Meet Frank - Water Cooled Beast

[The1stCAVVET]

Frank was shortened from "Frank N Stein" as he was so named in his initial build in Feb 2010, then the 2011 upgrade came and through the process, he simply is known now as "Frank"

Frank is a gaming/work PC that rips up just about anything I throw at him while keeping his cool.

Here is the beast finally finished after hundreds if not thousands of hours of detail and building, tweaking, changing out hardware, and the likes over the last 9+ months - Frank is one cool monster of a PC.

I made some videos of Frank as well: http://www.youtube.com/user/FrankNSteinPC?feature=mhee

 

[The1stCAVVET]

 

[steadywaters]

Wow, a beast indeed. Must've cost a pretty penny.

 

[joemama069]

Frank is a BAAAADD MUTHA *****

kudos on the awesome machine and setup

 

[Motopsychojdn]

Needs to go in the W/c members build gallery I think
http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/forum/266324-11-water-cooling-club-gallery-picture
Awesome build man,
Moto

 

[The1stCAVVET]

ty - I didn't know if I should post it in there or not. This was my first post in these forums, so direction is appreciated.

Will a moderator move it or should I just start a new on in there?

 

[mauler184]

Very nice build if you dont mind, can you tell me how much you spent, give or take?

 

[rubix_1011]

You can just post a link to this thread with some info and pics.

Very clean, pro build. Very nice work. Welcome to the forums!

 

[The1stCAVVET]

OK will do - thanks

Cost - hmm, yeah the jury is still out on that one - really I have no idea. My wife can throw out a number pretty quickly, however its not toally accurate as I have also purchased parts for a SLI GTX 580 HTPC as well, so the purchases were blended, etc. Ballpark/rounding & figuring - thinking I had shipping and other costs, many things I purchased went in then back out and I sold to buy other things and the variations go on. I purchased stuff like liquid that wouldeither drain in areas I didnt want it to so I had to replace it, or accidents galore that caused me to have to keep buying liquid. I would buy something to put in Frank like lights then take them out because it was too much, etc - there was a lot in and out of this case, well actually that is another unassociated cost - his original Corsair 800D got hosed in a re-painting attempt and I went and bought a new Corsair 800D. Below I rounded and shot high on each to get a basic idea. This is everything that is in and makes up Frank, if it is tied to or depends on Frank - I listed it.

These are not exact numbers.........but somewhere close
EVGA GTX 580 3072MB x 3 @ $700ea = $2,100
GTX 580 x 3 @ $100ea = $300
EVGA Classified 3 @ $500
EK Classified 3 water block @ $100
EK CPU Water Block @ $150
Corsair 800D @ $300
Silverstone ST-1500 $500
Wire/Sleeving/mesh/cables/misc @ $2,000
DVD Drive @ $100
BD Player @ $150
Corsair Dominator RAM @ $400
Xigmatech Fans @ $20 ea x 7 = $140
Cooler MAster fans @ $20 ea x 3 = $60
Core i7 990X @ $1,000
BlackIce Xtreme Performance 360 RAD @ $100
Bitspower Pump Mod Kit @ $100
Bitspower Rotary 90 @ $20ea x 4 = $80
Koolance Quick Disconnects @ $50 pr set x 10 (many spares) $500
All other connectors and fittings - approx $200
MCP 655 pump @ $100
Fan covers @ $15 ea x 7 = $105
Spray Paint @ $15 ea X 20 = $300
OCZ Vertex 3 60GB SSD @ $150ea
OCZ Vertex 2 60GB SSD @ $150ea
Western Digital Caviar Black 2TB $150
Western Digital Caviar Black 1.5TB @ $100
Saitek Cyborg v7 Keyboard @ $100
Razer Naga Molten Edition mouse @ $100
Yamaha RX-V567 Receiver @ $300
Klipsch 5.1 HD500 5.1 Speaker set @ $350
Turtle Beach PX5 Wireless Headset @ $250
Koolance ERM-2K3UCU @ $900
Bottles of Fluid - used tons - @ $20ea x 20 = $400
Asus 24" Monitors @ $350 ea x 3 = $1,050
LSi RAID Controller @ $250
PCI USB Riser Card @ $50
XFI Titanium Fatality Sound Card @ $150
Tubing - tons - Approx $150
Planar Triple Monitor Stand $300
Card Reader $10

