P160 - Violation

[BeernuT]

Finally finished ordering my watercooling equipment so now its time to make it fit in the p160. The p160 is a nice case but doesnt allow for to much to happen with it without cutting so here i go.

I was just going to use a heater core but once I started buying the parts I needed I couldnt resist picking up one of these bad boys.

HE120.3

That will look Phat along with 2 of these attached to it.

PS120.3

Those fan shrouds aren't being sold yet by any of the listed distributors on Thermochill's website. I did however talk to Danger Den and they stated that they will work on getting access to these. So hopefully we might see them in stock at DD within the next month.

Now for a pic of the case
Antec P160

In order to make that radiator fit I will need to relocate the OCZ down at the bottom. However I like the P160's HDD rack so I don't want to completely remove the rack. Lets trim it down!

Pretty Clean now. Just need to sand the edges a little.

Now to cut an area for the Fan on the bottom of the OCZ Modstream

More pictures to come when I get back home.

edited: subject changed. mistyped

 

[theHeat]

Can't wait to see what you do with it. I have a P160 and it's a beauty. It's hard to imagine any tasteful modding that can be done to this case however, it's perfect the way it is!

 

[KrakenGuy]

Hmmm, impress me =), your doing a good job so far.

 

[Majin]

Very Nice!
Keep it coming!

 

[BeernuT]

Ok this post will catch me up to date now.

Here is my completed hole on the bottom. It isnt perfectly round but that will be hidden once I get my order in at MNPCTech for my u-channel molding

Here are the pics of the PSU final installation.

The extra 3 3/4 holes you see are the holes from the rivets in the drive cage. I may plug them up but who the hell is ever going to see the bottom of this case again

Now my next task is to make a plate for the back of the case where the original PS was located:

I picked up a 18" x 6" sheet of aluminum at Lowes this afternoon. As soon as i get back to work I'll cut it to fit then sand it smooth and install it.

Looking at this pic now you will see the "L" bracket type holders for the psu to sit on. I may have to cut both the top and right bend off in order for the radiator to mount on the top without any problems. Or possibly bend them down flat. I'm pretty sure if I try to bend it down though its gonna look bad:

Untill later.
-bn

 

[KrakenGuy]

I like, you should buy a hole saw. It will make your life a lot easier.

12cm in diamter should be perfect.

So far I like. Keep it up.

 

[BeernuT]

yea I'd like to have a hole saw. But the few times I actually get to cut on a case i dont really consider it worth the $35. I will invest in one if I keep modding.

I get my radiator tomorrow so hopefully i can work on air flow at the top of the case.

 

[N H O]

damn this looks like one sweet mod, keep us updated

 

[skudmunky]

stick a couple of LEDs through the holes in the bottom for some nice underglow lighting

anyways, looks good, can't wait to see this work out. and thats one nice rad... big!

 

[BeernuT]

Here is the delete plate for the psu. I'm going to sand this down and try and get that sticker off but here is what it looks like.

 

[theHeat]

Very unique approach. Have you thought of the pros / cons to that PSU setup?

 

[el rolio]

looking good, subscribed, will comment later on i guess

 

[BeernuT]

Very unique approach. Have you thought of the pros / cons to that PSU setup?

I didnt spend to much time thinking about this as I knew I was going to use this case and I didnt care what I had to do to get it to work. The only real problem I found is that I will most likely have to extend the the p4 4pin connector.

The OCZ doesnt run hot so I think its ok to vent into the case from the bottom. Even when it was mounted at the top the psu fan sucked air from the outside to the inside of the case. So I'm not to worried about that either.

 

[rogue_jedi]

fitting that radiator in there should be fun

looks interesting.
<- add about 6k to that, the numbers are off

 

[BeernuT]

Ok got my supplies in on Tuesday from Danger Den. Was missing the fittings and an extra o-ring for the radiator. I got in touch with them and they said they would ship them out. Oh well. I'll wait till Tuesday to get the water in it. FYI

On to the latest Update:


Got the fans mounted to the Radiator. I only have 4 fans atm. Need to pick up 2 more.

Here we have it mounted at the top now.

And now for the top view:

I'm still working on my perfect circles. Oh well maybe next time. I will have a 1 piece 3x120mm fan grill up top so no biggee on the circles.

