Log [COMPLETE] X300-M(AX): A watercooled sandwich style X300M build! [5.6-5.9L, 12V!]

[Curiosity]

just realized I forgot to attach a pic of the current status:

currently continuing work slowly on a sheet metal case design and soon will remake the wiring for the PSU so it actually works.

 

[Curiosity]

Lost a lot of my progress dbecause I left an external drive with stuff on it connected when I told win10 to reset itself & save nothing, didn't realize it was connected and haven't gotten the data back yet. Lost like 4mo of iterations

I did finally wire the PSU to the GPU + test it, super stable, PSU is great! I just need to wire in a barrel connector for the Mobo and it'll be all 12v from internal power.

https://i.imgur.com/wvSskXW.jpg[img]

That still leaves finishing the case and re-watercooling it (now with an alphacool Lt solo) but then it'll be done, really ready to be finished haha

 

[Curiosity]

Good news:
I'm very confident in the current version of my case design and probably about a week from getting in produced, pending some major fittment issue cropping up after my next test print I'll be doing when I get home from work today.
current' version of the case:

going to be printing the front and back 20mm or so to test radiator fittment + slight modifications to the rear IO cutout, I think It'll go well. if it does, I'll be sending flat patterns to sendcutsend to be made!
bad news:
My 1060 seems to have blasted a cap on the back spontaneously, it was working, I had a power blip for irrelevant reasons unrelated to the PSU, and now It doesn't work. I can't be sure the cap hasn't been like this but i'm inclined to think it's new.

 

[robbee]

Ouch, a GPU giving up on you is not something you want to experience at this moment

 

[Valantar]

Oh, wow, that sucks. I honestly can't really tell from that photo (not surprising given the size of those components), but you might be lucky and have things work by just removing the blown cap? It's not unheard of - though who knows what other damage might be hiding somewhere. Using a multimeter in continuity mode to check for shorts to ground might help you identify failed caps or resistors.

Other than that, the design looks nice! It'll be cool to see it in real life, as scale in 3D models is always so misleading.

 

[Curiosity]

So for now I've ordered an R5 240 as a test GPU to help verify it's the GPU and not something weird with the Mobo, as well as a cheap 128gb m.2 drive to additionally help verify the rear m.2 is working.
Until that comes in I'll just keep using what I've got to test and adjust case dimensions, maybe I'll get the case in hand before I sort the GPU mystery, who knows.

Ouch, a GPU giving up on you is not something you want to experience at this moment

Yeah, terrible timing. I can buy a 1060 for ~$200, but it's a pretty bad feeling to pay $50 less than MSRP for the same thing (used!) 7 years later. But I also really shouldn't spend $500-1000 on a GPU right now.

Oh, wow, that sucks. I honestly can't really tell from that photo (not surprising given the size of those components), but you might be lucky and have things work by just removing the blown cap? It's not unheard of - though who knows what other damage might be hiding somewhere. Using a multimeter in continuity mode to check for shorts to ground might help you identify failed caps or resistors.

Other than that, the design looks nice! It'll be cool to see it in real life, as scale in 3D models is always so misleading.

I'll give that a shot, maybe try a bodge wire as well. I'm fortunate to have been able to handle roughly what I'm designing several times along the way because of the 3d prints, but nothing truly full sized yet, so I'm very excited too!

 

[REVOCCASES]

@Curiosity - I remember we talked about small connectors for the AC inlet over on Discord.

Maybe I found something suitable:



you can find them on MOUSER etc. or TaoBao, for example:

https://www.mouser.hk/c/connectors/d-sub-connectors/d-sub-mixed-contact-connectors/?contact%20arrangement=3W3

淘宝网 - 淘！我喜欢

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item.taobao.com

 

[Curiosity]

Printed prototypes of the case are coming along well, I have the spin and rear IO nailed I believe and now just need to verify radiator fitment before I call it good and send files off to be produced.
Found a RX 6600 on Newegg for 489 +tax so I ordered that, I regret sleeping on the longer gigabyte eagle version that was cheaper, but the powecolor fighter will be better for cooling I guess, since I can add a thicker fan or radiator of I want to.

 

[Curiosity]

Current status:
I have small small tweaks to make before I can order the case.
Left/right spacing of the riser mount holes was slightly too close to the motherboard and made the riser ribbon hit some capacitors on the Mobo, which can be fixed one of two ways, not a big deal.
Then I need to reprint one last time to verify everything (got the XR5 rad I needed in, it's smaller than the black ice gts while still being 140mm.

After that, I'm sending the files to sendcutsend and should have a case soon after!!


I guess of note is that the rear m.2 slot on the Mobo died and ASRock hasn't gotten back to me yet, so they'll either RMA it or I'll buy an X300 to replace this mobo

 

[SFFMunkee]

Current status:
I have small small tweaks to make before I can order the case.
Left/right spacing of the riser mount holes was slightly too close to the motherboard and made the riser ribbon hit some capacitors on the Mobo, which can be fixed one of two ways, not a big deal.
Then I need to reprint one last time to verify everything (got the XR5 rad I needed in, it's smaller than the black ice gts while still being 140mm.