Estimated ballpark of $14,195

 

[Homeboy2]

OK will do - thanks

Cost - hmm, yeah the jury is still out on that one - really I have no idea. My wife can throw out a number pretty quickly, however its not toally accurate as I have also purchased parts for a SLI GTX 580 HTPC as well, so the purchases were blended, etc. Ballpark/rounding & figuring - thinking I had shipping and other costs, many things I purchased went in then back out and I sold to buy other things and the variations go on. I purchased stuff like liquid that wouldeither drain in areas I didnt want it to so I had to replace it, or accidents galore that caused me to have to keep buying liquid. I would buy something to put in Frank like lights then take them out because it was too much, etc - there was a lot in and out of this case, well actually that is another unassociated cost - his original Corsair 800D got hosed in a re-painting attempt and I went and bought a new Corsair 800D. Below I rounded and shot high on each to get a basic idea. This is everything that is in and makes up Frank, if it is tied to or depends on Frank - I listed it.

These are not exact numbers.........but somewhere close
EVGA GTX 580 3072MB x 3 @ $700ea = $2,100
GTX 580 x 3 @ $100ea = $300
EVGA Classified 3 @ $500
EK Classified 3 water block @ $100
EK CPU Water Block @ $150
Corsair 800D @ $300
Silverstone ST-1500 $500
Wire/Sleeving/mesh/cables/misc @ $2,000
DVD Drive @ $100
BD Player @ $150
Corsair Dominator RAM @ $400
Xigmatech Fans @ $20 ea x 7 = $140
Cooler MAster fans @ $20 ea x 3 = $60
Core i7 990X @ $1,000
BlackIce Xtreme Performance 360 RAD @ $100
Bitspower Pump Mod Kit @ $100
Bitspower Rotary 90 @ $20ea x 4 = $80
Koolance Quick Disconnects @ $50 pr set x 10 (many spares) $500
All other connectors and fittings - approx $200
MCP 655 pump @ $100
Fan covers @ $15 ea x 7 = $105
Spray Paint @ $15 ea X 20 = $300
OCZ Vertex 3 60GB SSD @ $150ea
OCZ Vertex 2 60GB SSD @ $150ea
Western Digital Caviar Black 2TB $150
Western Digital Caviar Black 1.5TB @ $100
Saitek Cyborg v7 Keyboard @ $100
Razer Naga Molten Edition mouse @ $100
Yamaha RX-V567 Receiver @ $300
Klipsch 5.1 HD500 5.1 Speaker set @ $350
Turtle Beach PX5 Wireless Headset @ $250
Koolance ERM-2K3UCU @ $900
Bottles of Fluid - used tons - @ $20ea x 20 = $400
Asus 24" Monitors @ $350 ea x 3 = $1,050
LSi RAID Controller @ $250
PCI USB Riser Card @ $50
XFI Titanium Fatality Sound Card @ $150
Tubing - tons - Approx $150
Planar Triple Monitor Stand $300
Card Reader $10

Estimated ballpark of $14,195

Thanks man, now I can show my wife this price list and tell her to get off my back about what my build cost! :lol:

 

[The1stCAVVET]

Thanks man, now I can show my wife this price list and tell her to get off my back about what my build cost! :lol:

lmao - how about we introduce them so they can both - um "discuss" our builds, I think its their place to be the one to chew on us for our hobbies - no matter what hobby it is, there is a guy with a wife complaining what he spends on it. I think that was somewhere around the 25th page on the woman's handbook.

 

[SushiDragon]

2,000$ on Sleeving... That's more than the entire cost of my gaming rig.

 

[ghostmob]

hey where did you buy the sleeving at if you dont mind me asking and the mesh

 

[The1stCAVVET]

2,000$ on Sleeving... That's more than the entire cost of my gaming rig.

LMAO - yeah it can be done, I may have understated mine. I was first buying my sleeving from places like PerformancePCs and a company over in the UK that has a unique red/black weave. Then I went to MDPC-X - they may not be cheap, but you can see the quality as well.

I also noticed I forgot the UPS's too - got to have back-up power/surge protection/power cleaners............

