Topic: My Custom Case Build (Read 21410 times)

The GPU rigs were something to behold, they were affordable and available to everyone.  Thanks for your efforts.

Thought I should post that I have finally (about a month ago) retired this system. It has been shut down and is in the process of being dismantled. For most of it's life it was mining scrypt but towards the end when the GPU fans gave out (and they ALL gave out eventually) it was transitioned to X11.

One of the power supplies has found a new home in an A2 Mega Terminator. More info on that here: https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/my-a2-mega-terminator-ax1200i-power-supply-transplant-1145159

This being a hobby I do not really track profits/loss but without a doubt it has made many times over the cost to build...but if you factor in my normal hourly bill rate I'm not so sure.  

Looks like Spotswood has made a version of his 80/20 cases similar to my design.

If I need another GPU case this is a nice option to have. Hope this thread helped in some way  

Good job!
http://richchomiczewski.wordpress.com/2014/03/03/new-deep-open-air-mining-tray/




I would probably recommend it be made it a bit longer though. I made the mistake of making it too short as well.

My new project: https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/my-custom-gridseed-case-build-499132

Yeah!

If you wanted to you could play games, maybe hookup a 1080p monitor and load up portal

I have never tried to run it without a monitor plugged into GPU0 so I really don't know. One tip....when using a Mini Displayport to VGA adaptor make sure it is an "Active" adaptor. Passive adaptors (like the one Apple sells) will only give you a resolution of 640x480. Knowing that would of saved me some frustration and a few trips to the store!

I see, so in theory with one dummy plug all the GPUs will work right?

It's hard to see but I have a Displayport to VGA adaptor in GPU0. That is going to an IP KVM.

I know huh? Did not realize the two 200mm fans would fit so well. Imagine if they were embedded into the frame design? That would have been cool.


If I had the option to buy I would. Building the case was fun but a lot of work...especially for someone who has not picked up a power tool in 15+ years. At the time I started there was not a case option that fit into a 19" rack. I still don't think there is one available. I looked at farming out the work but was getting quotes in the $400 range.

I stared this thread because the guys in IRC asked that I document the build. I tried to post what I learned in the process. It is also nice to have something to reference if I build another one.

If you have the time, patience and tools to make one yourself go for it! Please post pictures

Very nice build - really gives me something to think about....build my own alu, pvc or buy.

Looks fantastic man Cart, amazing, love the twin fan setup

Dummy plug problem is few years old already.  

Fantastic Build, but how do you manage to boot all the cards without display? Dummy plug?

That was my original plan...would be interesting to see!

Datacenter has not complained about the open rig yet but if they do I may have to enclose it.

I wonder what another two at the other side and enclosing the case would do.

So with 6 GPUs the temps were getting into the low 80's even with the GPU fans bumped up to 90%. It was time to figure out a way to cool the GPUs some more so I decided to try adding auxiliary fans.

It blew me away how much this helped!

(2) 200mm fans and GPU fans back down to 80%:


From left to right GPU#s: 2 0 3 4 5 1


These 200mm fans fit almost perfect. I could drill holes to secure them but will most likely just use zip ties. If I ever make another case I may try to fit them inside the space between the front/back (depending on how you look at it) of the case and the GPUs.

Yes, they are blowing air at the GPU exhaust vents since these particular models mostly expel air the other way. They are plugged into motherboard fan connectors and are not running at full speed. Very happy with the results and surprised that it helped as much as it did.

Thanks zedicus!

I have enough clearance to have just a bit of space between the  CPU fan and bottom of the PCIe riser cards. On the top side there is enough to clear the power cables in case I decided to enclose the case with a top.

Currently the cards are not secured to the inner frame. They are just resting on it. In earlier pictures I showed and had planned to secure the cards with another piece of aluminum but the spacing for it was lost due to the rivet being too low. Not a big deal as it will not need to be moved but when it does the GPUs will need to be removed.

6 GPUs may be the max this case will support utilizing just the stock GPU fans. 7 may make them too cramped to allow adequate airflow.

Nice case man! How much clearance you got above the mobo?  I see you got the risers folded ..

and how are you securing the cards are you using an inner frame just for the gpus.. is that the metal i see on the sides? 


I was thinking of doing this and i ended up just grabbing a pre fab..

Cheers

Finally got another card installed for a total of 6. I am at my power limit (15.656 amps) so this will be it until I can get more utility power.

