Modding a case - need newbie tips ^^;

[Nagoshi]

Hello, first post on this forum :) And BTW I looooove the Doom3 case :D

So I am thinking about modding my case, currenly where it is placed it doesnt have much air flowing around it so I was thinking about modding the case itself and the environment a bit to help for the cooling. Basically Id like to have some ideas about what I could have done to my case - considering I am 16, no experience in modding, and my father got a bunch of tools where he works, so I should have everything I need - and I am asking you to help me on my first modding. Id also like you to tell me what I would need to do this and how I should do it.

First, here's a front shot of my case (only pic I got for now, Ill post more when Ill have more)
http://img466.imageshack.us/img466/7623/photo68bc.jpg

I am using an 80mm fan fixed at the front of the case, the thing I dislike about this case is the air holes in the front, they are kinda small. What makes it even worst, is that the fan is located on the right side. Meaning that, if I decide to make a hole in the front panel for a better fan flow, it won't be in the middle, which could make my front panel looks weird.

So I thought about first taking a drill and making some bigger holes (not LARGE holes, but a bit larger) and, since I am using a basic black fan, I thought about buying a new fan (maybe with LED lighting to add some effects) and maybe a new fan for the back of my case (it is making loud noises, maybe its the vibration but I dont know).

Where my case is located, there is like not even 2 inches of space between the desk's back panel and the case (just enough for the VGA cable so it wont be all twisted) and thus air flow aint great. Il ltry to draw something with PAINT to show this. I am thinking about using something like one or two 120v fans to put under my case (ive got some space between the case and the floor) to take the air from the back to push it out to the front.

Oh, another thing : my rig specs :

Pentium3 550E MHz OCed to 600MHz socket 370 sitting on a Slot1
ABIT BE6-II v1.0
448Mb Ram (1x128 100MHz, 1x64 66 or 100MHz, 1x256 133MHz, all crappy brands)
ATI Radeon 7500 64Mb
Sparkle 250Watts switched (I got a normal 450watts P4 PSU lying somewhere, and its new, so in case I am missing power, I may use it)

I may buy a new computer soon (piece by piece) so if this case is good-enough modded and air cooled I may take this case for my new comp.

Ill try to make some crappy drawings of what my case's location looks like, what I would like to do with it, and maybe you could post comments on what could be done to help the modding. I will also take shots of the inside of my computer, the rear of my computer like it is right now (with the 2 inches space), front of the case without the panel, etc, all you should need to help me further in this.

Thanks! -A modding newbie :)

[Slug Toy]

well it looks like you'll have your hands full as a first-timer. good to hear you've got access to an abundance of tools, it always makes life easier.

honestly, i dont like what i see. the hardware is old and very slow for today's standards, and the case is ugly, and you mentioned the front fan not being centered. dont even get me started on the lack of room around the case...

if you need help with anything to do with metalwork, i have a thread in "tips and tricks" about it. if you are thinking about putting in a window or some sort of acrylic feature, theres a thread about that too in tips and tricks. same for electronics. if anything hasnt been covered and you want to know, just ask, and one of us will answer and probably add to the tips and tricks section if need be.

actually, after having thought about the front fan for a good... 30 seconds... not having it centered might be an interesting thing to see. sort of like on a race car where there are ugly air ducts popping out everywhere. it gets the job done. i cant really say a heck of a lot more right now though.

definitely get some pictures going here. i want to see what you have in mind, and if possible i want to see the interior of the case (it would help us help you if we can get as much info as possible).

one last thing here. dont think small. the only reason i, and probably many others, have the skills we do is because we did what people said we couldnt. a year ago, i had practically no metal skills at all. now i know a fair amount (but forgot about welding) and am passing on what i know. point being is that you'll probably hear "ya right, like you can do that." a lot, but dont listen. listening is overrated, nobody got anywhere by listening...

[Cevinzol]

Your case looks like a normal mid tower to me. It needs a little cleaning. Considering its a P3-550 I bet its got some miles on it. There's a good chance the inside needs cleaning too. Remember dust works like an insulator.

A pic of the inside would really help us suggest ideas but here's a few based on what I see so far:

1) Your front to back air flow is limited but it looks like you have good space above the case. You might want to think of top venting the case (aka. a blowhole). Or rigging some PVC piping from the back exhaust to the front.

