Amir Aytaroun
06-08-2009, 11:10 AM
CFA-633 and 1U: Part 2/3: Mr. Hyde
This is the second part of a three part series. The first part (http://www.crystalfontz.com/forum/showthread.php?threadid=2024) showed a standard installation of components, including the CFA-633 into Compute-Aid's 1U communications appliance case.
One of the fun things about working at Crystalfontz is that I occasionally get to do something really fun. I have been having some fun lately at a local LAN (http://www.spoklan.net/), but the old laptop computer that I was using for Half-Life and the other "last generation" games was being brutally beaten by games like UT2K3 and BF1942. So I was trying to come up with an idea for some kind of a nice LAN box. About that time, the Compute-Aid case showed up we started to get some ideas:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC04829_initial_placement.jpg
In the "network appliance" role, it is fine and in fact good to have all the connectors internal. In the case of a gaming machine, you need the connectors to come out the back in a more traditional manner. In this shot, we are sizing up the idea of using a standard filler plate from an ATX case as the back panel in the 1U:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC04827_test_fit_back_panel.jpg
At this point, we have decided to "go for it". The first step was to remove the factory mounting studs from the case, which will allow us to position the motherboard, hard drives and cooling fans wherever we want:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC04830_removing_mounting_hardware_with_grinder.j pg
Is there anything more fun than grinding?
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC04834_removing_studs_with_grinder.jpg
The big grinder had a little trouble getting to the hardware that was tucked into the corners of the case. That is what a Dremel is for:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC04837_removing_mounting_studs_with_dremel.jpg
Making the rough cut-out for the back panel:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC04839_rear_panel_cutout_with_hacksaw.jpg
Smoothing it out and tweaking the size to fit with the Dremel & file:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC04842_tweaking_rear_cutout_with_dremel.jpg
We had previously used a bench grinder to trim down the sides of the filler plate. This is a test fit into the hole cut into the back panel of the 1U case:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC04844_back_panel_test_cutout_test_fit.jpg
This shot shows where the motherboard will fit, before the filler plate is mounted:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC04847_test_fit_of_motherboard_into_cutout.jpg
Here is the filler plate and motherboard in position to make sure everything will fit well:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC04848_back_panel_test_fit_before_brazing.jpg
Here is the filler plate being brazed into the back panel. The white cloth in the bottom of the case is a wet towel used to keep warping down:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC04850_brazing_back_panel_into_place.jpg
Pretty darn ugly just after brazing:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC04852_back_panel_brazed_in_place.jpg
After triming the top to the right height with the Dremel & a flat file, and a little clean-up with some emery paper and a wire brush, it is not looking too bad:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC04853_back_panel_test_fit_after_brazing.jpg
Next up is making the cut-out for the video card. I clamped the standard connector plate from the video card to the back panel of the 1U case, scribed the outline, and then carefully made the cutouts with the Dremel.
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC04855_back_panel_marked_for_video_card_cutout.j pg
This shot shows the video card in place. Fits quite well if I do say so https://www.crystalfontz.com/forum/images/smilies/smile.gif :
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC04856_test_fit_of_back_panel_after_video_cutout .jpg
Mounting the motherboard was a bit of an issue. We decided to try mounting it by using the nylon standoffs that come with the motherboard. The first step was to grind the areas where the standoffs would be attached to the case:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC04857_case_prepped_for_mounting_posts.jpg
We then prepped the standoffs by grinding them to a thin profile:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC04858_nylon_spacers.jpg
We found some epoxy that was specially formulated for plastics. It stunk to high heaven, but seemed to make a good bond to the nylon. So far, the case has gone to a couple of LANs and the standoffs are still in place, so I guess it worked out pretty well:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC04859_nylon_motherboard_mounting_post_with_moth erboard.jpg
Here is a shot of the case prepped and ready for paint:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC04861_case_prepped_and_masked.jpg
Mmmmmm. Gloss black. Black goes with everything:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC04862_freshly_painted.jpg
Just checking to make sure the motherboard still fits:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC04863_test_fit_motherboard_after_paint.jpg
