Case Mod - In Progress [Project] Goliath - COMPLETED 19/09/09

well disappointment has struck my project once more, both of my 285's are fried as they have shorted out on the waterblocks, back to manufacturer they go cross your fingers they'll send me some new ones !

 

That's too bad! What seems to have been the problem with the blocks?

 

the block shorted out an SMT cap that BFG have placed between ram chips, and EK's design doest not account for this, however hopefully they will take it back and refund me, i have spotted a koolance block that will fit !



you can see the difference here



so wish me well !

love and metal

luke

 

Love the project man keep up the great work

 

i contacted the EU customer sales helpline

they told me that under the consumer sales directive they are liable to replace and repair and item that is defective in design or manufacture, and liable for the cost of san consiquencial damage caused by the product

so im a bit more calm now .. this is what ive just emailed to EK re the cap

here is a profile shot of the board where you can see the SMT cap from the side VS the memor chips height (if you zoom you will see the cap cracked from the block)



in this second shot you can see the location of the SMT Cap on the block as there is a small sizle, this is also supported by the weight distribution over the ram chips being exponentail greater the further from the SMT the chips are, showing evidence of the pcb warping due to the SMT being higher



in this third shot i have taken and extreme close up on the block you can see the faint scorch mark as well as the paste aside it not fully compressed (as in the normal compressive state)



a final shots shows the SMT cap from a different view zoomed out and in so you can see the location as well as the damage in the zoomed shot



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looks great man!

 

The mobo looks soooooo much better with the heat sink covers removed, love the plain look. Really sucks about your GPUs though mate, damn shame, just countersink a small hole in the block base so the cap fits in. Yeah I know it's a shame considering how awesome the EK blocks are but it may be your only option.

 

thanks don't fear and tb4-oz - i think the board looks a whooole bunch better without the shrouds, less is more !


anyhow my latest updates are:

Graphics Cards - being Fed-Ex'd for RMA to BFG .. Wooo

Water blocks - I'm currently in discussions with Gregor the Quality manager from EK as he is enthusiastic about tackling this problem, so thats looking up, hearing back from him later today, i will update !

Grill - packed and ready to be shipped for anodising tomorrow, so thats fun !

 

From Eddy :

Hi Luke,



We did found out about this issue with some manufacturers using higher component.

But in 6 months sale and few thousand pieces sold we did not get not a single reclamation of this block.



Since few months we do have new revision of the copper that avoids that part, but this is only for RAM modules to have a good contact.

What we can offer you that we can send you the new revision of the copper so you can replace it.

Or we can offer you 50% discount on new Rev.2 block in our webshop.



But can guarantee that contact did not damage your card.


Best regards, Eddy

and after some clarification :

Hi Luke!



Yes, my offer was to send you free copper base nickel plated for this block with the space cut out.


Best regards, Eddy

 

Are they trying to be ignorant? Of course the contact damaged your card, the scorch marks on the block base proves that the blocks had some part in the untimely death of your cards. Congratz on getting the new block bases all the same.

 

i lol'd .. well after I cursed lol

lets see SMT crushed and shorted .. surely they could fathom that a consumer that at-least knows what an SMT is may have a clue on weather the part failed or not, especailly when its so obvios, i was ready to send him a copy of my foundation degree lol

but i thought .. meh as long as its all replaced i care not

thanks for the support updates soon .. provided nothing else blows up !

love and metal

luke

 

Eddy is a standup guy and very cooperative to work with, glad you got everything sorted out

 

hehe thanks for the support !

i have some small progress updates:

the new blocks have arrived (will check them and snap them up tonight

also my shipping boxes have arrived for my GFX and grill so i can get them on the move .. don ya just love progress ! )

Love and metal

Luke

p.s. in other news ive been nominated for rig of the month on www.mypimpedpc.co.uk !

 

Congratz on the nomination mate. I can't wait to see some pics .

 

just waiting on BFG to return my cards now and for my grill to return from the anodizers

cross your fingers !!

 

GPU's and Grill have arrived back today ! exiting times and a late night ahead me thinks !

 

Good news mate, can't wait for some pics .

 

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Part 8

The Graphical Grilling

Update !! finally some progress, a lot has happened with Goliath since my last instalment, broken graphics cards water blocks replaced and now I own my own house .. score !

well lets get down to the meat of it shall we

I am proud to present the jewel of my mod .. the grill .. anodized and home brushed matt black finish

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I took a few shots to get the best i could then merged them as an HDR composte, so ive made my first HDR photo .. neat, in detail you can see the finash has came out beautifully I'm over the moon with the results the turnaround was also very very quick, i would most definatly use them again for future anodising !

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a few more angled shots to show the finish really is flawless, next to see how it fairs up against the case !

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lining up everything fits, i decided to back it with hex mesh to cover the larger holes after an hour of delicate holding and screwing and a few choice words this was the result

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The colours match just right, once im all done il give the whole thing a good rub down with some isopropal to take any gank out, but that step is now over !

my next devlopment is the new graphics cards and blocks, sadly my camera ran out of juice as i was about to take some shots of the new block bases on the blocks, but here's a shot of the new blocks Sans cover

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later today after work i will get the blocks on the new cards, check and check and check that it all fits, and then fill er up and do another leak test, i will keep you posted !!

Love and Metal

Luke


thank you for your support !!

Love and Metal

Luke

 

Yep, the grill turned out beautifully, very very nice, looks fantastic with the mesh mounted under it.

 

wow thats wicked!