I have always dreamed of building my own water cooled PC, and finally I have a chance to build it. I am doing this as a hobby and it will be a long term project, estimated around a year of building (maybe more) .

Here is my animated build (not 100% accurate):



My item list (Have not obtained everything yet):

Case - Bitfenix Prodigy Jap Ver. Black/Red

PC Hardware
Motherboard - Asus Maximus VI Impact
Processor - Intel i7 4770k
Ram - 2 x 8gb Corsair Vengence Pro (RED) 2400Mhz
Storage - NGFF 256gb SSD (hopefully intel brand) (unavailable at time of writing)
Power Supply - Corsair AX850
Graphic Card- Nvidia GTX780 (undecided)

Watercooling Stuff
CPU Block - EK Supremacy Nickel Acetal + EK Naked Ivy Precise Mount.
GPU Block - EK-VGA Supremacy BE Nickel Acetal
Radiator - Alphacool NexXxoS (ST30 240mm x 2) + (ST30 140mm x 1)
Pump - Swifttech MCP35x
Pump Top (Reservoir Combo) - EK-DDC X-Res 140 CSQ - Acetal
Fans - Corsair [SP120 PWM x 4pcs] + [AF140 x 1pcs]
Tubing - Primochill Advance LRT Onyx Black 1/2" x 3/4"
Compression Fittings - Monsoon Free Center Compression Fittings 1/2" x 3/4" x 10pcs
Extender & Angle Fittings - G1/4 Bitspower Black Matte [90 degree rotary x 13] + [15mm Extemder x 3] + [7.5mm Extender x 3]
Drain/Fill Port - Swiftech 1/2 in. Barb Remote Fill-port, High Polish Chrome Plated Brass Body x 2

Building Stages (Currently Stage 1)
Stage 1 - Case Modification
Stage 2 - Assembly
Stage 3 - Wiring
Stage 4 - Boot-up and Testing
Stage 5 - Overclocking

This post has been edited by Oretega: Nov 10 2013, 02:04 PM

Stage 1 - Case Modification


It is finally time to cut my PC case. Kinna sad, cause it is a brand new virgin case. Haha

Drilling all the rivets out



All the pieces are separated



With a grinder and stuff, cut and cut and cut.



This post has been edited by Oretega: Dec 7 2013, 07:04 PM

This gonna be good. I hope the acrylic window will not be tinted red, smoked black will look way better.

This post has been edited by Lucassss: Nov 10 2013, 01:25 PM

I agree with you bro, i would prefer smoked black too:) Coming soon.

Can't wait to see the finish product.

Cutting Continued. I am removing a big piece at the bottom of the case. This is where fresh air is going to enter. "The Intake"


There will be an air filter below, no worries. This case will be a fully negative pressure case, and yes, i know there will be a giant dust build up inside of the case, but I like my design the way it is.


Cutting holes for the power supply modular cables.


This post has been edited by Oretega: Dec 7 2013, 07:05 PM

Modular cable hole done.


The motherboard backplate will be cut, and the power supply will be used upside down of the bitfenix recommended power supply facing.


Walla, this is how it is done, the power supply will draw air from the bottom of the motherboard.


This post has been edited by Oretega: Dec 7 2013, 07:05 PM

Now for the fill/drain port.


Drilled using a 16mm hole saw


Fits perfectly


This post has been edited by Oretega: Dec 7 2013, 07:06 PM

Super perfect fitting with the plastic cover. I planned to hide the fill/drain port, and some other electronic ports (coming soon) behind the front plastic plate.


Top for fill, bottom for drain. Haha


This post has been edited by Oretega: Dec 7 2013, 07:06 PM

can't wait to see the finished product..

Shaving a little of at the bottom of the front case panel to fit the 240mm radiator


Cutting the side window. I will maintain the power button at the side as it is a perfect access location when i put it on my table


Cutting done. Don't mind my room, its under construction too. Haha


This post has been edited by Oretega: Dec 7 2013, 07:07 PM

looks good so far

more please

Soon, soon. Now i am designing some simple electronic circuits for the case. Will be revealed soon:)

Build update:
Since I have cut out a large piece at the bottom of the case for a custom filter, I need something to support the power supply and the pump. I decided to use fiberglass as its flexible and crack resistant. I got the material from an empty circuit board. The circuit board have copper and fiberglass layer. I just want the fiberglass layer, thus I used a popular etching solution (ferric chloride) to remove the copper layer.



Mix ferric chloride powder in warm water to make a solution (honestly I do not know the proper ratio of powder and warm water, I just see the color based on experience ), and soak the board inside it (after wet sanding the copper surface). After that, wait for a few hours.



This is what it looks like after 30 minutes. I don't have a proper tools to heat up the solution, if I have, it would have etched a lot faster.



