Case Mod - In Progress Project Orange Horizon (Parvum Systems S2 with Custom Loop)

banner by Rumikarimu
 
A few years ago, I was in another country and couldn't play any games (for 3 years)... When I came back to Canada (Quebec), I decided it was time to upgrade my gaming computer. I had a Q6600 with a NVIDIA GeForce 8800 GT. The first thing I did was to upgrade the GPU with a R9 270X but I was still unhappy. I could still play my favorite game (TF2), but it was a little bit laggy with others like CoD Ghost (which we know is the most optimized game ever).
 
After seeing a few amazing custom builds, I decided to start my own project. At first, I wanted to go with a mITX with a Caselabs S3. I loved Snef's Purple Chimera and really wanted to go with that case. After a few researches, I found it was quite hard and expensive to get a Caselabs in QC... The project that really pushed me to build my own computer was the Titanfall project by Jameswalt1. Then, one day, I found an amazing deal on a UK website for the Parvum Systems S2 case and decided to jump in the water.
 
Long story short, I have almost completed my build and wanted to show you what I had done. This was my first build so I made a few mistakes... Overall, I'm still happy with the end-result but I'm interested to know what you think!
 
Table of contents

• The memory
• The CPU water block
• The motherboard
• The pump & reservoir combo
• The video card and its water block
• The case
• The radiators
• The loop and the fittings
• The fluid
• The LED (single strip)
• The LED (dual strips)
• High resolution photos
• The benchmarks (CPU Overclocked)
• The water cooling parts - Bitspower

Main parts

• CPU: i5-4690K
• Motherboard: Asus Gryphon Z97
• Memory: 16GB Corsair Dominator Platinum CL9
• Video card: evga GTX 780TI 3GB Superclocked
• Storage: Samsung Evo 500GB
• PSU: Corsair AX860i
• Cooling: Custom Loop (Acrylic)

Custom Build Of The Month

• Forbes Magazine - The Most Amazing PCs Of September 2014!

Final Pictures





Additional details can be found here

 

The memory

• Dominator® Platinum with Corsair Link Connector — 1.5V 16GB Dual/Quad Channel DDR3 Memory Kit (CMD16GX3M4A1866C9)
• Dominator® Platinum Light Bar Upgrade Kit

 
The process
This is how I "painted" my light bar for the Corsair Dominator Platinum.

• Take the crystal light bar;
• Use a marker and "paint" the bars; and
• Voilà!

 
The recommendation
I would recommend to put the light bar into some kind of DYE solution instead of using a marker for a better result.
 
The photos

 

The CPU water block

• Bitspower CPU Block Summit EF (Intel) White (Model 2012) (BP-WBCPUIAC-CUMBKWH)
• Bitspower Summit CPU Block Intel Mounting Plate - White (BP-CPUIPT-WH)

 
The process
I didn't pick the CPU water block for its performance, I really bought them for the look. I considered painting the mounting plate in orange but changed my mind while assembling the parts together.
 
The photos
 

 

 

The motherboard
I decided to go with the Asus Gryphon motherboard because I could use the armor/thermal kit to cover the motherboard.

• Asus Gryphon Z97
• Gryphon Armor Kit for Z87

Some people asked me if both pieces were compatible since I was mixing a Z87 component with a Z97. I read on a few forums they would be working together but had never seen the final result so I still decided to move ahead and try it. They clip perfectly. You don't even have to mod the armor kit!
 
The process
Painting the armor kit was easy but I made a big mistake... For some reasons, I thought I had bought a glossy white but realized, after I added the coats, that it was a clear coat instead. That's why the armor kit doesn't shy like it should. It's basically the white from the primer...
 
This is what I did:

• Prime; and
• 4 coats of clear coat.

 
But I should have done this:

• Prime;
• 2 coats of white; and
• 3 coats of clear coat.

