Whisperwood

[katie279]

Hi all,

Starting a PC build - looking to play mainly solitaire and use for a bit of Word letter writing, so thanks to all your advice I've gone with following specs, which apparently should be able to just about run them without too much lag:

Specs:

• GPU: RTX 4090
• CPU: AMD 7950x
• RAM: 96GB
• HDD: 4 x 2TB NVMe
• AIO CPU Cooler: 420mm - Liquid Freezer II
• Case Fans: ARCTIC P14 PWM PST A-RGB

Initial Design
Plan is to build in walnut with some 3d printed parts to make things like fan mesh and the like easier to manage.

I've done some quick sketches of initial design, really to think about the airflow as a starting point for the components, so would be brilliant to get any thoughts/brains on anything I should adjust:

This is obviously just an initial mockup, I plan to go completely bonkers with my CNC and laser cutter on the final build, so it'll have all sorts of carvings and madness.... and probably some LEDs.....

 

[Mcnumpty2323]

Other than walnut will look beautiful

That's a pretty conventional looking case layout/design
No real reason when making your case
From scratch
That it has to look conventional

Though I will be the first to admit
Not got an artistic bone in my body
So mine would probably look pretty similar lol

Is the side panel also going to be wood?
Or glass/acrylic?

 

[D-Ranged]

That spec should be just enough for solitaire.

I saw you asking for some advice on spec a few days ago, and you mentioned the idea of the wood case, so looking forward to seeing how this turns out!

 

[katie279]

Other than walnut will look beautiful

That's a pretty conventional looking case layout/design
No real reason when making your case
From scratch
That it has to look conventional

Oh don't you worry about that - just want to get thoughts early on layout to avoid massive rework when someone points out I've got the motherboard the wrong way round or something!
It's getting more bonkers by the day, little sneak peek below!

Though I will be the first to admit
Not got an artistic bone in my body
So mine would probably look pretty similar lol

Is the side panel also going to be wood?
Or glass/acrylic?

Side panel will be carved wood with a glass/acrylic cut out I think - will look nice with the LEDs shining through little gaps in the walnut.

Thinking of a blend from industrial/sci-fi sort of feel to an organic effect.

 

[mingeroonie]

This will be a good one to follow
It planning on being a long or quick build?

 

[katie279]

That spec should be just enough for solitaire.

I saw you asking for some advice on spec a few days ago, and you mentioned the idea of the wood case, so looking forward to seeing how this turns out!

Great to hear - there's nothing worse than getting crazy lag in the middle of a game of solitare.

I'll run the MS Paint benchmarks once it's done and check it's not running too hot....

 

[katie279]

This will be a good one to follow
It planning on being a long or quick build?

That depends on my incompetence and your sense of speed! Hoping within 4 weeks or so!?

 

[mingeroonie]

That depends on my incompetence and your sense of speed! Hoping within 4 weeks or so!?

Quick job then! look forward to the pics.

 

[Mcnumpty2323]

Oh don't you worry about that - just want to get thoughts early on layout to avoid massive rework when someone points out I've got the motherboard the wrong way round or something!
It's getting more bonkers by the day, little sneak peek below!

Side panel will be carved wood with a glass/acrylic cut out I think - will look nice with the LEDs shining through little gaps in the walnut.

Thinking of a blend from industrial/sci-fi sort of feel to an organic effect.

Love that
Definitely sort of thing I meant
By doesn't have to look conventional

Any way to use edge lit leds on the side panel
And some engraving?
Surprised no case makers seem to do it

Edit
And nothing wrong
With being a bit bonkers lol

 

[katie279]

Oh yes, have EL wire in mind for the case and laser cutter will do some engraving. Also pondering some Cricut work for some metallic elements too!

 

[Mcnumpty2323]

Oh yes, have EL wire in mind for the case and laser cutter will do some engraving. Also pondering some Cricut work for some metallic elements too!

Not sure how bright el wire would be
Have looked at it before for using in pc
But never actually tried it
I was thinking shine leds through the edge
Of the glass/acrylic
So that the engraving is illuminated But the
unengraved part isnt
If that makes sense

You're obviously way more creative than I am anyway
So whatever you do should look great

 

[katie279]

Not sure how bright el wire would be
Have looked at it before for using in pc
But never actually tried it
I was thinking shine leds through the edge
Of the glass/acrylic
So that the engraving is illuminated But the
unengraved part isnt
If that makes sense

You're obviously way more creative than I am anyway
So whatever you do should look great

Ah got you, yes I was thinking of the EL wire for around the outside of the case.

Yes, can have a think about edge lighting, that might create a nice effect for the etching! Could hook up a microcontroller so I can run custom effects too which could be nice!

 

[pastymuncher]

I think that looks magnificent. Walnut will look great and I love the side panel design, it reminds me of Willow.

If you are going to use 4x NVME drives might I make a suggestion? Those drives are going to be cooked sitting around a 4090 and will most likely end up thermal throttling as I found out with just a 3070 and a single gen 3 drive and single gen 4 drive. The Gen 4 drive was worst by some margin and Gen 5 drives are even worse. With that in mind I would suggest you invest in a pci-e riser and mount the card vertically on the base of the main compartment that holds the motherboard. It would also look good as you could see the card through the window.