These cards dont exist and they never will , cant you tell the fasthash stuff is fake and photoshopped lol people beware of scammers. BFL cant make that card its too powerfull for the size of the tech that exists and cooling it would need min water cooling tower.

Have a word with ya self lol

love to see this rig of yours whit this cards instead of videocards.


or...

In my head I like to read this thread with the post dates a year prior and marvell at it lol.

In all seriousness - great setup! If all else fails you can use it as a render farm or rent for WPA cracking

What's ROI?
Just kidding..this is a hobby for me so I didn't approach it with the intention of maximizing profits. Heck, If I make anything at all it's all gravy 

Unfortunately my attention has drifted elsewhere so I'm not into it as much.

This is really awesome!
But I think it will kill your ROI

Thank you!

To connect the two PSUs together I am using this adaptor from buyahash:

http://buyahash.com/product/dual-psu-24-pin-cable-adapter/

There is another adaptor you can use from www.add2psu.com but it requires a molex connector.

We have the OEM case too.

Hi!

Nice setup!!!  Very clean! A change from the confusion of cables We usually see :-)


I've been thinking of linking 2 psu's together, what did you use to link the 2 psu's?


regards,

P.

Yup, that's why I went ahead and bought another one The ones I use are just a bit pricier than the cheapest ones and temporarily went down to $299 after rebate. They are up to $344 after rebate now..should of bought more but funds are a bit tight

Just the card fans. Ambient temperature is 68 degrees. Found that one of the GPUs was running hotter than the rest so I moved it to the coolest spot in the rig. I'm sure it's due to the thermal paste not being put on correctly from what I have read.

Temps after moving GPUs around. I have pretty much confirmed that GPU 0 is actually the second physical GPU from left to right in the rig.

Before:                                After:

Funny what less than a month can do for GPU pricing, 7970s can be had for 279 right now on Newegg after rebate.  Great looking rig BTW.

@CartmanSPC

Very nice build man... much envy going your way for sure.

Are you just using the card fans to cool? or do you have anything else pushing air through them?  It's gotta be pretty warm around that thing.

Try 1055/1500...or better yet come to IRC and we can help you there.

Server: irc.freenode.net
Channel: #digitalcoin
Webchat can be found at: https://kiwiirc.com/client/irc.freenode.net/#digitalcoin

What are your settings for 7970: engine, memory, voltage, thread count and bios version? I have the same MSI 7970, but it just refuses to go past 660 and at the same time I can get 7950 to mine at the same speed.

Thanks

cgminer running smoothly. Think I will increase the fans from 80 to 85%.
I suspect that GPU1 is actually the left most GPU and GPU0 is to the right of that one.

thx for reply - i was searching for this stuff.
your build is very nice - i have an inspiration.

Wow! Why have I only seen this now?!? It looks bad ass. 

Yes, script coins only.

My friend nice setup you build.
Wich coin are you gonna mine? 
Litecoin i guess?

Ok, got a 5th card. Since I am maxed out at 4 cards with a 1200 watt power supply I had to get another power supply. I plan on eventually having two 4 card rigs but until I get more GPUs I will use the second rigs PS and GPUs in the first one.

Will also be running up against the max of 16 amps on the 20 amp circuit I have. May or may not be able to run 6 GPUs until I can get a higher amp circuit. At that point I will be switching to 208 volt from 120 I'm using now.

The second power supply is also a Corsair AX1200i. This picture shows the two CorsairLink interface units. Since CorsairLink only supports reporting on one PS at a time I have to disable one and then enable the other (in device manager) to see it's individual power usage. A nice surprise was that even though some of the GPUs are being used on the second power supply, CorsairLink still see's them for monitoring.


Here is a pic of the case with the GPUs now facing the front of the rack (cold air isle). You can also see the temporary orientation of the two power supplies. You might notice that I am only using powered risers on the first 4 GPUs. Think I'm okay not powering the 5th one. If I had 6 or 7 GPUs then I would break out another molex cable to the power supply. I may still do that just for the 5th GPU.


Close up of the connections. 1st power supply has 3 GPUs + 8pin MB + SATA power. 2nd power supply has 2 GPUs + 4 connector molex cable. I can now see that if this was going to be a permanent setup the case should of been made longer so there could be more space between the GPUs and power supplies. The additional space would facilitate easier cable management and allow some distance between the GPUs and the PS since these particular GPUs expel the majority of hot air towards the power supplies. Even with one PS a longer case to distance the PS from the GPUs would (I think) have been beneficial.

