Case Mod - Complete CANIS MAJORIS (modded Tt Core X9) - Thermaltake CaseMOD Invitational S2

Hey guys and welcome to my build log for the Thermaltake CaseMOD Invitational Season 2.

So honored and excited to participate in this along such great modders who have inspired me from the start!

Thanks a lot to Thermaltake for selecting me to represent Australia and also a huge thanks to all the sponsors of this project which are of course Thermaltake along with premium partner Newegg and also Avexir, PerformancePCs, MNPCTECH, Icemodz and Ramcity. Without all of you all this would not have been possible, thank you!

You can find more info about the CaseMOD Invitational here: http://casemod2015.thermaltake.com/season2/home.html

Lets have fun with this one and hope you guys enjoy the ride!


SPECS

Case – Two modded Thermaltake Core X9s
Motherboard – ASUS Sabertooth X99
CPU – Intel i7 5930K
GPU – 2 or 3 ASUS STRIX GTX970s
Memory – 8 x 4GB Avexir Core Series DDR4 2400Mhz (4 x orange LED, 4 x blue LED)
SSD – Samsung SM951 512GB AHCI M.2 ; 2 x 500GB Crucial MX200 SSDs
PSU – Thermaltake Toughpower Grand 1200W Platinum

Cables – Icemodz custom sleeved cables

Radiators – 4 x Thermaltake Pacific RL480 Radiators
Fans – 26 x Thermaltake Riing 12 High Static Pressure LED Fans - Orange, Blue and White
Pumps – 2 x Thermaltake Pacific PT40-D5 Silent Kit Reservoir/Pump Combo with Thermaltake Pacific T11 Reservoirs
Reservoirs – 2 x Fully Custom Reservoirs and 2 x Thermaltake Pacific R33 Reservoir
Fittings – Various Thermaltake 16mm Rigid Compressions fittings , right angles and extension fittings as well as some soft tubing compression fittings for 3/8” ID x 1/2” OD tubing that I will be using in some spots. Also a few Bitspower pass-through fittings.
Tubing - Thermaltake V-Tubler PETG Tube 16mm OD
CPU Block – Thermaltake Pacific W1 CPU Water Block
GPU Blocks - Thermaltake VGA Water Block for ASUS STRIX-GTX 970
Coolant – Mayhems Aurora 2 Silver base concentrate and a combination of Mayhems Dyes in Red, Yellow and Blue to achieve the desired coolant colour

Lighting – Icemodz RGD LED Strips

Other – Thermaltake Commander FT – Touchscreen Fan Controller, 3 x Vandal Momentary and Latching switches for custom power button as well switch for the reservoir LEDs, custom MNPCTECH case feed, MNPCTECH machined aluminum fans grills and acrylic grills for the radiator fans as well as some modders mesh


The theme of this build will be a sci-fi space theme such as the banner suggests and it is named after one of the largest stars known to man, VY Canis Majoris. I also draw inspiration for this project from the awesome game Elite Dangerous though not sure if I will implement any aspects of the game into the build as of now. The colour scheme will be a dark grey/gun metal, black, orange and blue.

As for the mods to the case you will be finding that out as I go along with the build log but yea I will be stacking two X9 cases.... with a twist

The packages received from Thermaltake were larger than my entire desk area





Here's a quick look at the cases!

One of them still intact and the other one is gutted empty, only the panels remain



















These cases are massive, here's a size comparison with an iPhone 6Plus for those of you who are not familiar with the X9 case.







And now I know you guys like the modding so here is the start of it!

I do wanna apologise from the start for the phone pics but there is no way I can take out the DSLR when doing this

Will do my best to show everything as I go along and once all the work on the case is done I will take proper pics of all the bits.

So here we go, out with the dremel and jig saw!





Small incision with the dremel and fire away with the jig saw.





Out it comes.



Just a frame left of the X9... for now







Still a lot of filing to do and heaps more work to come. Hope you guys will enjoy this one!

Stay tuned for more.

Cheers,

Alex

 

Hey guys!

Just wanted to share and showcase the items Mnpctech will be providing to use for this build!

Mnpctech Machined aluminum "Diamond Knurl" PC Case Feet in Anodized Black, http://mnpctech.com/pc-computer-stereo-desktop-case-feet/



Mnpctech 100% Aluminum Expanded "Diamond" pattern Perforated Mesh for making fan guards, grills, cooling vents, window overlays, http://mnpctech.com/case-mods-gaming-pc-liquid-modding-custom-computer-mnpctech-overclock-cooling-fan-grills/modders-mesh-perforated-aluminum-steel-honeycomb-grill-intake-front-fan-slotted-diamond-round-hex/



Mnpctech 480 Quad Open Air Radiator grill Frame (4x120mm, 4.120mm) Open Air grill fits radiators and measure 5-7/8" x 5-1/8" wide with 15mm spacing, http://mnpctech.com/pc-computer-alphacool-ek-bitspower-hardwarelabs-heatkiller-liquid-cooling/480mm-open-air-quad-radiator-grill.html




Machined aluminum "Overkill" Custom PC Fan Grills rings, http://mnpctech.com/pc-computer-cooling-fans-grills-custom/



Heavy Duty PETG & PVC Ratchet Hand Cutter. Cuts PETG tubing up to 1.3" or 35mm outter diameter,http://mnpctech.com/case-mods-gaming-pc-liquid-modding-custom-computer-mnpctech-overclock-cooling-fan-grills/petg-and-pvc-ratchet-tube-cutter.html

 

Hey guys!

