dugn's Corsair Obsidian Build

Looks great.. how does the H50 compare to a true and are you afraid of it holding back any overclocking. I love silence also but I also love power.
 
The H50 is as good as the TRUE if not slightly better in my mind. I really like this closed-loop water cooling option on my CPU since no matter how hot it gets, it rarely is hot enough to trigger 100% fan speed on the H50 - which is when I'll actually hear it. Even if I consider it a wash between the fan sppeds and noise of the TRUE and H50, I really like the fact that I'll never have to use forced air to clean out the fins on an air cooler. The H50 isn't collecting dust or starting to look less-than-perfect like any other air cooling solution would.
 
Great build!

Two thoughts:

1. Have you considered replacing the blue power LED on the motherboard with a white LED? Sure, it'll be scary, and void your warranty - but you'll eliminate the blue!

2. The case looks so well illuminated, except for the area just below the cpu and just above the top GPU. Have you considered aiming a white LED (or two) in this location to even out the light distribution? - or perhaps repositioning global lighting sources so they fill this area more evenly?

-

That's some nitpicky shit right there - but your build is so beautiful, I thought I'd mention my personal finishing touch ideas.


edit: of course, you could simply cover the power LED with a black plastic cap or dare I say - some electrical tape!

and as for the lighting, perhaps you could add / move a ccfl to the back of the case, just above the CPU / just behind the window lip...

Nice work! - and thanks for sharing :)
 
styx0r said:
Great build! Two thoughts:

1. Have you considered replacing the blue power LED on the motherboard with a white LED? Sure, it'll be scary, and void your warranty - but you'll eliminate the blue!
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Good ideas! In fact, I was considering not only blowing the warranty on the blue LED but also the red numerical digital LED display (I had even found a white LED replacement on the web). But when I held these white replacements up to the board I was surprised to find that it made everything too black and white. The look of the rig didn't visually 'pop' anymore.

When I sampled how things would look when I took out the contrasting colors (the red silkscreen on the EVGA motherboard heatsink and GPU backplanes - and the blue LED and red LED display), I realized the whole thing sunk into looking like a black and white picture - not cool anymore. By allowing the little splashes of alternate color, the black and white elements really stand out.

2. The case looks so well illuminated, except for the area just below the cpu and just above the top GPU. Have you considered aiming a white LED (or two) in this location to even out the light distribution? - or perhaps repositioning global lighting sources so they fill this area more evenly?
Click to expand...

Another good point! The design idea I pursued was of an illuminated display case. You know, the kind where an item sits on a shelf behind a glass door with a light hidden above to accent the piece on display.

You're right that there are some parts that aren't illuminated enough. But like the items on display, sometimes it's those shadows and darker regions that give it more character. I also struggled on how to get more lighting wired and sufficiently 'hidden' so I didn't break the look of being simple. After wrestling with additional lighting and the Keep It Simple Stupid approach, I finally decided against any additional lighting or wiring to get in the way of the simple look.

That's some nitpicky shit right there - but your build is so beautiful, I thought I'd mention my personal finishing touch ideas. Of course, you could simply cover the power LED with a black plastic cap or dare I say - some electrical tape!
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Funny - that's what I did with the Samsung 2343 monitor. The %#@$ power LED pulses a super-bright blue LED across my room when the computer is asleep.

Thanks for stopping by and all of the kind words. Keep being picky (I consider it a great trait!). It sure makes for a good build. Cheers.
 
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That's a very tasteful build. :)

Was it difficult to take a part your graphic cards and paint them?
 
Yeah - it was easy up until the part where I saw the solders on the heatpipes. Trying to desolder them didn't work. Figuring they were a WELD instead, I took a torch to them. Still no luck. Finally, I had to mask the daylights out of everything so I could spray white without covering the cooling fins and heatpipe assembly.

Other than that, it was very easy.
 
Very nice build! Nice and clean, great color scheme!

I'm looking to paint the red on my GTX285s for my project. Did you have to sand most of the red off, or did you just scuff up the paint?

Again, nice job!

-Tad
 
Thanks for the kind words.

I just scuffed it up. But that meant getting into the fins (the ribs) of the flashing to make sure I scuffed them up enough for the paint to stick onto every surface. Remember: Not too much paint or the ribs will fill in changing the texture of the part.