Thanks!

buyahash.com
They have standard length and extended length. Also got the PS splitter from them.

The extended length risers are really long though. Would be happy with just an extra 2" from the standard length version.

Nice work! I really like this setup...
 

Would be cool too see them all water-cooled as well.

nice work!
where you get the powered riser ? or also hand build...?
 

That's what she said!


  Had to... sorry ^_^

Sorry, this is only for scrypt mining. Altcoin mining is still profitable, especially with my free electricity.

Yeah... bflabs havent come through for most people =) might be worth the risk selling your spot on ebay? if they are still around when you sell that is... I think i saw someone sell their "day one" Monarch card position for a couple thousand in return. lmao

EDIT: It is kinda screwed up and not recommended btw... unethical behavior has no place in the future of BTC...

I agree that GPUs will soon be obsolete for Bitcoin mining but these cases may still be useful for the new series of ASICs coming out.

Don't know what the cooling requirements are for this thing but the server enclosures that can house multiple units are prohibitively expensive.

Introducing The Monarch
Butterfly Labs 28nm Technology Bitcoin Mining Card


The fastest and most power-efficient Bitcoin miner yet
600 GH/s
(if you believe their marketing hype)

beautiful...
but...

=/ never will reach ROI.. free electricity? still difficulty is gonna kill this rig

atlcoins only other avenue..

That's beautiful! I really like this case...
 

I really like this custom case.   It makes me want to go spend more money on GPUs, but I think those days are almost gone.  I keep my 2 rigs in a server cabinet but in traditional PC cases and if I were to buy more I would certainly give this a go.   Anyone wanna sell me used GPUs for 50 bucks a pop

sweet setup Cartman.

Wow, that's beautiful!

Make sure to keep us updated on your progress!

I ended up reversing the placement of the case in the rack since these MSI GPUs blow most of the air out the front of the cards instead of the back exhaust vents. It does not look like I'll need any additional fans to keep them cool.

Thank you for everyone's encouragement. It really helped and pushed me to keep going. If you’re thinking of building your own case go for it! Although it was frustrating at times it turned out to be a fun project.…just make sure you have the right tools  

Cartman - wanted to say thanks again for posting your setup. It inspired me on a new rack mount case for my next rig. Not quite done yet, but getting close. I wanted to fit 2 rigs in one and I think it will end up working.

So brave with, However I think you have been using too much space for just one purpose.

I used to use Tahiti XT2 to follow up, (now, Verde only) but it is too great that I have to send away until I have found a more suitable solution as You seldom upgrade anything once configured.

Dip your rig in mineral oil, then You no longer need much space.

If I had the amount, I shall try to build the oil rig.

Few more pics. Haven't plugged in the last GPU yet as I'm waiting on some more modular power supply cables.

The powered riser connections came out nice.


In the rack.

Thanks for that kslavik. I choose some more expensive options as I wasn't looking for the cheapest build but that looks like a nice list.

For anyone wondering here are the component costs. Waiting on an additional discount of between 10-30 on the last GPU. Not included is the aluminum cost of around $40-60 and the cost for the tools to build the case.

Why use a hard drive tho? Could use less power and $ on a usb stick? Thats just me tho...

How about this:

7 GPUs:
1. PSU 2x1000W PSU:   $99x2 = $198
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817159132

2. Motherboard: MSI Z77A-GD65  $114
http://www.ebay.com/itm/MSI-Z77A-GD65-Intel-Z77-Chipset-LGA-1155-USB-3-0-Supports-3rd-Gen-Intel-i7-i5-i3-/271252638284?pt=Motherboards&hash=item3f27eaca4c

3. Intel Celeron G1610 Ivy Bridge = $50
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819116889

4. 8GB Memory $76
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231427

5. GPU 7xMSI 7950 at $199 = $1393
http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/B007NG3WR2/ref=sr_1_1_olp?ie=UTF8&qid=1376768677&sr=8-1&keywords=msi+7950&condition=used

