NZXT Phantom PC Build

Sherardp
Sherardp Posts: 8,038
edited February 2011 in The Clubhouse
:biggrin:Just thought I'd share with the other builders/enthusiasts on the forum. I started around 3:30pm today and just wrapped it up around 9:30pm. My main objective is to build something intense on a upper mid level scale. Parts include:

ASUS M4A87TD EVO mobo
AMD 965BE (shooting for 4ghz on the overclock)
Thermaltake Frio Cooler
4gb Gskill Ram
Crucial Sata III 128gb SSD (Sata 6)
1tb Samsung F1
1tb WD Caviar Black as Media Drive
Radeon 6950 video card
lite on BD burner
Lite on DVD burner
NZXT 750 watt power supply in white to match
NZXT Phantom case white
Asus Xonar D2 Sound card

Everything has been installed minus the Asus Sound Card, and the WD media drive which I'm using in my current rig. I'll finish the build when the 6950 vid card arrives. As for cable management that's where most of my time went on the build. As for cables everything is completely pulled for the video and other HDD. What you see is what you get. Tell me what you guys think.

I went back and fixed the SSD, it was off just a tad. Too tired to retake the pic, but will update once the rest of the parts are installed. From there it's OS/Software install & data transfer.

IMG_0400.jpg

IMG_0399.jpg
Shoot the jumper.....................BALLIN.............!!!!!

Home Theater Pics in the Showcase :cool:

http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/showcase/view.php?userid=73580
Post edited by Sherardp on
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Comments

  • mrbiron
    mrbiron Posts: 5,711
    edited February 2011
    Clean Clean Clean!!....
    Interesting location of the SSD, you didn't want to get the mounting bracket for the hardrive bay?
    Glad to see there are still people out there that know value when they see it and purchase AMD, nice choice.
    From the picture, are you going to be able to slam any more RAM in there due to the over sized heatsink/fan?

    All in all....looks like a solid machine. Very Nice Job!
    Where’s the KABOOM?!?! There’s supposed to be an Earth shattering KABOOM!!!
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  • Sherardp
    Sherardp Posts: 8,038
    edited February 2011
    Actually I thought about putting the SSD in a drive bay but decided to show the C300 off. It's one of the fastest out on the market with sata 6 support. With the oversized heatsink I decided to stick with just 4th of RAM. Should be plenty though. Thanks Mr. B for input bro.
    Shoot the jumper.....................BALLIN.............!!!!!

    Home Theater Pics in the Showcase :cool:

    http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/showcase/view.php?userid=73580
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  • ryanjoachim
    ryanjoachim Posts: 2,046
    edited February 2011
    I just bought a 128gb SSD and an ATI 6950 last night. I'm hoping that the combination of SSD + new card will breathe new life into my aging Q6600 cpu.

    I was planning on building a new Sandy Bridge system this month...but that went out the window with the motherboard recall Intel had. I don't do much on my PC besides game and watch movies, so if the ssd/card combo can give me enough of a performance boost, I don't really feel the need to spend $1500 more on a new system.

    I'm surprised you stuck with 4GB of ram though. I have 4GB right now (Win7 Ultimate), and when playing graphics-heavy games I constantly run into the 3GB used range.

    That could just be my 47-- vid card though.
    MrNightly wrote: »
    "Dr Dunn admitted that his research could also be interpreted as evidence that women are shallower than men. He said: "Let's face it - there's evidence to support it."
    mystik610 wrote: »
    Best Buy is for people who don't know any better. Magnolia is for people who don't know any better and have more money to spend.
    My System:


    TV: SAMSUNG UN55B7000 55" 1080p LED HDTV
    HTPC: Chromecast w/ Plex Media Server. Media streamed from Media Server.
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  • mrbiron
    mrbiron Posts: 5,711
    edited February 2011
    Just looking at it again, i really like how the white lets all the components colors stand out. That case just begs for you to cram it with hardrives. How did you mount the SSD?

    I've been meaning to get my rig back up and running (8 year old raptor keeps crashing) and update all the outdated parts i have and am interested in the Asus Xonar. Let me know what you think. I have the older Creative X-Fi Platinum which was awesome but feel is outdated.
    Where’s the KABOOM?!?! There’s supposed to be an Earth shattering KABOOM!!!
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  • nguyendot
    nguyendot Posts: 3,594
    edited February 2011
    very nice build.... I want to build another one, but alas I never use my desktops anymore....
    Main Surround -
    Epson 8350 Projector/ Elite Screens 120" / Pioneer Elite SC-35 / Sunfire Signature / Focal Chorus 716s / Focal Chorus CC / Polk MC80 / Polk PSW150 sub