OK. Now it is time to put away the ****l cutting tools and get the soldering iron out. One of the purposes of this machine is to show the CFA-633's ability to read temperatures and control fans. The first control point will be the power supply. The green arrow shows the temperature sensor that will be used to measure the temperature of the air just before it leaves the power supply. The red arrow indicates the power supply's fan's power connection. We disconnected the fan from the constant +12v that would normally be supplied by the power supply and re-connected it to one of the CFA-633's fan power headers. It turns out that the fan in this 1U supply is really quite a little screamer, and if the power supply is not that hot, it will be nice to slow it down a bit:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC04865_power_supply_sensor_placement_and_fan_wir es.jpg
The next temperature reading point is the back of the processor. The white goop is thermal epoxy:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC04867_using_thermal_epoxy_to_mount_ds18b20_to_p rocessor.jpg
We also picked up the base of the heat sink:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC04882_processor_and_heat_sink_temperature_senso rs.jpg
The incoming (ambient) air temp:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05857_incoming_air_temp_sensor.jpg
And the air exiting from below the video card:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05860_video_air_exit_temp_sensor.jpg
The CFA-633 has the ability to control the power and reset functions. So we do not need the front panel power switch. The opening for the standard front panel switch just happened to b to be about the right for two USB connectors. We stole the USB connector off an old motherboard, did the solder and heat-shrink bit, used a piece of scrap ****l and epoxy to build it up, and ended up with a a piece that will mount behind the opening in the front panel. I also added an earphone jack on top of this stack, spaced so it lines up with the hole in the front panel that was previously used for the reset switch:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC04883_front_usb_before_audio.jpg
The USB cables (one each from the two front mounted USB ports and one for the CFA-633, USB model) connect to the motherboard USB headers. The video card is directly above this area, and quite close, so we had to come up with a method to make the USB connection and still keep the all the cables quite close to the motherboard. We tried taking the ****l terminals out of the housing, insulating those with heat shrink tubing, and then forming them close to the motherboard. It ended up working pretty well:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05166_usb_to_motherboard_wiring.jpg
We used shielded cable to route from the front panel audio jack to the motherboard audio headers:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05167_front_panel_audio_wiring_to_motherboard.j pg
In all, the wiring took the most time. Here is the cabling behind the CFA-633. The connections visible on the 633 are: USB (partially hidden down low), DOW (Dallas One Wire temperature sensor connector, black), Fan 1 (CPU, white), Fan 2 (one of the blowers), power into the 633 (floppy disk drive power connector), Fan 3 (power supply). Fan 4 (the other blower) is just below Fan 3. To the right of the 633, you can see the power and HDD activity LEDs, below them, partially visible is the front panel audio jack, below that are the front panel USB ports:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05858_back_of_633_wired.jpg
At this point I took the box to the first LAN. The fans were not yet illuminated, and the processor cooling problem had not yet been solved. We squeezed cold cathode lamps onto each side, which spill light out of the side vents and onto the desktop. They also looked pretty cool when the "hood" is open:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/spo_first_operational_pics_before_fan_leds_and_duc t.jpg
Next up was illuminating the blowers. We had the idea to put the blowers behind the "Crystalfontz" logo, and wanted them to glow red to match the logo color. For the glow, of course we would use some red LEDs, but red shining on black would not be that impressive, so we set out to paint the inside of the blowers white. This shot shows the masking:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05096_fan_top_masked.jpg
Here are the painted blower housings:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05098_fans_painted_before_assembly.jpg
This is a test assembly of a blower. The idea is to flood the inside of the blower with red light, which will be reflected off the white paint, making a red backdrop for the logo cutout:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05099_fans_painted_and_assembled.jpg
I've always figured, "If it's worth doing, its worth overdoing." So there are a total of 12 high-output red LEDs in each fan:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05151_fan_led_placement_before_wiring.jpg
Some soldering and more heat shrink to get the LEDs to light up. The LEDs are connected as 3 branches in parallel, each branch consisting of 4 LEDs and one current limiting resistor in series. The current limiting resistors and LEDs are calculated to drive the LED array from +12v:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05152_fan_lec_placement_and_wiring_with_heat_sh rink.jpg
We had good folks over at Precision H2O (http://www.precisionh2o.com/index.htm) cut the Crystalfontz logo into the top of the case:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05849_top_cover_inside.jpg
Some weather strip makes a seal between the bottom side of the top of the case and the top of the blowers. We used white vinyl trimmed with an X-acto knife to cover the black paint inside the weather strip. The white color diffuses "lost" light from the LEDs back down onto the top of the fan, which keeps the center hub of the fan bathed in red light. (Uggh, did I just write that? https://www.crystalfontz.com/forum/images/smilies/frown.gif)
