looking to mod my dell 4700

[zombeh]

hello everyone,

i came to this forum for some help. i'm very interested in looking to mod my dell 4700. i've never modded before and don't know much about adding fans or about the connectors to the mobo.

here is my current air flow:

(red arrows show where the fans are blowing)

so what im trying to do is add a front intake fan and a side fan, and maybe 2 rear exhaust (replace the single)

help and suggestions please.

[CanaBalistic]

Thoes Dell cases are tight for space. They dont really give you any room to play with. If you can live with one dvd drive, you can put a fan bank in the empty drive bay. They help cool your dvd drive aswell.

[zombeh]

id rather just leave them in. i think i can fit a fan in the 1rst hard drive bracket, and maybe screw the harddrive on to the floor of the case?

[zombeh]

also look at this dell 2300 mod, the 2300's and 4700's have hte same stuff pretty much,


http://hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=902472&page=1

[Zephik]

I too also have a Dell 4700, except my airflow is the opposite of yours? Odd? Anyways, Cana-Ballistic is right when he said there Isn't much room to do... well anything really. You can add a fan in the front, that would be easy as heck. Just put one in there and tah dah. A side fan would also be easy to do. Drill some holes and screw it in and tah dah once again! You MIGHT be able to get dual exhaust if you really want it. I personally would go with more side fans and a really good exhaust fan.

Dont you just hate that big ugly green duct?? lol I DO! Glad to see a fellow dell sucker.

Oh also, you can also just get a brand new case to mod? They are pretty cheap. I am getting mine at www.newegg.com. You'll find most people using that website due to their truly amazing service.

GOOD LUCK!
SF

[zombeh]

I too also have a Dell 4700, except my airflow is the opposite of yours? Odd? Anyways, Cana-Ballistic is right when he said there Isn't much room to do... well anything really. You can add a fan in the front, that would be easy as heck. Just put on in there and tah dah. A side fan would also be easy to do. Drill some holes and screw it in and tah dah once again! You MIGHT be able to get dual exhaust if you really want it. I personally would go with more side fans and a really good exhaust fan.

Dont you just hate that big ugly green duct?? lol I DO! Glad to see a fellow dell sucker.

Oh also, you can also just get a brand new case to mod? They are pretty cheap. I am getting mine at www.newegg.com. You'll find most people using that website due to their truly amazing service.

GOOD LUCK!
SF

well as you might now know, dell shipped most of their 4700s with the rear fan as an INTAKE blowing air into the green chute, it should be EXHAUSTING. i took the fan out and flipped it around (brought temps down quite a bit). when you say put the fans in there, can you explain how? i need a 4 pin connector on the fan right? that connects to the psu? should i mounth the harddrive on the floor of the case so the fan can hit everything?

i would love to put all my stuff in a new case, but i heard you can't due to the power switch or something.

[Zephik]

well as you might now know, dell shipped most of their 4700s with the rear fan as an INTAKE blowing air into the green chute, it should be EXHAUSTING. i took the fan out and flipped it around (brought temps down quite a bit). when you say put the fans in there, can you explain how? i need a 4 pin connector on the fan right? that connects to the psu? should i mounth the harddrive on the floor of the case so the fan can hit everything?

i would love to put all my stuff in a new case, but i heard you can't due to the power switch or something.

It brought the temps down? Wierd, Didnt think it would do that since to me it seems it would be better to pass air over and through the heatsink to help cool it off? Eh, In any case I dont need to do that with my rockin P4 2.8!

Hmmm, the power switch you say? Well as I understand it, when you buy a new case it comes with a power switch built into the case already. So just unplug your current one, which you have to do anyways if you take the mobo out to transfer, and plug in your new one where your dell one was previously. I haven't switched over just yet, but I can't see a problem with switching over. Maybe I am overlooking something though? Anyone know why people say you cant switch over?

-SF

[ReverendBob]

My current comp is actaully frankensteined from the ashes of a dead Dell. The mobo and PS are proprietary (Like emachines). There's a possibility that other things are set up unique. Perhaps the plug in for the power is reversed? I do know that if you attempt to mix and match the major dell parts, you can destroy the componants. From my Dell (mobo died) I was able to salvage and use:

1. Proc
2. Memory
3. CDROM
4. Floppy
5. HD

The case I had to chuck, the Powersupply was wired differently than normal, and the mobo was just plain dead.

You know, you can always pull the powerswitch out of the Dell.......and mod it into your new case.

Be aware though, it's possible the Dell mobo won't fit in your new case, you might have to get "creative".

[Zephik]

THATS IT! Thanks ReverendBob!

Like he said, in some cases the motherboard will not fit into your new case or you will have some issue or another with it. Dell uses very... eh... unique mobo's. Why? I havent a clue.

How to solve this or prepare for it? Measure your Mobo and look on newegg.com for case compatibility. A standard ATX Mobo is 12" x 9" I believe. So if your mobo is that, then you shouldnt have a problem with fitting it into any case other than cases like MicroATX and smaller.

-SF

[zombeh]

well i didnt think so either but i noticed a huge change in my gfx temp about 10-15 celcius when i reversed the fan. so can you explain the fan thing? have you done it to yours?

i'd rather try modding some fans in it this way first before i transfer.