Watered Down

[Grinder]

Sometimes I get the urge to NOT mod the crap out of a build. I have long been a fan of Fractal Design, so when I saw a Define S Window on sale on Black Friday, I picked it up. It supports water really well out of the box, so I decided to use it for a simpler take on a build. As usual, I like to employ some used parts to keep the cost down, but the quality up. So here is a watered down, simple, yet powerful build.

The 1080 came from OneFastStageA, and the mobo and pump/top/res from 10e. Thanks guys! The CPU (sealed in box), raystorm and fittings, and DDR4 came from kijiji, while the rest of the stuff I bought new (some I had used, some was still BNIB).

Components:

MSI GTX 1080 Sea Hawk EK X
Intel i7-6700k
Gigabyte Z170X-Gaming 7
2x8GB G.Skill DDR4-3200
250GB Samsung 850 EVO
2TB Seagate 7200 RPM
Fractal Design Newton 1000W Platinum
Fractal Design Define S
NZXT 2m white LED kit

Cooling:

EK pump top and reservoir with Liang D5 vario pump
XSPC Raystorm CPU waterblock
EK full cover GPU waterblock and backplate (1080 factory parts)
Swiftech MCR320-XP radiator
Swiftech MCR220-QP radiator
XSPC black chrome fittings, water temp sensor
White 3/8 ID Primoflex Advanced LRT tubing
2X Fractal Design Silent Series R2 140mm fans (for case ventilation)
5X Corsair SP120 performance edition fans (3 for 360mm rad, 2 for 240mm rad)
mcubed miniNG fan controller

I am still partial to tubing, and haven't made the jump yet to the hard stuff. So sue me

[DazMode]

also building couple simple pcs. Have fun.

[Hooded]

Sounds like a nice bit of kit.
Bring on the pics

[Grinder]

Thanks guys. I figure it's a great look at what non-modders could create

It won't be pic heavy, but I did want to show 10e and StageA where their parts ended up.

[Grinder]

At first I used 1/2 ID red primochill with feser fittings and an EK Supremacy EVO.

[MackTheKnight]

Very nice, practical build Grinder.

I don't blame you for sticking with soft-tubing. It is so much easier to work with!

-Mack

[Grinder]

I had some CCFL lights laying around, so I installed them. But the effect wasn't strong, and I didn't like what it did with the white.



So I swapped them out for the NZXT white LED kit.

[Grinder]

Thanks Mack, it also recycles well, as I took it from another build.

[Grinder]

Once I started going white, I figured what the hell, and transferred the raystorm with two white LEDs, white tubing, and XSPC black chrome fittings from my Archon build (which I will give a minor refresh yet again). Since these next pictures I have cleaned up the dust particles and rearranged the LEDs slightly, but this is basically what I ended up with. It certainly give you a lot more room to work when you give up the drive cages and mount the drives on the back side. There is a hard drive and ssd plus the fan controller back there, with room for another couple of drives.

[MackTheKnight]

I like the white even better. Nice work!

CPU block looks better too.

[10e]

I love the no RGB, less bling, more bang-for-the-buck approach.

Looks great. I need to get back on the flex tube train soon.

Our parts found a good home with a loving owner

[Bartacus]

Love it, that white looks awesome!

[Grinder]

Thanks guys, I do like the way it all ties into the mobo colours. The raystorm doesn't cool quite as well, but it sure looks good there.

10e, you make it sound like I'm running a no kill shelter for gently used hardware I hope you didn't abuse it too much before I rescued it!

[Hooded]

10e, you make it sound like i'm running a no kill shelter for gently used hardware i hope you didn't abuse it too much before i rescued it!

lol

[OneFastStagea]

Looking good! Hope you enjoy that card as much as I did .