Watercooled HTPC Concept, 3mm Aluminium, 11.6L

[HansWursT619]

Hey everyone,
I want to build a watercooled HTPC, that fits in my home theater setup.

It wasn't my main goal to make it as small as possible. So a few millimeters can possibly be taken off the height and depth, but rather I wanted it to look like an AV component. This is why I limited myself to 440mm width, although I would have liked it to be 435mm.
A second goal was to have all ports on the bag, instead of an extension to the PSU.


I have been tinkering in Sketchup for a few hours.
This is what I ended up with:

A few thoughts:

1. The Rear is very tight, with only 1mm between all components. Depending on the length of the PCI slot covers, I might have to cut them to fit.
2. I will probably not end up using an R9 Fury, but the model had a modern EKWB on it and I wanted to have the height of the terminal block in the concept.
3. The case has no front IO at the moment, I was thinking about adding the 2xUSB + Audio front panel kit from Silverstone to the side by the power button.
4. I think it is possible to make most cut outs myself with only the top panel being laser cut.
5. The concept is currently constructed with 3mm aluminium and 10mm mounting cubes to connect the panels.
6. I am not 100% sure how the GPU will screw to the back panel. At the moment the screw would go from the IO side, so opposite from the "normal" direction.
7. The watercooling loop only has a 240 rad in it. I have seen some tests that make me confident, that this setup still runs quieter than air cooled. I have to accept temps similar to aircooling though.

What do you guys think? Could this work?


Cheers!

 

[jeshikat]

The Rear is very tight, with only 1mm between all components. Depending on the length of the PCI slot covers, I might have to cut them to fit.

It's not strictly required but it's recommended to keep about 6mm clear around the motherboard, and it looks like the PSU is really close to the top edge of the board.

But you're right, there's not much room left. So you may just have to put up with removing the PSU if you want to unplug the CPU power connector on the motherboard.

I think it is possible to make most cut outs myself with only the top panel being laser cut.

Unless your shop charges and a leg, you might as well have them do the whole thing. They can cut it way faster and precisely than you could otherwise and the vent pattern is going to be the most time-consuming (read expensive) to laser cut anyway.

I am not 100% sure how the GPU will screw to the back panel. At the moment the screw would go from the IO side, so opposite from the "normal" direction.

That works, I've seen other custom builds do that.

It looks like the holes for the PSU mount are too small, I'd recommend going a bit bigger to allow for slight misalignment. Around 4.5mm should be good.

 

[Ricky]

What about making the radiator 280mm? It'd be better I'd think for cooling, particularly for the CPU.

 

[HansWursT619]

It's not strictly required but it's recommended to keep about 6mm clear around the motherboard, and it looks like the PSU is really close to the top edge of the board.

But you're right, there's not much room left. So you may just have to put up with removing the PSU if you want to unplug the CPU power connector on the motherboard.

You are right, there is not much room at the top of the board. I forgot about the CPU Power connector and its clip. But other than that I can't find much that would overhang the board. Other than the extra PCB ASUS used sometimes.
I think I would be willing to remove the PSU first.

Unless your shop charges and a leg, you might as well have them do the whole thing. They can cut it way faster and precisely than you could otherwise and the vent pattern is going to be the most time-consuming (read expensive) to laser cut anyway.

I have no shop in mind yet. But I will definitly ask for a quote on both options.

Speaking of shop. Does it matter what type of machining process is used?
CNC, laser or water cutting?

It looks like the holes for the PSU mount are too small, I'd recommend going a bit bigger to allow for slight misalignment. Around 4.5mm should be good.

Quite possible yes. I have actually not bothered to much with screw holes yet. All the panels have no holes yet either.

What about making the radiator 280mm? It'd be better I'd think for cooling, particularly for the CPU.

This will be hard to fit.
While I am willing to make the case deeper for this to fit, the width becomes a problem.

A 45mm thick Alphacool rad could work. These have an extra set of fittings, otherwise the fittings would collide with the GPU.
But when using these fittings, the reservoir/pump combo will not fit where it is not. (The grey box in the corner below the GPU )

Could look something like this.

A CPU/Pump/Res combo would be an option, no Res at all, or a tiny one somewhere else.

 

[FCase]

I have no shop in mind yet. But I will definitly ask for a quote on both options.

Speaking of shop. Does it matter what type of machining process is used?
CNC, laser or water cutting?

Yes, Laser is least expensive, but with holes or slots close to each other, it can cause warpage. I ran into that with my case. Thankfully i was able to find a shop with a CNC punch. A little mor expensive than laser but less than CNC and waterjet. Also very precise for holes without stressing the material.

 

[jeshikat]

Speaking of shop. Does it matter what type of machining process is used?
CNC, laser or water cutting?

As FCase mentioned, a CNC punch could be very cost effective if you use a vent pattern that consists of many small holes, like Lian Li does. If the vent holes are larger and fewer, or if they're a irregular shape (not a square, circle, hexagon, etc.), then you should look for laser or water jet.

Water jet is usually the most expensive, but it can be difficult to cut 3mm thick aluminum depending on what type of laser cutter the shop has though, so it may actually be cheaper on a water jet.

 

[Sean Crees]

You could get a 2U rackmount enclosure, they are going to have dimensions and layouts very similar like this: https://www.neweggbusiness.com/product/product.aspx?item=9b-11-165-558

Lian Li has a case with a similar layout: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811112434

Just tossing out some idea's which would be a lot less expensive than trying to make your own.