CANIS MAJORIS (modded Core X9) - Thermaltake CaseMOD Invitational S2

[alexciobanu]

Hey guys and welcome to my build log for the Thermaltake CaseMOD Invitational Season 2.


So honored and excited to participate in this along such great modders who have inspired me from the start!


Thanks a lot to Thermaltake for selecting me to represent Australia and also a huge thanks to all the sponsors of this project which are of course Thermaltake along with premium partner Newegg and also Avexir, PerformancePCs, MNPCTECH, Icemodz and Ramcity. Without all of you all this would not have been possible, thank you!


You can find more info about the CaseMOD Invitational here: http://casemod2015.thermaltake.com/season2/home.html


Lets have fun with this one and hope you guys enjoy the ride.

SPECS

Case – Two modded Thermaltake Core X9s

Motherboard – ASUS Sabertooth X99

CPU – Intel i7 5930K

GPU – 2 or 3 ASUS STRIX GTX970s

Memory – 8 x 4GB Avexir Core Series DDR4 2400Mhz (4 x orange LED, 4 x blue LED)

SSD – Samsung SM951 512GB AHCI M.2 ; 2 x 500GB Crucial MX200 SSDs

PSU – Thermaltake Toughpower Grand 1200W Platinum


Cables – Icemodz custom sleeved cables


Radiators – 4 x Thermaltake Pacific RL480 Radiators

Fans – 26 x Thermaltake Riing 12 High Static Pressure LED Fans - Orange, Blue and White

Pumps – 2 x Thermaltake Pacific PT40-D5 Silent Kit Reservoir/Pump Combo with Thermaltake Pacific T11 Reservoirs

Reservoirs – 2 x Fully Custom Reservoirs and 2 x Thermaltake Pacific R33 Reservoir

Fittings – Various Thermaltake 16mm Rigid Compressions fittings , right angles and extension fittings as well as some soft tubing compression fittings for 3/8” ID x 1/2” OD tubing that I will be using in some spots. Also a few Bitspower pass-through fittings.

Tubing - Thermaltake V-Tubler PETG Tube 16mm OD

CPU Block – Thermaltake Pacific W1 CPU Water Block

GPU Blocks - Thermaltake VGA Water Block for ASUS STRIX-GTX 970

Coolant – Mayhems Aurora 2 Silver base concentrate and a combination of Mayhems Dyes in Red, Yellow and Blue to achieve the desired coolant colour


Lighting – Icemodz RGD LED Strips


Other – Thermaltake Commander FT – Touchscreen Fan Controller, 3 x Vandal Momentary and Latching switches for custom power button as well switch for the reservoir LEDs, custom MNPCTECH case feed, MNPCTECH machined aluminum fans grills and acrylic grills for the radiator fans as well as some modders mesh.



The theme of this build will be a sci-fi space theme such as the banner suggests and it is named after one of the largest stars known to man, VY Canis Majoris. I also draw inspiration for this project from the awesome game Elite Dangerous though not sure if I will implement any aspects of the game into the build as of now. The colour scheme will be a dark grey/gun metal, black, orange and blue.


As for the mods to the case you will be finding that out as I go along with the build log but yea I will be stacking two X9 cases.... with a twist


The packages received from Thermaltake were larger than my entire desk area

Here's a quick look at the cases!


One of them still intact and the other one is gutted empty, only the panels remain

These cases are massive, here's a size comparison with an iPhone 6Plus for those of you who are not familiar with the X9 case.

And now I know you guys like the modding so here is the start of it!


I do wanna apologise from the start for the phone pics but there is no way I can take out the DSLR when doing this


Will do my best to show everything as I go along and once all the work on the case is done I will take proper pics of all the bits.


So here we go, out with the dremel and jig saw!

Small incision with the dremel and fire away with the jig saw.

Out it comes.

Just a frame left of the X9... for now

Still a lot of filing to do and heaps more work to come. Hope you guys will enjoy this one!


Stay tuned for more.


Cheers,


Alex

 

[peche]

case mod #2 ?
awesome ! good luck fella

 

[alexciobanu]

case mod #2 ?
awesome ! good luck fella

This is Case Mod #5

#1

#2

#3

#4 (still a work in progress)

Hope you guys will like this one as well!

