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Case Mod - In Progress The Powerful Pretty Pink Processor (aka, "The PPPP")

Discussion in 'Project Logs' started by cpachris, 27 Mar 2014.

  1. Darwing

    Darwing What's a Dremel?

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    But you need to keep letting the pink panther help you, he's the funniest :clap:

    Amazing what we are going to be able to do in the near future with 3d printing, you are showing but a glimpse into custom computers of the future :) amazing work again!
     
  2. cpachris

    cpachris What's a Dremel?

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    Picture update! Too much traveling lately...but we are almost done. One more trip next weekend and then we will settle back down into school schedule, and I should have some more time to finish this thing up!

    Last week, I was working on some more wiring. Decided to start with a fan power harness for one of the rads. After several starts/stops, changing of mind, etc., I finally settled in on the style of harness that I think will work the best for these rads. I think these take me the longest of all the wiring because of the soldering. I'm really just not that talented with a soldering iron. So it sometimes takes a few re-do's before I'm happy with the finished product. Here is what I ended up with.....

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    A strange looking cable, indeed. On the bottom of the picture above, you'll see a typical female fan connector....which then branches into 5 separate male fan connectors. Close up of the female end below. This will plug into the Aquaero for control of all 5 fans on one channel....

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    And below is a closeup of one of the male ends. These connectors and pins I got from Lutro0, and they were of excellent quality. Much nicer than the pins/connectors I got from FrozenCPU for my last build. These pins go in nicely with a satisfying click. The hooded portion of the connector keeps the pins from making contact with the case at any time, and helps prevents shorts.

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    And below is a close-up of one the branches of the wiring where I had to solder. Some of the Lutro0 heatshink covers any indiscretions nicely....

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    Since this cable was going up next to the radiator, I really didn't have a way to screw in these cable clips that I had sitting around...

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    My sweetie Jen suggested I just use a touch of superglue and put the clips directly on the fans....

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    I'm very happy with the end result. The cable clips keep the wiring close to the black part of the fan frame, and the wires don't hide any of the pink accent rings. The cable clips are securely on the fan, and still allow the cable to slide back and forth inside the ring, so if I ever need to remove the cable or a fan for any reason, it shouldn't be an issue.

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    The pictures above are from the side of the radiator that will be in the middle of the case...not up against a window. The black cables almost disappear into the black fan frame and black case.

    Below are a couple of pictures from the side of the radiator that will be against the window. You can't see any cables at all on this side. Very clean look.....

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    ...and, a few more parting beauty shots. I love the look of these Corsair fans on the thick EK XTX radiators.

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    I'm working on the wiring for powering up the Aquaero and the Lamptron now. More soon!
     
  3. cpachris

    cpachris What's a Dremel?

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    Question: What do you post online when a package from Slovenia arrives with a NDA and a promise to be shot if you reveal any details?

    Answer: Nothing. For now.

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    But stay tuned.......
     
  4. Darwing

    Darwing What's a Dremel?

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    I don't know but could it be the pink panthers wife! hahaha poor little guy, you have your amazing wife who is encouraging you to build this masterpiece and all he does is work, no play

    I love the detail and no compromise you are putting into this build. I've run into a bit of a snag with my build on one of the coats of paint, I think it's the spray I'm using, it comes out with little bubbles, so I have to re-sand it down and try again... But I think it's the paint, any ideas?
     
  5. cpachris

    cpachris What's a Dremel?

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    Some progress on the GPU cables.....

    You know my love for assembly line production. The following steps were done over a two night period while catching up on all of our DVR'd Big Brother episodes in the living room with my sweetie.

    Step One -- Cut 32 pieces of wire, long enough to cover any of the routing ideas that are lingering around in your head. Proceed to torture the dogs with the wires for at least 15 minutes....

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    Step Two -- Use your awesome Lutro0 wire strippers and take off the insulation on one end of all 32 wires. Proceed with calling Jen's name over and over while she's watching TV....and then showing her the wires. Try to remember than Jen won't appreciate it if you leave all the little wire bits on the living room carpet.

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    Step Three -- Use your awesome Luto0 crimper to put a female ATX pin on one end of all 32 wires. Proceed to repeat Jen's name until she finally gives up and stares at you.

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    Step 4 -- Cut sleeve long enough to cover wire, and then go ahead and melt one end onto the ATX pin you did in the previous step. Proceed to announce loudly and repeatedly...."Look at my colored spaghetti!!!"

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    Step 5 -- Insert the end of the wire with the pin into a connector. Proceed to insist that Jen come back into the living room to serve as a background image for my wire shot.

