PROJECT ISOLATION (modded Cooler Master MasterCase 5 Maker)

[alexciobanu]

Hi guys,

Been a while since I've been active on the forums

I've been super busy with a new job, move to a different city and pretty much a whole new life!

Glad to say that I'm back and with a very exciting project!

As the banner suggests it will be based on the Dead Space games and it's my entry for this year's Cooler Master Case Mod World Series as well as the ANZ Edition of the "World Series".

I am going all out with for this project and trying some modding techniques I haven't done before so stay tuned and enjoy the build log! I'm gonna give a little hint and say that this will NOT be a clean build

I would like to say a huge thanks to Cooler Master Australia for giving me this opportunity as well as ASUS Australia, Kingston HyperX, Avexir, Bitspower, Primochill, CableMod, PLE Computers and a new addition from a friend of mine, Kristian from MercoMods!

SPECS

Case - Cooler Master MasterCase 5 Maker
Motherboard - ASUS Maximus VIII Extreme Assembly
CPU - Intel i7 6700K
Memory - 4 x 4GB Avexir ROG Certified Red Tesla 2400Mhz DDR4
GPU - 2 x ASUS STRIX GTX 980
SSD - 2 x Kingston HyperX Fury 240GB SSDs
PSU - Cooler Master V1000

Cables - CableMod Fully Custom Individually Sleeved Cables + MercoMods Custom Braided Extensions
LEDs - CableMod Magnetic RGB LED Strip

Radiators - Bitspower Leviathan Slim 240 Radiator, Bitspower Leviathan Xtreme 360 Radiator
Fans - CoolerMaster JetFlo 120mm Red and White LED fans
Pump - Laing D5 with Black Bitspower MOD Package - Pump Top + Casing
Reservoir - Bitspower D5 Top Upgrade Kit 150 with Cascade Tube Effect
Fittings - PrimoChill Revolver SX Matte Black + Various Bitspower Carbon Black angle fittings and extensions
Tubing - PrimoChill Copper Tubing
CPU Block - Bitspower Summit EF
GPU Block - 2 x Bitspower VG-NGTX980ADIIS


For now I'll start with the packages received from Cooler Master

A mysterious box (though the thread title might hint at what's inside)

JetFlo fans and a V1000 power supply

Stay tuned for more guys!

Cheers,

Alex
​

 

[alexciobanu]

Hi guys,

Here's a look at the glorious CoolerMaster Master Case 5 Maker! A good improvement from the 5 Pro

New integrated fan controller and LED controller with one red LED bar included.

The front section is easily removable with clips at the bottom and magnets at the top, revealing the front intake mesh and 5.25" bays. The front panel is also padded with sound dampening material.

Sound dampening cover for the top as well with air still being able to be exhausted through the back or front sections of the top panel.

The top sound dampening cover can be removed, with clips towards the front and magnets in the back.

The top slide on cover now has integrated magnets as well, towards the front for a better grip.

The included magnet LED bar. This one is red and not sure if case will come included with different colours.

Thanks for checking it out and stay tuned for more guys!

Cheers,

Alex

 

[alexciobanu]

Hi guys,

I'm prepping the case for painting but doing some mods first

Ignore the smaller scratches, I was just trying something. The paint will cover all that and might even stick better now

The large scratch looking cuts were done with the dremel! The melted plastic is exactly the effect I wanted. Once it's all painted you will see

Let me know what you guys think so far and stay tuned for more!

Cheers,

Alex

 

[alexciobanu]

Hi guys,

I have another update for you!

This time showcasing the Cooler Master V1000 power supply as well as the JetFlo fans!

The fans are red and white LED, I got more than I needed as I'm not sure how I'm gonna combine the colours in the build.

Also, the banner has been update with PLE Computers joining as a sponsor! PLE Computers is one of the best online computer store in Australia with lots of variety for water cooling on top of all the normal components. They even stock Linus' special edition Noctua fans as well as the LTT hoodies. If you're an aussie, check them out if you haven't already PLE Computers Australia - Perth and Melbourne - Delivery Australia Wide

Some pretty powerful fans but they also come with voltage reducers for lower RPM and noise

As we as proprietary screws for the anti-vibration soft corners on the fans which are removable.

With these fans the LEDs are in the middle with the light shining towards the edges creating a nice effect.

All black and sleeved cable

Thanks for checking it out guys and stay tuned for more!