 
The photos

 

 

 

 

 

Glad to see you here @ Bit-tech. The banner is awesome BTW

 

The pump & reservoir combo

• Pump: https://www.dazmode.com/store/produ...azMode STORM D5 VARIO 8-24V Pump w/TACH cable
• Pump Mod: https://www.dazmode.com/store/produ...wer D5 / MCP655 Mod Kit - Deluxe White Finish
• Reservoir: https://www.dazmode.com/store/produ... Tank Z-Multi 150 - Limited White POM Edition
• Reservoir: https://www.dazmode.com/store/produ... Tank Z-Multi 80 - Full Clear Acrylic Version
• Sleeving: https://www.dazmode.com/store/produ... 2mm ) DarkSide HD Cable Sleeving - Orange UV
• Sleeving: https://www.dazmode.com/store/produ...2" ( 4mm ) DarkSide HD Cable Sleeving - White

 
The process
I initially bought the Tank Z Multi 150 but it was a little bit too high when combined with the pump so I ordered the Tank Z Multi 80 and switched some of the part to make it nicer.
 
Other than that, I sleeved my cables (for my first time). I didn't bought any heatshrink so I used white-electrical tape to seal the sleeving around the cable.
 
I will sell the spare reservoir really soon, so stay tuned if you are interested to buy it
 
The photos
 

 

 

 

 

 

Thank you

 

The video card and its water block

• Video card: EVGA GeForce GTX 780 Ti Superclocked w/ EVGA ACX Cooler
• Waterblock: EK-FC780 GTX Ti - Acetal+Nickel
• Backplate: EK-FC780 GTX Ti Backplate - Black

The process
I was really stressed for this part of the build. I had spend a fair amount of money on the video card and I knew that installing the water block would void the warranty. I followed carefully the instruction provided with the EK Block and installed the water block. I think it took me like an hour to do that.
 
I painted the backplate at the same time that I painted the motherboard armor kit. Trust me, the video card is quite heavy once assembled!
 
I added too much thermal paste so I'm probably going to loose a few degrees... I'll fix that when I clean my loop in a few months.
  
The photos

 

 

 

 

 

 

The case
I selected the Parvum Systems S2 case because I found it quite original compared to other cases. In addition, I had the option to take my favorite color which saved me some paint work... I ordered the case from, the UK when it was on sale...
 
The process
I found interesting that Parvum doesn't provide build instruction in a paper format to assemble the case. Instead, they refer you to a video on youtube so you just have to watch & stop to assemble the case. 
 
The photos

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The radiators

• 2x Alphacool NexXxoS ST30 Full Copper 240mm

 
The photos

 

 

 

 

 

 

The tubing & the fittings

• Tons of Bitspower Crystal Link Tube - 201mm
• Tons of fittings...

 
The process
I built a rotative drain system in order to save so space in the case. It also helps to actually drain the system since it is at the same level as the tubing going to the GPU water block. I had a lot of issues with the tubing alignment. It's harder that what I thought. Each mm counts and if you miss by 1, the design looks flawed... I must admit that it's not perfectly align, but I'm still happy with the end-result.
 
The photos

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The fluid

• Mayhems Pastel - Orange Concentrate
• Distilled Water

The Process
As you know, bleeding the system is the "critical" part of a water cooled build. For me, it's not only the step of removing the air and the bubbles from the system, but also the first leak test that you do for hours. You are crossing your fingers that everything will work, that you have properly fix the tubes to the fittings. Oddly, I had a small leak from the reservoir itself but was quite easy to fix by twisting the top and the bottom part of the reservoir.
 
At this point, the build is almost done. You just need to connect all cables and voilà!
 
The photos

 

 

 

I have 1,000+ views and I've not seen any post from you guys. Is my rig boring? What can I do to get some inputs from you guys?

 

The LED (single strip)

• Darkside 12" (30cm) Dimmable Rigid RGB Strip

 
The Process
Installing the RGB strip is quite simple. It only requires enough space and double-side tape. Since I'm only using a single video card, I could use one of the slot at the back for the wires and the input power. 
  
The Photos

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The LED (2 strips)
I decided to buy another Darkside RGB LED Strip and fix it on the top panel.

Here are two shots with some accessories and the 2 RGB LED strips.
 
LED OFF

 
LED ON

 

Lighting looking great mate!

 

love the build mate. great work

 

Love the very clean look with the block colour (good choice on the white and orange )

 

New shots made with a Canon EOS REBEL T2i

Which photo do you prefer?
 
Photo #1

 
Photo #2

 
Photo #3

 
Photo #4

 
Photo #5

 
Photo #6

 
Photo #7

 
Photo #8

 
Photo #9

 
Photo #10

 
Photo #11

 
Photo #12

 

Nice setup. Very clean.

Photo 8 is IMO the best.