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05850_air_intake_inside_shot.jpg
Here is a picture of the left blower installed:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05853_left_fan_and_usb_wiring.jpg
Here is a picture of the right blower installed. You can see the ambient air temperature sensor at the exhaust of the blower:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05851_right_fan_and_wiring.jpg
Even with the big Delta blowers going, the first test runs showed a pretty nasty cooling problem. The corner of the case where the processor was did not have any air being forced into or out of it. So basically the small blower on the heat sink was just washing the same pool of hot air over the processor again and again. After much pondering, we decided a duct to direct the hot exhaust from the processor fan to the outside of the case would be the best solution. The intake of the processor fan would then draw relatively cool air from inside the case towards this corner. Not having much experience in the heating and cooling industry, I decided to take my first shot in heavy paper:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05168_paper_duct_test_fit.jpg
Another shot of the paper prototype:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05170_paper_duct.jpg
I then cut the paper prototype apart and used it as a pattern for a version made of thin plastic:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05208_clear_duct_ready_to_install.jpg
Here is the bottom view. I cut tabs on the curved section, and used super glue to bond the tabs to the adjoining wall:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05209_clear_duct_ready_to_install.jpg
Here is a test fit of the duct before the exhaust hole was cut in the back panel:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05212_clear_duct_test_fit_before_exhaust.jpg
This is the duct from the back, after the exhaust hole was cut:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05856_duct_from_back.jpg
Here is the duct from another angle. Of course, no ducting job would be complete without duct tape https://www.crystalfontz.com/forum/images/smilies/smile.gif:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05854_duct_from_front.jpg
At that point, the system was fully functional. Here is an overall view that shows the wiring and component placement. The overall cooling idea is to pressurize the case with the two Delta blowers at the front. There are three paths for the air to exit the case. (The side vents are actually blocked by a piece of clear plastic to force the airflow towards the back of the case.) The first path is under the video card, over the motherboard, and out through the back panel. The second path is over the motherboard, through the CPU heat sink, and out through the duct. The third is direct and over the motherboard, through the power supply, and out through the power supply fan::
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05852_front_view_assembled.jpg
I guess this is as good of a place as any to go into detail shots, so here is a shot of the RAM, 1GB of Corsair XMS 3200 goodness:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05862_ram.jpg
Here is a detail of the hard disk cable routing. I shortened the cable so it does not have to make any extra loops or folds (it only took two tries to get it righthttps://www.crystalfontz.com/forum/images/smilies/smile.gif):
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05861_hdd_cable_routing.jpg
Here is a detail of the left fan and the left CCFL. We took the skinny little CCFL tube out of the clear protective tube, sleeved it with some clear heat shrink, and attached it at the upper edge of the side "vents".
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05863_left_fan_and_ccfl.jpg
This shot shows how the light from the CCFL shows through the side vent:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05864_left_ccfl.jpg
The right CCFL is a short unit:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05866_right_ccfl.jpg
Once the case top is put on, the fans are nicely illuminated by the ring of LEDs:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05868_front_right_corner.jpg
Here is a front shot showing the fans, CCFLs and the CFA-633. The fan lights show up a bit "orange" in these pictures, but in real life they are a pure deep red:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05870_front_center.jpg
Here is a shot of the CFA-633, indicating that the service has been started, and is controlling the fans based on the current system temperatures:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05873_front_shot_service_started.jpg
Here is a shot of the front panel showing the headphone jack and front USB ports:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05875_headphones_and_front_jack.jpg
There are no externally accessible drives in this case. The floppy I do not mind parting with at all. For the CDROM, a USB powered CDRW is just the ticket:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05876_external_cdrw.jpg
Of course I should have a nice flat panel display sitting on top of this box, but for now 19" CRT works great:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05882_ut2k3.jpg
The 1U PC, keyboard, mouse, CDs, powerstrip, external reader, and joystick all fit well into a single "tote", so the LAN ends up only taking two trips, one for the tote and one for the monitor.
