Cases useable with D-TEK Pro-Core

[freshy98]

Hmm, reading that is should fit ok then.

About the 5.25" bays, I only use two or three max. If I build in a rheobus it can fit easily too since it not deep into the case.

Maybe you allready mentioned this, but a nice idea would be to mount the fan's in the side panel (the one basically never used). But what about the weight? Those combinations are quite heavy! Also, you will need to fabricate something to get air through to the other side. I hope you will understand what I mean.

I will check on the V2000 black version if I can get it here.

 

[SureFoot]

Actually i'm considering mounting both Pro Cores in the side panel, side by side, since i know there's enough room for that (like the #2 heater core in the 3rd pic above)
The pump will be no problem since there will be plenty of room left.
For air circulation, rads will be mounted with fans sucking air, and fans inside the case. So the opposite panel will have either two 120mm blowholes for air exhaust, or a square hole with "modder mesh" That way both panels will look good. Ducting of fan #1 to the front of the case (there's a 120mm square hole there anyway) is another option.
Also take a look at side panels:
http://www.silentpcreview.com/article163-page3.html
(2nd photo from the top)
yes they are thick, and reinforced with U beams. Si the "left side" panel will hold both cores without any problem. Lowest U beam is low enough so i won't even have to touch it..
So since the left side panel won't have to be removed anyway (once i've put the mobo mounts, it's basically over with that panel) i think it's the most interesting solution.
Ducting one rad fan to the mobo section would be another idea.. well at least there are plenty options.
I've drawn some schematics, with the Pro Cores exactly up to scale:

Pump placement is entirely open to changes, and i've left tubing alone because i'm not fixed yet if i put the bay res before or after the waterblocks.

 

[freshy98]

The idea is nice and should be no problem to build.
Pump placement is a point of discussion since it won't fit in front of the heatercore/shroud/fan's combinations. There will be ducts an thus there is no place for the pump to be there as well.
My idea would be to place that right next to the heatercores instead of the fill/bleed system.

I am using a T-line atm but a reservoir will be needed, I think, in this case like you are showing too.
Personally I do not really like the bay reservoirs, so a something like this would be a nice replacement for it. I do not like bay reservoirs because they simply do not fit the rest of the case. They are ugly!

The place to build the reservoir I just linked could be placed best in the top of the case, about where the weird bar is. (on your picture the green line towards the fill/bleed system.

Btw: can't a reservoir be used to fill/bleed too? Also, for letting out air this would be the best place to have it as high as possible. (air goes up, not down).

 

[SureFoot]

The idea is nice and should be no problem to build.
Pump placement is a point of discussion since it won't fit in front of the heatercore/shroud/fan's combinations. There will be ducts an thus there is no place for the pump to be there as well.

The case is 220mm wide, so there will be plenty of space in front of the rads, and the pump is low profile enough to slip under fan exhaust path / whatever. On my schema the rads are up to scale but the pump is not Anyway as i said there are plenty of options, and ducting would maybe mean putting the pump aside... I'll see that. But my first option is to open up holes in the opposite panel and put a light mesh, so air would enter from the left side (looking at front of the case) and exit directly from the right side.

My idea would be to place that right next to the heatercores instead of the fill/bleed system.

Yes that was my first idea as well. But that way the pump would flow directly to the waterblocks, and from the rads, and usually i prefer the opposite (pump -> rads -> waterblocks), but that's more a matter of taste. Anyway i try to use as few elbows / turns as possible, maybe that's being perfectionist

Personally I do not really like the bay reservoirs, so a something like this would be a nice replacement for it. I do not like bay reservoirs because they simply do not fit the rest of the case. They are ugly!

Yes i was not too fond of bay reservoirs too, but that *clear* (not radioactive-green-like) double bayres, with the black case and general blue lighting, won't look too bad i suppose:
http://www.gruntville.com/reviews/wc/primochill_bayres/index.php
It's the one i placed on my schematics (double height).

Usually i tend to prefer round reservoirs as well, like this one:
http://www.xoxide.com/aneyefiblre.html
The Aquacomputer res is nice and well built indeed, but it's made of aluminium, which i want to avoid in my loop at all costs (100% copper). I even try to avoid brass by mostly using plastic barbs...

The place to build the reservoir I just linked could be placed best in the top of the case, about where the weird bar is. (on your picture the green line towards the fill/bleed system.