2) Extend the venting hole pattern throught the whole bottom front of the case and unless there is an obstruction, it should be easy to drill some new holes to center the 80mm fan in the front. To increase air flow remember to enlarge the holes in the steel under the plastic bezel as well. If your feeling brave cut out a nice big, neat, square at the botom of the case, install a 120mm fan and cover the hole with some metal mesh or speaker fabric.

3) I would stay away from venting from the bottom. First you'd have to drill through the shelf the case if on - not sure if thats an option. Second unless you put some filters on the botom fans, you'd probably blow a lot of dust bunnies into the machine.

4) Your case is stored in a tight place. Work on the front bezel and make it the showpiece of the case. A side window is cool but it and most internal lights won't be seen much on a daily basis.

Remember to take your components out of your machine before doing any modding to the case.

Aside from some venting changes, do you have an idea in mind for a theme or color scheme?

Good luck

[xmastree]

well it looks like you'll have your hands full as a first-timer. good to hear you've got access to an abundance
OMG! I thought that said ambulance... :rolleyes:

Anyway, about cooling. An inlet at the front, low down would definately help. Assuming the rear fans are outlets and it's open at the back of the location.
Edit: I just re-read your OP, and see that it's not... Can you cut a hole in the desk, behind the computer? If not, it's probably better to move the rear fan to the top, since there appears to be more space above it.

Why not pop the front panel off and take a photo of what's in there? Let's see this off-centre fan.

An off-centre vent would look good IMO. I'm not a fan of symmetry.

Here's my fan:
http://i50.photobucket.com/albums/f341/chrispollard/cooldisks.jpg
Doing a nice job of cooling those disks. If yours is similar, then a vent in the front should make a big difference without being too difficult to make.

The easy and cheap way would be to simply make a large hole in the front, in line with the fan, then fit something like this to the outside.

http://www.extreme-dynamics.com/BladeMetalGrill.jpg (http://images.google.com/images?q=fan%20grill)
(click it for more options)

Alternatively, you could go with Slug's racing scoop idea and use a short piece of plastic pipe set into the front. That would need more work as it involves using body filler, then painting it.

Paint woildn't be such a bad idea actually, that's one plain case...

[Nagoshi]

Thanks for all your encouraging replies :D

Sooo this morning it is a snowing day, I just thought I might share this information, considering last week it was 20C outside o_O Ill make some drawings if I have the time, if not Ill make some after school. Ill also take as many shots as posible.

I know my english is bad (16 years old French Quebecker) and you have misunderstood when I said I had space under my case. I have a good spacing under my case, and that is what I thought about taking the hot air from the rear of my case and push it in the front. Ill make a quick draw of this too.

The thing is, the case I am thinking about modding is the only working computer I have right now, the other powerful one I have is a Pentium2 and it doesnt have RAMs in it. so I was thinking about using another *damn ugly* case to make it a little more beautiful. As I may just switch the inside of one to the other. Since we use alot of the computer, I couldnt just bring out everything from the computer and not use it for like 1 week or more.. And if theres something I dislike in this, its the case switching, and the mobo switching, as I have heard death stories that happened to people who wanted to change their mobos or cases. Considering my father is agile in this kind of thing tho I may just ask him to help me out if I ever need to empty my case. In fact, I still havent talked to him about the modding o_O

Nuff talking, Ill get to scratching.

EDIT : About painting, I dont know if Id paint it, since I would have to paint my CD and DVD burners, and I like to keep my stuff originally-looking. Altho I was thinking about painting them the same color as my case if I would paint it, then take off the fromt CD Tray panel and paint it and then paint some kind of decals for the CD speed, brand, etc.

[xmastree]

The thing is, the case I am thinking about modding is the only working computer I have right nowYou can still use it with no front panel. If you pop off the front, and remove the switches and lights from it the computer can still be used and you will have time to work on just the panel.

[Nagoshi]

Yea but if I need to bring the case to where my father works to make any holes, I wont bring the whole thing...

A thing I like from my case tho, the lights and switching are direcly in the case and not in the panel, which means I can take off the panel anytime with my computer working.

Ill be posting new shots when Ill have finished something, ill try to do it as fast as possible.