Next on the agenda is wiring!

btw I'm only cooling the cpu with this atm. I haven't decided on a cooler for my 9800pro yet.

till next time
-bn

 

[Hinokagutsuchi]

Looks good so far. I think the PSU and Rad setup are different, but it looks really functional to me, and I wouldn't worry about the holes. As long as the fans can breath, and you're hiding them, it doesn't matter what it looks like.

 

[rogue_jedi]

holy crap.

i think it looks cool like that. it'd work better with another 2 fans, but it wouldn't be nearly as unique (and you might get CPU socket clearance problems in back and airflow issues on the hdd end) see what clearance is like with the optical drives in before adding the fan in there, and make sure there's enough space around the CPU. you can just move the current fan around to check before buying stuff.

i hope you're not planning to use the exhaust next to the cpu and also cut out the PSU support bracket.

looking at the pics, the back fan should be fine, but i'd question the wisdom of putting one right over the optical drives. you'd certainly have issues with 2 drives, and with 1 it wouldn't be too good either.

anyways, my first dremel-cut fan holes were't that circular either... it comes with practice tho. i can do a reasonable circle (with one drawn - staying in the lines and all) in a few minutes now. don't worry too much about it, just get one of those grills that covers the holes and you'll be fine.

just cause it's on the internet doesn't mean anyone has to know about it
<- add about 6k to that, the numbers are off

 

[BeernuT]

(and you might get CPU socket clearance problems in back and airflow issues on the hdd end)

Wont be any problems with clearance and the cpu. If you look at that front bar in that pick, the motherboard sits about an inch or 2 below that.

i hope you're not planning to use the exhaust next to the cpu and also cut out the PSU support bracket.

I will have a 120 for exhaust right behind the cpu in the back of that case.

 

[rogue_jedi]

that's gonna mess up your airflow through the radiator. it'll work better without that fan. the radiator is pulling air upwards, and putting a fan (pulling air out that way too) would interfere with that. an intake there might help, but i kinda doubt it.

and i wrote that before i took a close look at the pictures. that one will be fine, but i'd check clearance on the one in the drive bays before putting it there. if there isn't enough clearance there, it'll hurt more to have it at all because it'll block air through that portion of the radiator.

just suggestions, though.
mwhahaha

 

[BeernuT]

that's gonna mess up your airflow through the radiator. it'll work better without that fan. the radiator is pulling air upwards, and putting a fan (pulling air out that way too) would interfere with that. an intake there might help, but i kinda doubt it.

The rad fans will be pulling air in to the case. With the 120 on the back taking it out.

but i'd check clearance on the one in the drive bays before putting it there. if there isn't enough clearance there, it'll hurt more to have it at all because it'll block air through that portion of the radiator.

Theres plenty of room on the drive bay. I only have a dvd drive and an enermax fan controller to mount. The enermax actually will be at the very top as it doesnt interfere with the radiator. The dvd drive will be mounted at the bottom.

Thank you for the thoughts it helps think things through to have more than 1 head running the show.

 

[dudewth]

Damn, I like so far. Can't wait for more.

 

[Xbrid]

looks good

 

[rogue_jedi]

The rad fans will be pulling air in to the case. With the 120 on the back taking it out.

that may not be the best way to do it - heat rises. also, with 3 intakes (rad will cut down airflow, and you wouldn't get much more out of 2 fans in the same place anyways) and one exhaust, it will be trying to put more air into a space than is leaving. this doesn't make much difference with the levels we're talking about (and there should be more places for air to leave from anyways) but i'd recommend some experimentation with fan orientation and placement.

Theres plenty of room on the drive bay. I only have a dvd drive and an enermax fan controller to mount. The enermax actually will be at the very top as it doesnt interfere with the radiator. The dvd drive will be mounted at the bottom.

ok, sound like that should have enough room to work fine. though it will still be fighting for air with the middle one (to some extent) though that isn't avoidable (without ducting it to the front... might be worth a try, actually)

Thank you for the thoughts it helps think things through to have more than 1 head running the show.

i try
mwhahaha

 

[BeernuT]

Over the weekend my son was sick so I wasn't able to do to much but here are a few pics of what I did get done.

This is the cable I am going to use to finish the extension of my psu to the bottom of the case. It came out of an old stupid ass rack mount server I had taking up space at work.

Pump mounted at the bottom along with the mb in the case. I picked up some neoprene washers to stick under the pump bracket mount to help with any vibration that might occur.

