- Joined
- Mar 7, 2012
- Messages
- 57
- Motherboard
- SilverRuby
- CPU
- i5 3770K
- Graphics
- Sapphire RX480
- Mac
- Classic Mac
- Mobile Phone
The Start
I started out with a typical 16 year old kid case housing a Gigabyte X38-DQ6, Q9550 and a set of HD5770's. I named my system "Blue Ruby" after ATi's mascotte and the color of my fans.
For my next build I decided to go with something a bit more decent and name it "Silver Ruby"
System Config
Intel Core i5 3570K
Corsair Vengeance CML8GX3M2A1600C9 Low Profile x2
Crucial m4 CT128M4SSD2 128GB
OCZ Vertex 2 64GB
Scythe Mugen 2 Rev. B
Cooler Master Real Power M850
Scythe Kama Flow 2 80mm - 1400RPM
Nexus Real Silent D12SL-12 BW x2
Silverstone CFP53B HDD Expansion Kit
PowerMac G5 front panel connector sold by "BlackCH" @insanlynac
Cooler Master Motherboard Tray from a Praetorian case. A mountainmods tray would have been better but in the Netherlands theyll cost you around 90$ incl shipping
The Build
Taking the case apart isnt too difficult. Be sure to have a torx screwdriver available. There are many guides available online so if you get stuck google is your friend. I decided to go with a standard atx layout. Heat rises so having a PSU with the fan blowing down into the case, trapping the air more or less, wasnt a good idea.
I decided on the position of the motherboard tray by making a cardboard cutout with the shape and dimensions of the motherboard tray. "BUZZ LIGHTYEAR TO THE RESCUE!"
After that it was time for cutting using a Dremel multitool. I forgot to take pictures of that DOH! but the idea is to cut in the outline. Check your measurements before each cut and have enough spare Dremel cutting blades available. Youll go through a lot. Then I test fitted the power supply. Its a big baby so it was going to be a tight squeeze with the optical drive in place.
I wanted to get the case as clean as possible on the inside and have enough space for my cabling so this bit had to go.
Here you can see that the PSU is as far back as possible. To get around the problem that the cable was going to pose I looked for a power cable with a 45 degree angle. These arent that easy to find but luckily the local electronics shop had one. If you have a flatscreen TV check that powercable if your not sure which you need. Its probably a hooked one. I routed the cable through the inside of the case, behind the motherboard tray to get the power connector close to its stock positition.
To do this I needed a power connector to splice the cable onto. An old power supply had just the socket I needed.
I marked down the shape of the socket and started cutting.
Cutting small bits with a cutting disk isnt easy so it took a lot of filing down to make the socket fit.
Next step was to make way for the PSU fan. No after pic yet, sorry.
I marked down the place where the SATA connectors are on the motherboard in relation to the tray. That way I can shove most sata cables under the motherboard tray.
The Hardware
Fitting a Mugen 2 is a pain so after looking round I found method on Youtube describing the easiest installation method. You put the cooler in its installed position, then you put the box next to it, it has the same height, then you place the motherboard on top of the cooler and box, line the pins up, and screw the cooler onto its backplate.
Cooler in place. So onto installing everything into the case. Be sure to clean out the case really well after working on it. You dont want metallic conducting dust or particles flying round your hardware.
I dont have the harddrive tray yet and my fans are also still on the way so for now I assembled the system temporarily without them.
As you can see the Mugen 2 fits perfectly. The side panel has 1mm clearance over its heatpipes. Anyone looking to use the acrylic divider panel will be disappointed though as it doesnt fit. In my original idea I wanted to fit the G5 CPU cover too but since the Mugen sticks out so much I cant. Maybe the Mountainmods tray is less "thick" and gives you more space.
The next steps are to install the fans, install the HD cage below the optical drive and to replace my HD5770 Crossfire setup with a HD6870 Crossfire one. Ill post an update as soon as this is done Any ideas, suggestions, questions or random remarks let me know!
For my next build I decided to go with something a bit more decent and name it "Silver Ruby"
System Config
Intel Core i5 3570K
Corsair Vengeance CML8GX3M2A1600C9 Low Profile x2
Crucial m4 CT128M4SSD2 128GB
OCZ Vertex 2 64GB
Scythe Mugen 2 Rev. B
Cooler Master Real Power M850
Scythe Kama Flow 2 80mm - 1400RPM
Nexus Real Silent D12SL-12 BW x2
Silverstone CFP53B HDD Expansion Kit
PowerMac G5 front panel connector sold by "BlackCH" @insanlynac
Cooler Master Motherboard Tray from a Praetorian case. A mountainmods tray would have been better but in the Netherlands theyll cost you around 90$ incl shipping
The Build
Taking the case apart isnt too difficult. Be sure to have a torx screwdriver available. There are many guides available online so if you get stuck google is your friend. I decided to go with a standard atx layout. Heat rises so having a PSU with the fan blowing down into the case, trapping the air more or less, wasnt a good idea.
I decided on the position of the motherboard tray by making a cardboard cutout with the shape and dimensions of the motherboard tray. "BUZZ LIGHTYEAR TO THE RESCUE!"
After that it was time for cutting using a Dremel multitool. I forgot to take pictures of that DOH! but the idea is to cut in the outline. Check your measurements before each cut and have enough spare Dremel cutting blades available. Youll go through a lot. Then I test fitted the power supply. Its a big baby so it was going to be a tight squeeze with the optical drive in place.
I wanted to get the case as clean as possible on the inside and have enough space for my cabling so this bit had to go.
Here you can see that the PSU is as far back as possible. To get around the problem that the cable was going to pose I looked for a power cable with a 45 degree angle. These arent that easy to find but luckily the local electronics shop had one. If you have a flatscreen TV check that powercable if your not sure which you need. Its probably a hooked one. I routed the cable through the inside of the case, behind the motherboard tray to get the power connector close to its stock positition.
To do this I needed a power connector to splice the cable onto. An old power supply had just the socket I needed.
I marked down the shape of the socket and started cutting.
Cutting small bits with a cutting disk isnt easy so it took a lot of filing down to make the socket fit.
Next step was to make way for the PSU fan. No after pic yet, sorry.
I marked down the place where the SATA connectors are on the motherboard in relation to the tray. That way I can shove most sata cables under the motherboard tray.
The Hardware
Fitting a Mugen 2 is a pain so after looking round I found method on Youtube describing the easiest installation method. You put the cooler in its installed position, then you put the box next to it, it has the same height, then you place the motherboard on top of the cooler and box, line the pins up, and screw the cooler onto its backplate.
Cooler in place. So onto installing everything into the case. Be sure to clean out the case really well after working on it. You dont want metallic conducting dust or particles flying round your hardware.
I dont have the harddrive tray yet and my fans are also still on the way so for now I assembled the system temporarily without them.
As you can see the Mugen 2 fits perfectly. The side panel has 1mm clearance over its heatpipes. Anyone looking to use the acrylic divider panel will be disappointed though as it doesnt fit. In my original idea I wanted to fit the G5 CPU cover too but since the Mugen sticks out so much I cant. Maybe the Mountainmods tray is less "thick" and gives you more space.
The next steps are to install the fans, install the HD cage below the optical drive and to replace my HD5770 Crossfire setup with a HD6870 Crossfire one. Ill post an update as soon as this is done Any ideas, suggestions, questions or random remarks let me know!