    Bedroom - Sharp Aquos 70" 650 / Pioneer SC-1222k / Polk RT-55 / Polk CS-250

    Den - Rotel RSP-1068 / Threshold CAS-2 / Boston VR-M60 / BDP-05FD
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  • EndersShadow
    EndersShadow Posts: 17,590
    edited February 2011
    Thats a quite nice build. Here is mine in a Antec P182 case (pics arent as nice as yours lol). I have moved this rig from a Thermaltake to a CoolerMaster ATCS case and now to the P182. Thinking about going even smaller with a Lian-Li Mini tower shortly hehehe

    Specs are:
    Motherboard: ASUS P5E
    CPU: Intel Q9650 @ 4.0
    Memory: 8 Gig Dominator 1066
    GPU: Gigabyte ATI Passive 5450
    Hard Drives: 2 WD Black 640, Samsung 1TB
    TV Tuner: Hauppauge 2250
    Powersupply: Corsair VX450

    And it looks like this (cable management in this case is super super hard lol:
    CIMG1204.jpg
    "....not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be counted." William Bruce Cameron, Informal Sociology: A Casual Introduction to Sociological Thinking (1963)
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  • nadams
    nadams Posts: 5,877
    edited February 2011
    Looks nice... are all of the case fans blowing out of the case? It'd be a good idea to have one in the lower front blowing in to equalize the pressure. I realise that there are vent holes below the HD cages, but you'll still be dealing with negative pressure inside the case.
    Ludicrous gibs!
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  • mrbiron
    mrbiron Posts: 5,711
    edited February 2011
    You sometimes find fans underneath the cases that pull the air in.
    My Cooler Master Cosmos 1000 had 1 but i added a 2nd zip tied with dampening underneath for added security. It was placed in the second hardrive area but removed all the bays to keep the raptors above nice and chill. This is the only picture i have from about 4 years ago but she has since died. Will be building something like Shep has with the trusted AMD base.:cool:

    Cable management at the time was sloppy....i feel ashamed.

    [IMG]<a href="http://s101.photobucket.com/albums/m74/Goonter5/?action=view&current=DSCF0053.jpg&quot; target="_blank"><img src="http://i101.photobucket.com/albums/m74/Goonter5/DSCF0053.jpg&quot; border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>[/IMG]
    Where’s the KABOOM?!?! There’s supposed to be an Earth shattering KABOOM!!!
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  • EndersShadow
    EndersShadow Posts: 17,590
    edited February 2011
    The only problem with fans on the bottom of the case is them pulling in dust. For me I have dogs so any fans on the bottom of the case would only require me to clean the case out more than I do now. I had bottom fans on both my Thermaltake and Coolermaster case and never used either.

    With his case if he takes the front top fan and makes it an intake and then leaves the top back and the rear fans as exhausts he should keep his CPU more than cool enough.

    Add to that I think there are a couple fans in front of the HDD bays and he should be more than ok with temps.
    "....not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be counted." William Bruce Cameron, Informal Sociology: A Casual Introduction to Sociological Thinking (1963)
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  • nadams
    nadams Posts: 5,877
    edited February 2011
    EndersShadow wrote: »
    The only problem with fans on the bottom of the case is them pulling in dust. For me I have dogs so any fans on the bottom of the case would only require me to clean the case out more than I do now. I had bottom fans on both my Thermaltake and Coolermaster case and never used either.

    With his case if he takes the front top fan and makes it an intake and then leaves the top back and the rear fans as exhausts he should keep his CPU more than cool enough.

    Add to that I think there are a couple fans in front of the HDD bays and he should be more than ok with temps.

    If he reverses that one fan, there won't be any airflow around the video card. Most cards exhaust out of the case anymore anyway, but you're leaving a hot spot for the intake of the card.
    Ludicrous gibs!
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  • EndersShadow
    EndersShadow Posts: 17,590
    edited February 2011
    nadams wrote: »
    If he reverses that one fan, there won't be any airflow around the video card. Most cards exhaust out of the case anymore anyway, but you're leaving a hot spot for the intake of the card.

    It shouldnt be a problem. I ran a 4870x2 with that same setup in my Coolermaster case and had no issues. The card was cool to the touch.

    If he doesnt reverse so its an intake, then hes got 3 exhausts and still no airflow to the GPU, just pulling air away from it.

    With the fan at the top closest to the 5 1/4 bay drawing air in, some will get sucked directly into the CPU fan, and some will hit the front top of the GPU. The GPU normally has its own exhaust as you mentioned underneath. Then the hot air will rise up and either get exhausted by the back rear fan, or the top rear fan.

    Eitherway thats more cool air coming in.

    Also what we cant see is that the side that isnt on has what looks to be a 230mm fan on it and also 2 120mm fans located on the side of the HDD cage..