Had to take out the power drill and get rid of all the rivets!



Lots of rivets







What will become of this case?!

Stay tuned to find out

Cheers,

Alex

 

Hey guys!

This should give you a better idea where I'm going with this build!

After cutting up the back panel I decided I will remake it fully but love that I managed to keep the front panel and can still mount it.

Lots more work to do in remaking the back and both side panels as well as getting new mid bars and the radiator mounting. That should make the case more rigid on an angle like this.

Once this is done I will start working on the second case

Also keep in mind that everything is just mounted temporarily to get a feel of things

















Thanks for checking it out and stay tuned for more!

Cheers,

Alex

 

Hey guys!

Here is a quick video Bill Owen from MNPCTECH.com made before shipping out all the modding supplies. It sure put a nice big smile on my face when I saw it

Thanks a lot for the support Bill, much appreciated!

https://www.facebook.com/Simpl3Modz/posts/876457409109187

 

Hey guys,

Ready to tackle the other X9 case

First have to take it apart!



You can see the other one in the background, not much has changed as of yet







You might be able to spot all the popped rivets on the floor



Or check them all out here



Stay tuned for more!

Cheers,

Alex

 

Back with another update!

Playing around with ideas in the other case



And making progress on the main case











I had an idea with the original mesh but probably not gonna keep it







That's about it! I need to secure the rad mounts on the side and mount some rads in to test fitment.

Stay tuned for more!

Cheers,

Alex

 

Hey guys!

I have secured the side rad mounts and mounted two of the 480mm radiators going in this build just to get a feel for how much room there will be in that section of the case.

Also the radiators on the bottom of the other case are mounted on an angle like that but I'm probably not gonna go with that idea. They will most likely go with two sets of fans on them mounted to the bottom of the case. The LEDs from the Riing fans should give it a nice underglow



Also front panel still looks the same from last time however I will most likely get rid of the mesh and redo the whole front.





Pump/res combo should fit nicely under the motherboard tray. A new motherboard tray will be going in











Thanks for checking it out!

Cheers,

Alex

 

Package from Newegg has just arrived! A huge thanks to everyone there for the awesome support!

I will be updating the full system specs for this build shortly Also more pics will be coming!



Cheers,

Alex

 

damn Son Triple SLI ... ME LIKE

 

Cheers mate! First time I will be running 3-way, pretty excited about it

 

Hey guys,

Here is another update on the system. Work on the case continues but first I would like to let you guys know the entire spec list

Case – Two modded Thermaltake Core X9s
Motherboard – ASUS Sabertooth X99
CPU – Intel i7 5930K
GPU – 3 x ASUS STRIX GTX970s
Memory – 8 x 4GB Avexir Core Series DDR4 2400Mhz (4 x orange LED, 4 x blue LED)
SSD – Samsung SM951 512GB AHCI M.2 ; 2 x 500GB Crucial MX200 SSDs
PSU – Thermaltake Toughpower Grand 1200W Platinum

Cables – Icemodz custom sleeved cables

Radiators – 4 x Thermaltake Pacific RL480 Radiators
Fans – 26 x Thermaltake Riing 12 High Static Pressure LED Fans - Orange, Blue and White
Pumps – 2 x Thermaltake Pacific PT40-D5 Silent Kit Reservoir/Pump Combo with Thermaltake Pacific T11 Reservoirs
Reservoirs – 2 x Fully Custom Reservoirs and 2 x Thermaltake Pacific R33 Reservoir
Fittings – Various Thermaltake 16mm Rigid Compressions fittings , right angles and extension fittings as well as some soft tubing compression fittings for 3/8” ID x 1/2” OD tubing that I will be using in some spots. Also a few Bitspower pass-through fittings.
Tubing - Thermaltake V-Tubler PETG Tube 16mm OD
CPU Block – Thermaltake Pacific W1 CPU Water Block
GPU Blocks - Thermaltake VGA Water Block for ASUS STRIX-GTX 970
Coolant – Mayhems Aurora 2 Silver base concentrate and a combination of Mayhems Dyes in Red, Yellow and Blue to achieve the desired coolant colour

Lighting – Icemodz RGD LED Strips

Other – Thermaltake Commander FT – Touchscreen Fan Controller, 3 x Vandal Momentary and Latching switches for custom power button as well switch for the reservoir LEDs, custom MNPCTECH case feed, MNPCTECH machined aluminum fans grills and acrylic grills for the radiator fans as well as some modders mesh

I'm really excited for everything going in this system and can't wait to see it up and running

Here are some more pics of the work in progress. Started working on the bottom section too!