Cheers,

Alex

 

[alexciobanu]

Hey guys!

Just wanted to share and showcase the items Mnpctech will be providing to use for this build!

Mnpctech Machined aluminum "Diamond Knurl" PC Case Feet in Anodized Black, http://mnpctech.com/pc-computer-stereo-desktop-case-feet/

Mnpctech 100% Aluminum Expanded "Diamond" pattern Perforated Mesh for making fan guards, grills, cooling vents, window overlays, http://mnpctech.com/case-mods-gamin...l-intake-front-fan-slotted-diamond-round-hex/

Mnpctech 480 Quad Open Air Radiator grill Frame (4x120mm, 4.120mm) Open Air grill fits radiators and measure 5-7/8" x 5-1/8" wide with 15mm spacing, http://mnpctech.com/pc-computer-alp...oling/480mm-open-air-quad-radiator-grill.html

Machined aluminum "Overkill" Custom PC Fan Grills rings, http://mnpctech.com/pc-computer-cooling-fans-grills-custom/

Heavy Duty PETG & PVC Ratchet Hand Cutter. Cuts PETG tubing up to 1.3" or 35mm outter diameter,http://mnpctech.com/case-mods-gamin...-grills/petg-and-pvc-ratchet-tube-cutter.html

 

[alexciobanu]

Hey guys!


Had to take out the power drill and get rid of all the rivets!

Lots of rivets

What will become of this case?!


Stay tuned to find out


Cheers,


Alex

 

[alexciobanu]

Hey guys!


This should give you a better idea where I'm going with this build!


After cutting up the back panel I decided I will remake it fully but love that I managed to keep the front panel and can still mount it.


Lots more work to do in remaking the back and both side panels as well as getting new mid bars and the radiator mounting. That should make the case more rigid on an angle like this.


Once this is done I will start working on the second case


Also keep in mind that everything is just mounted temporarily to get a feel of things

Thanks for checking it out and stay tuned for more!


Cheers,


Alex

 

[alexciobanu]

Hey guys!


Here is a quick video Bill Owen from MNPCTECH.com made before shipping out all the modding supplies. It sure put a nice big smile on my face when I saw it


Thanks a lot for the support Bill, much appreciated!


https://www.facebook.com/Simpl3Modz/posts/876457409109187

 

[adulaamin]

Can't wait to see the final product!

 

[alexciobanu]

Can't wait to see the final product!

Thanks mate

 

[jboydgolfer]

drilling out rivets is a real fun job huh? i remember doing the same with a Antec LAN-boy case mod Years ago..having an autobody Paint shop is KEY when doing case mod's looks good, have fun.

 

[alexciobanu]

drilling out rivets is a real fun job huh? i remember doing the same with a Antec LAN-boy case mod Years ago..having an autobody Paint shop is KEY when doing case mod's looks good, have fun.

Thanks mate, yea it's really fun and I love working on computer cases, haven't done a mod in one this big yet

An autobody paint shop would be a dream, all I have is my 4x5m garage and some power tools such as my trusty Dremel Rotary, jig saw, power drill and all my other bits. I also recently bought a Dremel Moto Saw/Scroll Saw and a drill press. Everything I do is manual by hand unless I specify it in the build log, I may need help sometimes with machinery I don't have access too

 

[alexciobanu]

Hey guys,

Ready to tackle the other X9 case

First have to take it apart!

You can see the other one in the background, not much has changed as of yet

You might be able to spot all the popped rivets on the floor

Or check them all out here

Stay tuned for more!

Cheers,

Alex

 

[alexciobanu]

Back with another update!

Playing around with ideas in the other case

And making progress on the main case

I had an idea with the original mesh but probably not gonna keep it

That's about it! I need to secure the rad mounts on the side and mount some rads in to test fitment.

Stay tuned for more!

Cheers,

Alex

 

[peche]

moar moar cmon ....!

 

[alexciobanu]

moar moar cmon ....!

Glad you're enjoying it mate! Should have another update soon

 

[alexciobanu]

Hey guys!


I have secured the side rad mounts and mounted two of the 480mm radiators going in this build just to get a feel for how much room there will be in that section of the case.