Yes the top of the case is roomy enough to put a round res anywhere. That's what i was planning first.. i may do that The bayres is a nice option because of multiple barbs (less 'Y' splitters..) and very easy fill / air bleed solution, and requires absolutely zero cutting of the case

Btw: can't a reservoir be used to fill/bleed too? Also, for letting out air this would be the best place to have it as high as possible. (air goes up, not down).

yes yes yes ! The filling and air bleeding is supposed to take place in the bay res, which is at the highest point.
The lowest part i marked on my schematics is meant to *purge* the system.. i wouldnt want to put that monster of a case upside down.. I'm still thinking about it but it will be built like a very small airtrap, which will act as a small buffer, to prevent pump cavitation. Of course it will have to be mounted diretly on the pump inlet. With a hole on the bottom of the case it will be stealthy. If i don't go the airtrap/buffer route, i'll still have a purge system placed there Put that on years of watercooling and experiences with a heavy, unforgiving YY cube....

(edit) the black case seems to be available on the 25th of June, or at least in Italy. Maybe it's the same elsewhere in Europe.

 

[freshy98]

The case is 220mm wide, so there will be plenty of space in front of the rads, and the pump is low profile enough to slip under fan exhaust path / whatever. On my schema the rads are up to scale but the pump is not Anyway as i said there are plenty of options, and ducting would maybe mean putting the pump aside... I'll see that. But my first option is to open up holes in the opposite panel and put a light mesh, so air would enter from the left side (looking at front of the case) and exit directly from the right side.

I think we would need the case first then try out where the pump is fitted best. I understand your placement of the pump now. It does look ok.

Yes that was my first idea as well. But that way the pump would flow directly to the waterblocks, and from the rads, and usually i prefer the opposite (pump -> rads -> waterblocks), but that's more a matter of taste. Anyway i try to use as few elbows / turns as possible, maybe that's being perfectionist

I think I wasn't too clear here. The best way would ofcourse be to push the water through the heatercores and then towards the CPU and then the second block of choice, GPU in my case.
Using elbows and turns slow down the water which is not good at all. Therefore I will not use them. The only ones I will be using are the Y splitters for the heatercores in/out of the water.

Yes i was not too fond of bay reservoirs too, but that *clear* (not radioactive-green-like) double bayres, with the black case and general blue lighting, won't look too bad i suppose:
http://www.gruntville.com/reviews/wc/primochill_bayres/index.php
It's the one i placed on my schematics (double height).

Usually i tend to prefer round reservoirs as well, like this one:
http://www.xoxide.com/aneyefiblre.html
The Aquacomputer res is nice and well built indeed, but it's made of aluminium, which i want to avoid in my loop at all costs (100% copper). I even try to avoid brass by mostly using plastic barbs...

Still, it does not match the case using a bayres. If it were to be a stealth bayres it would be ok for me, nut not one that I can see from the outside.

Aluminium is something I want to avoid too. Didn't think about that one with that Aquacomputer res. Oops!
Guess I will need to find my self a nice one to solve that problem.

Yes the top of the case is roomy enough to put a round res anywhere. That's what i was planning first.. i may do that The bayres is a nice option because of multiple barbs (less 'Y' splitters..) and very easy fill / air bleed solution, and requires absolutely zero cutting of the case

Why would you need multiple barbs? Three barbs would be enough!? In/Out plus a fill/bleed barb.

yes yes yes ! The filling and air bleeding is supposed to take place in the bay res, which is at the highest point.
The lowest part i marked on my schematics is meant to *purge* the system.. i wouldnt want to put that monster of a case upside down.. I'm still thinking about it but it will be built like a very small airtrap, which will act as a small buffer, to prevent pump cavitation. Of course it will have to be mounted diretly on the pump inlet. With a hole on the bottom of the case it will be stealthy. If i don't go the airtrap/buffer route, i'll still have a purge system placed there Put that on years of watercooling and experiences with a heavy, unforgiving YY cube....

One in the bottom would be nice, but make sure it is tiny! There is not too much clearence from the ground.

(edit) the black case seems to be available on the 25th of June, or at least in Italy. Maybe it's the same elsewhere in Europe.

One of my favourite Dutch overclocking stores has the V2000/alu white model for 299 Euro now. Damn expensive!
I was thinking about the black one, but seeing that the case have stealth CDROM brezels it would be ok for white/alu
Plus you won't see as much dust on it as a black case...

 

[SureFoot]

Still, it does not match the case using a bayres. If it were to be a stealth bayres it would be ok for me, nut not one that I can see from the outside.

Put those Lian Li front plates (the ones that come with the case) in front of the bay res.. then it's invisible Anyway it's cheap and non-permanent as no case cutting is involved..