[Nagoshi]

http://img339.imageshack.us/img339/5619/photo86ou.jpg
http://img339.imageshack.us/img339/3976/photo47cv.jpg
http://img339.imageshack.us/img339/6896/photo22yg.jpg
http://img339.imageshack.us/img339/9844/photo31oy.jpg
http://img339.imageshack.us/img339/886/photo94jq.jpg
http://img414.imageshack.us/img414/746/photo109xv.jpg
Here are shots of my case. Couldn ttake one of the inside, but Ill take one when Ill be able to unplug it so I can take it off (cables are streched).

http://img405.imageshack.us/img405/3596/caseflow2ei.jpg
This one shows my case position, and I already wrote the color meanings in it but Ill repeat them. when it's dark green, it's the desk panels, grey means case, red means actual flow, blue means wanted flow, black n red square means actual fans, black n blue means wanted fans, pink shows the wiring. Should be it.

I may as well take a first step by just modding my intake hole in the front of the case, the question is if I am going to let my fan off-centre or drill new holes to make it centered? Since I am going to know it when I will be modding my front panel. I may only drill new bigger holes for intake in the front, I still dont know. Im asking for recommendations. I may go buy new fans (probly with LEDs to add some lighting) and a fan grill for the front intake, and maybe even paint my comp if I need to. Another thing, the case panels are made of some kind of steel, maybe aluminium, maybe steel, I dont know which one, but it aint plastic. Only the front panel is.

Thanks alot for your help again :D

EDIT : I may as well take one of the front 5.25'' bay panels and try to make a fan sit there to make a better airflow, altho the cabling is a mess, but if I need to buy new stuff I may buy new IDE round cables.

[Cannibal23]

hey there. Quebec eh. 20 C last week and snowing today you must be near where i am. Im in Ottawa your probably in Gatineau or Hull right.

you said quickly as possable. this is no good dude. take your time, make it nice and do it safely. if you rush your more likely to make mistakes or have an accident. Always do the work at your own pace.

if you need some ram or other componants and your near Ottawa let me know cause i have piles of stuff.

[Cannibal23]

The easy and cheap way would be to simply make a large hole in the front, in line with the fan, then fit something like this to the outside.

http://www.extreme-dynamics.com/BladeMetalGrill.jpg (http://images.google.com/images?q=fan%20grill)
(click it for more options)

this fan grill looks amazing. it would totaly suit some ideas i have. thanks very much

[Nagoshi]

YEa I know. what I wanted to do fast was to take shots of my computer, and my drawing. but normally I take my time to make it works the way I want.

And no I dont live near Ottawa, sadly. I live in Drummondville, which is kinda between Quebec and Montreal.

Im wondering what it would looks like on my case if the fan intake is off-center.

Since I am probably going to get a new computer soon, I just told myself ''instead of buying a new case, I could use this one if it alreasy has a nice customized air cooling'' so Im thinking about making it looks damn cool. altho I dont want to spend $$$ on it, I think I can get something to work and stand nice for cheap.

Ive got a link to the Extreme OverClocking forums where I found shots of a guy that had the same case as me (but black) and modded it kinda. Keep in mind that he got the same tower as me, which means he actually made new holes to make his fan centered.

http://forums.extremeoverclocking.com/showthread.php?t=211201

If the link doesnt work, or if you need to be logged in to see this, just tell me and Ill take the link of the shots and post them there.

[Nagoshi]

No replies eh... So what youre recommending me to do? keeping the front fan off-center and make a blow hole in the front panel? or just drill bigger holes in the holes that are already made (but doesnt flow much air right now)? Ill surely buy a new fan soon when Ill have the cash. It shouldnt cost alot...

[jdbnsn]

Please be patient as some questions aren't answered for days. As for the pics, I couldn't see them, I think you need to be a member to view them. Got any other pictures to see?

[Nagoshi]

You couldnt see the pictures...? Strange, cause I see them. I would post them on my FTP but I have port problems with my computer/internet/modem/firewall and can't seem to access FTP (I try to locate an FTP port when I get an error but they vary from 5001 to 5xxx and 61xxx to 6xxxx.. ill think bout something).

Pictures are in page 1 in this thread.

I was thinking about using a red-lighted theme for lights and maybe a black/silver theme for painting if I ever paint the whole thing. I would have took blue, I still have to think about it anyway, can'T seem to decide myself over blue and red.

[jdbnsn]

Maybe before you go any further you should take a step back and decide overall what you goal is here. If you want to keep the case for a new system, then I recommend not holding back and design the best possible case that suits you, whether it is a theme or just a facelift and that will probably help you decide where the fan should be. But if you are wondering if it would be too hard to move, then I would say no, very easy. So without knowing what your final product is supposed to look like, it's hard for others to form an opinion of this nature I think.

