DJ46

True, I neglected to mention any kind of spacer (1/2" at least). Talking about the PSU, you'd also have to measure the desk thickness, the spacer and the space beyond the thread in the case. Wouldn't want a long bolt to protrude into the case, fouling the PSU or any drives/hubs in the bottom.

This and the images made me wonder if it might be worth looking into unscrewing the case feet, drilling holes into the desk and bolting the case to it. Much less noticeable and would help prevent toppling, although the parts inside would still need to be secured well (CPU cooler and the GPU especially).

Locked multiplier i7-4790 gang! Jealous of the GPU, what a lovely overall package! (on my 9th GPU cooler, 8th CPU cooler, 7th PSU, 6th case, 4th GPU... man, I really shouldn't have started counting it all) (several SFF builds, DIY plywood case, tower coolers on the GPU, overkill PSUs and now watercooled to the moon)

(not sure if I understand, bit foggy here) Could you run the output connected to the 2 channel amp in mono?

I tend to use Macrium Reflect - should be free and it has an option to create a recovery USB. There's been times when a cloned drive wouldn't boot and that USB fixed it perfectly.

If you didn't plug anything into the Chassis Fan 3 header then it will say N/A. You may have to manually set the fan control in the bios. There should be a "PWM/Voltage" selector on the screen where you set fan curves. Set it to Voltage for 3pin fans.

I thought you meant to say "$200 on just the case" but then I checked the PCPartPicker list. What a steal! It helps that the loop inside is worthy of such an opulent case, looks mega!

I went from SFF to a custom loop but I don't think I'd ever truly attempt to combine the two. Massive props for such a tidy rig with that little room to maneuver. Ah the joys of using a box cutter.

I've never heard of this brand before. A quick search turned up a tomshardware post about it being low quality and an image search showed them advertising an included power cable. I'm not sure I'd personally plug this into any computer component. I have used cheap PSUs for things like random 3.3/5/12V devices like a hair trimmer, fans and lights. That's about the most I'd trust it with. Given that you bought it a week ago, could you still return it? I would probably trust anything from a reputable brand in the budget section on the PSU tier list on this forum over whatever this thing is.

Wow, I knew there was something about this build that was calling out to me when I first saw it, but I totally glossed over the case in the parts list. Love it! Hope you've got the airflow figured out though. (I didn't need to, in fact I chose my old beige box to have fewer holes to block.)

I for one love it when ShortCircuit takes a proper gander at some EVs

Yeah, you would be much better off if you upgrade the PSU even just a little bit. I'm not familiar with MS-TECH but 288W on two 12V rails isn't great. Even a gray 80+ Bronze Seasonic unit with ketchup&mustard cables would allow you to broaden the GPU options quite a bit. It's not like you can see it with the case closed.

A build so cool it looks professional even with Comic Sans

I believe that setting is only for any RGB devices that you might've plugged into one of the ARGB/DRGB headers. I went through the manuals for both the case and the motherboard. The case has a standard power LED, so we don't need to worry about my RGB power LED theory. The motherboard is a bit more interesting. For one, it has 2 headers for a power LED - one next to all of the other front I/O ports, and another right next to them along with the speaker pins. They are probably linked together but still, it might be interesting to test whether the power LED behaves the same in both of the headers. Then there is a "Deep Sleep" setting (edit: in the BIOS, under Advanced\South Bridge Configuration) which is meant to, AFAIK, turn off USB ports when the PC is off. In the manual the default option is "Disabled". From other forum threads it seems like if you want your PC to properly shut down, it should be set to "Disabled in S4-S5". I do not have any hands-on experience with this particular motherboard though.

Except what OP says is that it's doing it when he tells the PC to shut down, not go to sleep. It would be helpful to know the exact motherboard and case that you have. Some motherboards appear to have a BIOS setting for this. Also some cases have an RGB power LED, and if it is DRGB (so 5V instead of 12V), it might stay lit because the PC keeps the 5V rail powered, even when off. (I know that this is a feature on my motherboard that I use to charge my phone even with the PC shut down.)

There are also ones without a PCB:

I guess the original plan was a nostalgic loop using the old and simple parts that used to be a lot better than a small heatsink with a 92mm fan. But watercooling with parts from Ebay could've been so much more interesting - there are great deals to be had and you could've shown how to check and clean used parts. The first thing you buy is a leak tester, as with used stuff (especially after cleaning) you have no guarantee that they won't leak all over your system. Then you buy reliable, proven components that still have plenty of life in them, even if they look a bit beat up. (You could've even shown how to repaint a rad housing, while avoiding overspray on the fins.)

Before adding that Noctua fan, did it throttle?

It depends on your eyesight and how far you sit from the panel. If you're currently using a 24" 1080p panel, it has the same pixel density, so if it doesn't look blurry to you, it should be fine. Personally, I find 27" a bit too small for 1440p, so a 32" 1440p is the right fit for me. But I don't have the best eyesight and I do sit 2-3 feet from my monitor.