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    What I'll do next is plug the connector end into the GPU's and do some test routing of the cables using different options....and decide which one I like best. Then I'll cut the cable down to size, and start putting pins on the other end of the cable also. The part that takes the longest is melting the sleeve on the pins. You do anything 32 times and it just takes awhile to do. For each of the 32 wires,

    -- I'm cutting the sleeve to the right length,
    -- stretching it tight,
    -- adjusting the cut if necessary,
    -- putting on heatshrink,
    -- melting it till it's gooey,
    -- risking the flesh on my fingers to press it down onto the pin while it's hot,
    -- and then cutting off the heatshrink.

    When you combine doing each of these steps 32 times....while trying to watch a TV show....it takes awhile. But I'll keep you posted on progress.

    Alas, no progress this weekend because we are leaving on a little family trip tonight and will be gone through Monday.
     
  6. Furball Zen

    Furball Zen Shut up and Mod

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    Nice work, love the photos etc..but... why not just use a USB cable to download the pics? After time, inserting and removing can ruin a mem card or corrupt it.
     
  7. cpachris

    cpachris What's a Dremel?

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    I can't answer for Jen.....she simply want what she wants. :D

    But I also put a card reader in my last build, and I use it almost daily. For me, it's just a lot more convenient to pull the card out of the camera, than it is to use a USB cable. I also use several cards, so there is no escape from removing the cards.
     
    Last edited: 19 Aug 2014
  8. ChromAnomaly

    ChromAnomaly What's a Dremel?

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    It's usually way faster to transfer files direct from the card, as you don't have to deal with the camera firmware to access them (downright scary how slow some cameras can be). Also saves your camera battery.
     
  9. cpachris

    cpachris What's a Dremel?

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    Some more TV time with my sweetie while doing some cabling work....

    The same way I did the short cable for my 24 pin that handled the double wires and cross overs.....

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    ....I'm doing the same thing for my GPU cables. All of the 8 pin connectors on the Corsair have a double wire in one slot and several cross-overs. I want all that to be handled in a short patch cable down by the GPU, and then have a 1 to 1 extension that is sewn and tight. So......I took some of the connectors that came with the PSU and snipped off the wires with a couple of inches to spare. Then I stripped and crimped.

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    The above two pictures were actually a goof. I put female pins on the end, and I really needed male pins. So I had to redo those. But in the end, I had male pins on them and put a male to female connector on here.

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    The extensions that are sleeved and pretty have female connectors on both sides. They will plug into the extensions like this, and then plug into the PSU.

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    With hindsight, it might make more sense to make the extensions with a female connector on one end and a male on the other. This would make them usable with any PSU standard cable as the patch cable. I'll always make custom sized cables....so it really doesn't impact me. But it is probably wiser.

    I've played around with several different cable paths from the GPU to the PSU....and I think I've settled on one. I really like the way my 24 pin and motherboard power connectors have the GPU side of the cable doing a tight and immediate loop up and out of the PSU section. Like this....

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    So the same way that the motherboard power connector goes up and underneath the motherboard......that's how I'm going to do the GPU cables also. They will track immediately back under the motherboard tray just like the motherboard connector, and then go through a cut-out (probably need to expand one) in the divider plate, and then up through the midplate to the GPU's. I think it will look pretty clean this way. But it will really need a lot of cable stitching to keep it nice and tight.

    I started in on that.....and decided I needed to stop and get my next powder coating batch ready to go first. I'm sure it will take a week or two to get the powdercoat batch back....so I can be working on stitching and cabling while the pieces are off to be powdercoated. So....next up is pictures of my PSU window cut-out work......
     
  10. cpachris

    cpachris What's a Dremel?

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    So since this case I selected had a lot to do with all of the windows.....why not make some more in the components themselves? Right? Got some ideas for both the PSU and the SSD's. Here is the start of what I've done to the Corsair AX1500i.


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    Void the warranty....and take the top off. Hehe.....

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    Remove that fan from the top of the PSU cover......

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    Tape up the PSU cover where the cuts will be made....

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    Rock that Dremel....

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    7 cutting blades later (gasp), success!!!

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    Get out the file and start working those rough edges....

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    Starting to look better....

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    Test fit. I'm having to pull down the plastic insert that usually protects the circuitry from touching the metal sides of the PSU. Before I"m done, I'll need to cut it down below the window panel....

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    Different angle view....