This is the second part of a three part series. The first part (http://www.crystalfontz.com/forum/showthread.php?threadid=2024) showed a standard installation of components, including the CFA-633 into Compute-Aid's 1U communications appliance case.
One of the fun things about working at Crystalfontz is that I occasionally get to do something really fun. I have been having some fun lately at a local LAN (http://www.spoklan.net/), but the old laptop computer that I was using for Half-Life and the other "last generation" games was being brutally beaten by games like UT2K3 and BF1942. So I was trying to come up with an idea for some kind of a nice LAN box. About that time, the Compute-Aid case showed up we started to get some ideas:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC04829_initial_placement.jpg
In the "network appliance" role, it is fine and in fact good to have all the connectors internal. In the case of a gaming machine, you need the connectors to come out the back in a more traditional manner. In this shot, we are sizing up the idea of using a standard filler plate from an ATX case as the back panel in the 1U:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC04827_test_fit_back_panel.jpg
At this point, we have decided to "go for it". The first step was to remove the factory mounting studs from the case, which will allow us to position the motherboard, hard drives and cooling fans wherever we want:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC04830_removing_mounting_hardware_with_grinder.j pg
Is there anything more fun than grinding?
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC04834_removing_studs_with_grinder.jpg
The big grinder had a little trouble getting to the hardware that was tucked into the corners of the case. That is what a Dremel is for:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC04837_removing_mounting_studs_with_dremel.jpg
Making the rough cut-out for the back panel:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC04839_rear_panel_cutout_with_hacksaw.jpg
Smoothing it out and tweaking the size to fit with the Dremel & file:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC04842_tweaking_rear_cutout_with_dremel.jpg
We had previously used a bench grinder to trim down the sides of the filler plate. This is a test fit into the hole cut into the back panel of the 1U case:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC04844_back_panel_test_cutout_test_fit.jpg
This shot shows where the motherboard will fit, before the filler plate is mounted:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC04847_test_fit_of_motherboard_into_cutout.jpg
Here is the filler plate and motherboard in position to make sure everything will fit well:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC04848_back_panel_test_fit_before_brazing.jpg
Here is the filler plate being brazed into the back panel. The white cloth in the bottom of the case is a wet towel used to keep warping down:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC04850_brazing_back_panel_into_place.jpg
Pretty darn ugly just after brazing:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC04852_back_panel_brazed_in_place.jpg
After triming the top to the right height with the Dremel & a flat file, and a little clean-up with some emery paper and a wire brush, it is not looking too bad:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC04853_back_panel_test_fit_after_brazing.jpg
Next up is making the cut-out for the video card. I clamped the standard connector plate from the video card to the back panel of the 1U case, scribed the outline, and then carefully made the cutouts with the Dremel.
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC04855_back_panel_marked_for_video_card_cutout.j pg
This shot shows the video card in place. Fits quite well if I do say so https://www.crystalfontz.com/forum/images/smilies/smile.gif :
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC04856_test_fit_of_back_panel_after_video_cutout .jpg
Mounting the motherboard was a bit of an issue. We decided to try mounting it by using the nylon standoffs that come with the motherboard. The first step was to grind the areas where the standoffs would be attached to the case:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC04857_case_prepped_for_mounting_posts.jpg
We then prepped the standoffs by grinding them to a thin profile:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC04858_nylon_spacers.jpg
We found some epoxy that was specially formulated for plastics. It stunk to high heaven, but seemed to make a good bond to the nylon. So far, the case has gone to a couple of LANs and the standoffs are still in place, so I guess it worked out pretty well:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC04859_nylon_motherboard_mounting_post_with_moth erboard.jpg
Here is a shot of the case prepped and ready for paint:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC04861_case_prepped_and_masked.jpg
Mmmmmm. Gloss black. Black goes with everything:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC04862_freshly_painted.jpg
Just checking to make sure the motherboard still fits:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC04863_test_fit_motherboard_after_paint.jpg