    So there is more than enough intake for the GPU from the side to make up for the front top fan becoming an intake.

    Heck he could make the side an exhaust if he wanted to (did that with my Thermaltake case as well)
    "....not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be counted." William Bruce Cameron, Informal Sociology: A Casual Introduction to Sociological Thinking (1963)
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  • mrbiron
    mrbiron Posts: 5,711
    edited February 2011
    The intakes on the bottom of mine have little mesh filters on them. When she WAS running, i would take the minute a piece and clean them once every other week. Quick and painless.

    http://www.newegg.com/Product/ImageGallery.aspx?CurImage=11-146-067-Z10&ISList=11-146-067-Z01,11-146-067-Z02,11-146-067-Z03,11-146-067-Z04,11-146-067-Z05,11-146-067-Z06,11-146-067-Z07,11-146-067-Z08,11-146-067-Z09,11-146-067-Z10&VSList=11-146-067-V01&S7ImageFlag=1&Item=N82E16811146067&Depa=0&WaterMark=1&Description=NZXT%20Phantom%20PHAN-001WT%20White%20Steel%20/%20Plastic%20ATX%20Full%20Tower%20Computer%20Case

    That puppy is loaded with fans on the side panel. He will be absolutely fine. :biggrin:
    Where’s the KABOOM?!?! There’s supposed to be an Earth shattering KABOOM!!!
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  • EndersShadow
    EndersShadow Posts: 17,590
    edited February 2011
    mrbiron wrote: »
    The intakes on the bottom of mine have little mesh filters on them. When she WAS running, i would take the minute a piece and clean them once every other week. Quick and painless.

    Yeah my ATCS had a filter on the bottom fan intake and on the PSU but they were a PITA to get at. The one for the fan was external, the one for the PSU was internal...but if you used the fan you couldnt remove the PSU filter..... Not smart engineering. The P182's front filters are much easier to clean.
    "....not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be counted." William Bruce Cameron, Informal Sociology: A Casual Introduction to Sociological Thinking (1963)
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  • Sherardp
    Sherardp Posts: 8,038
    edited February 2011
    mrbiron wrote: »
    Just looking at it again, i really like how the white lets all the components colors stand out. That case just begs for you to cram it with hardrives. How did you mount the SSD?

    and am interested in the Asus Xonar. Let me know what you think. I have the older Creative X-Fi Platinum which was awesome but feel is outdated.

    Mr. B I used 3m tape to mount that SSD up there like that. As I mentioned before I thought about mounting it in a cage but saw the idea elsewhere and decided to go with this. The Asus Xonar cards are amazing bro, the SQ is a huge improvement over anything on the mobos. As for an upgrade to your X-fi, you may notice the improvement, worth a shot though. Worst case you return it, but at least you'll experience it firsthand.
    nadams wrote: »
    Looks nice... are all of the case fans blowing out of the case? It'd be a good idea to have one in the lower front blowing in to equalize the pressure. I realise that there are vent holes below the HD cages, but you'll still be dealing with negative pressure inside the case.

    Nadams the side panel that is off has to fans that are intake fans, but you are correct I will be adding one more in the front.

    Nice pics of your rigs gents. Glad to know if I run into a problem I can get help. I see I'm not the only one use these massive air coolers. I personally had no idea the Frio was so large. Appreciate all the feedback gents.
    Shoot the jumper.....................BALLIN.............!!!!!

    Home Theater Pics in the Showcase :cool:

    http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/showcase/view.php?userid=73580
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  • nadams
    nadams Posts: 5,877
    edited February 2011
    Alright, cool... I didn't realise that there were fans in the side panel, and I didn't take the time to look up the case specs!
    Ludicrous gibs!
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  • Earthy
    Earthy Posts: 488
    edited February 2011
    ARGG, now I have the itch to build another PC. Always on the hunt for something that can run quietly. Looks like that case can take a lot of fans.

    Looks great! I never really gave that case a look.
    Polk Audio SDA SRS 2.3TL
    Parasound Halo A21
    Parasound Halo P3

    Home theater
    Polk LSiM 707, 706c, 703, 705
    Polk Blackstone TL3 for height
    SVS PB12-ISD Sub
    Denon AVR-X6400h
    Parasound Halo A51
    LG OLED65B7A
    Sony UBPX800
    Logitech Harmony Elite
    PC LSiM 703
    Spare LSIM 702 and 706c

    Home Theater #2
    Polk Audio LS70, CS350LS, LSF/X, S4
    Onkyo TX-NR808



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  • Sherardp
    Sherardp Posts: 8,038
    edited February 2011
    Finished it last night, Windows 7 x64 installed, took less than 8 minutes on the C300. I flashed the SSD and am getting read times at 372mb/s. This drive is insane. Radeon 6950 rocks.