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    That's where I got so far....but I'm pretty pumped about how it's going to look. Next steps.....I'm going to send the PSU cover to be powder coated in CaseLabs black. This will make it match perfectly with the interior of the case....and will help hide some of the nicks and scratches that happened while cutting it out. I'm going to have the top fan grill powder coated pink to match the outside of the case.

    While these parts are off to be powder coated, I'll cut some acrylic out for the window, and then have a local shop etch it with a Corsair logo and maybe a PPPP mention. I'm planning on running a LED into the inside of the PSU and lighting up the etched acrylic window. It will be very cool.....

    May even find a little bitty pink panther or something to leave inside the PSU....looking out through the window. :thumbsups
     
  11. cpachris

    cpachris What's a Dremel?

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    Based on all the other WONDERFUL pictures of the new EK Supremacy EVO, you've probably concluded correctly that the black van was there to ensure not a word was breathed of it before it was ready. The waterblock is beautiful, and the new insert really makes the insides even more attractive than before. Not to mention the performance has been improved. I'll be posting my own pictures of it with some beautiful pink coolant after I get it polished up. :)

    In the meantime....I'm still prepping items to go for another batch of powdercoat items. Got the memory ready a few days ago. For those following, you will remember that I've already done a custom dye job of the light bar to make it glow pink instead of white. The one on the left has the normal light bar, and the one on the right has lightbar upgrade kit and the custom dyed pink light bar....

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    But I want to do even more with the memory to personalize it for this build. So I took off the light bar cover....

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    ...and then removed the heatsink.

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    The heatsink just took a little bit of wiggle to remove it.

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    Then I repeated for all 4 sticks of memory....

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    The plan here is to powercoat the light bar covers matte black to match the inside of the case, and then powdercoat the heatsinks pink to match the outside of the case. I think it's safe to say I'll have the only set of Dominator Platinums like this. :eek:

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    Corsair tells you to personalize it right there on the package.....who am I to say no?

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    Can't wait to see how these look when they get back from CaseLabs! More powdercoat prepping tomorrow!
     
  12. cpachris

    cpachris What's a Dremel?

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    Still working on getting ready the package of stuff that I'm shipping off to be powdercoated. Today was the card reader and some faceplates. I pointed this out previously....but the card reader's light grey color is really throwing my mojo off when I look in the case. See?

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    I can't spend all this time on black and pink accents....and just leave the ugly grey box. Jen already previously weighed in....and the color needs to be black for this box. I could just rattle can it....but as long as I'm already sending some stuff for powder coating, why not make it match the inside of the case exactly, right?

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    The cover came off easily....

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    ...and to my delight the wires inside were simple micro-b connectors, so I could remove them with no effort.

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    Cute lil' pcb.....

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    Pop off the face plate. Since it's already surrounded by the CaseLabs 3.5 inch adaptor which is pink....I'm going to leave this faceplate black for a little contrast. Plus...it's plastic, so powdercoat is not an option.

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    Snip the cable tie holding the cables in place.....


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    ....and remove the cables completely from the PCB and card reader housing. These will be a breeze to sleeve. The pass PCI pass through bracket will also get powder coated black....

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    Ta-da! Card reader housing ready to go.

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    Few more nits. The Aquaero 6 mounting brackets are silver, but are hidden behind the black CaseLabs mounts so that they really don't show much. But....as long as I'm getting some stuff powder coated....

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    ....so I removed the Aquaero and took off the mounting brackets. We'll make these black as well.

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    This black faceplate for the FC8 is aluminum. It won't be black much longer. We'll send this in for pink powdercoating, so that it matches the outside of the case exactly. I did this with my FC8 on the BBBB and it looks pretty sweet and custom when it matches the rest of the case exterior.

    I'll also give some props to Lamptron. They've improved the build quality of the FC8 significantly since I bought my last one.

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    I had some left over flow meters from the last build. I had powdercoated the faceplate white for one....and had the other copper plated. I think I'm going to have the white faceplate on this Aquaero flow meter powdercoated pink. That will be unique.....

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    I have just a few more items to get ready, including the SSD's and the LED lighting brackets. More on those tomorrow!
     
  13. cpachris

    cpachris What's a Dremel?

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    Finished up the last of my items for the powdercoat batch, and I've sent the package off. Woo-hoo! Here are the last of the items that went....

    These Corsair Neutron SSD's are already pretty darn good lookin'....

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    But I wanted to do something special with them, and I have a couple of ideas kicking around in my head. So I took the innards out again. The PCB inside is even smaller than the case.

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    Got out the Dremmel....