OK. Now it is time to put away the ****l cutting tools and get the soldering iron out. One of the purposes of this machine is to show the CFA-633's ability to read temperatures and control fans. The first control point will be the power supply. The green arrow shows the temperature sensor that will be used to measure the temperature of the air just before it leaves the power supply. The red arrow indicates the power supply's fan's power connection. We disconnected the fan from the constant +12v that would normally be supplied by the power supply and re-connected it to one of the CFA-633's fan power headers. It turns out that the fan in this 1U supply is really quite a little screamer, and if the power supply is not that hot, it will be nice to slow it down a bit:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC04865_power_supply_sensor_placement_and_fan_wir es.jpg
The next temperature reading point is the back of the processor. The white goop is thermal epoxy:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC04867_using_thermal_epoxy_to_mount_ds18b20_to_p rocessor.jpg
We also picked up the base of the heat sink:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC04882_processor_and_heat_sink_temperature_senso rs.jpg
The incoming (ambient) air temp:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05857_incoming_air_temp_sensor.jpg
And the air exiting from below the video card:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05860_video_air_exit_temp_sensor.jpg
The CFA-633 has the ability to control the power and reset functions. So we do not need the front panel power switch. The opening for the standard front panel switch just happened to b to be about the right for two USB connectors. We stole the USB connector off an old motherboard, did the solder and heat-shrink bit, used a piece of scrap ****l and epoxy to build it up, and ended up with a a piece that will mount behind the opening in the front panel. I also added an earphone jack on top of this stack, spaced so it lines up with the hole in the front panel that was previously used for the reset switch:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC04883_front_usb_before_audio.jpg
The USB cables (one each from the two front mounted USB ports and one for the CFA-633, USB model) connect to the motherboard USB headers. The video card is directly above this area, and quite close, so we had to come up with a method to make the USB connection and still keep the all the cables quite close to the motherboard. We tried taking the ****l terminals out of the housing, insulating those with heat shrink tubing, and then forming them close to the motherboard. It ended up working pretty well:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05166_usb_to_motherboard_wiring.jpg
We used shielded cable to route from the front panel audio jack to the motherboard audio headers:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05167_front_panel_audio_wiring_to_motherboard.j pg
In all, the wiring took the most time. Here is the cabling behind the CFA-633. The connections visible on the 633 are: USB (partially hidden down low), DOW (Dallas One Wire temperature sensor connector, black), Fan 1 (CPU, white), Fan 2 (one of the blowers), power into the 633 (floppy disk drive power connector), Fan 3 (power supply). Fan 4 (the other blower) is just below Fan 3. To the right of the 633, you can see the power and HDD activity LEDs, below them, partially visible is the front panel audio jack, below that are the front panel USB ports:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05858_back_of_633_wired.jpg
At this point I took the box to the first LAN. The fans were not yet illuminated, and the processor cooling problem had not yet been solved. We squeezed cold cathode lamps onto each side, which spill light out of the side vents and onto the desktop. They also looked pretty cool when the "hood" is open:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/spo_first_operational_pics_before_fan_leds_and_duc t.jpg
Next up was illuminating the blowers. We had the idea to put the blowers behind the "Crystalfontz" logo, and wanted them to glow red to match the logo color. For the glow, of course we would use some red LEDs, but red shining on black would not be that impressive, so we set out to paint the inside of the blowers white. This shot shows the masking:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05096_fan_top_masked.jpg
Here are the painted blower housings:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05098_fans_painted_before_assembly.jpg
This is a test assembly of a blower. The idea is to flood the inside of the blower with red light, which will be reflected off the white paint, making a red backdrop for the logo cutout:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05099_fans_painted_and_assembled.jpg
I've always figured, "If it's worth doing, its worth overdoing." So there are a total of 12 high-output red LEDs in each fan:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05151_fan_led_placement_before_wiring.jpg
Some soldering and more heat shrink to get the LEDs to light up. The LEDs are connected as 3 branches in parallel, each branch consisting of 4 LEDs and one current limiting resistor in series. The current limiting resistors and LEDs are calculated to drive the LED array from +12v:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05152_fan_lec_placement_and_wiring_with_heat_sh rink.jpg
We had good folks over at Precision H2O (http://www.precisionh2o.com/index.htm) cut the Crystalfontz logo into the top of the case:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05849_top_cover_inside.jpg
Some weather strip makes a seal between the bottom side of the top of the case and the top of the blowers. We used white vinyl trimmed with an X-acto knife to cover the black paint inside the weather strip. The white color diffuses "lost" light from the LEDs back down onto the top of the fan, which keeps the center hub of the fan bathed in red light. (Uggh, did I just write that? https://www.crystalfontz.com/forum/images/smilies/frown.gif)
