My Newest Build: Vidar MKII

[PhantomTaco]

So I thought I'd share my most recent build, Vidar MKII.

 

First off a quick breakdown of the parts:

 

CPU: Intel i5 3570k @ 4.8ghz

Mobo: ASUS Sabertooth Z77

RAM: Avexir Core Series 4x4gb 1600mhz White LED

Cooler: Corsair H100i

Fans: 6x Noiseblocker eLoops 1600rpm

GPUs: EVGA GTX Titans with ACX Coolers @ 1153mhz

SSD: Crucial M4 256gb

HDD: 2x 2TB WD Greens, 1x WD Black, 1x Seagate Barracuda 3TB

PSU: Kingwin LZP 850W Platinum

EXTRAS: EVGA Pro SLI Bridge, custom made acrylic lightbox, Evercool 2 5.25 to 3 3.5 drive bay converter, and finally custom extensions by my good friend Jappetto over at Reddit's Cable Management subreddit (HUGE props to him for making a badass set of extensions)

 

And finally without further ado, pics (apologies for size if they're big and if they're sideways, dropbox is dumb like that)

 

 

 

So...thoughts??

 

 

 

[Andrew0472]

wow that looks great. Very clean build

[bchampion96]

It looks awesome, I'm just not a fan of how the lighting works coming form under the midplate. It's pretty uneven

[PhantomTaco]

It looks awesome, I'm just not a fan of how the lighting works coming form under the midplate. It's pretty uneven

In person the lighting is actually fairly even, you have to realize that the cards look brighter because them and the sli bridge are the only parts that aren't black (fortunately or unfortunately depending on your perspective). The other reason it looks off is because my phone camera isn't all that great at getting light balance right sadly.

[Cacao]

Awesome build man, I gotta ask though, what resolution will you be playing at? 

[ilikemacandpc]

Love the green accents on the cables. Awesome build. 

[PhantomTaco]

Awesome build man, I gotta ask though, what resolution will you be playing at? 

 

I play at 1440p 120hz. Have 2 QNIX's, but only use one for gaming.

Love the green accents on the cables. Awesome build. 

Thanks it took a while to figure it all out. Actually originally the green was chosen because of the stock coolers on the Titans:

[Cacao]

I play at 1440p 120hz. Have 2 QNIX's, but only use one for gaming.

 

 

Get ready for the bottlenecks

 

Runs away because bottleneck is a taboo word on this forum.

[Homicidium]

Super clean build! But am I blind or didn't you state which case this is? I would love to know

 

Edit: Ah, nevermind. I could've gussed it that it was the Air 540

[hiyayhi]

DAAAAYUM!

Look at dat!

I likes it.

[Giancarlo124]

Nice build man!

[noob_gamer]

how on earth do you reach 4,8Ghz on that cpu and MB. i´am only able to reach 4,5Ghz on 1,240V?

[PhantomTaco]

how on earth do you reach 4,8Ghz on that cpu and MB. i´am only able to reach 4,5Ghz on 1,240V?

Luck of the silicon lottery I guess?

[noob_gamer]

Luck of the silicon lottery I guess?

what volts are you running?

[PhantomTaco]

what volts are you running?

I think it's at 1.33 ish right now

[noob_gamer]

I think it's at 1.33 ish right now

that is quite high is it not. mine custom watercooled 3570K runs at 4,5Ghz on 1.240V. under full load it is 75 degrees C

[PhantomTaco]

that is quite high is it not. mine custom watercooled 3570K runs at 4,5Ghz on 1.240V. under full load it is 75 degrees C

Most people say beneath 1.35-1.4 ish (a little too high when you're approaching 1.4 imho) is the safe high end. I load at around 88C, which is still plenty fine.

[noob_gamer]

Most people say beneath 1.35-1.4 ish (a little too high when you're approaching 1.4 imho) is the safe high end. I load at around 88C, which is still plenty fine.

any way it is a beatiful build. I do love Sabertooth motherboards they make builds look much more tidy.

[PhantomTaco]

any way it is a beatiful build. I do love Sabertooth motherboards they make builds look much more tidy.

I'm actually looking forward to changing it TBH. While they do make for a clean looking build, the all black makes it difficult to add some color accents. For my next build I'll probably go for a board that has either yellow, orange, or maybe blue accents. I chose green because I'm tired of the typical red and black schemes with ROG boards and such, and wanted something a little different.

[noob_gamer]

I'm actually looking forward to changing it TBH. While they do make for a clean looking build, the all black makes it difficult to add some color accents. For my next build I'll probably go for a board that has either yellow, orange, or maybe blue accents. I chose green because I'm tired of the typical red and black schemes with ROG boards and such, and wanted something a little different.

I do certainly agree with you on the red and black builds sir. but i think to cool thing about the sabertooth, is that you can choose any color you want because of the black.

[PhantomTaco]

I do certainly agree with you on the red and black builds sir. but i think to cool thing about the sabertooth, is that you can choose any color you want because of the black.

I agree to an extent, but the thing is most cases interior is black, plus an all black mobo, you end up with a really dark and gloomy inside (which is why I wanted the lightbox, or at least one reason). By having a motherboard with some color to it it brightens things up a bit. Honestly, I would LOVE to see a white motherboard, I'd be all over that and maybe a couple 780 HOFs

[noob_gamer]

I agree to an extent, but the thing is most cases interior is black, plus an all black mobo, you end up with a really dark and gloomy inside (which is why I wanted the lightbox, or at least one reason). By having a motherboard with some color to it it brightens things up a bit. Honestly, I would LOVE to see a white motherboard, I'd be all over that and maybe a couple 780 HOFs

indeed white mobo with 780 HOFs would be nice. you could paint your Sabertooth.

Snef i believe his name is have a build log with a painted sabertooth it is mad.

[J4M35]

Nice mate, loving the light box... i might have to make one of those.... 

[ltguy]

Awesome build. You got balls man. I just dont have the nerve to teardown my Titans and replace the cooler with the ACX one. How much did your temps improve with the new coolers?

[PhantomTaco]

Awesome build. You got balls man. I just dont have the nerve to teardown my Titans and replace the cooler with the ACX one. How much did your temps improve with the new coolers?

 

On load with OCs they dropped from around 88C to around low-mid 70s tops. I absolutely love the coolers. As for the balls, thanks haha, my last couple builds were fully custom loop water rigs so I'm pretty used to taking apart GPUs and the like, actually quite enjoy it.