Also the radiators on the bottom of the other case are mounted on an angle like that but I'm probably not gonna go with that idea. They will most likely go with two sets of fans on them mounted to the bottom of the case. The LEDs from the Riing fans should give it a nice underglow

Also front panel still looks the same from last time however I will most likely get rid of the mesh and redo the whole front.

Pump/res combo should fit nicely under the motherboard tray. A new motherboard tray will be going in

Thanks for checking it out!


Cheers,


Alex

 

[HammerON]

Subbed

 

[Arjai]

Nice work!!

 

[alexciobanu]

Subbed

Nice work!!

Thanks a lot guys

 

[alexciobanu]

Package from Newegg has just arrived! A huge thanks to everyone there for the awesome support!

I will be updating the full system specs for this build shortly Also more pics will be coming!

Cheers,

Alex

 

[alexciobanu]

Hey guys,


Here is another update on the system. Work on the case continues but first I would like to let you guys know the entire spec list


Case – Two modded Thermaltake Core X9s

Motherboard – ASUS Sabertooth X99

CPU – Intel i7 5930K

GPU – 3 x ASUS STRIX GTX970s

Memory – 8 x 4GB Avexir Core Series DDR4 2400Mhz (4 x orange LED, 4 x blue LED)

SSD – Samsung SM951 512GB AHCI M.2 ; 2 x 500GB Crucial MX200 SSDs

PSU – Thermaltake Toughpower Grand 1200W Platinum


Cables – Icemodz custom sleeved cables


Radiators – 4 x Thermaltake Pacific RL480 Radiators

Fans – 26 x Thermaltake Riing 12 High Static Pressure LED Fans - Orange, Blue and White

Pumps – 2 x Thermaltake Pacific PT40-D5 Silent Kit Reservoir/Pump Combo with Thermaltake Pacific T11 Reservoirs

Reservoirs – 2 x Fully Custom Reservoirs and 2 x Thermaltake Pacific R33 Reservoir

Fittings – Various Thermaltake 16mm Rigid Compressions fittings , right angles and extension fittings as well as some soft tubing compression fittings for 3/8” ID x 1/2” OD tubing that I will be using in some spots. Also a few Bitspower pass-through fittings.

Tubing - Thermaltake V-Tubler PETG Tube 16mm OD

CPU Block – Thermaltake Pacific W1 CPU Water Block

GPU Blocks - Thermaltake VGA Water Block for ASUS STRIX-GTX 970

Coolant – Mayhems Aurora 2 Silver base concentrate and a combination of Mayhems Dyes in Red, Yellow and Blue to achieve the desired coolant colour


Lighting – Icemodz RGD LED Strips


Other – Thermaltake Commander FT – Touchscreen Fan Controller, 3 x Vandal Momentary and Latching switches for custom power button as well switch for the reservoir LEDs, custom MNPCTECH case feed, MNPCTECH machined aluminum fans grills and acrylic grills for the radiator fans as well as some modders mesh


I'm really excited for everything going in this system and can't wait to see it up and running


Here are some more pics of the work in progress. Started working on the bottom section too!


Acrylic motherboard tray is in.

And here is the case with the bottom section attached!

Hope it's starting to look more like a spaceship


Thanks for checking it out and stay tuned for more!


Cheers,


Alex

 

[Random Murderer]

Holy crap, subbing for an awesome build!

 

[alexciobanu]

Holy crap, subbing for an awesome build!

Thanks a lot mate

 

[alexciobanu]

Back with another update!


Fixed the motherboard tray to the case and mounted pumps and res.


Just a perfect fit for the little pump and res combo. I cut a small hole for the fittings to come out of but forgot I need another one for the fill port. Hopefully I don't mess the other one up and the two fittings align properly

You can also see I added some supports to the bottom panel. Very simple, just some threaded rods and the build is very solid along with the brackets I made. Once panels go on it will reinforce it even more.

CPU cut out and also tapped for the motherboard stand-offs. The cables will come from underneath the motherboard to plug in. Will give it a nice clean look.

Reservoir inlet fittings

Just need to drill for the fill port now.


Also if you guys are wondering why the small reservoirs hidden under there then stay tuned as something really exciting will go in the top section of the build next to the motherboard


Thanks for checking it out and stay tuned for more!


Cheers,


Alex

 

[peche]

moaaaaaaaaar .. cant wait to see the rig done...!