Installation:

     Unlike most cases, where installation typically involves throwing your parts into it and calling it a day, the Water Box Plus comes disassembled.  While this may be an annoyance to some, it is actually convenient to extreme case modders, as they would have to disassemble the case anyway.  Shipping the case in pieces also ensures that it arrives in one piece.  We will go through the installation step by step as per Danger Den’s included instructions.

Notes:

Here are some pre-installation notes from Danger Den’s instruction manual:

1. Your “Water Box” may be customized and look different, but all “Water Box” cases will assemble in the same manner. 

2. All computer components shown in these drawings are for reference only, and are not part of the “Water Box”. 

3. The “Water Box” has been proven to work well with the use of the Black Ice Pro Single Pass Radiator and the Black Ice Extreme Single Pass Radiator.  Other radiators may fit, but may create a challenge when it is time to plumb the system.

4. The “Water Box” has been proven to work well with the use of the DDC pump.  Other pumps may fit, but may create a challenge when it is time to plumb the system.

5. Velcro was used to mount the DDC pump.  This is not included in the DD Water Box kit and needs to be purchased separately.

6. During assembly, leaving the screws slightly loose will help with aligning the case panels.  After all the panels are in place, go back over the entire case and tighten all the screws.

Step 1:

     The first step is basic enough.  First off we grab the “Back Wall” panel, and peel off the protective backing.  All panels have the protective film on it.  The film itself is hard to get off at start, but once you get a little bit up, the rest is easy.

Next prepare the back panel: Screw the metal PCI bracket into the back wall panel.

Step 2:

     The next step is to install the motherboard tray by screwing into the back wall.  We also install the optical drive mounts under the motherboard tray as well.

Step 3:

     Next we install the Case Bottom as well as the feet.  All the case panels screw together with long screws and a nut. As you can see from the pic below, the nut fits in a little groove in the case and the screw fits through the panel into the nut.  This avoids having to thread the acrylic, reducing the chance of cracking it. 

Step 4:

     Here we attach both side panels with the same screws.  The panels attach to each other as well as the motherboard tray, so everything is rock stable. 

The panels are attached here in a different angle.

Step 5:

     Finally, we get to install some hardware.  The power supply screws into the back wall, standing vertically.  Three hard drives can be screwed directly into the back wall as well, and two additional drives can be screwed into the bottom.  This arrangement means that the hard drives are actually cooled by the power supply’s fan, a definite plus here.  Two optical drives can be placed directly under the motherboard, facing opposite directions.  Here is where we would also start installing the water cooling kit as well, with the radiator on the bottom left with the two 120mm access holes, and the pump on the right behind the power supply.

Step 6:

     The last step is to finish installing all the hardware and attach the last two panels.   As you can see, there are two 80mm fan holes at the top.  I had a bit of an issue installing my PCI devices:  the motherboard mounted so close to the PCI bracket that I could not fit the metal bracket between the motherboard and the case.  I ended up having to remove the metal bracket on my 7800GTX and my X-Fi  in order to fit them in.

     I contacted Danger Den directly about this, and they told me that they have adjusted the position of the motherboard mounting holes, so that this will not be an issue going forward.