[Slug Toy]

jdbnsn has it pretty much right. im having a bit of trouble visualizing what you can do with what you have. i for one like to draw a lot before i decide on something final (i think i went through at least 10 ideas for my zanzibar mod).

what i would like to see (key word being "I", i dont speak for everyone) is a nice scale drawing, or at least something clean and representative. i found it hard to look at all the arrows slapped on your pictures. i read best in blueprint form.

i might be able to help with colours though. im the resident designer at my house as well (i have experience in almost everything these days). you would want to go with blue if you dont want the case to be too eye-catching, because it would blend with the green of your desk. if you want the case to really stand out, go with red because its the opposite of green on the colour chart. as for silver, it works with a lot of things, so dont worry about making changes to it.

personally, id like to see you do a silver and dark cobalt blue combo, because those colours look so good together. cobalt and ultra pure white is a second best. add in some dull blue lighting, and you've got a very interesting scene happening.

so heres what you have to do:

-finalize where you want to go with your case (stucture, airflow, colour, everything)
-draw, draw, draw, draw, draw, draw, oh, and draw some more
-walk away for a few hours, and then come back and critique your own work
-let us know when you're happy with what you came up with

[Nagoshi]

I may try to draw a sample of my case and ''mod'' it the way I want, the prob is that I dont know how to use Photoshop for 3d realisations. I would draw it but, no scanners. I may simply draw it and scan it at a friend's house.

Basically my ides is to make my case look better and having a better airflow. I may sleeve my PSU cables with some black plastic cable sleeving (you know, the stuff that is cut in the half and you dont need to open your PSU and sleeve all the cables one by one)

I finally managed to access my FTP so no more imageshack! Ive got an inside shot of my Pentium3 :
http://www.pisschrist.net/uca/Frost/compshots/p3inside.jpg

Its kind of a mess, I have 5 large IDE cables (all used) and no sleeving and nothing. I just remembered my front panel has some breathing holes under it, I feel air moving there so I remembered the fan takes its air from the bottom. But still, the front panel block alot of air from entering, I felt the air blowing in the computer with and without the panel and there's a big difference.

I also have shots of another (there is a blown off Pentium4 in it) cheaper case, I may as well use this one and mod it. The ideas are still moving in my head, Ill have to focus on one thing. This P4 case got NO airflow hole in the front, and there is an USB panel that may interfere with a blowhole. Ill have to take some measurement on this one.

http://www.pisschrist.net/uca/Frost/compshots/p4detailedfront.jpg
http://www.pisschrist.net/uca/Frost/compshots/p4frontlight.jpg
http://www.pisschrist.net/uca/Frost/compshots/p4insidefront.jpg
http://www.pisschrist.net/uca/Frost/compshots/p4insideback.jpg
http://www.pisschrist.net/uca/Frost/compshots/p4inside.jpg
I dont like the design of the case, but I could mod this one to some nice case, since it already have USB and headphone/microphone imputs in the front. Somethng for sure, if I mod this case, I will paint it.

Ill think more about it today, Ill also sketch my idea of my P4 case on a sheet of paper and Ill try to take a photo of the sketching if my webcam/camera will allow it.. X_X

[Nagoshi]

Thought about the whole thing, if I am going to mod something, it will be the second case (the Pentium4 case). I was thinking about using a dark tainted plexi (but not opaque, so it can hide my beige case and drives but let the LED indicators show themselves, even if they do not bright alot, as long as I can see my DVD drive is spinning its okay) to cover all of the 5.25'' bays, cut all of them so I can ''stick'' each 5.25 tainted plexi on each 5.25 bays so when I open my DVD drive the tainted plexi moves with it. I forgot where this project was located in these forums, but Ill try to find it back.

Since the power and reset buttons are in the way of the fan, 3 choices are offere to me:
1. Move the original casing buttons in another place on the front panel, meaning Ill have to make a big round front blowhole.
2. Cut all the part where the fan and buttons/LED are placed, put a new panel there, get new buttons and stick them elsewhere and making a front intake shaped the way I want.
3. Leave all the buttons there and make a weird-shaped intake.

I was also thinking about removing all the grey panels on the side of the front panel and replacing them with plexis, and putting the buttons there. Maybe Ill add some lighting there to make an effect with my front fan.

