Project Open Core: Liquid, Hardline Tubing, Illuminated System Panel, VR Ready

I am working on wrapping up hardline bends and sleeving, and will post on those topics once completed. As my last “Hardware” post, going to run through my Displays & Peripherals.

I am a consultant, and about 50% of my job is on the road. When not traveling I work from home. For my setup, I went with a custom Sit/Stand desk with motorized legs. I usually start the day standing, but by 2-3pm, the knees start to ache a bit and I drop the desk and pull up a chair. My displays are wall mounted, on articulating arms. Although I can adjust them to my heart’s content, I have found a good location for them that I can use while standing or sitting, so they never move.

Using 3 monitors currently in a PLP configuration.

• Primary Display - 30in Dell 3011U @ 2650x1600
  
• Side Displays - 20in Dell 2007FP @ 1200x1600 (x2)
  

Total resolution is 3850x1600, which gives me a lot of good workspace. Here is what the desktop looks like in a seamless “Print Screen”. Using Display Fusion to manage my wallpapers, and a few Rainmeter “skins” to customize the look of the desktop and give me system stats at a glance.

Keyboard and mouse using a Corsair K70 RGB Mechanical Keyboard, and a Logitech G502 Mouse. Both utilize RGB LEDs, and are customizable.

The newest addition to my setup is the Saitek X-56 Rhino H.O.T.A.S. Flight Controller. I have been getting into Space Sims lately, and this has been a huge upgrade from my old but trusty Logitech Extreme 3D Pro joystick. The difference the new X56 has from the X55 is two additional thumb control sticks for your thumbs, specifically helpful for extra control with space sims, and the addition of RGB lighting.

Here is a pic of all of them together. Really liking that manufacturers are going with RGB lighting so you don’t have to settle for whatever color they decide to ship units with. Very easy to match the colors of the new build. Customization FTW!

For High Resolution versions of all photos from this build log, pleas check out the Album on Flickr.

https://www.flickr.com/gp/24705522@N05/yB94Z9

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I was planning on testing all of my wiring since I made the majority of the PSU cables myself, and ran into a bit of an issue. Everything powers on well, lights up, pumps work, etc. But the ASUS MoBo will not fully boot. Keep getting an error saying "USB Device Over Current Status Detected" and an error code on the motherboard of "55".

A Google search tells me Code 55 is "Memory Not Installed", but as can be seen in the picture below, the RAM and CPU are fully recognized. Plus, I don't see what that would have to do with the USB Over Current Error.

I have also unplugged everything from the motherboard (including front case USB headers) except the keyboard and mouse. No Drives, GPU, or fans are plugged into the motherboard. I have tried various USB ports, and have even tried different keyboards. Keep getting the same error, and cannot get into the BIOS at all.

Any feedback or suggestions would be greatly appreciated, as I doubt I will hear back from ASUS for a few days. Thanks.

Have you an violett keyboard adapter for PS/2?

Maybe you can with them enter to bios.

Or try a CMOS reset (e.g. remove batterie for 15min).

Have you an violett keyboard adapter for PS/2?

Maybe you can with them enter to bios.

 

Or try a CMOS reset (e.g. remove batterie for 15min).

I will give that a try. Thanks.

After trying what seemed like everything I could think of, along with some suggestions from people on various forums, finally figured out what the issue was. I thought I had unplugged everything in my search for a fix, but I missed the PCIe USB 3.1 card, mainly because it was hidden behind the PCIe Riser Cable going to the GPU with its vertical installation. I couldn't see it, and passed it over.

The reason that particular card was giving me issues was due to the fact that USB 3.1 can draw a lot more power than 2.0 and even 3.0, which it what was triggering that particular error message, and causing the reboots. I went ahead and made a new SATA Power cable and added it to the expansion card, and the power / current issues are gone.

I have finished a few test, and was even able to install Windows 10 while checking for fluid leaks. Still having an occasional issue during boot up, but I know that cause this time of the Q-Code 62. That same PCIe Riser Cable that hid the USB Card, is causing the boot process to lock up. As soon as I unplug the card, everything functions as it should. I have been reading that adding extra shielding to the cable can fix the issue, so going to give that a shot. If not, will have to hit up Thermaltake for a new cable. I really hope it will be a quick fix, as the build is almost done and I would hate to have this hold things up.