6. HDD at $50

Total Price: $1881
Kh/s = 4550
Kh/$ = 2.4

5 GPUs:

1. PSU 2x1000W PSU:   $99x2 = $198
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817159132

2. Motherboard: MSI Z77A-GD65  $114
http://www.ebay.com/itm/MSI-Z77A-GD65-Intel-Z77-Chipset-LGA-1155-USB-3-0-Supports-3rd-Gen-Intel-i7-i5-i3-/271252638284?pt=Motherboards&hash=item3f27eaca4c

3. Intel Celeron G1610 Ivy Bridge = $50
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819116889

4. 8GB Memory $76
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231427

5. GPU 7xMSI 7950 at $199 = $995
http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/B007NG3WR2/ref=sr_1_1_olp?ie=UTF8&qid=1376768677&sr=8-1&keywords=msi+7950&condition=used

6. HDD at $50

Total Price: $1483
Kh/s = 3250
Kh/$ =  2.19


When you calculate the total price of the systems with 7GPU vs 5GPU, you have to consider all the components to come up with a correct Kh/$ ratio.

Yea, i wish i would have waited till they dropped... Good luck on the rig.

That is a great price at MicroCenter. Thanks. They must have just lowered their price as I looked a few days ago and they were much higher. Makes me want to go buy some more tomorrow

my bad, it looked like my 7950. But few months ago i got a 7950 for 340, now its 250... So my bad on that lol

But... maybe save you a few bucks?
Microcenter does have 7970 for 339 after rebate.
That's if they are near you, not sure if they ship...

Thanks! Where is the MSI 7970 selling for $250?! The cheapest I have been able to find is $377.36 after tax and rebates.

Eh... That MSI is about 250 now... Hope you waited to buy...
Case looks great tho.

4 GPU system
Power Supply                              $285.15
GPU                  4x$377.36            $1,509.44
Total                                     $1,794.59
Kh/s                                      2976
Kh/$                                      1.658317498704439

The system has been mining with 3 GPUs for over a week now. The case brought down the temps so much that I now run the fans at 80% instead of 85% and increased the voltage from 1.100 to 1.125. Hash rate per card is up to 744 from 722.

Just got the 4th GPU today. Will try to get updated pictures after I get the 4th GPU installed. Changed the way the power supply is installed since it will only have one now.

I think I will be sticking to 4 GPU's per system since that should get me somewhere around 1000 watts (not sure yet as 1 was 300w, 2 was 500w and 3 took it to 800w). Trying to stay close to 80% of the PS's capacity so that is 960 watts out of 1200 watts.

Thinking about the cost of a 7 GPU system vs a 5 GPU system.

Everything else being equal:

7 GPU system
Power Supply         2x$285.15            $570.30
GPU                  7x$377.36            $2,641.52
Dual-PSU ATX Adapter                      $10.00
Total                                     $3,221.82
Kh/s                                      5208    
Kh/$                                      1.616477643071308

5 GPU system
Power Supply                              $285.15
GPU                  5x$377.36            $1,886.80
Total                                     $2,171.95
Kh/s                                      3720
Kh/$                                      1.712746610189001

So it looks like I would get more Kh/$ using just one PS and 5 GPUs.

This assumes I can run 5 GPUs on just one 1200 watt PS which is yet to be seen. I suppose I could try a single 1600 watt PS for 7 GPUs but I really like the Corsair AX1200i because of it's monitoring features.

First GPU installed. Starting to rethink running 7 GPUs with two 1200 watt power supply's from a cost perspective.

It looks very nice and clean. 

Time to buy a welder for the next project

Any plans to make this hold two motherboards and double the GPU's in the future? It would get a little tight, but I think it would fit.

It looks really nice and clean. How many GPUs are you going to install?

Would you mind updating with total cost of the rig and case once you're done?!

Thanks.

Big update. Case is done!

Now I am in the process of mounting the components...

GPU section:



Power Supply section:




Had to figure out a place to put the SSD and other misc componets. Velcro came in handy here:





That's it for now. Will run it as is without GPUs to get a baseline of power usage. Hope to get the GPUs installed in the next few days as time permits :/

Thanks! Looks like a good place for building stuff. Good luck. I'll be interested to see how it goes.

Those are pretty cool actually. Gives you a bit more airflow around the underside of the motherboard aswell.

How are you planning fans to be mounted? Any updated pictures?

looks very nice and clean, well done!

I live in a high rise so this is my version of a garage. Storage units for resident use. Well lit and free electricity but gets hot down there.

Is it your basement that you're building this? What are the cages for? Sorry. I'm just nosey. Interesting thread.