After that, I'm sending the files to sendcutsend and should have a case soon after!!

I guess of note is that the rear m.2 slot on the Mobo died and ASRock hasn't gotten back to me yet, so they'll either RMA it or I'll buy an X300 to replace this mobo

Would the X300 also give you Zen3 compatibility? That'd definitely be a nice bump in performance over the current CPU (2400G?)

This design is another great true-SFF work of art, I'm sure you're keen to have it finished*!

Spoiler: *

We all know that there's never really such a thing as finished

 

[Curiosity]

Would the X300 also give you Zen3 compatibility? That'd definitely be a nice bump in performance over the current CPU (2400G?)

This design is another great true-SFF work of art, I'm sure you're keen to have it finished*!

Spoiler: *

We all know that there's never really such a thing as finished

The x300 supports the 5600g/5700g starting with BIOS ver 1.7 I believe?
My wife needed a office PC so I'm going to give her the A300/2400G and upgrade myself to the X300/5600g, X300 should be here by the end of the month.

And thanks for the kind words, as the one working on it it feels a bit Jerry rigged, haha. Definitely ready to have the real deal in hand.

Spoiler

for sure haha, there's always something that can be modified. Thigh I am going to try to keep that toa minimum once the build is complete lol

 

[Curiosity]

parts ordered!

Got an email asking if the slight lack of bend here was a problem so i'm working with that, but once that's sorted it should been in my hands very soon!

 

[Curiosity]

Got the parts in!
Unfortunately they forgot 2 bends on the GPU side, so I'm trying to figure that out now

 

[Valantar]

Got the parts in!
Unfortunately they forgot 2 bends on the GPU side, so I'm trying to figure that out now

Oh, that's a shame. Looks great otherwise though. No chance of sending it back to have those last bends put in? Or perhaps a machine shop near you with a sheet metal brake you can borrow? Hope it's fixable and that nthe other bends already done don't get in the way :/

 

[SFFMunkee]

Oh, that's a shame. Looks great otherwise though. No chance of sending it back to have those last bends put in? Or perhaps a machine shop near you with a sheet metal brake you can borrow? Hope it's fixable and that nthe other bends already done don't get in the way :/

Exactly what I was thinking, might be able to get a local shop to put the last bend in (unless it needs to be the first one on in the sequence )

 

[Curiosity]

@Valantar @SFFMunkee
Fortunately after I shot them an email they got back to me and they'll be remaking the part at no cost to me.
I don't have a true ETA on it right now but I imagine I'll have it by mid next week at the latest based on how fast they've done other parts I've ordered.
Until then the PC will stay a pile of parts I guess haha
But I'm bleeding close, it's all very exciting!

 

[SFFMunkee]

@Valantar @SFFMunkee
Fortunately after I shot them an email they got back to me and they'll be remaking the part at no cost to me.
I don't have a true ETA on it right now but I imagine I'll have it by mid next week at the latest based on how fast they've done other parts I've ordered.
Until then the PC will stay a pile of parts I guess haha
But I'm bleeding close, it's all very exciting!

That's a solid turnaround time, very impressive. Can't wait to see the results!

 

[msystems]

This is awesome, love the ambition & integrating the gpu into a clean and complete build on this platform and not leaving it just hanging off somewhere.

Once you get the x300, i would be interested to know whether it still accepts 12v on the barrel like your a300 does, assuming that is how you are powering it. I couldn't find any information.

 

[REVOCCASES]

Once you get the x300, i would be interested to know whether it still accepts 12v on the barrel like your a300 does, assuming that is how you are powering it. I couldn't find any information.

I've used the X300 in my 12V powered DSX1 for quite some time and can confirm it works perfectly fine. One thing to note: if you don't like soldering the DC input wires directly to the motherboard I would try to find a (very) good quality DC barrel connector. The cheap ones won't last long with the higher amps that come with using 12VDC.

 

[Curiosity]

Currently working on a revised DXF for sendcutsend, after talking with them I think the out of spec bend is a direct result of the small flange for the GPU cutout. Fighting with fusion at the moment lol

This is awesome, love the ambition & integrating the gpu into a clean and complete build on this platform and not leaving it just hanging off somewhere.

Once you get the x300, i would be interested to know whether it still accepts 12v on the barrel like your a300 does, assuming that is how you are powering it. I couldn't find any information.

Conveniently I have the X300 and have been using it for a few weeks, I'm just bad at updates haha
It's been running happily with 12V to the barrel jack since I got it. I think the only crashes I've had are when I was playing star citizen, and I blame the game for the hard crash.
I can also back up the quality connector thing, I think a mediocre connector I was using took out the rear M.2 Slot on my A300 before I changed it for the X300.