For this build, I decided to go with Monsoon Hardline PETG Tubing 1/2" ID, 5/8" OD. I initially had purchased PrimoChill PETG Tubing, but decided that the diameter was too thin and liked the look of ⅝” OD better. This is my first time “tube bending” so I purchased a lot of it since I knew that I had to account for the varoius screw ups that would occur. Luckily it is not very expensive.

Since it was my first time working with hardline tubing, I had to acquire a few tools to make sure my bends look good. I already had a few things, like the rotary pipe cutters and a heat gun, but also picked up some Monsoon Mandrels to help form bends, a measuring kit, and a tube bending rig made by Barrow which came in really handy.

I have noticed that a lot of people cutting tubing use a hacksaw, but I personally thing the rotary pipe cutter is a much better tool. Not only does is make very straight cuts, but it leaves no mess, and gives the tubing a nice beveled edge as can seen in the picture above, and ensures I don’t damage the o-rings when sliding them on for the fittings.

The Barrows bending rig was very useful when doing more complex / multi angle bends, and assured not only my angles were dead on, but that the tubing was straight throughout the level plane I was working with. It also allowed me to keep things stable when doing larger 180 bends than what the Monsoon mandrel kit supported. Used a can of compressed air as a form for one of the bends, and it come out really nice.

For the most part, my bends held true to my original 3D render which I was glad to see. One place where I had to simplify a bit is where the Motherboard outlet connected to the GPU block. I was initially going to go with a nice multi-bend solution, but realized after installing the fittings that my plan wouldn’t work. There wasn’t enough clearance between the fitting and the motherboard housing to do a 90 degree bend from that location. So I used my measuring kit to form a more simple

“L” bend directly to the GPU block.

Not as fancy, but the end result still looks great. Towards the end of the process, I was getting really good and quick at making quality bends. I may change things around at some point, but for now, I am happy with the end result. Time to move on to finishing up making some power cables and getting them sleeved.

For High Resolution versions of all photos from this build log, pleas check out the Album on Flickr.

https://www.flickr.com/gp/24705522@N05/yB94Z9

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My last build incorporated sleeving from MDPC (MurderMods), and it turned out really good. I still have a lot of sleeving left over from that project, but decided to try something different for this build. I have heard a lot of things, both good and bad, about Paracord sleeving, so I decided to do a sample to see if it would work for this build. As I mentioned before, I like MDPC sleeving, but I find it a bit stiff to work with at times. So I purchased a few hundred feet of coreless paracord, which cost less than $25, and got started sleeving.

In addition to the custom sleeving, I typically make my own power cables for each build. I find by doing this I am able to limit all the extra cable length taking up room in the case, and it allows for better looking cable routing. Here is a pic of the primary tools used for the job.

• Paracord (Black)
  
• Paracord (Royal Blue)
  
• Paracord (Slate Grey)
  
• Lutro Paracord Sleeving tool (makes job snag free)
  
• 100ft 18AWG Wire
  
• PSU Power Connector Pins (lots)
  
• MDPC Crimping Tool
  
• MDPC Pin Extractor
  
• Molex PSU Connector Heads (Various)
  
• Precision Titanium Snips
  
• Hobby Knife
  
• Bic Lighter
  

After doing a few trail runs and deciding that I really like using Paracord, I set to work making my cables. In addition to looking great, and being very flexible, I like that with Paracord I can sleeve the cables without having to use heatshrink. I personally think it looks cleaner, and it cuts down the time required to get the job done.

For most of the build I am using “Wire Wraps” that are 3D printed by Ensourced. I find they are really easy to work with, and look great once installed. They do a good job of keeping the sleeved cables tidy, especially when doing bends.

Here you can see a comparison of my new paracord sleeved ATX connector vs my older one using MDPC sleeving. So pretty!

Here we have another comparison of the two types of sleeving. Really impressed with the look and feel of the paracord. Also liking the combination of the 3 colors, and how well it goes with the rest of the build.

The cable shown below is one I had to create later on in the process after I was having boot issues caused by me not adding a power connector to my USB 3.1 expansion card. You can see the cable plugged in the bottom part of this picture as well. Glad I got that one figured out!

