Skip to main content
PC Gamer PC Gamer THE GLOBAL AUTHORITY ON PC GAMES
UK EditionUK US EditionUS CA EditionCanada AU EditionAustralia
Sign in
  • View Profile
  • Sign out
  • Cyber Monday
  • Games
  • Hardware
  • News
  • Reviews
  • Guides
  • Video
  • Forum
  • More
    • PC Gaming Show
    • Software
    • Movies & TV
    • Codes
    • Coupons
    • Magazine
    • Newsletter
    • Affiliate links
    • Meet the team
    • Community guidelines
    • About PC Gamer
PC Gamer Magazine Subscription
PC Gamer Magazine Subscription
Why subscribe?
  • Subscribe to the world's #1 PC gaming mag
  • Try a single issue or save on a subscription
  • Issues delivered straight to your door or device
From$32.49
Subscribe now
Don't miss these
Artwork of two women, one with grey skin and pointing a pistol offscreen.
RPG Disco Elysium successor XXX Nightshift is sick of your jokes about its name, announces it's called Tangerine Antarctic and it's a 3rd-person RPG now
A WorldCorp security guard totes a pistol.
RPG The Deus Ex mod that's a better sequel than Invisible War just got a mondo-update, and playing it couldn't be easier
A Hyperfunk doing a cool kickflip. Kickflips are always cool.
Sports Team Reptile announces Hyperfunk, a Bomb Rush Cyberfunk follow-up that's '2 seconds per second of evolved funkstyle'
Promotional art for Crashout Crew, a co-op party game by Aggro Crab, creators of Peak. In it several terrified warehouse workers try (and fail) to keep things under control.
Action Peak dev's next co-op game—Crashout Crew—is like spinning a plate, except the plate has a bunch of dynamite on it, and also somebody put bees in the road
A DUD logo makes its way towards a refrigerator tile in DVD Bounce World.
Roguelike The bouncing DVD logo screensaver is a Balatro now
A shirtless man leads a troupe of dancers.
Sim Someone made the Metal Gear Solid 4 channel-surfing section into a game and it's absolutely perfect
A screenshot of a playable version of the Windows 95 3D Maze screensaver
Windows I don't know how I missed this playable Windows 95-era 3D Maze screensaver, but it's making me feel like I'm tripping out, man
The ZX Spectrum lego model with extra monitor and figure
Hardware The ZX Spectrum is one of the most iconic PCs of all time, and it could be making a fun LEGO-based comeback
A "mechanical laptop" built around a Framework design, with rotary encoders sunk into the top
Gaming Laptops I now know what my life has been missing and it's a set of rotary encoders sunk straight into the top of a mechanical-keebed Framework laptop, for some reason
A number of black 56 Kbps dial-up modems stacked on top of eachother, red lights blinking.
Hardware Fancy some unorthodox, techy ASMR? Try the soothing sound of 12 dial-up modems all trying to connect to the internet at once
A white gaming PC built using a Thermaltake PC case, Cooler Master fans, and an AMD CPU.
Gaming PCs I've taken a proper bargain of a case from Thermaltake and built a gorgeous white PC with it
The Hive
PC Cases This utterly mesmerising beehive PC desk build took six months of painstaking labour and hypnotically simulates the bittersweet rise and fall of bee colonies in real time
A blackbird carrying a bindle over its shoulder, the logo of Sackbird Studios
Gaming Industry Laid-off devs of cancelled ZeniMax MMO Project Blackbird form new studio 'with no outside investors and full creative control,' and they're calling it Sackbird
A gaming PC in the process of being built, using Radeon and Ryzen components and an Asus Pro Art PA401 PC case.
Gaming PCs Moody and wooden, this PC and I have a lot in common: Asus ProArt Case PA401, Ryzen 7 9800X3D and RX 9070 XT build
A phone playing Wordle, laid on top of a dictionary
Puzzle Today's Wordle clues, hints and answer for September 8 (#1542)
Popular
  • All the deals
  • Best PC gear
  • Arc Raiders
  • PC Gaming Show
  • Quizzes
  1. Hardware
  2. PC Cases

Build of the week: Project XnineNINE

Features
By James Davenport published 16 May 2016

Da ba dee, da ba dye, da ba dee, da ba dye.

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.