For this first one I will use my existing rack shelves. In the future I plan to use something like this:



http://www.racksolutions.com/tool-less-rack-rails.html

That looks really good. Wish I could make stuff like that.

How do you plan on attaching this case to the rack? Very interested in this as I have an old unused server room with many 4 post racks that I'm eyeballing for a similar build.

Look's really good en clean!

Here are the aluminum part used:


...and one more for the Power Supply section:


Worked on the motherboard section tonight. Screwing in the MB standoffs worked better than expected.


Really had a hard time drilling the holes since the top part of the frame interfered with the drill. In hindsight I should have turned it upside down and drilled from the bottom :/


Test for fit. MB screws not tightened down.


Finished MB section:

I initially looked at using 80/20 for the case but found it to be too expensive. Consisting of 1" square extrusions I also think 80/20 takes up too much valuable space on the interior of the case. Trying to fit 7 GPUs in the width of 442mm is going to be hard enough without also loosing 2" for the side walls.

The way it is now I have 442mm of space for GPUs. 4mm for the aluminum sides (2mm each side) and then another 2mm for the side panels (if I decide to use them) for a total of 448mm. Looking at how it turned out I think I could of increased the interior to 444mm and put the sides on within the space between the long aluminum pieces.

This is a learning process for me so I'm finding what works along the way

I think these are the two size angle bars I am using:

http://www.homedepot.com/p/Crown-Bolt-1-2-in-x-96-in-Aluminum-Angle-Bar-with-1-20-in-Thick-56780/202183473#.UfNGEiTn-M8
http://www.homedepot.com/p/3-4-in-x-96-in-x-0-050-in-Aluminum-Thick-Angle-56930/100337439#.UfNGDCTn-M8

Larger pieces for the exterior frame. Smaller ones will be used for the interior GPU stand.

I initially wanted to make it 4U but after measuring I felt it was a bit cramped. I may enclose the case to build a wind tunnel type enclosure if the temperature on the cards are too high with the stock fans. The power supply's will be in the front half of the case so I also wanted to have some space for more air to flow in.

I can fit 8 5U cases in a 42U rack vs 10 4U cases. The power requirements to support 8 cases may already be higher than can be provided as the environment has strict watts per square foot restrictions. I currently have one 20amp PDU to power the rig and I know I can get at least 30amp PDUs when the time comes but don't know if I can get anything higher. By that point I may need to acquire more floor space to accommodate the watts. I will have a better idea how many amps/watts each rig will draw after I get the first one going.

Basically my thinking was that case space was not an issue and I wanted to error on the safe side. If/when I build a second one I will have more experience to see if a 4U case will work. I will also be purchasing a nice mider saw if I build anymore as cutting the aluminum with a hacksaw and then smoothing out the edges with a dremel took a lot of time and effort!

Where did you get the parts?  It looks really nice!

oh man looking good! Can't wait to see the finished product. Love the airflow.

Looks very nice.

Why did you make it 5U though? - From my experience you can go 4U and still move quite a big amount of air with the right fans (which you could do seeing as you are hosting it in an rack/server room im guessing?)

I'm impressed at the quality, so far. Want to see more.

For those hanging on my every rivet I have 12 more done

i see you already used like 24 rivet's, keep us updated any time you use another one

seriously, it's gotta have taken you more time to upload those pics than asselmbe this 12 pieces ??

guess we have a summer hole in news here

  Thanks!

This is really turning into a labor of love. It doesn't help that I am a perfectionist when it comes to this type of stuff
Trying not to let that extra hole drive me nuts  

Slowly making progress.



This is what the GPU holder will look like. Going to fasten it down somehow. Perhaps with some kind of quick release clamps on either side. Measured that there is room for 23-24 slots. That will allow me to have a bit more than one slot of room between cards (7 is the goal).

Let me out of my cage!!! 

Indeed...

Looks very nice and clean so far.

In the process of building a custom case for my mining rig. Thought others may find it interesting to see the progress.

It will be going into a 19" rack so the dimensions were made to fit.

Dimensions
Length     600mm
Width      446mm
Height     221mm (5U)


What I have built so far



Using rivets to hold the pieces together



Made one of the holes too close to the others so the rivet wouldn't fit :/
Luckily I had enough room to drill another hole. Lesson learned.



Will update my progress as I get further into it.