Here we have the final stage of the custom cables and sleeving in all it’s glory. Really liking how the colors look, and how clean the paracord sleeving turned out. Cable management in the back is good, but could be better. May work at securing everything down a bit more once I verify that everything is working the way it should.

For High Resolution versions of all photos from this build log, pleas check out the Album on Flickr.

https://www.flickr.com/gp/24705522@N05/yB94Z9

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I am happy to report that the PCIe riser cable I purchased works perfectly! No more boot errors, benchmarks work, and I can even OC without issues.

Here is the Amazon link if anyone with the Core P5 Case would like to give it a go. It seems a lot higher quality than the one provided by Thermaltake, and is shielded well. The only problem is that one of the screw holes doesn't line up exactly with the P5 case mount. I ended up using the screw on the side with the PCIe latch, and a zip tie on the other. Not ideal, but it works, and doesn't wiggle.

One thing I made sure to do this time is not have any drastic bends, and to not bend anything near the connectors. Used a can of Pledge Spray as my guide for nice rounded bends.

Now that I am back to having a 100% working system, I can work on getting this build finished up! Time for some leak testing.

Now that the tubing and cables are done, time to fill this thing up with fluid. Before I did an entire system fill, there were 2 things I needed to do.

Needed to flush the radiator of any particulates. I have heard in a lot of reviews that radiators can have all kinds of metal shards inside time left over from the manufacturing process. I detached the radiator from the rest of the loop, and flushed it with distilled water. Pleased to find very little in they way of particulates, so drained it and reattached the tubing.

Then had to decide on what color of LED I wanted to use in the Res, being that is was one of the few lights in the system that wasn’t RGB. I filled it up a little over halfway, added a bit of Blue Dye, and first tried the White LED, which is the photo on the left. It looked good, but wanted to try blue as well.

At first I was worried that the blue would look purple and not match the rest of my system (kinda like it does in the picture on the right). But in real life, it is the perfect color blue, and seems to light up the entire Res a bit better than the white one, so going to stick with the blue LED for now. Its an easy change if I decide to go with the white sometime in the future.

After deciding on the LED color, I drained the Res, connected the tubing to the rest of the system, and began filling with distilled water for the first official “Leak Test”. Quick note of filling a system with this XSPC Photon Res… you will need a book, which you can see in the bottom right of my photo below. The case/res has to be tilted at an angle during the fill process, or the opening will keep backing up with air bubbles. The first 5 minutes of the fill process were very frustrating until I figured this out. After sliding a good size book under the right leg of the case, filing became very easy.

Was able to fill the whole system in a just a few minutes, alternating between running the pump and tilting the case to release air bubbles. It looks like it is going to take around 1.4 liters to completely fill the system loop and res. I then ran it for a few hours, and didn't find a single drop of water outside of the loop. Leak test completed successfully.

For High Resolution versions of all photos from this build log, pleas check out the Album on Flickr.

https://www.flickr.com/gp/24705522@N05/yB94Z9

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I am putting together a neat little video of the filling process and adding the Mayhem Blue Pastel dye to the system. While working on that, I had a chance to play with a bit more Overclocking, and wanted to share those specs along with some Benchmarks and Temperatures.

Overclocking was pretty easy on this system. I was able to hit 4.8GHz on the 6700K fairly easily using a core voltage of 1.375, and temps never got above 58C during stress testing. I tried for 5.0GHz, but no matter how much voltage I threw at it, couldn’t get stable enough to run benchmarks, so stayed with 4.8GHz, which really isn’t that bad with the temps I am seeing.

With the GPU the highest I was able to get and be 100% stable on the EVGA GTX 1080 SC, was a core clock of 2151MHz and Memory at 5500MHz. That’s not overly impressive compared to other GPUs in the past, but apparently the Pascal series cards already come out towards the peak of their frequency threshold. Even then, a 24% core clock increase over reference 1080 cards isn’t too shabby, especially being that my GPU temps have yet to rise above 40C.

Once I had the CPU and GPU OC’d, it was time to throw some benchmarks and games at it.

