Ultimate PC driven setup and new custom PC case

[etc6849]

It was definitely worth the wait on this custom A-Tech Fabrication PC chassis.  The case was built by a master craftsman/machinist and is a true handmade case built in the USA; although a tad expensive, well worth it if you think about the hours they must have spent to make every part, the large heatsinks, hand brush even the inside surfaces, etc...  If you don't have a CNC machine and months to spend designing such a case, it is an extreme value for what you get (compared to the snake oil stuff I see anyways) and they really do make the best PC cases I have ever seen.

http://atechfabrication.com/

 

Glenn and his team did an incredible job.  The fit and finish is something you'd see on a $10k+ audio component.

 

 

A-Tech's custom mount for the Griffin PowerMate knob:

 

Some more pics of the inside.  I made the internal cables, bought and assembled the PC components, custom programmed the VFD and Griffin Powermate knob, replaced Nvidia GTX 1080 fans and power supply fan, etc...  This PC is super super quiet incase you are wondering.  Regrettably, I couldn't passively cool the GPU as the highest A-Tech can do right now in my case is a GTX 1070 and I had already bought the GTX 1080 on Black Friday (for under $500...  crazy how video cards went up in price).

 

 

Older pics of the back of the front rack.  I built these and made all audio cables (this older pic has a OrigenAE case).

 

Some note worthy technical details:

• Hard to find slim Pioneer UHD drive (for 4k UHD blu-ray playback)
• Nvidia GTX 1080, fed using MadVR for video rendering
• RME HDSPe AES audio card with 16 in/out channels.  This card has a 42 bit internal DSP and the RME TotalMix software is used for crystal clear volume control at very low volumes.
• Benchmark AHB2 amps, truly a technological achievement with the best measurements ever shown on Stereophile: https://www.stereophile.com/content/benchmark-media-systems-ahb2-power-amplifier-measurements. The noise floor is so low you cannot hear it, and the distortion is the best available right now.  The difference is very audible incase you were wondering too!
• Xilica XD4080 speaker processors (each unit has 40 bit DSPs and integrated DACs for output channels, 4 in/8 out).  The Xilica's are setup to tri-amp my front speakers and cross to 5 subs to yield even lower distortion.  They have FIR filters for high/mid/low, and I use a low order Bessel filter to cross to the subs.
• Of course the room has several sound treatments and bass traps to enhance performance evermore, and no EQ adjustment is needed to achieve +/-5dB at main listening position all the way down to about 16Hz.  This took 5 time aligned and level matched subs to do without Dirac, but the performance improvement is incredible.

 

 

[etc6849]

Video of the VFD, volume control and remote in action:

https://drive.google.com/open?id=19DguWj0G3R-7xSj7UBlGWrW507STXZSA

[Evo-No-Revo]

My next custom build will probably use something from A-Tech for a case.   I am just not sure what to put in one at the moment.  It seems like new tech for computer audio playback is in high gear right now.   I am going to wait and see what happens over the next few months.

 

Congratulations on the new piece of kit! 

[boneman]

Wow!  I can certainly appreciate the beauty and effort in your build.

[etc6849]

@boneman @Evo-No-Revo

 

Thanks guys.  Too bad you can't hear it

 

While the case didn't really do anything for my sound, the new power supply (Seasonic SSR-850TR) did get rid of the "coil whine" I was hearing from using my GTX 1080 GPU.  While it wasn't noticeable until I modded the GPU with Noctua fans, it was annoying when watching a movie with quiet scenes, but was totally gone after getting a larger power supply.

 

I'm honestly not sure how much it matters for sound as my DACs are outside of my PC (housed inside the Xilica XD4080 speaker processors), but the SSR-850TR has some of the best measurements for a power supply without capacitors on the cables.