The TiCKLER Lymphoma Build

    In the "About Us" column on the left side of this page, I explained how each computer differs as much as the person using it.  Each computer also receives a name.  You decide the name when we go through the build process.  Some people might want to name their computer after their surname or given name (i.e. The Jones Project or Tom's Titanic Technological Piece).  Be creative with the name and have fun with it.  If you want the name painted onto the computer, that is something that can be discussed in the building process.

    This particular computer received its name as a tribute to someone who is near and dear to me.  So dear in fact that she put the "T" in TiCKLER.  She was diagnosed with, and is battling Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma.

    Initially, I planned to build this computer and then auction it off; then donate all proceeds above cost to The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.  That was decided against when we figured out a better use for this computer.   This computer will be used for Folding@Home to assist in finding a cure for many diseases to include Lymphoma.  Go to http://folding.stanford.edu/ to find out more about this project if you would like to help in researching for cures.

    Back to the TiCKLER Lymphoma Build.  This computer is completely Air Cooled yet still blows all the competition out of the water.  In today's custom computers, many builders are moving to "Water Cooled" systems.  Water cooling is not a bad idea, but does have a lot more maintenance (i.e. changing out the water, flushing the system or dealing with leaks).  With Air Cooled systems, all you have to do is plug it in and turn it on.  Just like any computer you purchase at your local electronic store, you do want to occasionally open the case and blow the dust out with some canned air.

    Eventually, I may switch the TiCKLER Lymphoma Build to water cooling, however I wanted to see how fast this computer could go "Air Cooled" and it did not disappoint.  In fact, it is one of the fastest "Air Cooled" computers in the world at an amazing speed of 5.2GHz.  Currently, the fastest computer you can buy in any store is 3.4GHz (which is what this CPU was born as).  Go down and play with that computer, see how fast it is, and then imagine what it's like to use a computer that is 65% faster.  Let me tell you, it's a dream.  Think of it this way, it is 100% faster than a 2.6GHz, which is probably what you have if you bought your computer about a year ago.

    Although it is the basis, anyone who knows anything about computers knows that CPU frequency/speed is not the only thing you need to have a fast computer.  We know there is a difference between "Consumer" memory and "High-end" memory, "Consumer" hard drives and "High-end" hard drives, "Consumer" motherboards and "Builder" motherboards.  The list could go on and on for every part in the computer.  Understand that TiCKLER Computers do not get anything except hand selected parts, each bought individually to suit the purpose of that computer.

    The TiCKLER Lymphoma Build was no exception.  It received nothing but the best.  Here is a "Spec" list of what drives this computer...

NZXT Phantom Full Tower Case (Fans - 3X 200mm, 1X 140mm, 3X 120mm)

ASUS Maximus IV Extreme Motherboard

Intel i7 2600K 3.4GHZ Quad-core with Hyper threading (Over clocked to a stable 5.2GHz)

16MB gSkill Memory - 1600MHz at 7-8-7-24 CAS

7 - 1TB Seagate Barracuda 7200RPM Hard Drives (2 of them running in RAID 0)

1 - 120GB OCZ Vertex 3 SSD (Operating System and main programs)

Prolimatek Megahalems with 2 Cooler Master R4 series 90CFM fans in push/pull configuration

2 - EVGA GTX-560Ti Maximum Graphics Edition Graphics Cards (In SLI)

Thermaltake ToughPower Grand 1050W power supply

LiteOn BluRay Burner

Sony BluRay Burner

MultiMedia Card Reader

    Although those are the major components that went into building the TiCKLER Lymphoma Build, that doesn't nearly cover everything.  I estimate that I ran close to 100 feet of cable inside this computer but when you look at the pictures, you only see a few feet tops.  This is all thanks to the genius design of the NZXT Phantom's cable management.  By putting all the cables behind the motherboard and components, this allows the air to flow freely through the case making it much cooler.

    The color for the TiCKLER Lymphoma Build was an easy choice.  The support color for Lymphoma is green, thus the green was incorporated into the all black case.  The case originally came with blue LEDs.  Each of these LEDs had to be de-soldered, removed and replaced with green LEDs.  That proved to be a project of and in itself.

    The case was completely taken apart to receive its new dress.  For the inside, I went for a polished aluminum look.  I wanted to accent the green LED light strips that were installed around the inside of the case and felt that a polished aluminum would achieve this.  To complete the interior, anything that was not black or green was either painted green or lined with green non-conductive adhesive (A fancy name for green electrical tape LOL).

    For the exterior, a lot of time went into prepping the case for paint.  In fact, I am a firm advocate in taking twice as much time to prepare than it would take to paint.  This alleviates the need for a lot of over-spray cleanup from the airbrushes.  The final product was a beautiful Pearl Green on a Black case.  The green Lymphoma support ribbon was then painted onto the large screen of the case.  Originally it was Pearl Lime Green, but it looked too much like yellow so it was repainted to a Shimmering Green.

    As I stated earlier, this was a project that had a lot of meaning to me as the person it was inspired by means a lot to me.  The TiCKLER Lymphoma Build is an amazing computer to represent an amazing person.


This is the proof of the 5.2GHz

This is with the original Lime Green Lymphoma ribbon before it was changed to Shimmering Green.

This is the front/side view.  This is before the 2nd BluRay Burner and 2nd Graphics Card were added.

This really shows off the polished aluminum interior.  Also notice the limited number of visible wires, even though there is about 100 feet of wiring in there.

This is a great before and after photo of the front of the case.  Attention to detail is key.

This is the TiCKLER Lymphoma Build in her night clothes.  Keep in mind, it came with all blue LEDs.  Since this photo, the 2 meter green light cable was installed to the inside to really give it glow and a 5 LED green lightbar was added to the top to show off the top screens.

I will try to post newer photos of the completed TiCKLER Lymphoma Build once my new camera gets here.  I would really like to show you the true colors and advancement of this amazing computer.