Page 1 of 19
Page 1 of 19

Page 2 of 19
Page 2 of 19

Page 3 of 19
Page 3 of 19

Page 4 of 19
Page 4 of 19

Page 5 of 19
Page 5 of 19

Page 6 of 19
Page 6 of 19

Page 7 of 19
Page 7 of 19

Page 8 of 19
Page 8 of 19

Page 9 of 19
Page 9 of 19

Page 10 of 19
Page 10 of 19

Page 11 of 19
Page 11 of 19

Page 12 of 19
Page 12 of 19

Page 13 of 19
Page 13 of 19

Page 14 of 19
Page 14 of 19

Page 15 of 19
Page 15 of 19

Page 16 of 19
Page 16 of 19

Page 17 of 19
Page 17 of 19

Page 18 of 19
Page 18 of 19

Page 19 of 19
Page 19 of 19
James Davenport
James Davenport
Social Links Navigation

James is stuck in an endless loop, playing the Dark Souls games on repeat until Elden Ring and Silksong set him free. He's a truffle pig for indie horror and weird FPS games too, seeking out games that actively hurt to play. Otherwise he's wandering Austin, identifying mushrooms and doodling grackles. 

Every Monday, Build of the week highlights a unique rig from the web's most dedicated PC building communities.

Blue. It’s a color. Air. It’s that good breathing stuff. Computers. They’re computers. Combine the three and you get Project XnineNINE, a custom build from Malik Customs that maximizes minimalism. It’s an open face build harboring some serious components in a clean utilitarian pose. Were the XnineNINE mounted on a wall, I’d be looking for an artist’s statement.

No open face build gets away without looking a little chunky—bearing it all has that effect, but thanks to the smart use of color, the blues distract from the components’ visual noise and provide a stark contrast to the black framing. It’s a lovely combo that draws the eye towards the build’s best features. That is some beautiful cooling work. Doesn't it just make you want to sing?

Best picks for you
  • A white gaming PC built using a Thermaltake PC case, Cooler Master fans, and an AMD CPU. I've taken a proper bargain of a case from Thermaltake and built a gorgeous white PC with it
  • A gaming PC in the process of being built, using Radeon and Ryzen components and an Asus Pro Art PA401 PC case. Moody and wooden, this PC and I have a lot in common: Asus ProArt Case PA401, Ryzen 7 9800X3D and RX 9070 XT build
  • Artwork of two women, one with grey skin and pointing a pistol offscreen. Disco Elysium successor XXX Nightshift is sick of your jokes about its name, announces it's called Tangerine Antarctic and it's a 3rd-person RPG now

For more pictures and information on XnineNINE, head over to Malik Customs website or their Facebook page. 

 Project XnineNINE components: 

  • CPU: Intel 5960X
  • Mobo: Asus X99-A/3.1 USB
  • Sound: Asus Xonar Essence STX II 7.1
  • RAM: HyperX Savage 64GB DDR4 2800Mhz
  • SSD: HyperX Predator 240GB
  • HDD: WD RED WD60EFRX 6 TB
  • GPU: Inno3D GTX 980 Ti
  • Chassis: Thermaltake Core P5
  • Cables: Cablemod Custom Set Silver/Blue

Cooling components:

  • EK-Vardar F2-120
  • EK-CoolStream PE 480
  • EK-FB ASUS X99 Monoblock - Nickel
  • EK-FC Titan X - Nickel
  • EK-FC Titan X Backplate - Nickel
  • EK-XRES 140 Revo D5 PWM (incl. pump)
  • EK-RES X3 - TUBE 250
  • EK-Ekoolant EVO UV BLUE
  • EK-ACF Fitting 12/16mm - Blue
  •  EK-ACF Fitting 12/16mm - Silver
  • TUBE PrimoChill PrimoFlex™ Advanced
Deals not to miss
Artwork of two women, one with grey skin and pointing a pistol offscreen.
Disco Elysium successor XXX Nightshift is sick of your jokes about its name, announces it's called Tangerine Antarctic and it's a 3rd-person RPG now
 
 
A WorldCorp security guard totes a pistol.
The Deus Ex mod that's a better sequel than Invisible War just got a mondo-update, and playing it couldn't be easier
 
