Project: mk.V (a UV circuitry theme) -=[FINISHED]=-

Well, as it happens on a semi-yearly basis my computing needs have yet again changed from what they were. Last year's "ideal" usage parameters spawned the creation of my FlameCube. This year it's spurring me in the direction of a machine that's slightly larger, and more versatile.

Proposed Specs
'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'
Adjustable ducted air cooling
Pentium 2.4c
512mb pc2700 (maybe in dual, not sure yet)
80gb 7200RPM SATA HDD
GeForce FX 5900XT 128mb
ASRock "P4I65GV" i865GV Motherboard
Lite-On Black 52x24x52x16 Combo drive
2 120mm fans on rheobus control
UV and Red LED illumination

Theme and/or Aesthetic focus
'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'`'
UV circuitry effects. Blue, Black, and Aluminum material color set.

This project is going to progress rather slowly between now and January since I'm a full time student now. But I have everything planned out and setup in stages which should prevent me from rushing through any part of the process.
This will be my first Project Log ever with enough pictures to demonstrate what it is that I'm doing. :-/

 

Should look tres nice!

 

What? Slower than mine?

Clever idea, reproducing a Soldam clone. Cheaper and better fit you your individual needs.

 

lmao, no one can go as slow as you .

 

This should be an interesting project to keep my eye on. If you can make it look as you showed in the photoshop mock-up you have got some mad skills.

 

Very nice cases to mod

Good luck m8 and looking forward to your pictures

 

The lack of available quality micro-ATX cases can be frustrating. but I should be able to make what I want with what I have available.

 

Well, this project has been turned on it's head. After shuffling parts around in CAD and generally not liking any of my results from 3 days of research I basically became frustrated. Then I realized that I STILL have a perfectly good, sturdy all-aluminum case under my bed which I have since been unsuccessful at selling.


So, my trusty old Rackmount case is going to get a serious face lift. The parts I have already ordered will have plenty of room to play around in this thing and it's giving me a million more ideas. Plus I won't have any of the problems I was having with the PC-42 layout.

Planned
- Wire Junction Box (changed)
+ Custom-made plug wire separators
+ Rheobus / Front-Panel monitor
+ All ducted cooling
+ Molex replacements
- Stealthed ATX and P4 Power (changed)

 

Arg! Well, after tallying up expenses I decided it would be more cost effective to change some of my plans. However, the change will make the time involved much shorter, and the end result will be more uniform. In other words I'm going to be buying this power supply:


The color scheme is now down to just Black with silver accents. The lighting colors will be UV and red LEDs as before, but with more intensity and front access interchangability between the two.
I may also decide to incoorporate a 5.4" LCD monitor which I have, up until now, not had a specific use for.

this not not go as slowly as I had anticipated. But it will still be finished sometime around Christmas.

 

And chaos ensues...

the case has two bay modules. The top module will be used for drives and maybe and LCD. The bottom module wil be and intake duct for the video card cooling.
The center support beam for the case will act as a support spine for the custom plug wire seperators that I'll be making. That will allow me to arrainge the cables in an orderly and aesthetically pleasing manner.

This is only the beginning.

 

I have accomplished theoretical progression and I now have an all-encompassing part list with which I will be ordering supplies. I've decided to go without the 5.4-inch LCD since it would take up too much front panel space, plus I simply don't have any use for it. Here are a few design concepts I'm working with.

I do not want to try and hide wires, this is mainly due to the layout of the case and how it prevents me from routing wires behind the motherboard. So, since it won't be too difficult to keep the look of the cables uniform, I will need a means of organizing them neatly and directly. Enter the Plug Wire Seperators.


But, I can't find any that aren't ridiculously priced or made for mounting in the way I need them to. Since I have a wealth of power tools and scrap plastic at my disposal, I will be making a custom set of my own in whatever colors and thicknesses I want. Having the wires in plain view will be no problem considering they will look so good.

Power Cables

Fan power and Motherboard frontpanel cables

IDE


Cables can be beautiful, if they're not chaotic and tangled.

Also, I will be adding faceplates to cover the motherboard. They will "float" above the motherboard on long bolts and nylon spaces. Not only will it look strange, but it will provide both alot of light reflection, and a useful secondary surface for mounting the custom plug wire seperators that I will be using to route fan and cold cathode power cables. Here's a doodle I made over the board layout from the manual which should give you some idea of what it will look like.

The blue sheet will be UV reactive blue acrylic, and the dark sheet will be smoke-tinted polycarbonate.

That's all I have to contribute at the moment. Some time tomorrow I'll give a preview of the aesthetically weird cooling duct thingy I have planned.

 

I'm building a gasket to mount the 120mm fan I plan to use into the lower drive bay of the case. This will suck air through the dust filters in the front of the case, and force the air directly onto the video card heatsink.
The duct will be setup as a sandwhich of these parts

80mm clear fan (blades removed)
4" Clear PVC duct hose
(blades removed)
80mm to 120mm UV reactive fan adapter
Delta WFB1212M, 72CFM 34dBa, rheobus adjustable

The framing wire of the duct will be removed and then replaced with a few uv reactive wires to make the whole duct glow. It should end up looking like this

The gutted clear 80mm fan at the end of the duct will mount near the video card on the support rail in the middle of the case. The duct will not only help to channel the air flow into a single point, but it will also help to muffle the sound of the fans inside the case.
I could have gone wil a UV reactive 120mm fan, but I already have these fans and their noise level is pleasant enough, even on full power.

 

Here's the logo for the case

And how I might apply it to the board covers.

 

Looking pretty cool, I like the idea for the plexi over the mb, you could do some neat tricks with lighting there, can't wait for some more updates

 

Placing all orders now so that (hopefully) I'll have some goodies to play with over this weekend.
While sitting in an extremely boring lecture I managed to plan out all of the cable routes for various parts and I designed the plug wire seperators accordingly.
I'll keep that a secret for now to keep you guessing.

 

Hooray! The first order arrived from Mcmaster. I got...
My clear PVC duct, which I need to trim a 4 inch peice off of. Will be wrapped in UV reactive wire.

My miniature aluminum toggle switches with tip-mounted red LEDs. Each LED will display the activity level of a single hard drive by means of an IDE cable modification. Plus they're shiny.

I still need to go buy the power LED from radioshack

And my blue UV reactive acrylic. Which i can't do anything with until my motherboard arrives.

 

I really like those toggle switches! Were did you find them?
Case is coming along nicely!

 

For US Buyers: I bought mine from McMaster. Simply go there and search for "toggle switch", then select page 801. It's the last switch entry on the list and it comes in SPDT and DPDT with ON-ON or ON-OFF-ON varieties. You can also order them with GREEN LEDs (but not blue).
For UK buyers: Maplin has a similar toggle switch, but with a chrome finish.

I prefer the finish on the mcmaster switches, they really look like something you'd normally see in the cockpit of a futuristic sci-fi spaceship.

 

Thanks for the resource, I'm going to order some now! I've heard of these guys(McMasters), but never checked them out...I'll be browsing for awhile

Thanks again, these will be just the ticket for my mod!!

 

Just so you know, McMaster will not list you the shipping price until the item is shipped and you receive the resulting notification e-mail. This is because they charge you exact shipping instead of an estimate. I've found their shipping to be extremely reliable and prompt.
Not to mention that they have an insanely wide variety of products to choose from. My hardest decision there is usually what do I NOT need from here or where do I start.