Cheers,

Alex

 

[alexciobanu]

Hi guys,

I've got an exciting update for you today

Since this is a Dead Space theme I'm looking at a different painting technique for the entire case!

So I'm testing out this rust paint to see if it's the effect I'd like to go for in this build as well as learning how to apply it. Luckily I have quite a few spare case panels laying around.

The idea with this is that it can be applied to anything, even plastic and rust that too. It's a metal based paint which you apply with a brush and leave it to dry for about 1 hour. Once dry you apply the oxidising patina which is a form of activator that speeds up the rusting process. Leave it for a few good hours and you should have a nice, real rust effect.

So tonight I've applied it to a spare case panel. I did a few different areas where I applied it on straight as well as in a random pattern to see if it gives a different effect or if it even matters how you apply it. I've then applied the activator and leaving it overnight. I've also applied the activator to a part of the panel with no metal base paint as technically this should rust metal by itself too, however it might not go through the powder coating on the panel.

This is the stuff and how it looks after about 30 min since the activator was applied. I'll show you guys the effect tomorrow once it fully dries.

This is the rust base applied.

This is once dried.

And this is the Oxidising Patina applied.

Applied some more as the more you have on and the longer it stays wet for, the more intense the effect will be.

You can already see it starting to rust here.

This is after about 30 mins with the activator applied.

We'll see the full effect tomorrow once it dries.

Hope you guys have enjoyed this update! I'm definitely really excited for this entire project!

Thanks for checking it out.

Cheers,

Alex

 

[alexciobanu]

Hi guys,

So here is the effect after about 24 hours once fully dried!

I gotta say I wasn't expecting this but it's the perfect effect I wanted for this build

It seems like applying in a straight even motion looks a bit better than the random pattern I did in the corner of the panel. Also the oxidising patina by itself didn't do much to the poweder-coating. I wonder how it would affect bare metal

Anyways, here are the result. Next up will be applying it to the case!

Thanks for checking it out!

Cheers,

Alex

 

[alexciobanu]

Okay, here we go

Rust application applied to first parts of the case! I firstly scuffed everything with red scotch brite from MNPCTECH and on all plastic parts a clear plastic primer was applied.

I applied a much thicker coat than before and even let it run in some parts to get a better effect

Thanks for checking it out, stay tuned for the results

Cheers,

Alex

 

[alexciobanu]

Hi guys,

Here are the results! Overall really happy with the way it's turning out.

I added some more patches of the rust paint in some areas I felt it didn't cover the panels too well.

Here I started to add more rust paint.

Let me know what you guys think of the results.

Thanks for checking it out!

Cheers,

Alex

 

[pendragon1]

lookin good! how does that "rust" hold up? is it like other fake finishes that can rub off, ie does it need a cleat/matte coat to protect it?

 

[alexciobanu]

lookin good! how does that "rust" hold up? is it like other fake finishes that can rub off, ie does it need a cleat/matte coat to protect it?

Cheers!

It hold up pretty good, acts just like any paint would. Since it's real rust however, it does leave a mark on your finder when you touch it as any rusted object would. In the end I will give it a satin clear coat for protection

 

[alexciobanu]

Hi guys,

Before I do any more rusting effects on the rest of the case I needed to do some pass-through holes for fittings as well as add some acrylic cover panels.

What I'm doing with the pass-through fittings going over the top of the case is trying to mimic the back of the Dead Space character with the tube and making this part of the loop.

I'm also tapping some holes on the back panel as this will mimic one of the arms of the character. You can see what I mean from the banner image.

Just to screw down acrylic panels that I will add.

I've also added some effect to the acrylic panels just with the Dremel disk

I'll be rusting everything now.

Stay tuned for more!

Cheers,

Alex

 

[Krenum]

Pretty gnarly mod you have going there, can't wait to see how it turns out. Keep up the good work!

 

[alexciobanu]

Pretty gnarly mod you have going there, can't wait to see how it turns out. Keep up the good work!

Thanks a lot mate

 

[alexciobanu]

While the rest of the case is being rusted. The Bitspower watercooling hardware has arrived

This is together with hardware for my AZUL Bitfenix Aegis build as well

 

[alexciobanu]

Hi guys,

Here are most of the panels from the case rusted, clear coated and I also added some effects with some white paint smudges that I think turned out pretty nice and bringing the whole theme together for this build!

As you can see, compared to previous updates, it seems like the clear coat really darkened up the rust look however I think it looks even better this way and more in line with the Dead Space theme.