Good luck! For me, it was certainly worth the effort.
 
Man that case is very nice. I am liking the h50 in there. Makes the case look even bigger!
 
Absolutely clean! Your build thread was one of the major reasons I skipped Lian-Li for a 800d, can't wait to set this thing up.

Awesome job!
 
Glad you like it. And thanks for the supportive words. This was my first build intended to be viewed.

For those considering or already having bought this thing, you're really going to enjoy it. The best (and roomiest) case I've ever used. Seriously!
 
Truly elegant build. Congratulations on your inspiring handiwork.

Your vinyl dye idea is fantastic, too. It's made me realize that you can control the aesthetics of your build to a greater degree than I thought possible. Going to do some experimenting - thanks for the inspiration!
 
Glad you like it - and thanks for the kind words! So much of it came from tips and tricks from right here on [H].
 
Funny - that's what I did with the Samsung 2343 monitor. The %#@$ power LED pulses a super-bright blue LED across my room when the computer is asleep.
Click to expand...

I don't know if its the same on yours, but on my 2032BW you can turn the LED ring down/off in the settings menu.
 
Cursed said:
I don't know if its the same on yours, but on my 2032BW you can turn the LED ring down/off in the settings menu.
Click to expand...

Regrettably, I haven't been able to find such an option on the 2343BW. And all of the reviewers on NewEgg have either lived with it or covered up the LED. Either way, a snippet of electrical tape fixed me up nicely. :)
 
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haro1969 said:
would it be the same to take apart a XFX HD 5770? what do u think?
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Most of the XFX cards I've owned looked pretty easy to disassemble, but I don't own one of those new 5770s. I looked at pics though, and the back looks extremely easy to take off. Looks like some normal philips screws and you can just paint the whole shroud.
 
Your build log is fantastic. I very much enjoyed reading about it. I've got a HAF 932 I'm doing something similar with, but it will be all black and red, my two favorite colors. So with my two GTX 285's, I won't have to paint them because I hope to find red paint the same color as what's on the GPU's to do a few other things in my case.

Plus, I also have an EVGA Classified mobo, but the E760 Tri-SLI version. With the awesome ebb and flow of the red LED in the NB Chipset cooler, I plan to run with that type of motif.

Also, I'm running the H50. I can gurantee you that your CPU temps will drop by 4-5°C if you turn that rad so the cooling lines are on the down side while leaving your cooler/pump assy with the lines coming in from the bottom like you've already got it. You can get another 3-5°C by lapping the Corsair Heatsink copper. I also got another 2°C drop by using two of these in a push/pull config bringing air into the case from the back through the rad. It didn't increase the temps of my GPU's one bit nor the temps on the chipset and Voltage Regs. The HAF, like your superior 800D, has enough cooling to handle it.

All the fans on my HAF 932 are either large enough to be silent or, in the case of the two 120's on the H50 Rad, hooked to a front bay touch screen fan controller. But even cranked all the way to high, you can't hear them over the GPU's. If I turn the GPU's down to 40%, I still can't hear those two 120's.

Perhaps I'll post a picture here when I'm done. I'm a Mod over on MaximumPC forums and that's who I Fold for as well. But you guys have always been very much the gentlemen when dealing with other members like me who post primarily somewhere else. A testament to your professionalism and the true goal of computer communities which is to bring like minded individuals together to have geekgasms when looking at such a fine specimen as your 800D!
 
Thanks for the kind words - and glad you dropped in on [H].

Good tips on the H50, I'll try those out. Lapping is new for me, but I'll probably buy another H50 in case I screw up and try it out!

You should definitely post pictures or create a build log. Lots of interest (and traffic) here. Would be delighted to see your finished product! Enjoy Maximum - I get the print version and frequent site often because of its frequently updated news items throughout the weekdays. Keep up the great work at MPC!

Again - thanks for the kind words. Drop by often and post HAF pix!
 
Nice post... interesting !
smileynormal.ico


Thank you very much for your efforts!!
smileynormal.ico

Greatly appreciated!!!
smileynormal.ico
 
was hoping for some more pics of the finished lighting assembly.. :[
 
Flair- haha have you guys ever seen office space??