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05850_air_intake_inside_shot.jpg
Here is a picture of the left blower installed:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05853_left_fan_and_usb_wiring.jpg
Here is a picture of the right blower installed. You can see the ambient air temperature sensor at the exhaust of the blower:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05851_right_fan_and_wiring.jpg
Even with the big Delta blowers going, the first test runs showed a pretty nasty cooling problem. The corner of the case where the processor was did not have any air being forced into or out of it. So basically the small blower on the heat sink was just washing the same pool of hot air over the processor again and again. After much pondering, we decided a duct to direct the hot exhaust from the processor fan to the outside of the case would be the best solution. The intake of the processor fan would then draw relatively cool air from inside the case towards this corner. Not having much experience in the heating and cooling industry, I decided to take my first shot in heavy paper:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05168_paper_duct_test_fit.jpg
Another shot of the paper prototype:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05170_paper_duct.jpg
I then cut the paper prototype apart and used it as a pattern for a version made of thin plastic:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05208_clear_duct_ready_to_install.jpg
Here is the bottom view. I cut tabs on the curved section, and used super glue to bond the tabs to the adjoining wall:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05209_clear_duct_ready_to_install.jpg
Here is a test fit of the duct before the exhaust hole was cut in the back panel:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05212_clear_duct_test_fit_before_exhaust.jpg
This is the duct from the back, after the exhaust hole was cut:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05856_duct_from_back.jpg
Here is the duct from another angle. Of course, no ducting job would be complete without duct tape https://www.crystalfontz.com/forum/images/smilies/smile.gif:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05854_duct_from_front.jpg
At that point, the system was fully functional. Here is an overall view that shows the wiring and component placement. The overall cooling idea is to pressurize the case with the two Delta blowers at the front. There are three paths for the air to exit the case. (The side vents are actually blocked by a piece of clear plastic to force the airflow towards the back of the case.) The first path is under the video card, over the motherboard, and out through the back panel. The second path is over the motherboard, through the CPU heat sink, and out through the duct. The third is direct and over the motherboard, through the power supply, and out through the power supply fan::
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05852_front_view_assembled.jpg
I guess this is as good of a place as any to go into detail shots, so here is a shot of the RAM, 1GB of Corsair XMS 3200 goodness:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05862_ram.jpg
Here is a detail of the hard disk cable routing. I shortened the cable so it does not have to make any extra loops or folds (it only took two tries to get it righthttps://www.crystalfontz.com/forum/images/smilies/smile.gif):
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05861_hdd_cable_routing.jpg
Here is a detail of the left fan and the left CCFL. We took the skinny little CCFL tube out of the clear protective tube, sleeved it with some clear heat shrink, and attached it at the upper edge of the side "vents".
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05863_left_fan_and_ccfl.jpg
This shot shows how the light from the CCFL shows through the side vent:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05864_left_ccfl.jpg
The right CCFL is a short unit:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05866_right_ccfl.jpg
Once the case top is put on, the fans are nicely illuminated by the ring of LEDs:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05868_front_right_corner.jpg
Here is a front shot showing the fans, CCFLs and the CFA-633. The fan lights show up a bit "orange" in these pictures, but in real life they are a pure deep red:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05870_front_center.jpg
Here is a shot of the CFA-633, indicating that the service has been started, and is controlling the fans based on the current system temperatures:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05873_front_shot_service_started.jpg
Here is a shot of the front panel showing the headphone jack and front USB ports:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05875_headphones_and_front_jack.jpg
There are no externally accessible drives in this case. The floppy I do not mind parting with at all. For the CDROM, a USB powered CDRW is just the ticket:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05876_external_cdrw.jpg
Of course I should have a nice flat panel display sitting on top of this box, but for now 19" CRT works great:
http://www.crystalfontz.com/backlight/mrhyde/DSC05882_ut2k3.jpg
The 1U PC, keyboard, mouse, CDs, powerstrip, external reader, and joystick all fit well into a single "tote", so the LAN ends up only taking two trips, one for the tote and one for the monitor.