Hello!
Long ass post, sorry. Why did I post something so long as my first post?
First time caller, long time listener, and just made an account finally to show off my very first attempt at making something 'mine'. All of this took about 4 weeks, over the summer.
Lightly-Edited Thermaltake Core V20
Fans:
Intake: 2x Noctua NF-A14
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-D15s (I think s) with 2x Arctic P14 PWM PST CO (Edited to actually include the cooler)
Exhaust: Core V20 Stock, TT-2030 200mm
ROG Strix x570 Gaming-i, with no NVME storage yet, just 4 sata drives.
2200g with some free 2400 ram, to be upgraded to a 5800x+ CPU and some trident cl14-15 if I can find some, 2x8gb
My old GTX 780 DirectCUII 3gb, to be upgraded to probably a 3080 or a 6800 when they're widely available, in strix flavor I'd think, their coolers seem to be like, on-purpose. I like over-eningeering.
Thermaltake 850w fully modular ATX (right term?) PSU, that is compatible with anything I'll need it for.
Ideas:
Intake a bunch of air, use the GPU to somewhat contain it's air, build static pressure in the case, vertical flow, cpu and GPU exhaust up into exhaust 200mm fan. Now, some questions, does that big of a hole preclude any SP in the case? Does SP only really apply for CLC anymore, or do modern air coolers and fans make up the difference? Does sectioning off the GPU air from the CPU air better make a difference in fan control/customization/care/we else (the GPu comes pretty close to the window, and the 140 intake on the left mostly goes into the gpu area, creating a column for the gpu fans to intake from, but if that intake fan is blowing the air away too fast, is that aiding or hindering cooling?) heh, I think too much, but I kinda want to design a case out of all these questions/answers. I have a few sketchups, scrawlings of a pandemic-mind.
The Madness to the Method:
First, The 200mm fan wasn't in the correct area, so I gouged out a bigger, and new, hole for the fan to sit in.
My friend Jake came over, responsibly masked, and we build a frikkin computer. He did the vast majority, I'm clearly an ideas-guy, but I learned enough to be dangerous on my own. We build my last computer together, and it was fitting.
So the computer was great, and I was wondering if there was any benefit to putting the CPU cooler basically AS the intake. I watched a video of Steve's (not upside-down Steve, sorry) where he reviewed a 200mm CLC rad. I REALLY WANT THIS TO BE A THING, for CPU intakes in these cases. Anyway, my question here would be, does a CPU benefit from having a direct from outside intake, or is the rest of the case dynamics prepping the airflow to be better for cooling? "It depends", I'm sure. Here, you see its on some wooden blocks. I took my daughter out to a construction recycler here in Portland, they reuse old dimensional lumber, real 2x4, so I got one of those and used that wood for the feet. It gives you slivers if you so much as look at it, its horrible, and they don't attach to the case at all. I had to hollow out holes for all 8 thumbscrews for the sidepanels, so in order to maintain it I have to set it off of those on its back and remove each panel, bleh. I wish It had an L shaped back+bottom that everything but fans attached to, and those could-do with a cable to my fan-splitter with a tempered-glass door on the side... muahaha... oh yes, it will be mine...
So then I planned... My wife was worried.
On my way home I topped by a helpful place and got only 3 tools for my entire task.
Okay, so I needed to fabricate a motherboard tray, and so I cut it out of the back of the case. This let me rivet it to the box I showed in the sketchup drawing earlier. I needed a sense-check to make sure the cord 90/angle adapters would have clearance. I'm mostly just hoping they do here. This poor case...
Bottom left and the right hand picture include about 10 hours of work. No joke, it wasn't aligned at all when I first did it so when I tried to attach the motherboard It was bending too much and there were some nasty angles... Ugh. So then I rebuilt it much better, more deliberate bends and rivets, and the whole thing is WAY more secure, so that's good. Over-engineer it.
Here, you see the intake and the exhaust in-line with each other. I really want to make that a thing in any future ideas I have. The cabling in the back is a nightmere. So, since the MB io panel is inside the case, i have to pull extenders through the back of the case where I cut out a few pieces of the case holes there. I really like the whole design but this needs a more elegant solution, especially since its just below the fan, and could induce undue turb.
]Trying my best to do my Friend Jake right with my cabling. The whole case with everything is north of 30 lbs lol.
If you stitch these two pictures together, thats the intake. Its two side-panel fan intakes from some business-class salvage and the hole to metal ratio isn't in my favor. I need a designed back-panel if i'm to do it again, which I REALLY want to.
Here it is in its near and final form. The red looks handsome with the black, but I am a panda through-and-through.
Last, My worry. I'm' going to need a bigger boa-case if I'm to upgrade my GPU. The dimensions just aren't realistic. So, I actually wouldn't mind trying to make a protocase kit, but I would be way over my head on it. I could use the same ideas to prototype some of this and all.. I've been wondering this as a what-else-am-I-gonna-do-hug-my-kid?
Any thoughts you have are appreciate. The best thing about this is that, visually, it isn't messed up in any way or form Its on its back, and the cords stick out of the back, and its on wooden stilts that don't attach to it (but have plenty of ground clearance, per Steve).
I really wish there was a case that allowed for dimensions that were dual-purpose instead of thinking of them as dual use. Like, have a taller (up from cpu) area there for the AIO yeah, but then also allow for the full width of an AIO up from the MB components so that you don't mess up the airflow around the CPU cooler. One thing I wonder with mine, is that there are such gaps for air to go around the cooler that I don't think its optimized yet, again like the GPU. It would be cool if there could be a silicone flap inside that would rest against an unseen part of the cooler to seal it off.
Anywho, I've been playing around with the ram to practice for my new toys. I'm definitely having fun with my late night Frankenstein sessions in my bios. Have fun everyone, and stay well. Sorry you just read that whole thing, ugh. Don't blame me if you hated it.