Two questions -
1. What kind of paint did you use for the flair?
2. What kind of paint did you use for the inverters?
 
jadawgis732 said:
Flair- haha have you guys ever seen office space??

Two questions -
1. What kind of paint did you use for the flair?
2. What kind of paint did you use for the inverters?
Click to expand...

For the deflectors, I used standard, flat black spray on paint and held the parts 12-18" from the nozzle so some of the paint would dry en route to create the tiny chunks to look like powder coating. It ended up being an exact match for the Corsair Obsidian powder coated finish.

For the inverters, since they were plastic, I just used the same black vinyl dye I used on the power cables.
 
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Awesome, I appreciate it. Also could we see where those "sleeved" resistors finally ended up? I can't really even get a sense for how large they are but judging but what I think is a wrench in the background they are pretty small.
 
Hi, very nice set up, its like mine, but better.

I got the Corsair Obsidian 800D and the H50.

My system isn't running yet till I get my PSU, but I was wondering how effective the air flow is, cause the only air coming in is from the base

http://www.colin-java.co.uk/pic2.JPG

I was considering putting an air duct from the graphics card upto the 3rd vent in the roof, to get the hot air out straight away, cause my graphics card pumps out a lot of hot air.

Any thoughts to this?
 
Contrary to some on these boards, this case air cools nicely. But I *did* pick graphics cards that blow heated air outside of the case, so I can't compare to what a GTX 480 (or a pair of them) would do.

With the cards pushing hot air out the back and three fans pulling anything hot right out the top, my case is nice and cool - even on a hot summer day in the Pacific Northwest (which will never be as hot as Southern CA or Arizona).

Sure - a duct would help in your case. Good luck - and enjoy the 800D!
 
Interesting,

do you think having radiator up at the top is ok? Cause it would have to push water vertically.
Its good how you have it, I just don't like the way you have to force it into position cause of the tension in the pipes.

Building an air duct that looks good wont be easy, I have a cardboard tube, I might use this as a chimney, then make a cardboard box to go at front of graphics card.

I got a skythe kazemaster fan controller, so I can measure temps in 4 places, and compare with/without air duct. Then if it gives improvement I could make a perspex one or something.

Do you find the dust guard collecting any dust? Or would it be better airflow without it?

Also when you got yours did the size of the box scare the crap out of you ;) ?
 
Rad on top is fine, yeah. Consider how you're going to use the open panel above the back fan grate. Some folks keep it open, I closed mine. With a Rad on top, you may want to keep it open.

The Kazemaster is great. I chose against it only because I wanted a super-simple, ultra clean look on the face of the case.

As for the dust gaurd below, you MUST use it if you're running any air. Otherwise, you're going to get dust bunnies like crazy. Minor bad design issue with the 800D you'll notice is that the bottom dust tray is removeable only from the rear. So, if your rig backs up to a wall (like mine), you always have to swing it around to clean the dust filter.

Case size? Heck yeah. That sucka is HUGE!
 
Hi, what SSDS are you using.

I'm considering OCZ Vertex 2E Bigfoot 90/120G.
Is there are any difference to putting them in hotswap or in lower section?
 
2x Corsair X128 (in signature). I DO NOT recommend them. See the Corsair SSD threads here on [H] or the Corsair.com SSD threads for a multitude of reasons why. Get the OCZ or comparable Intel SSDs.
 
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I was tempted by OCZ Vertex 2E Bigfoot 90G or 120G.

I plan on sticking with LGA775 and Sata2 while I still have my E8600, so the OCZ seems a good choice when compared to Crucial C300 which is Sata3.

I'm not sure if its worth the investment though, and if 90G (£150) is better than 120G (£180).
Let me know if you have any thought(s).
 
Hi, I bought an enermax ECO 620W PSU, and I have computer running now.

Seems you are correct regarding airflow, my mobo cpu temp was reading 19c, with intake fan on, and backfan on, when idle.

That temp isn't quite accurate but relative to what it normally is (25-30), its very breezy in there.

The kaze master is great, you can find a nice compromise between sound and temperature, but of course optimal results when the radiator fan is on full rpm. I selotaped the thermal sensor to radiator so I can tell how warm the water is.

I put one on the graphics card heat pipe, one in the main zone, and one in lower zone.

I'll put a couple of pics in soon.
 
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