Ill find a way to draw something that would show what I want to do with my case.

[Slug Toy]

oh, for the project with the plexi on the disc drives, i think you mean tribal's blackout mod. go check it out if you havent found it already.

ill wait for your pictures before i say anything more.

[Nagoshi]

Yeah it was Tribal's Blackout mod. now I remember it. Ill take a look to it again just to be sure.

I hate my camera. Its a logitech clocksmart 420, and its first use is a webcam. It cant take clear pictures. Anyway Ill try to take a good shot of my Pentium4 case (the one with the ugly grey bar on the side of the front panel)

And I dont have any programs for blueprinting/3d rendering except Photoshop CS2 9.0 and I cant use it at its full power right now (lets say I dont know how to use it) so maybe if someone could find me a drawing tool on computer except paint and photoshop, thanks alot :)

Ill try to get something done with Photoshop, but I am not sure of the resulting.

Yay! After like 5 minutes of taking shots with my noob camera I finally got some interesting pose :
http://www.pisschrist.net/uca/Frost/compshots/p4frontshot.jpg3
Its showing the case's and cover's front panels both side by side. We can see the power/reset buttons and the USB panel are blocking the way to the fan grill (80mm fan). And I looked thru the front panel's back carefully, and I noticed the only airflow the front fan could get, was from the holes for the USB and headphone/mic holes that are larger than the plugs... Pathetic.

Okay so my plexi idea was to : cover each 5.25 slots so when I open my CD drive the panel moves with it (like in blackout mod, except I didnt had time to look thru the thread) and surely using more plexi around the corner to replace the grey corners of the front panel. I could then cut the front panel as much as I want and the mod it the way I want. I would also place the buttons/LEDs and USB/headphone/mic plugs in these corners. That way I would have all the space I want for the modding.

Gotta go for now, my bro wants the ocmputer, Ill try to draw something until then.

[Nagoshi]

Aight now I have my build idea (no images yet, i cant have access to a scanner). Im thinking about getting new POWER and RESET buttons and put them in the little USB panel at the bottom of the panel, that way it will look clearer. Im also thinking about using plexi with the 2 sides painted silver for my POWER and HDD LEDs, so I will stick my HDD and POWER LEDs to it and hopefully the silver painting to conduct the lights to one border of the plexi piece that will be glued to the front panel (instead of using 2 round holes, I went for an original shot by using one plexi border to conduct the light to the other side).

Ill also stick with the tainted plexi replacing the grey corners we can see on the front panel, and I will also cover the disk bays with the same dark plexi.

The only thing I still dont know is about the intake; I dont know how to shape it. I noticed the place where my POWER, RESET and LEDs (between my 3.5'' bay and my ''USB panel'') are currenly placed, has a curving in it. My first idea was to cut this whole panel out and replace it with another so I can shape it the way I want. The problem is, how will I get the original curving my current panel has? I cant heat the new plactic and curve it the way I want, itll get al lfuzzy. I cant use the original panel to curve it too, since the POWER button has a relief.

Im thinking about some things right now.. but meanwhile any ideas you would have would be greatly appreciated. I was thinking about some trappings that would cover the whole panel, but I need to know if this idea will works. Thanks!

[Cannibal23]

lol i have the exact same case sitting on my desk at work. crazy... anyways. i think if you got creative with a drimmel and measured stuff out with a compas you could probably fit a bigger fan in the front panel and on the outside plastics just cut arround whatever you want to keep. most likely you could do the same on the back too.

[Nagoshi]

The same case.. Do you mean, the ''square''-themed one? Or the while-grey-black-strange case?

Ill think about using a bigger fan both as front intake and back blowing.. I dont have unlimited budget tho o_O And I need quiet fans..

Yesterday I cleaned my CPU heatsink and I noticed the fan is only a 12V 0.06A... I may change it for another fan I have around.

Ill think about the whole stuff Ill be doing, I need to know what I am going to need for this, Ill need to buy them, to ask my father if he wants (thisll be the first step), and then get to work. Most of the tools I am going to need are where my father works, I dont know if he will let me use them.

[RangerDanger]

i would just knock out the whole bottom of the front panel and add either a 140 fan 130 or a normal 120.

[Nagoshi]

I want something stylish and stealthy, so no big holes. Ill think about it, since right now Ive got other things to do.. :S