Aluminium is something I want to avoid too. Didn't think about that one with that Aquacomputer res. Oops!
Guess I will need to find my self a nice one to solve that problem.

Apart from the various bayres which mostly are 100% acrylic, you can get the one from Danger Den, or the round acrylic one i posted above.

Why would you need multiple barbs? Three barbs would be enough!? In/Out plus a fill/bleed barb.

I need 2 "ins" + 1 "out" + the fill hole (which is always there anyway)
Here's a tentative diagram of my setup:

Note i think i'll drop the "central hose" and keep two separate loops, the "central hose" is there for tidyness purposes. If i can route both hose through the case i'll drop those extra 2 Y splitters.
The 2 "ins" on the bayres allow me to drop one extra Y splitter, for optimal flow... there's only one left, after the pump.
I run my current setup (1 Pro-Core) with CPU / GPU->NB loops in parallel (with 2 Y splitters, one before one after) and i found out it's the most efficient way. From my previous all-serial setup (CPU->GPU->NB) my temps dropped a lot. I understood why when draining the loop: the flow is way better. The GPU->NB loop is in 3/8" so it gets slightly less water than the CPU loop, so i get optimal flow distribution.

One in the bottom would be nice, but make sure it is tiny! There is not too much clearence from the ground.

Yes it will be mostly a PVC junction with a purge valve on bottom. Nothing fancy

One of my favourite Dutch overclocking stores has the V2000/alu white model for 299 Euro now. Damn expensive!

Ouch ! I think i'll buy it in Italy since i live near there... less than 230€ is attractive

I was thinking about the black one, but seeing that the case have stealth CDROM brezels it would be ok for white/alu
Plus you won't see as much dust on it as a black case...

Hehe my problem is i already have mostly black components (rheobus, Pro Core, PSU, etc..) so i'll try and make it nice this time around. My current YY cube looks more like a mini-bar Or as i was told once, a big microwave oven..

 

[freshy98]

Put those Lian Li front plates (the ones that come with the case) in front of the bay res.. then it's invisible Anyway it's cheap and non-permanent as no case cutting is involved..

That would be a way to cover it, yes. But can the plates fit in the case after the bayres is mounted?

Apart from the various bayres which mostly are 100% acrylic, you can get the one from Danger Den, or the round acrylic one i posted above.

It is not exactly and eye candy, now is it? ;-) Sorry, I am very critical on these things

I need 2 "ins" + 1 "out" + the fill hole (which is always there anyway)
Here's a tentative diagram of my setup:

Note i think i'll drop the "central hose" and keep two separate loops, the "central hose" is there for tidyness purposes. If i can route both hose through the case i'll drop those extra 2 Y splitters.
The 2 "ins" on the bayres allow me to drop one extra Y splitter, for optimal flow... there's only one left, after the pump.
I run my current setup (1 Pro-Core) with CPU / GPU->NB loops in parallel (with 2 Y splitters, one before one after) and i found out it's the most efficient way. From my previous all-serial setup (CPU->GPU->NB) my temps dropped a lot. I understood why when draining the loop: the flow is way better. The GPU->NB loop is in 3/8" so it gets slightly less water than the CPU loop, so i get optimal flow distribution.

Thinking and talking it over with my dad, it might be a nice idea to try out. Maybe I will try it, but then I will need that bayres too hehe.

Yes it will be mostly a PVC junction with a purge valve on bottom. Nothing fancy

Think this will be the biggest job on the case.

Ouch ! I think i'll buy it in Italy since i live near there... less than 230€ is attractive

What is the site of that company? Shipping to Holland should be about 20 Euro so that would be ok. The case is hard to get here in Holland, and very expensive.

Hehe my problem is i already have mostly black components (rheobus, Pro Core, PSU, etc..) so i'll try and make it nice this time around. My current YY cube looks more like a mini-bar Or as i was told once, a big microwave oven..

So what color of the case will you get? Black or alu color?

 

[SureFoot]

That would be a way to cover it, yes. But can the plates fit in the case after the bayres is mounted?

Lian Li plates look very thin. If the sides don't fit, just cut em, and stick the front plates directly on the bay res

It is not exactly and eye candy, now is it? ;-) Sorry, I am very critical on these things

It's quite hard to get a good-looking airtrap/res that is not made of aluminium...

Thinking and talking it over with my dad, it might be a nice idea to try out. Maybe I will try it, but then I will need that bayres too hehe.

The best part is that bayres are very easy to find, even here in Europe, every shop has them. Even a single-height might do, some of them have multiple inlets as well.