This post has been edited by Oretega: Dec 7 2013, 07:07 PM

After 3 hours.... long wait... But worth it. (night shot with my iPhone full of noise. haha)



After 4 hours, done. Rinse with water, and I have a fiberglass plate. Using a ...... I am not sure what its called... a pcb cutter? (its like a razor blade, but with some sort of a hook to scratch the pcb) and cut the fiberglass plate into strips.



vVv fiberglass strips success



This post has been edited by Oretega: Dec 7 2013, 07:08 PM

I like to visit hardware shops for source of inspiration. This time, I am looking for a mount for the custom filter. This is what I found.



I only want the Aluminum holder, as for the brush... I am just going to use it as a .... brush



This is how it is going to look like, below the prodigy.



This post has been edited by Oretega: Dec 7 2013, 07:08 PM

keep up good work!

Its called acrylic cutter / plastic cutter

Haha, I had that thing for years and don't know what its called Thanks:) Learned something new today:)

Can't wait for the finished product. I'm following this !

me too.. quite excited about it..

nice cutting finishing bro.
keep it up.

Sorry for the wait, lots of things at my job is keeping me busy.

The fiberglass sticks are drilled to the bottom case.



The fiberglass piece attached along with the filter holder.



This laundry bag is going to be used as the filter net.

This will be the frame for the filter.



Glued for testing, will remove it later for paint.



Looks good

I want the net and the frame to be black to match, so I decided to dye the net using this.



Processing....



Before and after:

I bought a few sheets of 4mm clear acrylic for this project and some other future uses.



This material is tough to use without the proper tools. Using a plastic cutter, I cut it to proper sizes.



This will be the cover for the radiator on top of the case (super-glued together). Long work ahead....



This post has been edited by Oretega: Dec 7 2013, 07:37 PM

Cover mounted on the radiator and case top piece. Fits perfectly, and now some more measuring.



God, finally its over. Took a whole day to drill all these holes with a rotary tool. Felt like i have drilled more than 1000 holes (did not bother to count how many holes I've drilled).



Some more sanding and filling needed, will post later on~

This post has been edited by Oretega: Dec 7 2013, 07:44 PM

Wow. Dude, did you use have a press drill for making the holes in the acrylic or free hand?

Free hand, using a rotary tool:) Have lots of training last time at the company i previously work at:P

ridiculous. Salute bro. Really salute. Modding surgeon. haha!

what tool are you using anyway?

Rotary tool, or what people call a dremel.

Nicely done bro. Using a 300-series Dremel myself.

Hehe... err.... I am using a china brand rm50.00 rotary tool:P Same as a Dremel brand one, but much less powerful. I usually use them for pcb hole drilling.

I just hope the many small holes don't give too much air resistance:)

Still, excellent handiwork.

Air flow should be fine.

Thank You:)

The custom acrylic top radiator holder already filled the gaps and wet sanded.



Since I have removed the hard disk cage and also cut a hole on the 2.5" hard drive mount beside the power supply, as well as cutting another bigger hole for a side window, oh no... where am I going to put my storage drive? The answer (already thought of that long ago):



I only need a NGFF or M.2. SSD and a 2.5" hard drive. I am not the type of person to store so many things in my pc. Welcome to the high speed internet era

Placed 2 stand offs and cut a gap in the middle to fit it to....



Ta-da, the side of the motherboard tray. I really like that location:)



SATA power and data cables should be able to fit in nicely:)

My jap version bitfenix prodigy case includes 2 side windows (one with transparent window, one with vents). I want to match both my side windows, so I removed the the window and do a little modding on it.



Unbend all the clips, the transparent plastic piece goes out fairly easily.



I don't want to use the pins, so i grind them all off. Muhahhaha.

Traced, cut and wet sanded a piece of acrylic to fit the window.



Instead of smoked glass acrylic, I am using tint. Smoked glass plexi is definitely better, but its more expensive. Another advantage of tint is that I can easily change the shade if I dont like it, without cutting acrylic all over again. Currently I am using the darkest tint I can find, I think its 15 ~ 20% VLT. Let see how it goes. If its too dark, I will change it later on.



Done for the left and right window.

I have drilled and fitted 2 more components to the front of the case:

Switch



Power Inlet



This is for something interesting that I have planned. Coming Soon.

Well, the surgery is complete. Time to put the finishing touches to this case.

Now, its time for the patience killer, painting. This are the paints that I am going to use. Its my first time using plastidip, and when I tested it.... well... I always thought that plastidip feels like the soft touch paint that some manufacturers use. I was wrong, it feels more like latex gloves. Not sure if I am going to use it for the project.



Planted all the screws on cereal boxes for easy spraying and to prevent paint on screw treads.



Washers and nuts as well, on masking tape.

Spraying is done. Nice Matt Black finish:)




Top Radiator cover turned out nicely:)



This post has been edited by Oretega: Dec 12 2013, 01:43 AM

Case pieces wet sanded, washed with dish washing soap, hair-drier dried and now priming (going for 2 coats).



It takes 48 hours for the primer to completely cure. Brought it in to my room, and wait to dry for 2 days.



The black one below are fiber glass and aluminum sticks, painted directly, don't think it needs a primer.



Well, that's a day worth of work, Time to sleep.