 

[CapitalOne]

Just something to ponder…..with a malleable material like wood and your own machinery, I would be looking at bespoke fan ducting and cable channels which could make the difference between arty different and technically different. I would certainly not want a bunch of messy plastic (or other) cables messing up the look. Buy lots of cable combs just in case.

Edit - what 4090 did you get? Both FE and non FE have uggerly cabling usually!

 

[katie279]

I think that looks magnificent. Walnut will look great and I love the side panel design, it reminds me of Willow.

Ooh that's an idea!!! I'll remind myself a bit of it!

If you are going to use 4x NVME drives might I make a suggestion? Those drives are going to be cooked sitting around a 4090 and will most likely end up thermal throttling as I found out with just a 3070 and a single gen 3 drive and single gen 4 drive. The Gen 4 drive was worst by some margin and Gen 5 drives are even worse. With that in mind I would suggest you invest in a pci-e riser and mount the card vertically on the base of the main compartment that holds the motherboard. It would also look good as you could see the card through the window.

Ah brilliant tip, I would have missed that - will take that on board. Assume there's no fiddling about the motherboard channels or limits etc? I've gone for an Asus ProArt - which seems to locate some near the bottom already?

ProArt X670E-CREATOR WIFI｜Motherboards｜ASUS United Kingdom

Every aspect of ProArt Series motherboards is built to remove barriers and deliver optimal performance to content creators who work in 3D modeling and rendering, animation or media production. The series empowers you to concentrate on your creativity and expand what is possible.

www.asus.com

 

[katie279]

Just something to ponder…..with a malleable material like wood and your own machinery, I would be looking at bespoke fan ducting and cable channels which could make the difference between arty different and technically different. I would certainly not want a bunch of messy plastic (or other) cables messing up the look. Buy lots of cable combs just in case.

Edit - what 4090 did you get? Both FE and non FE have uggerly cabling usually!

Fan ducting - check! Was designing some today (will make the 3d print file available if anyone wants them) - ducting makes a huge difference in workshops (eg dust extractor CFM), so slightly odd they're not more common in custom PCs! Might make a parametric set so folks can customise to fit their own cases!

I've got 3d printed cable comb designs I've made already for around my study and under my desk (I call them Underware... ) - so definitely be thinking heavily about this. Bit of a numpty when it comes to cable management, so will need all the advice I can get.

4090 - https://www.zotac.com/gb/product/graphics_card/zotac-gaming-geforce-rtx-4090-trinity-0
Thinking I'd like the innards of the case to be fairly muted with blacks and touches of metallic, so might mod a bit!

 

[CapitalOne]

Fan ducting - check! Was designing some today (will make the 3d print file available if anyone wants them) - ducting makes a huge difference in workshops (eg dust extractor CFM), so slightly odd they're not more common in custom PCs! Might make a parametric set so folks can customise to fit their own cases!

I've got 3d printed cable comb designs I've made already for around my study and under my desk (I call them Underware... ) - so definitely be thinking heavily about this. Bit of a numpty when it comes to cable management, so will need all the advice I can get.

4090 - https://www.zotac.com/gb/product/graphics_card/zotac-gaming-geforce-rtx-4090-trinity-0
Thinking I'd like the innards of the case to be fairly muted with blacks and touches of metallic, so might mod a bit!

Ok one step ahead then. I would consider “recesses” in the structure so you can have flush cabling (would look great on the other side of the mobo tray - that would be serious attention to detail) if you know what I mean….well that’s all I could add if you aren’t going dual chamber.

Only other advice I have (and I have a Zotac 3090 Trinity in one of mine) is that the RGB on that card is naff, not very bright, and needs to be set by it’s own software (consider open or signal RGB when you get to that point) so a vertical mount might be worth considering (especially as you are into ducting already)….but that’s just IMHO.

 

[katie279]

Ok one step ahead then. I would consider “recesses” in the structure so you can have flush cabling (would look great on the other side of the mobo tray - that would be serious attention to detail) if you know what I mean….well that’s all I could add if you aren’t going dual chamber.

Only other advice I have (and I have a Zotac 3090 Trinity in one of mine) is that the RGB on that card is naff, not very bright, and needs to be set by it’s own software (consider open or signal RGB when you get to that point) so a vertical mount might be worth considering (especially as you are into ducting already)….but that’s just IMHO.

Oh I like that idea, have you got any examples of recesses? Do you mean just inset to the wood? (Or I could create coverings for it so it looked flush)

 

[Mcnumpty2323]

If you're able to print cable combs
The enclosed ones look better
And the cables don't pop out like open ones
Not sure if you could either print them hinged?
Or in 2 halves that click together?

Edit
Stealth cable combs guess they're called
But if you could print hinged
Or click together
Would save having to take the wires out
Of molex connectors to feed the cables through
Some examples of open/closed/stealth here

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[CapitalOne]

Oh I like that idea, have you got any examples of recesses? Do you mean just inset to the wood? (Or I could create coverings for it so it looked flush)

Sorry I don’t (and I have googled). So bear with me, imagine for example the 24 flat PSU cable, the biggest one, and imagine an “s” shape recess behind the mobo tray about 10mm deep that you can push that cable into so it’s not flopping about. Like the open part of a dovetail joint (I’m winging this bit because I think thats what the shape is called in woodwork I assume you would know if that was correct!)

Edit…Cable Channels (tm) is a much better description