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    ...and cut-out a window for the front of the SSD cases. The idea here would be to put a thin piece of plexi on the inside of the cover...

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    ...and then etch it with a logo and light it up with an LED fed through this hole I made.

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    The SSD cases themselves are being sent for black powdercoating so they will match the inside of the case. I may make the LED glow from the window a pink'ish glow to tie out the theme.

    My other idea with the SSD's is to not use the case for them at all...and instead stack the two PCB's together with some standoffs, and use a solid piece of plexi on the front and back to provide some protection. It would become kind of a clear "brick" of SSD's. Might be fun. I'll probably try it both ways and decide.

    I asked the kitty what he thought.....

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    ....and he said he liked both ideas for the SSD's....but that we really needed to think about making the lighting for the inside of the case look nice also. Fair enough....

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    So I showed him the 3 different styles of LED U-channel that I had picked up.

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    This one is for corners where you want the light to point at a 45 degree angle...

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    This one is for flat mounting and has some heat fins....

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    This one is for ultra low profile flat mounting....

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    I cut them all up into sizes that would fit nicely in the spots in my case where I'm considering lighting....

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    ....and included them in my package of "black" items for powdercoating. These covers should blend right into the inside of the case since they will be finished in the exact same powder as the case. Should be almost invisible. I did a lot of LED strip lighting in my last build also, but was able to hide the strips from view based on how big the case was. With this S8 and 4 windows....almost everything inside is view-able, so there is no place to hide something ugly. Must make everything attractive. So we'll give these u-channel a shot and see what they look like when finished black.

    That's it for the powder coat items. Now...I'll get back to some wiring work while I wait on these to be returned.

    Getting close to time to start plumbing this baby up!
     
  14. Darwing

    Darwing What's a Dremel?

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    Absolutely love it, I love kitty and the pics! I need a camera I think that will be my next purchase any suggestions? What are you using?

    I love the level of detail in your work keep them pictures coming!!
     
  15. cpachris

    cpachris What's a Dremel?

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    I shoot Canon, and have a 7d, 30d, and a Rebel. To be honest....you can make any camera work just fine. It's the lens where you should worry about how to spend your money. If you're making your first DSLR purchase....go cheaper on the body....but nicer for the lens(s). :)
     
  16. Kerroin

    Kerroin What's a Dremel?

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    Really love this build.

    I don't like pink, but in this build it looks really good.

    Awesome work dude!
     
  17. cpachris

    cpachris What's a Dremel?

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    Thanks Kerroin! The build is for my lovely wife-y, and she selected the colors. I probably wouldn't have picked pink for a build for me....but now that I've gotten into this one....I really like it. Pink and black together look tough and mean. Not girly....
     
  18. cpachris

    cpachris What's a Dremel?

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    With all of my "to-be-powdercoated-items" sent off to California....I've resumed working on some of the cabling/sleeving....

    I finished up the last two of my little patch cables for the GPU's.....

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    ...and I've started in on the cable sewing again. Got caught up with Big Brother, watched 3 more episodes of Game of Thrones...and had a date with Nucky Thompson. 5 or 6 hours of watching and sewing...and I had most of one of the GPU cables done. I'm sewing the two 8 pins together into one solid cable. This allows me to make a mini version of the same pattern I used for the 24 pin.

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    My current idea is to have the top GPU cable wrap down and between the GPU's....and when I'm finished with the other GPU cable, it will wrap up and between the GPU's. So they will meet together and become one solid mass going down between the GPU's. May even sew them together like that. You can't see in these pictures....but I'm going to have to make the cable management cutout a little wider to allow the cables to keep their flat shape when they pass through the midplate.

    Wait....what's that thing in the lower right corner...?????

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    It's the kitty! He approves. You can see how well the GPU pattern matches the 24 pin pattern in this picture . Similar pattern....similar shape. Coming together nicely....

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    Now I need to queue up another couple of Game of Thrones episodes and finish up the other GPU cable!!
     
  19. Furball Zen

    Furball Zen Shut up and Mod

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  20. cpachris

    cpachris What's a Dremel?

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    The RIVE Black has one 20 pin connection on the motherboard, but I'm trying to hook up more than that. The place that the case will be located makes it not convenient to reach ports in the back, so I would rather make them accessible in the front. There should be 5 USB 3.0 ports and the 3.0 card readers slots available in the front the way I'm going to do it. I'll use the 20 pin motherboard header, but will still need 4 more USB ports on the back panel.

    Unless I wanted to convert them to 2.0 speeds and plug more into the motherboard....but who would want to do that? :)
     

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