OK, now for the plastics. The plastics on this case is covered with bitfenix soft touch coating. If I am right, its a polyurethane coating, and its hard for paint to stick on them. I tried several chemicals to remove the coating, but none are effective. In the end, the best way I find is to slowly scratch them off with a razor blade and finish with spirit and scouring pad.

Before:


After:


I have done the same with the top and bottom plastics. It took me a few nights just to get rid of the coating.

All plastics have been coated with a plastic primer. Hope it sticks well, as this plastic flexes and I wouldn't want the paint to crack.



If all goes well, I might be finishing the paint job by next week:)

nice stuff you got there, man. May I know what is it that you do for a living? you're an engineer is it?

Haha, used to study E&E Engineering. Working a different job now:)

same as me do on my acrylic panel it cost rm10
but the bad side about this tint ... gelap jee

How u get plasti dip & rustoleum in Malaysia?

And make sure leave rustoleum paint to dry around 48 hours, that sucker is one annoying paint to dry

Wow, that's dark... I wanted the acrylic panel to only able to see through when the LEDs inside is on. I don't want mirror tint. Erm, let see how it goes after the case and led lights are ready first. I am going to use led strips to light the insides up, hopefully it's bright enough to give the insides a good shine:) If not, I am going to test using a lighter tint.

Haha, unfortunately, I got them all at ace hardware. Not many colors available. I suggest going to ace hardware @ ikano power center. More colour options there.

Yup, I did a test b4 I spray my case. The metal primer takes forever to dry. My guess is that it is an oil based primer. It currently has almost one week drying time d. No worries:)

All panels finally painted, but made a mess on the floor. Next time if I ever need to spray paint to a case, I would just bring it to a car painter:P

I have used wine red and black night paint color.

wow that looks really sweet! your picture with the attention to the steps and details will create a lot of attention here. Keep it up and make sure its finished!

I am going to sleeve wires using paracord, and I choose a black with white stripes.


Before and after on corsair AF120 fans:


The most fascinating effect on this paracord

Its a reflective paracord!

This post has been edited by Oretega: Dec 27 2013, 08:19 PM

Keep up the good work bro. Very interesting project to follow.

As for the inside Lighting, though I read that Bitfenix LED Strips are more reliable than the LED strips you can get from car accessories shops, I will take my chances. Cars run on 12V which is the same as what can be provided from the PSU, I feel there is no issue there.



This is the circuit diagram for the pump bypass I am planning to make. I have designed this circuit as simple as I can to minimize faults. I initially wanted to design the circuit with over voltage and current protection, along with an adjustable voltage regulator to control the pump+fans, but as my lecturer used to say, don't make it so complicated.

I am going to rely on the ASUS Fan Xpert 2 for fan and pump controls.

I have seen and watched how water is filled into the watercooling system by shorting the PSU 'on wire' with 'ground' temporarily to cycle the water in from reservoir to loop. I do not want to pull out the socket from my MB to PSU every time I want to fill water into the loop. There is also another way which is to pull the pump power socket out and link it to an external power source. I agree with the method of using external power source, but once I have already done my cable management, it might be hard to unplugging my pump's molex power connector.

What the circuit does is simple, once I connect an external power supply to the port I made at the front panel the 2 relays activate in order to disconnect the PWM+TACH pins (My Pump has PWM. Model: MCP35X) and divert pump power from PSU to external power. With the help of the switch I made at the front panel, I can control the pump at will. I have not decided if I want to use a 10k variable resistor to control the pump, as its inefficient.

Relays, Switches, Resistors and Connectors. I guess it cant be any simpler than this.



If you have any suggestions, comments or a better alternative, please tell me:) I know this circuit can be improved more:)

This post has been edited by Oretega: Dec 27 2013, 09:32 PM

Unfortunately, I was stuck along the way with a bad paint job. The rust-oleum metallic paint is peeling off. Maybe its because I have left the primer on too long and didn't sand it before basecoat. That set me back quite a bit.

Starting to get Lazy on my project :sigh: and I have to start the painstaking job of removing the paint. I used abro paint remover to remove the paint. Wirebrush and sand to remove as much paint and powder coat as i can. The paint remover did a quite a good job.



I thought of some improvements on the way, and thus added some zinc plates to cover the holes that were at the front panel to prevent air from leaking in. Used metal epoxy to stick them in. Hope this stuff sticks well.



Filling the holes with epoxy.



Half dry, cut it with a Metal Window Safety Sticker Scraper.

I am going to give rust-oleum another try, this time, on a more proper setup. I have decided to forgo metallic and go on with gloss paint. Lazy to put primer, going for a all in one paint.



Taking it sub-seriously, my own DIY personal paint booth with filters and fan.



I have decided to use arduino (because I am getting lazy) in my PC compared to making my own relay circuit (with a prototyping shield as well). With arduino, I can even make LED lights glow and change program on the fly, maybe more

TS have vast knowledge on many things, and this is a nice log to follow.

nice log to follow..
nice animated design u have there..

would be really helpful for reference for others if you could update with the cost $$

good luck

Did this project died? was hoping to see the final product

what happen TS?

Great skill!! Still waiting the final touch for this Modd