Case Mod - In Progress Project: Warp Core - offline indefinitely...

Steady on old chap!

Seriously, this was just a simple idea and my first attempt (well apart from the first trial I did!) so if I can do it anyone can!

 

I have a solution to my problem in that Warp Core is my main PC - which means modding it usually requires a full strip down and rebuild as I need it operational! So, I'm going to use my ITX server as my main PC for a few weeks and take Warp Core offline completely so I can work on it more often!

The first thing to happen will be an i7 upgrade - Gigabyte UD7 with EK full cover blocks and 6GB Corsair Dominator RAM hopefully to feature Corsair's awesome-looking memory monitor when it's released. As www.thinq.co.uk said in it's press release

'If you thought that last decade's willy-waving fad of packing PCs with a Star Trek sets' worth of flickering lights had died out, then think again'. Kinda has to happen doesn't it?



Anyway back to the present and here's the gear that's waiting to go in - I should apologise for the photography. I was playing with a polarising lens and purple acrylic outside in the sun and the effect wasn't quite as planned...

To start with then it's XSPC's new Rasa CPU block. A recent test over at Xtreme Systems puts this block in the top three best performers currently which is great news for XSPC. Very low flow restriction and awesome performance. I definitely need low restriction as the single loop in Warp Core is pretty crowded!

























So, the next few weeks will hopefully have some more updates as the PC won't be in use so I can chip away at some modding! More updates to follow including a new radiator and LEDs (thanks to Mark (mrdbristol) for his advice here!).

 

Cheers Spongeblunt!

Thanks Ben! Hopefully your LEDs will be better as I can get them under the acrylic much more easily as they're smaller. Spent about 6 hours yesterday working on the new panel. Next step is to install the LEDs and make holes for the tubing!

 

Sooooooo! With the system offline and dismantled I managed to get the planning and painting done I needed. First up was a fresh coat of paint and a new coat for the inside. The outside had already received a coat of Plastikote Graphite but got a bit scratched when I moved house a few months ago!





After sanding down the previous coat on the exterior and giving the case a good clean, I added a few coats of primer and started the wet and dry sanding process to make ready for the graphite paint job.











Having more experience of how the paint goes on this time, the finish was even better!

After that was done I added several layers of clear coat to ward off any scratches.

Next up was time to plan for the new panel - yep I'm making another one for the mid section as the last one didn't fit with the Gigabyte UD7 plus it was a bit battered! The new one will make use of some LED strips I picked up from Phenoptix and will be more secure than the last one.



This blighter was one reason the previous acrylic panel didn't fit. Meh.





Here's the old panel - still looking lovely but it's now retired along with my Core 2 gear!



So it's out with the acetate sheet to measure up for the new panel.



Think you can just about see the lines here! I cut the acetate to shape - this will lay over the acrylic sheets which will be illuminated from beneath and shine through lines sprayed onto the acetate.

This panel will look even better! Mostly because all the power cables will be routed through it, incorporated into the design and 'braided' in blue UV reactive 6mm tubing.









The initial plan was to drill the holes into the metal but it's tricky to get a drill in this tight space so I ended up just cutting a square hole with a dremel. I'll cut the holes into the acrylic so from the top it will appear each cable has its own hole.



I was hoping that I might be able to salvage some of the acrylic panels I used with the previous panel and thankfully most just needed some minor adjustments.







I've already started work on an acrylic support for these sheets, into which I'll cut gaps for the LEDs to be located. Should have another update soon!

 

I'm liking that one!!!