2- BELKIN HTPC UPS's @ $500 ea w/Shipping
-1 dedicated to powered USB and 3 monitors
- 1 dedicated to Windows Home Server (very top of rack), Yamaha Receiver, ERM unit, Belkin GB switch
1- PowerKing $500 w/Shipping - Dedicated to Frank only

So with an additional $1,500 in batter backup, that takes Frank well over the $15k mark if I were to build him from scratch again. Then the COUNTLESS hours if detailing.

hey where did you buy the sleeving at if you dont mind me asking and the mesh

MDPC-X is where I get my sleeving now - though PET isn't that bad either. You can get that at Performance PCs or multiple other places on the web. The mesh I purchased was A.C. Ryan Modders mesh and though I got it at Performance PC's, many mod sites have modders mesh. There are different patterns, tightness, and manufacturers of this, so good to look around before settling on one. I hope that helps.

 

[ghostmob]

thank you ya i was looking around but the ones i found are ugly not a set color

 

[The1stCAVVET]

thank you ya i was looking around but the ones i found are ugly not a set color

Sleeving or mesh? I painted the mesh - FYI. Sleeving though, MDPC-X has some great colors IMO.

 

[ghostmob]

what is that stuff that is on the metal part that is normally black * above the psu

 

[The1stCAVVET]

what is that stuff that is on the metal part that is normally black * above the psu

That is A.C Ryan modders mesh I painted red. I cut a template by measuring the "floor" section, cut it out, then put it in. Once in, I then cut the holes that are normally two water tubing holes there in that floor in the front and made one big oval from them and extended it a bit further to handle the GPU cables and allow them to fall directly down.

Here is the mesh I used:
http://www.performance-pcs.com/catalog/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=130_314&products_id=3398

Several others here:
http://www.performance-pcs.com/catalog/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=130_314&sort=20a&page=2

 

[Tlechem]

Sweet build! Is it possible that you could upload a simple side view picture so that we could see all of Frank's beautiful insides in one shot?

 

[The1stCAVVET]

How's this for a side shot?

Here are all the "Frank" pictures you could probably stand - as well as the progressive history of the many looks and iterations he went through this year........

http://flickr.com/Photos/Frank2011

 

[rubix_1011]

Wait- Are you running only a single 360 rad for a CPU and tri-SLI 580's?

Edit: I see that stand-alone Koolance unit...is there a rad and pump in there? I can't imagine how much $$ is sitting on that office rack...

Edit Edit: What exactly do you DO for a living?

 

[Tlechem]

How's this for a side shot?

http://img829.imageshack.us/img829/6743/099gv.jpg

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6231/6314729361_7180ff4e05_b.jpg

Here are all the "Frank" pictures you could probably stand - as well as the progressive history of the many looks and iterations he went through this year........

http://flickr.com/Photos/Frank2011

That is awesome! Thanks!

 

[The1stCAVVET]

Wait- Are you running only a single 360 rad for a CPU and tri-SLI 580's?

Edit: I see that stand-alone Koolance unit...is there a rad and pump in there? I can't imagine how much $$ is sitting on that office rack...

haha, yeah there is a Koolance ERM unit that houses a 24v MCP655 type pump with a huge radiator, etc. That is the external cooling unit that takes the major heat out, where the BlackIce Xtreme inside just takes the edge off after passing through the cpu block. There is some $$ sitting in that rack - at the top is another system, its my Windows Home Server I built that houses about 4TB of HDD space, two external 4-bay drive units as well with an additional 10TB of storage, a Q9650 @ 3.8GHz on air (just because I like to OC), and 6GB OCZ DDR2 Reaper RAM.

Edit Edit: What exactly do you DO for a living?

I started a couple companies - I work from home - I never leave work, so Frank has to handle daily constant work aside from our gaming times.

 

[rubix_1011]

Nice- envious.

I'd like to have a personal office getup like that at some point, but I guess being a senior Linux/Windows/network engineer doesn't get you the income like entrepreneurship does. :/

Anyway- great work. Also, really enjoy the gallery photos. I'm a bit of amateur photographer, so I liked seeing the artistic shots and the studio setup. Also a Canon guy...

 

[The1stCAVVET]

OK, so I am taking some more pictures of Frank and figured I would share some more of the over all office and Frank with his lights/fans/power on.