Think this will be the biggest job on the case.

(was about the purge valve) not on the case itself, since only a small hole is needed. But trust me, it *is* needed, just think how to flush your system (for maintenance purposes), without unplugging any tube in your loops
The 2 square holes for the rads with their retention mechanism will be more work indeed..

What is the site of that company? Shipping to Holland should be about 20 Euro so that would be ok. The case is hard to get here in Holland, and very expensive.

it's the only site i currently have:
http://www.swzonesystem.it/product_info.php?products_id=1160
note the text in red which says they'll have the product on the 25th.

So what color of the case will you get? Black or alu color?

Black, of course

 

[freshy98]

Lian Li plates look very thin. If the sides don't fit, just cut em, and stick the front plates directly on the bay res

Guess that will be the trick to find out once we have that case ;-)

It's quite hard to get a good-looking airtrap/res that is not made of aluminium...


The best part is that bayres are very easy to find, even here in Europe, every shop has them. Even a single-height might do, some of them have multiple inlets as well.

I think I would go for the dual height. Also in addition to that I would want this. It can hold 3 hard drives in a 2 5.25" height bay, and has a 80mm fan to cool the drives!

(was about the purge valve) not on the case itself, since only a small hole is needed. But trust me, it *is* needed, just think how to flush your system (for maintenance purposes), without unplugging any tube in your loops
The 2 square holes for the rads with their retention mechanism will be more work indeed..

We need to think of a good way for that purge valve. Something that is practical and also looks nice.
Why would you want squar holes? The fan's are round. I was think on using something like this. They will match the black case (the store has them in other colors too).

it's the only site i currently have:
http://www.swzonesystem.it/product_info.php?products_id=1160
note the text in red which says they'll have the product on the 25th.

I talked to someone I know in Italy and he told me you will have to add 20% VAT to that price. Meaning, ~224 Euro will be about 270 Euro excluding shipping! Which I don't know if they will do to foreign countries. Or you must live real close ;-)

Black, of course

Hehe, I still haven't made up my mind yet. One minute it is alu color, the other it is black

 

[SureFoot]

I think I would go for the dual height. Also in addition to that I would want this. It can hold 3 hard drives in a 2 5.25" height bay, and has a 80mm fan to cool the drives!

Well, i wouldn't, since it adds a fan...
My system has currently ONE fan, the one on the Pro-Core.. and it's a PAPST 4412 N/2GL, a very slow / silent one.
HDDs are put in SilentMaxx enclosures, so they are passively cooled and silenced. My 15000rpm Seagate runs @ 36°C with a 20°C ambient.. So it's quite enough, no need for fans.
My PSU is the Yesico 420W, it's fanless.
And my CPU GPU and NB are watercooled of course.
All this means a very silent system, it's whisper quiet When i add the 2nd Pro-Core i'll turn down the speed of both fans to quiet them more.

We need to think of a good way for that purge valve. Something that is practical and also looks nice.

Indeed. I'm roaming the local "home depot" to find suitable parts

Why would you want squar holes? The fan's are round.

The fans will be pulling air, and the rads will be mounted on the left panel - it means they will present their cooling fins directly outwards. Thus i need square holes on the left panel. I can do round holes on the right panel for air exhaust, or a big square hole with some kind of mesh.. i'll see

I talked to someone I know in Italy and he told me you will have to add 20% VAT to that price. Meaning, ~224 Euro will be about 270 Euro excluding shipping! Which I don't know if they will do to foreign countries. Or you must live real close ;-)

Yes i do
You're sure the price is not VAT inclusive ? Bah in that case i'll wait for the end of the month (which i would do anyway) and see the prices in France, might find it around 250€ like the 'alu' version.

 

[nikhsub1]

www.mountainmods.com makes great cases, if you like aluminum cubes YOu can see mine HERE

 

[SureFoot]

www.mountainmods.com makes great cases, if you like aluminum cubes YOu can see mine HERE

Well mountainmods make nice *air cooled* cases indeed, but they don't seem much suited for our application (100% watercooled, twin heater cores..) And shipping charges to Europe alone would be in the ballpark of $200..

Cubes ? Hell i like cubes, i've had a YY cube for years.. Still using it BTW but the "cube" form factor has its limits when it comes to fanless + watercooled operation...

Next step for me is totally silent GF6800U + Barton2800+, overclocked like crazy, so the only fans i allow are the ones on heatercores, and they are undervolted.. Everything is watercooled already, all i need is either a custom case (spaceship form factor..) or that neat Lian Li PC-V2000: it has everything without losing space (actually space allocation in this case is amazingly efficient). Moreover it has an upside down mobo mount so the GFX card will have its ramsinks looking up.. thermally sound.