Unigine Valley Benchmark 1.0

Setting: Exreme HD

FPS: 120.4

Score: 5038

Unigine Haven Benchmark 4.0

Setting: Extreme

FPS: 101.8

Score: 2563

Ashes of the Singularity

Setting: Crazy, DX11

Average FPS: 65.5

Shadow of Mordor

Setting: Ultra

Average FPS: 174.45

3DMark FireStrike 1.1

Score: 19499

Compare: Better than 982% of all results

3DMark FireStrike Extreme 1.1

Score: 10735

Compare: Better than 92% of all results

3DMark FireStrike Ultra 1.1

Score: 5807

Compare: Better than 78% of all results

3DMark Sky Diver 1.0

Score: 42539

Compare: Better than 99% of all results

For High Resolution versions of all photos from this build log, pleas check out the Album on Flickr.

https://www.flickr.com/gp/24705522@N05/yB94Z9

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Sneak peak at the completed build. Will have the "Final" pictures up within the next day or so. Until then, put together a little video showing the process of adding the Mayhem Blue Pastel concentrate to the hardline tubing loop.

[ame=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NhhS7yAmWKo]Project Open Core - Adding Fluid to Core P5 Hardline Tubing Loop[/ame]

I have to admit that is beautiful..On your memory kit the black color how did you get that color? Purchase or painted the chrome pieces? Excellent job on the computer.

Arrived home from a week of work travel, then took my wife on a weekend getaway, so haven't had much time to update anything. Before I left, I did get a quick chance to play with some Plasti Dip and the Corsair Dominator Light Bars that arrived while I was gone. They already have Blue LED inserts, but the silver/grey of the bars didn't look right. So blacked them out with the Plasti Dip, to better match the theme of my build.

 

You should check his FULL build Log. It's very good and clearly posted.

BTW: How will it be in yellow? :D

You should check his FULL build Log. It's very good and clearly posted.

BTW: How will it be in yellow? :D

Yellow bars, or yellow LED inserts?

Yellow bars, or yellow LED inserts?

All things which are blue in yellow. ;)

This build is DONE!! That doesn't mean I won't make any changes, as I am a constantly tinkering with things, but the core system is ready to go. I still need to moidfy a few things at my desk and route cables before I move it over, but still calling the project done at this point.

Not really any reason to describe each picture, so just going to post a bunch of them from different angles.

For High Resolution versions of all photos from this build log, pleas check out the Album on Flickr.

https://www.flickr.com/gp/24705522@N05/yB94Z9

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Since is just released today, thought I would post my 3DMark Time Spy DX12 Benchmark score.

I moved the new build from the "tinker" room to my actual office setup. After connecting everything, it was apparent that I needed to do some much needed cable cleanup behind the standing desk.

Purchased a few cable racks, and the end result is greatly improved. Dubbing myself "Cable Lord" after that cleanup job.

Final Project Pictures

With this last set of pictures, I am officially wrapping up the build. Its has been a fun project, and I am excited to see what others can do with this particular case. Thanks to all those who commented.

hey, that little screen, is it hooked up to a hdmi port?

is it handeled as a 4th display under windows?

hey, that little screen, is it hooked up to a hdmi port?

is it handeled as a 4th display under windows?

Yes, connected via HDMI.

interesting

thanks for the reply

really inspiring build!

interesting

thanks for the reply

 

really inspiring build!

For the most part it works pretty well. I did have to use a simple 2 way HDMI switch when using the Oculus Rift. For some reason the Rift and the small 7in screen don't play well together.

I have received a lot of PMs and questions on YouTube regarding how I put together and mounted the small display that shows system stats. So decided to put together a more detailed "How-To" post, and upgrade the display in the proces. The Post can be found on my Project Blog, with lots of pictures showing the step by step process. For some reason the forum is blocking "Blogspot" domains, so just the the link below for a google search. Should be the 1st or second link from the top.

PC Upgrade - Mounted System Stats Display

If you don't want that much detail, here is a summary video showing a few of the key steps.

[ame=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o0EqP-OAPbc]PC Upgrade - Mounted System Stats Display Running CAM[/ame]

Reaching out to anyone with ideas as to how to fix this issue...

Having major video playback issues. Pixilation when watching content both online streaming and local video players. Tested online with YouTube and Vimeo. Local playback with VLC and PotPlayer.

All system drivers have been updated, Flash up to date. Have wiped codecs, and then tried other codecs. Power Settings set to “Performance”.... Any ideas??? Wondering if perhaps there is something wrong with my video card? May have to do a complete system wipe, but hoping I can avoid that.

Video showing the issue below.

[ame=

[VIDEO]