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Liquid Mini-ITX Build aka "Little Tank"

  • 27-05-2015 9:26pm
    #1
    Registered Users Posts: 297 ✭✭


    Parts finally arrived for my build this weekend.

    aka "Little Tank"

    FvqVU4.jpg

    After 2 weeks of planning I have gone for my First Mini-ITX build to follow the new trend of high power in small space. This will be my portable rig. I tried to get as much Power into a the smallest case I could. I work with Oculus Rift and need as much mobile GPU Grunt as I can get. Laptops are no good for Oculus Rift.

    Kit List:

    Case

    EVGA Hadron Hydro Black mini-ITX Case with Side Window with 500W EVGA 80+ Gold PSU Fitted

    with

    EVGA Hadron Hydro WaterCooling Kit inc Radiator Pump CPU Block Fittings Tubing Coolant

    Went for this Case as it fits in Ryanair carry on luggage space in case I need to Fly with it to, and yes I would have to Drain and Re-fill on other side. Going water cooling or Air was my biggest decision, I decided to go with Water for Extra cooling,noise and looks.

    Mobo

    Asus MAXIMUS VII IMPACT, Intel Z97, S 1150, DDR3, SATA III 6Gb/s, SATA RAID, PCIe 3.0 (x16), DisplayPort HDMI, Mini ITX

    Its has good reviews, Wifi and packs a punch in small space also in future might go for the Bitspower Maximus VI Impact Full Cover Waterblock upgrade http://goo.gl/8aACJ7 for that extra Bling

    CPU

    Intel Core i7 4790K, LGA 1150, Haswell, Quad Core, 4GHz Base, 4.4GHz Turbo, 1200MHz GPU, 84W, CPU, Retail

    with

    CPU EK- Supremacy EVO waterblock

    Best CPU money could get for the board, good overclock potential, upgrade the waterblock from the EVGA waterblock for cosmetic looks only.

    RAM

    16GB (2x8GB) Corsair DDR3 Dominator Platinum, PC3-14900 (1866), Non-ECC Unbuffered, CAS 10-11-10-30, DHX, XMP, 1.5V

    with

    Corsair Dominator Platinum Light Bar Upgrades - Arctic White & Cerulean Blue

    Nice Ram, Plenty Speed for what I need had to go extra bit for Lights

    Hard Drive

    1TB Samsung 850 EVO, 2.5" SSD, 3D V-NAND, SATA 6Gbps, Read 540MB/s, Write 520MB/s, 1GB Cache, 98000K IOPS Max

    1 TB of SSD, Good and should keep me going for awhile.

    Graffix Card - GPU

    GTX 780 Zotac AMP Edition - Water cooled with EK - FC Titan SE CSQ Nic waterblock

    Fastest GTX 780 in market and near if not on Par with Titan



    *Bag full of different Lights and Liquids to play with Colors and Custom when Close to Finish.



    Will post Pics of Build over weekend. and final product.


    Cost for Parts only - €2100 minus few cents change

    Cost does not include for labor or Delivery


Comments

  • Registered Users Posts: 534 ✭✭✭vlad2009


    Look class! Good luck with the build! Let me know how you get on with those akasa LEDs. Need some lights myself to top of my build and don't really have a lot of money, so they look pretty good for budget LEDs.


  • Registered Users Posts: 37,295 ✭✭✭✭the_syco


    Ohhhh....! Please take photos as you build it!


  • Registered Users Posts: 833 ✭✭✭JamBur


    Seriously jealous, looking forward to build pics and updates


  • Registered Users Posts: 1,307 ✭✭✭Xenoronin


    Was going to joke about carry on computer but that makes a hell of a lot of sense once I started thinking about it. Less likely to get beaten around like in the luggage hold.
    Sounds like a beast! Good luck with the build :D


  • Registered Users Posts: 297 ✭✭W0LFMAN


    Ok, so Build Time

    First off

    Water cooling Kit that separates the EVGA Hadron Air with the EVGA Hadron Hydro.

    Very Nice, Looks all there

    BGC1BI.jpg

    [Opinion after few hours into Build, when I saw this I though Great - Nice fitting all chrome looks Standard stuff no messing easy fast fit. I was wrong the adapters are G1/4 but the hose is slightly too big, you need hands like Vice-crips and in a small case, you need in fact must have strong fingers tips. There is plenty of grip on the collers but after an hour, your fingers tip and skin will be RAW]. turned out really horrible

    38F23U.jpg

    Decision time - I went for the EK CPU Waterblock rather than the Stock as I though that the Looks would be more impressive. EK CPU Blocks aren't cheap, but they are impressive.

    Cecc2d.jpg

    Quick Flow Plate Change

    BU5mIO.jpg

    Backplate has rubber protection, must have for this board, alot of the parts are cramped and the rubber does well to protect parts that flow into the tight Area around the backplate.

    BTXVSJ.jpg

    Hoping to clock this CPU to around 4.5 in the beginning.

    ILV7C3.jpg

    Board with Back plate on ready for the CPU Block.

    5SGdlE.jpg

    CPU Ready for the Grease. "The Board is Tiny"

    WFhfzu.jpg

    Ram Light Bar Upgrade

    ZbWnfS.jpg

    The Fit - this board had to come in and out a few times, there is No Play with Wires, space is nothing in there.

