[Build Log] – The Red Dragon (i7 3770K, Xfire MSI Lightning 7970)

Welcome to phalanxs's Build

The Red Dragon


Background

First off, I know I should have created this build log prior to starting the build. Opps, my mistake! My build is almost complete; however, I would like to share it with the community.

Project Name: The Red Dragon

The project name The Red Dragon, was chosen after the Guild Wars 2 (Logo). One of the reason why I built this PC was for the upcoming MMO Guild Wars 2. As, you can see, my case is covered in Red Dragons!

Theme: Red and Black

The color theme is predominantly black and red. I chose these colors for two reasons. 1. My wife and I are OSU Buckeye fans (Yes, I know they their colors are Scarlet and Gray! However, black looks better than gray on computers, in my opinion!). 2. I cannot say right now, as it has to do with the project. You will find our shortly – which I will update this reason.


Hardware List and Status


I will update the status as they change. All future updates on this build will be annotated in the Main Components sections and in the Updates Section.


Legend:

This is the legend of all my components.
■ Blue: I have already received it.
■ Green: Item has been ordered.
■ Purple: I am still deciding/researching the item, or not sure if I should purchase it.
■ Orange: Updates.


Main Components

Case:
■Mountain Mods Extended Ascension with side windows, tri-front fans, and quad-top fans.
■ Status: -Delivered-

CPU:
■ Intel Core i7-3770K Ivy Bridge 3.5 GHz
■ Status: -Delivered-

Motherboard:
■ EVGA Z77 FTW
■ Status: -Delivered-

RAM:
■ G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 16GB (4 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM (PC3 12800)
■ Status: -Delivered-

Media Drive:
■ Samsung 22X DVD Burner
■ Status: -Delivered-

Graphics Card:
■ EVGA GeForce GTX 690
■ Status: -Delivered-
■ Update: Well, it turns out the GTX 690, will not fully function with my three monitors, nor if I plan to run 3x 120Hz. Since this is a dual GPU card, the RAM is split between each GPU 2GB each. I am actually bottleneck myself, as I will cap out in games. So, after more research and talking with a few OCN members, the MSI Lightning 7970's is my best option as it is the best card for multiple monitors. I have purchased 2 MSI 7970 Lightnings.

Power Supply:
■ Corsair Professional Series Gold 1200 Watt High Performance Fully Modular ATX Power Supply
■ Status: -Delivered-
■ Corsair Professional Series Gold 1000 Watt High Performance Fully Modular ATX Power Supply – Will use this one for the main components except for the video cards.
■ Status: -Waiting to order-

Storage:
■ OS Drive: Kingston HyperX 3K SH103S3/120G 2.5" 120GB SATA III MLC
■ Game Drive: Kingston HyperX 3K SH103S3/120G 2.5" 120GB SATA III MLC
■ Data Drive: Seagate Barracuda 7200RPM 1 TB SATA
■ Status: -Delivered-



Water Cooling Components

Radiators:
■ 2x Black Ice GTX Xtreme 360 Radiator – Black
■ Status: -Delivered-
■ Update: I thought I had punctured the radiators. There was what I thought to be water spots on the radiator fans, but it turns out it was oil from the bearings. Right now, I am using 2x XSPC RX360 - Triple 120mm high performance radiator. From the research I have done, there seems to be minimal difference between the GTX 360 and the RX 360.

Pumps:
■ 2x Alphacool VPP655 Variable Speed Pump
■ Status: -Delivered-

Reservoir:
■ RP-452X2 Dual 5.25" Reservoir Rev 2.0
■ Status: -Delivered-

CPU Water Block:
■ Koolance CPU-370SI Intel Liquid Cooling CPU Block
■ Status: -Delivered-

GPU Water Block:
■ Koolance VID-NX690 GeForce VGA Liquid Cooling Block
■ Status: -Delivered-
■ Update: I am no longer using the GTX 690. I purchased 2x EKWB MSI 7970 Lightning water blocks and 1x EKWB Bridge.