 
A Hyperfunk doing a cool kickflip. Kickflips are always cool.
Team Reptile announces Hyperfunk, a Bomb Rush Cyberfunk follow-up that's '2 seconds per second of evolved funkstyle'
 
 
Promotional art for Crashout Crew, a co-op party game by Aggro Crab, creators of Peak. In it several terrified warehouse workers try (and fail) to keep things under control.
Peak dev's next co-op game—Crashout Crew—is like spinning a plate, except the plate has a bunch of dynamite on it, and also somebody put bees in the road
 
 
A DUD logo makes its way towards a refrigerator tile in DVD Bounce World.
The bouncing DVD logo screensaver is a Balatro now
 
 
A shirtless man leads a troupe of dancers.
Someone made the Metal Gear Solid 4 channel-surfing section into a game and it's absolutely perfect
 
 
Latest in PC Cases
A PC case on a blue Cyber Monday background.
Add a touch of classy walnut to your gaming den with this spacious and flexible Lian Li case, for just $115 this Cyber Monday
 
 
A Hyte Y70 case on a blue Cyber Monday background.
The much coveted pastel colorways for the Hyte Y70 PC case are only $180 this Cyber Monday
 
 
A photo of the Thermal Grizzly Der8enchtable test platform next to its retail packaging
Thermal Grizzly Der8enchtable review
 
 
Thermaltake View 390 Air chassis on a desk. We're building a PC into it for testing and comparison with other PC cases.
Thermaltake View 390 Air review
 
 
A screenshot of Dbrand's companion cube Steam Machine case
Dbrand has teased a render of a Portal companion cube Steam Machine case, so you can... put a case around your case?
 
 
A promotional image of the SilverStone SST-FLP02 retro-styled PC case
The age of beige is back! SilverStone's new case is a glorious nod to PCs of the 1980s and 90s
 
 
Latest in Features
Screenshot from Hail to the Rainbow showing a robot with glowing red eyes
Five new Steam games you probably missed (December 1, 2025)
 
 
PC Gamer Holiday Gift Guide - 25 gifts under $25 - an Elden Ring pot lamp and a macro keypad
25 gifts around $25 for the PC gamers in your life
 
 
Blue & Blood mod
Inside the GTA mod that was so well-written its creators axed it to make their own game—and then returned to finish the job due to public demand
 
 
Key art for Warframe: The Old Peace, showing Uriel hoisting a banner on a Tau battlefield while flanked by sentient child Adis and a Grineer trooper.
Warframe's next big, WWI-inspired story update happened because a developer wrote the words 'Trench Warframe' on a whiteboard
 
 
Kowloon Walled City recreated in Minecraft
This Minecraft map that recreates one of history's most notorious slums made me reconsider what's important in 3D level design
 
 
Koana, a character from FF14's Dawntrail, reads from a tome - overlaid is PC Gamer's design for the Terminally Online column.
Debate: What is your objectively correct keybinding setup for your current MMO, and why is everybody else wrong?
 
 
  1. MSI and Asus gaming monitors on a green background with the PC Gamer recommended logo in the top right
    1
    Best gaming monitors in 2025: the pixel-perfect panels I'd buy myself
  2. 2
    The best fish tank PC case in 2025: I've tested heaps of stylish chassis but only a few have earned my recommendation
  3. 3
    Best gaming laptop 2025: I've tested the best laptops for gaming of this generation and here are the ones I recommend
  4. 4
    Best Hall effect keyboards in 2025: the fastest, most customizable keyboards for competitive gaming
  5. 5
    Best PCIe 5.0 SSD for gaming in 2025: the only Gen 5 drives I will allow in my PC
  1. A player lines up a headshot in Escape from Tarkov.
    1
    Escape from Tarkov review
  2. 2
    Lenovo Legion 9i Gen 10 review
  3. 3
    Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 review
  4. 4
    LG UltraGear 27GX790A OLED review
  5. 5
    Thermal Grizzly Der8enchtable review

PC Gamer is part of Future US Inc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Visit our corporate site.

Add as a preferred source on Google
  • About Us
  • Contact Future's experts
  • Terms and conditions
  • Privacy policy
  • Cookies policy
  • Advertise with us
  • Accessibility Statement
  • Careers

© Future US, Inc. Full 7th Floor, 130 West 42nd Street, New York, NY 10036.

Please login or signup to comment

Please wait...