I'll be putting it all together very shortly but I wanted to give you guys a close up on all the parts!

Let me know what you guys think and stay tuned for more!

Cheers,

Alex

 

[alexciobanu]

Hi guys,

Here's the case all reassembled and looking as awesome as ever! I'm really happy with the result and it goes perfectly with the theme.

Still some effects to add over the rusted paint for a more Dead Space look and some things to build around the top and front panels.

Let me know what you guys think.

Thanks for checking it out and stay tuned for more!

Cheers,

Alex

 

[Krenum]

Looks pretty flippin' sweet!

Did that fan controller come with the case?

 

[alexciobanu]

Looks pretty flippin' sweet!

Did that fan controller come with the case?

Thanks a lot! Yea the fan controller is included with the MasterCase 5 Maker

 

[alexciobanu]

Hi guys,

Sorry for the lack of updates on this build. I've been quite sick over the last week and haven't had a chance to post more updates.

The race is now on to finish this build by the 12th of June. That's Sunday this week as that's when the Cooler Master CaseMod World Series ends.

Here is the work I've done for the top and front panel.

If you haven't guessed it by now the front panel will have Isaac Clarke's helmet from the original Dead Space game mounted to it. It should look pretty nice if done right!

Let's have a look at the progress!

First up the helmet pieces. Started of with a piece of 2mm black acrylic. Measured and drew out the shape by hand.

If you can't see it yet, you will be the end of this update.

Next up were pieces for the top panel to work around the tube. Just designed a random pattern from scratch that I thought would look good and everything was cut by hand with my Dremel Moto-Saw.

Helmet pieces all cut too

I went ahead and bent the acrylic pieces to shape and mounted with other straight pieces to form the overall helmet design.

The way I bent them was with a sheet of thin aluminium that was used to measure the shape of the front panel and then taped up to hold that particular shape. Once done, the acrylic pieces for the helmet were placed in the middle individually and heated up until they took the shape of the aluminium sheet. Unfortunately I was too into it at the time and forgot to take pics.

You can see it coming together.

More work on the top panel. Mounting the pieces together.

And here they are both on the case.

More pics from the next day.

And lets not forget the finishing touches on the helmet

Let me know what you guys think! These will also be rusted which you will see once done.

Sorry if the quality of these images wasn't too good. They were all from my phone.

Cheers,

Alex

 

[RazorWind]

Look kinda neat. I'll be interested to see what it looks like when it's done.

More generally, I'm curious what happens to these things once you're done with them. I gather they're showpieces for conventions of some sort, but what do you do with them after the event? Do you have a customer in mind that you sell them to when you start one?

 

[alexciobanu]

Look kinda neat. I'll be interested to see what it looks like when it's done.

More generally, I'm curious what happens to these things once you're done with them. I gather they're showpieces for conventions of some sort, but what do you do with them after the event? Do you have a customer in mind that you sell them to when you start one?

Thanks mate! Once done I use the builds a bit and they get taken to events around the country. This one will be at PAX AU with Cooler Master and a few events and LAN parties before that. Once done, I usually take them apart if I no longer need it up and most parts get re-purposed or sold depending on what it is. I've never sold an entire modded build generally because I re-use most of the part, especially the watercooling and because not many people interested to spend a lot of money to purchase something like this in AU.

There's not much money in modding in Australia. I just have a passion for it and will continue to do it for as much as I can.

Hope this helps answer your question

 

[alexciobanu]

Bit more progress! Starting to get hardware in the case!

Also yesterday I forgot to mention that the full specs have been updated in the first post!

Here they are:

Case - Cooler Master MasterCase 5 Maker
Motherboard - ASUS Maximus VIII Extreme Assembly
CPU - Intel i7 6700K
Memory - 4 x 4GB Avexir ROG Certified Red Tesla 2400Mhz DDR4
GPU - 2 x ASUS STRIX GTX 980
SSD - 2 x Kingston HyperX Fury 240GB SSDs
PSU - Cooler Master V1000

Cables - CableMod Fully Custom Individually Sleeved Cables + MercoMods Custom Braided Extensions
LEDs - CableMod Magnetic RGB LED Strip

Radiators - Bitspower Leviathan Slim 240 Radiator, Bitspower Leviathan Xtreme 360 Radiator
Fans - CoolerMaster JetFlo 120mm Red and White LED fans
Pump - Laing D5 with Black Bitspower MOD Package - Pump Top + Casing
Reservoir - Bitspower D5 Top Upgrade Kit 150 with Cascade Tube Effect
Fittings - PrimoChill Revolver SX Matte Black + Various Bitspower Carbon Black angle fittings and extensions
Tubing - PrimoChill Copper Tubing
CPU Block - Bitspower Summit EF
GPU Block - 2 x Bitspower VG-NGTX980ADIIS

Thanks for checking it out!