Case Fans:
■ 20x YATE LOON 120mm Case Fan - D12SH-12 – Direct form Yate Loon
■ Status: -Delivered-

Radiator fans:
■ 12x Scythe DFS123812-3000 "ULTRA KAZE" 120 x 38 mm Case Fan
■ Status: -Delivered-

Silver Coil:
■ 2x Danger Den Silver Coil Strip
■ Status: -Delivered-

TIM:
■ Gelid Solutions GC-3 Extreme Thermal Compound
■ Status: -Delivered-

Cleaner:
■ ArctiClean 1 & 2 (Thermal Material Remover and Surface Purifier) - 60ml Kit
■ Status: -Delivered-

Tubing:
■ 2x PrimoChill PrimoFlex PRO LRT 10ft Tubing 1/2"ID 3/4"OD with 1/8" Wall
■ Status: -Delivered-

Fittings:
■ 14 x XSPC G1/4" Thread 1/2" ID x 3/4" OD Low Profile Compression Fitting
■ 2 x Enzotech G1/4" Thread 90-Degree Rotary 1/2" ID x 3/4" OD Compression Fitting
■ Status: -Delivered-

Cutter:
■ Danger Den Premium Tube Cutter - Designed For 3/4" OD
■ Status: -Delivered-

Distilled:
■ 2x 1 Gallon Distilled Water
■ Status: -Delivered-



Monitoring and Control Components

Fan Controller:
■ NZXT Sentry Mix - LED Illuminated Fan Controller With Six 50W Channels
■ Status: -Delivered-



Miscellaneous Components:

Power Light:
■ Lamptron Red/Black tailed LED
■ Status: -Waiting to order-

HDD Activity Light:
■ Lamptron Red/Black tailed LED
■ Status: -Waiting to order-

Power Switch:
■ Lamptron Illuminated Anti-Vandal Switch - Red/Black (Momentary)
■ Illimunated Switch Connection Cable (1000mm)
■ Status: -Waiting to order-

Reset Switch:
■ Lamptron Illuminated Anti-Vandal Switch - Red/Black (Momentary)
■ Illuminated Switch Connection Cable (1000mm)
■ Status: -Waiting to order-

Monitor:
■ 3x Yamakasi Catleap 27 inch IPS
■ Status: -Delivered-

Triple Mount:
■ Deluxe Triple Monitor Stand Free Standing up to 28"
■ Status: -Delivered-

DVI Converters:
■ 3x Accell B087B-007B DisplayPort/Mini DisplayPort to DVI-D Dual-Link Adapter with 3D Support
■ These are used to convert the Catleaps form DVI-D to Singe DVI - Mini DP for the MSI Lighting 7970; as they do not have a dual link DVI port.
■ Status: -Delivered-

USB Hub:
■ 4 Port High Speed USB 1.1 2.0 Octopus Hub Adapter Black
■ Used to connect the DVI converters for Catleap
■ Status: -Delivered-

Sleeving:
■ Mod/smart High Density Kobra Sleeve – 3/8in. Mini-Spool (50 feet) – Red
■ Status: -Delivered-

Heat shrink
■ 48 pc Heat shrink tubing wrap sleeves Assorted Sizes
■ Status: -Delivered-

Funnel
■ Plews 75-068 Plastic Super Funnel
■ Status: -Delivered-

Case Fan Grills:
■ Custom ordered
■ Status: -Ordered-
■ Status: -Delivered-


Conclusion

First off, thank you to Tom's Hardware and everyone that has contributed in my influence to build a new PC with water cooling!
I enjoy building computers and have done so for years now, but this is my first water cooling build. I have learned quite a bit from my research and from the community. I have been following Tom's Hardware since the beginning of this year and signed up because of several DIY projects, as well as, water cooling builds. I am extremely excited and this build!

Also, a special thanks to Dwood for creating my customized Guild Wars 2 fan grills.

Subscribe and adventure with me through the building of The Red Dragon.

Please feel free to comment.

Here is the link to my original thread.


Updates

07/16/2012 - Purchased 2x XSPC RX360 - Triple 120mm high performance radiator
08/03/2012 - Purchased 2x MSI Lightning 7970
08/02/2012 - Purchased 2x EKWB MSI Lightning 7970 water block
08/02/2012 - Purchased 1x EKWB Bridge
08/08/2012 - RMA 1x MSI Lightning 7970 - Deffective
08/08/2012 - Issued replacement MSI Lightning 7970
08/13/2012 - Received replacement MSI Lightning 7970
08/13/2012 - RMA 1x MSI Lightning 7970 - DOA
08/14/2012 - Received replacement MSI Lightning 7970
08/17/2012 - Received Triple Monitor Mount
08/22/2012 - Installed Fan Grills, configured wire management, and closed the case
08/23/2012 - De-bezeled monitors