CeBIT 2007 Modding Roundup

An idea passed around our own forums a few times over the years has been completely submerging a system in mineral oil. Whilst we've previously seen some rare examples of "proof of concept" no one has really provided such a complete example of how a great mod can look.

It's basically a sealed acrylic tube, with two clear plates either end. Inside there are two trays with a motherboard and components sitting on the top, and the PSU underneath. All the fans have been removed from the heatsinks or unplugged, except the PSU fan which is used to cycle the liquid, works in addition to the convection effect employed by the system.



Because it uses mineral oil it's totally non conductive, so the high voltage inverters used on the cathodes and PSU don't short making everything go *pop*. The combination of black acrylic and cathodes along the edges of the shelves, shining through the gently swirling liquid provides a fantastic effect, unfortunately lost in a still image with flash.

The cables were passed through the bottom, making a challenging but aesthetically pleasing solution. We couldn't quite see how it enabled power and control of the PC without leaking fluid. While it's a seriously cool concept, it's evidently a little basic and more or less totally un-upgradable.



The FAB is based around a Lian Li chassis, and unlike many of the mods on display at the show, it was quite a subtle mod. The box on the top of the case houses the watercooling loop's radiator, while the drive cage appears to have been completely rebuilt. He's also converted the side panel into a multi-pane case window so that you can see what's going on inside.

While it's not up to the standard of some of the cases we've shown you here, it's great to see that there is a good range of modding skill on show. Often, it's all too easy to get soaked up in some of the high quality custom builds.