Suprisingly I was able to get the mb in without removing the psu. That makes baby jeebus happy. The pump does take up a few pci slots but all is well. I only have a sound card to worry about.

And here is the psu extension mounted on the back of the case. My hopes were to mount it on the plate I made but that space is taken up by the fittings on the radiator. No biggee

Working on finishing up the wiring for everything. Getting it neatly tucked away. I'll get water in it tonight and let it run leak tests to make sure everything is ok.


EDIT: I would like to add that I am mostly satisfied with the parts and service I recieved from Danger Den . Although I didnt receive the fittings or the extra o-ring for the rad, Danger Den did get them out to me in a couple of days. The only problem I see with all the parts is the mounting plate for the pump. The paint on it was chipped when I opened the box and since putting it on has chipped even more. Sadly it has even started to oxidize. Its nothing major but I feel like the manufacturer of the D5 could have done a little better job appling the paint to the bracket. ( or a higher quality paint if thats all it needed.) Other than that I'm quite happy with the parts I received.

-bn

 

[KrakenGuy]

Sex.
I want an Antec P160 now =).

 

[BeernuT]

Got all the tubes ran. I'm doing leak tests now.

 

[][V][AGIC]

looks like you might have some issues with your graphics card were that pump is, speaking of your not gunna wc your gpu with that big ass radiator?

 

[altec]

WoW dude six fans on that thing. Lot of noise 5v or not.

 

[BeernuT]

looks like you might have some issues with your graphics card were that pump is, speaking of your not gunna wc your gpu with that big ass radiator?

I havent had any clearance problems with the video card so we are good there. I plan on adding a gpu block. But at the moment I havent decided on which one that I want. I have a 9800 pro and am really looking for a block that covers both the gpu and ram, and not be restrictive.

 

[BeernuT]

WoW dude six fans on that thing. Lot of noise 5v or not.

Its not to bad. I have the top 3 and soon to be the bottom 3 each on there own pots off of my fan controller. Actually the 120mm that is in the front of the case is louder than 3 of the panaflo's.

No leaks. I brought it back to work so I could finish wiring things up. It didnt hold as much water as I thought it would. Although I never actually ran the numbers to see how much water it could hold.

Once I get some right angle sata cables i'll drop the drives back in. I also havent decided on what fan I am sticking in the back of the case yet.

 

[compslckr]

lookin' good

 

[BeernuT]

Getting closer and closer to finally getting some of this wire management out of the way.

I need to reinforce the bottom of the hdd rack. Gonna look for some aluminum stock over at Home depot and see if I can jb weld a bar across the bottom of it for some extra support.


And here is what it looks like from the front atm. Had some white LED's laying around so I decided to wire them into the res.

 

[ikellensbro]

Fr*cking awesome .
You've just made me decide to get a P160, especially now that I can get one for under $100 shipped to me .

Back on topic, great idea to stick Modstream below the hds, the chrome-reflective look blends right in with the rest of the case, especially the front intake. I hope your distilled h2o additive is making your water greenish yellowish, and not algae or other nasties. You did remember to use distilled h2o and a biocide, right?

I'm pretty sure a bunch of ramsinks on both sides would be enough for your 9800pro's memory, and then a simple Maze4 low profile for the core. If you have some extra $, then maybe even shell out the extra $20 or so for the chrome Maze4 or a PolarFlo gpu block for the extra bling . My eyes are already blinding just thinking about that.

 

[ajasports03]

so far this project is looking GREAT! Keep up the good work and keep posting your work.

 

[BeernuT]

I hope your distilled h2o additive is making your water greenish yellowish, and not algae or other nasties. You did remember to use distilled h2o and a biocide, right?

I'm pretty sure a bunch of ramsinks on both sides would be enough for your 9800pro's memory, and then a simple Maze4 low profile for the core. If you have some extra $, then maybe even shell out the extra $20 or so for the chrome Maze4 or a PolarFlo gpu block for the extra bling . My eyes are already blinding just thinking about that.

Yea the camera / poor lighting is making it kinda greenish brown. I'm running Danger Dens MCT-5 in it. Thats where the green is coming from. I don't mind spending the extra money for the chrome version for more bling. Just not sure if the Maze4 is what I want yet. Not finding to many more choices for the 9800.