saturday morning. Slept for 6 hours then got up and went back to work.

The Edge turned out great.

One of these weekends I am going to just take it off completely and do nothing... but it wasn't this weekend. Used a couple of different types of granite for the work desk.

Picture is kind of fuzzy, but it gives you an idea. Really need to invest in a good camera.

Made the middle shelf out of the same stone as my computer desk.

If you would like to see the computer desk, follow this Link. Was the first thing that I ever made for myself when I started doing granite.

Anyway, back on topic. I made the work desk taller for ease of use when I'm tinkering with... pretty much everything.

I'm pretty pleased with it, going to do some more trim on it to give it a nice finish later, but for now it is just fine. I have a couple of ideas to finish out the right side of it, but that will come with time.