    QK4jj7.jpg

    Happy with the Block and Ram

    JSbzQH.jpg

    Took out all the G1/4 Adapters and that came with the Kit and replaced them with Proper EK Adapters. Big Difference in regards to fitting and saving fingers they are a must, a new hose is a must too. the one with the kit is too Thick and Stiff.

    kZcc2I.jpg

    Bends are Amazing Tight, Only around a meter of hose was used.

    w5YZ18.jpg

    Went with Cheap Fluid for test and flush purpose only. just to get me going and to easy check for leaks.

    sc0DAQ.jpg

    Fill and Leak test. The Hadron Hydro Pump does the job, nothing wrong with it. was handy and filling wasn't too bad, few small leaks to start, but most its working.

    NmgVmd.jpg

    System is Running now for next hour for leaks and bubbles removal. Will upload more pics of the finish,

    Things left to do.

    Attach Temp DVD Drive to install windows
    Power up Board and boot.
    Get to Desktop and install Temp Programmes
    Internal Tidy up wires
    install Lights
    Remove all protective Plastic
    Get Internet Run Updates
    Default CPU and GPU
    Step up Overclock CPU and GPU to comfortable Level.

    finish with a few benchmark scores and a Picture of PC beside bottle of beer for size comparison.


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  • Registered Users Posts: 506 ✭✭✭Ant695


    Looks awesome. Especially in such a small space. If I ever try a water cooled rig it'll be in a huge case.


  • Registered Users Posts: 7,178 ✭✭✭Serephucus


    You used anti-kink coils inside your tubing? Interested to hear your results with that one. :P

    Looks like a nice little build. What fans are you planning on using?


  • Registered Users Posts: 297 ✭✭W0LFMAN


    Moment before Booting, CD Drive is Temp to Install windows, "Little Tank" wont have a DVD drive.

    nFq4Mt.jpg

    NO Leaks, so Far

    whNTQM.jpg

    Size Comparison against my Corsair Obsidian 750D and My Cooler Master Storm Trooper

    mUt7Dg.jpg

    I3SSuT.jpg

    ZMwlGX.jpg

    Against No Beer but a carton of orange

    7oa7cf.jpg

    "Little Tank" is just updating..... Will Look at Clock and Over clocks later on in week, With Benchmarks - If anyone wants any Specific Benchmark results post and let me know.

    PC was a great build... 95% of space is used up.... Temps on CPU are around 28 Deg Idle and GPU temp is 28 Deg Idle

    However I can see the popularity. This thing is powerful and takes up a fraction of Space.

    Interested in see the overclock potential.


  • Registered Users Posts: 297 ✭✭W0LFMAN


    Serephucus wrote: »
    You used anti-kink coils inside your tubing? Interested to hear your results with that one. :P

    Looks like a nice little build. What fans are you planning on using?

    Yea, EVGA instruction were for them to go inside, there was no option to stretch them on the outside. I tried to fit it without the Coils but the tub always kinked...space is just so tight. It's going to be in there for a few days until I can get some external coils delivered this week, Will do a system flush next weekend, and remove the coils.

    Fans at the moment are Stock what came with the Case, most likely upgrade them to Corsair Air Series SP120 when I can.


  • Registered Users Posts: 2,621 ✭✭✭Jaafa


    I really love the air version of this case and but my budget isn't huge. Thinking of just doing a little i3+270x build with it. Almost feels like a waste, but damn I want that case. :o


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  • Registered Users Posts: 1,307 ✭✭✭Xenoronin


    This build is for high end virtual reality experiences. A more basic i3 with 270x would still be perfect for home use. Can always upgrade in the future :D

    On topic. Looks absolutely amazing! Why is there a problem with having the anti-kink coils in the tubes? If they are corrosion resistant there shouldn't be any meaningful impact.


  • Registered Users Posts: 297 ✭✭W0LFMAN


    Xenoronin wrote:
    On topic. Looks absolutely amazing! Why is there a problem with having the anti-kink coils in the tubes? If they are corrosion resistant there shouldn't be any meaningful impact.


    Valid point on the anti - corrosion coil. Also from it being internal I would have expected some type of flow resistance, but temperatures have remain low even under load pressure.
    I happy to remove and replace with external coil, when the external ones arrive tomorrow. I'll inspect fluid when it comes to flushing it this weekend.

    I havn't had any problems so far. I do recommend the case. Even the Air one. One slight upgrade would be 2x Corsair silent running 120mm fans. The stock make the case noticeable.


  • Registered Users Posts: 297 ✭✭W0LFMAN


    Update:

    Two New Corsair AF120 LED White Quite edition Fans installed. (Replaced Stocked Case Fans)

    F7nqW6.jpg

    Coils added to each pipe (External), for stability and flow improvements.

    t4HTZs.jpg

    S0siMV.jpg


    Pro's.

    Machine been working great since Build - no leaks - no Crash - Very Fast - Just does whats expected

    Con's

    PowerSupply has 40mm bearing fan, which has become slightly noisy - noticable once mentally listening for it.
    (looked at finding replacement - unavailable for that powersupply and not upgradeable. unfortunaly stuck with it and common fault with the EVGA Hadron Hydro Case Power supply


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