Cases designed with pure watercooling in mind are rare indeed.. Apart from the YY cubes which are fine until a certain point, most cases are designed for air cooling purposes. Looks like the V2000 designers had the watercooling crowd as a potential target... I think even the V1000 would please most, with a single frontal-mount heater core.

 

[fallguy]

The D-Tek Pro heatercore with shrouds fit fine in the PC-70. I had one in my old setup.

 

[SureFoot]

Nice and clean, but i don't like putting a rad in that position: it becomes an airtrap..
And the initial problem was fitting *two* Pro-Cores in the same case...

 

[fallguy]

You can fit two up top. Just move the ROM's down lower.

 

[SureFoot]

See previous page for my comments about that solution: you lose too many 5.25" bays. It's not space efficient, requires lots of modding, puts heatercores on top (not good), and defeats other silencing purposes (HDDs mounted in 5.25" silencing racks... not possible anymore with lost bays). Plus the fans would have to push through HCs, less efficient than pulling, and HCs would get hot air from inside the case instead of fresh air from the exterior...
A "good" solution would allow putting both heatercores in bottom / middle, with fans sucking inside the case, an airtrap on top, a purge system on bottom, the pump, all that with 6 *free* and non-obstructed 5.25" bays, with a clean layout (nothing in front of the mobo..)..

 

[freshy98]

Well, i wouldn't, since it adds a fan...
My system has currently ONE fan, the one on the Pro-Core.. and it's a PAPST 4412 N/2GL, a very slow / silent one.
HDDs are put in SilentMaxx enclosures, so they are passively cooled and silenced. My 15000rpm Seagate runs @ 36°C with a 20°C ambient.. So it's quite enough, no need for fans.
My PSU is the Yesico 420W, it's fanless.
And my CPU GPU and NB are watercooled of course.
All this means a very silent system, it's whisper quiet When i add the 2nd Pro-Core i'll turn down the speed of both fans to quiet them more.

I am using two Papst fan's per heatercore and I think they are the same as yours. Need to check on that. The fan's do 30dBa each, and running four at the same time means 36dBa I believe. Used a program that was on the frontpage once.

The HDD enclosure does 22.5dBa so that is allmost unhearable too. Plus it is a lot cheaper then buying three of these, which do 29dBa each!!! Plus, I am using IBM/Hitachi drives which are very, very quite too.

Indeed. I'm roaming the local "home depot" to find suitable parts

I don't have much time atm, but please tell me what you find.

The fans will be pulling air, and the rads will be mounted on the left panel - it means they will present their cooling fins directly outwards. Thus i need square holes on the left panel. I can do round holes on the right panel for air exhaust, or a big square hole with some kind of mesh.. i'll see

Ah ok, then it sound logical. I am using a push/pull system so I am ok with round holes. I just need to find someone with a 110mm round hole saw ;-)

Yes i do
You're sure the price is not VAT inclusive ? Bah in that case i'll wait for the end of the month (which i would do anyway) and see the prices in France, might find it around 250€ like the 'alu' version.

The guy in Italy told me it is allmost normal for Italy not to mention if you need to pay tax on something. So best thing would be to conact them and ask about it. And when you do, could you ask them if they would ship to Holland and if so, for how much?

 

[freshy98]

www.mountainmods.com makes great cases, if you like aluminum cubes YOu can see mine HERE

That case would fit my needs, but shipping it to Holland with that price...
Think about the shipping costs plus the costs I will have to pay on customs, a $450 case would be about 700 Euro then.
That is a bit too much for me ;-)

 

[freshy98]

You can fit two up top. Just move the ROM's down lower.

I made a picture on that on the first page, but really ideal it is not.

 

[freshy98]

SureFoot, a guy here in Holland bought the V2100 (the one with door).
I have asked him to do some messurements on the lower part of the case.

I asked him to messure the orange part and the orange+green part.
The reason for the left side is that the fan in the front is pretty useless to us.
we can use the 25mm for the heatercores and pump (depending on where we place the pump ofcourse).

Btw: Have you ordered your case yet? I will have to wait untill I have money again.

Also the bayres is kinda hard to find.
I won't be doing a Y split on the CPU and GPU waterblocks. I have a Cascade which has a high airflow so I am a bit scared it'll go wrong there. Or I should Y the water in the two heatercores and then use one heatercore per waterblock, and direct the exits of both waterblocks to the bayres.
Not really sure what I will do there...