Acrylic motherboard tray is in.





And here is the case with the bottom section attached!









Hope it's starting to look more like a spaceship

Thanks for checking it out and stay tuned for more!

Cheers,

Alex

 

Looks factory made, keep it up Alex!

 

Thanks a lot Bill! Hope it all goes well from here on too

 

Back with another update!

Fixed the motherboard tray to the case and mounted pumps and res.

Just a perfect fit for the little pump and res combo. I cut a small hole for the fittings to come out of but forgot I need another one for the fill port. Hopefully I don't mess the other one up and the two fittings align properly



You can also see I added some supports to the bottom panel. Very simple, just some threaded rods and the build is very solid along with the brackets I made. Once panels go on it will reinforce it even more.











CPU cut out and also tapped for the motherboard stand-offs. The cables will come from underneath the motherboard to plug in. Will give it a nice clean look.



Reservoir inlet fittings







Just need to drill for the fill port now.

Also if you guys are wondering why the small reservoirs hidden under there then stay tuned as something really exciting will go in the top section of the build next to the motherboard

Thanks for checking it out and stay tuned for more!

Cheers,

Alex

 

More updates on the case guys!

Front and back panels are on. They are from 4.5mm thick black gloss acrylic. More work still needs to be done to them.

Also the front panel there is a little window cut out and below there is room for a fan controller and the vandal switches

















Thanks for checking it you!

Cheers,

Alex

 

Hey guys,

Sorry for the lack of updates on the build lately. I've been working hard on it to get it ready for the EB Games Expo in Sydney next weekend. The build and I will be attending the Tt booth during the expo .

There have been lots of late nights working on it till 4am and this morning around 5am I'm happy to say it is ready. All wrapped up and ready for pick to get pallet shipped to Sydney.

Unfortunately there was no time for me to leak test it this morning before I had to get it ready so fingers crossed everything goes well once it arrives at the expo.

All I'm gonna share for now is this pic with it wrapped up haha. I've taken a bunch of pics as much as I could while working on it so will be posting throughout the following days before the expo.

More work will be done to it after the Expo, it will be all about the finer details after that



Stay tuned for more!

Cheers,

Alex

 

Okay guys here we go with the updates

I mounted the Thermaltake Commander FT Fan Controller to the front panel, drilled holes for the vandal switches and cut the shape for the acrylic that will go over the front panel aluminum.

This is a piece of smoke acrylic so you can still see through it. Something similar will go on the top panel.

The rest of the acrylic in the build is all gloss black, once the build is up and running and with LEDs, it should give some nice reflections.























Thanks for checking it out!

Cheers,

Alex

 

Gonna keep the updates rolling!

Custom top panel windows piece is done. Smoked piece of acrylic will come over same as the front panel.



All the pieces ready for powder coating. Going to be a gun metal looking colour.



Drilling fan holes to mount with the MNPCTECH grills on the back panel.





Looking awesome with the Riing RGB fans!







Two of the 480mm radiators going in the bottom section of the case with the Thermaltake T33 reservoirs on top on each side. I used the MNPCTECH 480mm acrylic grills to mount the reservoirs to.



And finally, running some Mayhems Blitz cleaning system through the rads. Thanks to PerformancePCs for sending through the kit!





Gotta be cautious with this stuff!









Thanks for checking it out!

Cheers,

Alex

 

Got another update for you guys!

Some vinyl work for the rads and fans as well as finished some of the acrylic panels.

The vinyl work is based on the Elite Dangerous game, that's actually the emblem from the game. Think it looks really cool on the fans and rads.





Had to do a lot of fans!





I would stick the whole thing and then peel out the bits not needed. Pretty easy but time consuming.













This panel is the bottom front panel.









Some MNPCTECH mesh, will look awesome behind the panel once painted.



Front bottom and top as well as back bottom acrylic panels mostly done!



MNPCTECH mesh and grills painted black.



And the case frame is back from powder-coating. Also bottom rads are in!



Pump/res combos as well as the PSU are mounted.



And did some cable management for all the 16 fan cables coming from the bottom up into the top section of the case! I used four 1 x 4pin extension cables to turn the 16 fan cables into just 4 and these will connect straight to the Thermaltake fan controller at the front of the case. Thanks a lot to Performance PCs for helping out with these fan extension cables.





That's it for now!

Thanks for checking it out!

Cheers,

Alex