Cheers,

Alex

 

[alexciobanu]

Hi guys!

Here's the helmet nearly finished! Just some more minor details that will be added.

The light is only as an example from my phone, it will be better once on the build.

Also a quick rusty PSU mod. I didn't want to ruin the PSU so I used vinyl and rusted that. Then simply applied to the sides of the PSU and came out pretty well.

.

Let me know what you guys think.

Cheers,

Alex

 

[alexciobanu]

Hi guys,

A quick showcase of the glorious ASUS Maximus VIII EXTREME ASSEMBLY motherboard!

Thanks for checking it out! On the final stretch!

Cheers,

Alex

 

[alexciobanu]

Hi guys,

Getting closer to finishing the build!

Received the cables from CableMod and also did a special paint job on the reservoirs which wasn't really hard to do!

Here's the reservoir!

And more components going in the case, starting to take shape!

Cable management! The reason they are like that so far is that there will be some different extensions for the 24pin and GPU cables which will hopefully arrive in time from Merco Mods. As the build needs to be ready by Sunday, not sure if they will be here in time unfortunately.

You can also see a sneak peak at the finished top panel here.

Let me know what you guys think! Not too long now, will have to rush through a few things for the build log in order to upload everything by Sunday.

Stay tuned for more.

Cheers,

Alex

 

[alexciobanu]

Hi guys,

Here are the final pieces going in the build!

Awesome new Primochill SX Revolver fittings! I'm loving the new finish Primochill now offer on their fittings, these are the matte black ones and will go nicely with the build.

Also some incredible looking waterblocks from Bitspower! These have been installed on the ASUS STRIX GTX 980. Two of them going in the build.

Finally some very sexy looking memory, the AVEXIR Raiden Series Red Tesla ROG Certified memory!

Looking very nice in the system with a sneak peak at the copper tubing!

Final pics coming up!

Thanks for checking it out!

Cheers,

Alex

 

[alexciobanu]

Okay, here we go! Final pics!

I apologise from the start however there are a lot of pics, just wanted to make sure I cover everything!

 

[alexciobanu]

Thanks a lot for checking it out guys and hope you enjoyed this build log! There are still things I would like to add to the build and they will be however for the time being the build is finished!

I should have a showcase video up for it in the next couple of days as well!

Cheers,

Alex

 

[AgentxofxChaos]

Fantastic! At first I was wondering how rust finish was going to turn out since part of my OCD felt like cringing when I saw it (tetanus shot flashbacks) but it definitely adds character and looks phenomenal! I'm totally a big fan of all the carnage and perceived violence on the exterior as well. That interior is really clean and well done as well with the copper piping, blood and lighting. Overall, it all meshes really well together and looks awesome. Great job!

 

[alexciobanu]

Fantastic! At first I was wondering how rust finish was going to turn out since part of my OCD felt like cringing when I saw it (tetanus shot flashbacks) but it definitely adds character and looks phenomenal! I'm totally a big fan of all the carnage and perceived violence on the exterior as well. That interior is really clean and well done as well with the copper piping, blood and lighting. Overall, it all meshes really well together and looks awesome. Great job!

Thanks a lot! Much appreciate the kind words, I'm glad people are able to see my vision with this build in the end

 

[alexciobanu]

Hi guys,

I have a few more pics to share. The cables from Merco Mods arrived a few days after the build was due for submission into the Cooler Maste CaseMod World Series competition unfortunately. I've put them in now and I gotta say they look amazing and the colours work well with the theme.

Let me know what you guys think!

Also VOTING for the competition is now live, check it out HERE.

If you've enjoyed this build log and like how the build turned out please leave a vote. It only takes a few seconds to vote using Facebook at the link above. While you are there check out all the other builds as well.

If I'm killing anyone's internet or mobile data with all these pics, I apologise but I always try to have a nice quality build log.

Again, thanks a lot for checking out my build! I should have a video coming up in the next few days. I just need to edit it.

Leave a vote HERE.

Cheers,

Alex

 

[turbolude]

wow amazing

 

[alexciobanu]

wow amazing

Thanks a lot