    IMG_0404.jpg

    IMG_0402.jpg

    IMG_0403.jpg
    Shoot the jumper.....................BALLIN.............!!!!!

    Home Theater Pics in the Showcase :cool:

    http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/showcase/view.php?userid=73580
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  • Sherardp
    Sherardp Posts: 8,038
    edited February 2011
    NZXT PHANTOM

    IMG_0405.jpg
    Shoot the jumper.....................BALLIN.............!!!!!

    Home Theater Pics in the Showcase :cool:

    http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/showcase/view.php?userid=73580
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  • LessisNevermore
    LessisNevermore Posts: 1,519
    edited February 2011
    Looks fantastic Sherard!

    How are the volume levels of the fans? One of the reasons I chose the Corsair 600T over the Phantom, was fear of yet more fan noise. I love the looks of the Phantom, and even more so, the Whisper, also by NZXT. The Whisper has built-in soundproofing, and 9 3.5" drive bays.:eek:

    I'm very pleased with the case I got, and interestingly, the Corsair (2) and Phantom (1) were the top two choices of MaximumPC magazine, for mid-towers at any price. I would highly recommend either case to anyone building a gaming rig, or HTPC. These are premium cases, and worth the money. They make it very easy to conceal the wiring, looking like a pro built it.

    Again, good job!
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  • audiobliss
    audiobliss Posts: 12,518
    edited February 2011
    Beautiful! Very clean!
    George Grand wrote: »
    Jstas wrote: »
    Simple question. If you had a cool million bucks, what would you do with it?
    Wonder WTF happened to the rest of my money.
    In Use
    PS3, Yamaha CDR-HD1300, Plex, Amazon Fire TV Gen 2
    Pioneer Elite VSX-52, Parasound HCA-1000A
    Klipsch RF-82ii, RC-62ii, RS-42ii, RW-10d
    Epson 8700UB
    In Storage
    [Home Audio]
    Rotel RCD-02, Yamaha KX-W900U, Sony ST-S500ES, Denon DP-7F
    Pro-Ject Phono Box MKII, Parasound P/HP-850, ASL Wave 20 monoblocks
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    [Car Audio]
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  • Sherardp
    Sherardp Posts: 8,038
    edited February 2011
    Less this case is very quiet. I like the built in fan controller on the rig. At low settings you can't even tell the rig is up and running. If I crank the fans to full speed it still runs at a comfortable level, not like a vaccuum cleaner. Thanks for the compliments, very happy with the performance so far.
    Shoot the jumper.....................BALLIN.............!!!!!

    Home Theater Pics in the Showcase :cool:

    http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/showcase/view.php?userid=73580
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  • Fireman32
    Fireman32 Posts: 4,845
    edited February 2011
    Great looking machine. I have not built a machine in a while but you inspire me to build one again. Maybe a hackintosh.
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  • Sherardp
    Sherardp Posts: 8,038
    edited February 2011
    Fireman32 wrote: »
    Great looking machine. I have not built a machine in a while but you inspire me to build one again. Maybe a hackintosh.

    Go for it bro, the technology has changed quite a bit, but well worth it.
    Shoot the jumper.....................BALLIN.............!!!!!

    Home Theater Pics in the Showcase :cool:

    http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/showcase/view.php?userid=73580
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  • Earthy
    Earthy Posts: 488
    edited February 2011
    Are you booting off the SSD?
    Polk Audio SDA SRS 2.3TL
    Parasound Halo A21
    Parasound Halo P3

    Home theater
    Polk LSiM 707, 706c, 703, 705
    Polk Blackstone TL3 for height
    SVS PB12-ISD Sub
    Denon AVR-X6400h
    Parasound Halo A51
    LG OLED65B7A
    Sony UBPX800
    Logitech Harmony Elite
    PC LSiM 703
    Spare LSIM 702 and 706c

    Home Theater #2
    Polk Audio LS70, CS350LS, LSF/X, S4
    Onkyo TX-NR808



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  • Sherardp
    Sherardp Posts: 8,038
    edited February 2011
    Earthy wrote: »
    Are you booting off the SSD?

    Yes , using the SSD as boot drive and for programs that could use the speed increase. Boot times are around 8 sec mark or less. Very fast drive.
    Shoot the jumper.....................BALLIN.............!!!!!

    Home Theater Pics in the Showcase :cool:

    http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/showcase/view.php?userid=73580
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  • howie777
    howie777 Posts: 357
    edited February 2011
    Very nice! I switched to Mac a couple years ago so I don't get to play around anymore :-( How I miss building my own PC's. Maybe when win 8 comes out I'll build another.

    Howie
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