Mac Pro case

I just got my Mac Pro. I've gotta say, the case is extremely impressive, and yes it is all aluminum. Lian Li, Silverstone, and Corsair don't even touch the build quality of this case.

Would one of you manufacturers dissect the mac pro case and figure out how to build a case as well built as the Mac Pro?

It's beautifully simple, as well. it's made from like four pieces.left side with handles, right side, the front and top panel, and the rear and bottom panel.

nalc said:

It's beautifully simple, as well. it's made from like four pieces.left side with handles, right side, the front and top panel, and the rear and bottom panel.

Click to expand...

If Lian Li released a case with the exact build quality and with the same thick aluminum, they'd charge no less than $600 for it. That's also taking into account the mac pro is basically the size of a mid-tower.

can you upgrade stuff in that case in a few years. that would be cool (case) to have if that's possible.

Reproducing that case is tremendously expensive. Tremendously.

Like Omerta said, it would cost hundreds to manufacture, not to count the markup and sales. Plus it would cost hundreds of thousands (possibly over $1M) in tooling before you even built the first one. The manufacturing process on Apple stuff is crazy complex and impressive.

Even if we could reproduce the thing at 100% quality, the cost would be well north of $500, so the number of people buying it would be so tiny as to make it pretty much pointless.

Even the 800D, which is "only" $279, is considered a really expensive case and doesn't sell in quantities anywhere near the numbers you'd see from, say, a $99 "Gaming" case from a popular brand like Antec or Cooler Master.

Even if everybody in the world who wanted to spend more than $200 on a computer case bought it, you'd still have a tiny market.

I totally agree Omerta. I saw a few Mac Pros at my school and they look gorgeous, like a piece of furniture. I really wish they could fit ATX motherboards. That being said, my 2nd favorite case is the new Corsair 650D, can't wait to buy it this April.

Fired up my G5 today to turn it into an iTunes server. Still love the case.

Omerta said:

If Lian Li released a case with the exact build quality and with the same thick aluminum, they'd charge no less than $600 for it. That's also taking into account the mac pro is basically the size of a mid-tower.

Click to expand...

The Mac Pro case is exclusive to Apple and can be custom made to fit their components.
PC cases has to follow the ATX specifications.
The only case recently tried to compartmentalize was the Thermaltake LvL10.

Redbeard said:

Reproducing that case is tremendously expensive. Tremendously.

Like Omerta said, it would cost hundreds to manufacture, not to count the markup and sales. Plus it would cost hundreds of thousands (possibly over $1M) in tooling before you even built the first one. The manufacturing process on Apple stuff is crazy complex and impressive.

Even if we could reproduce the thing at 100% quality, the cost would be well north of $500, so the number of people buying it would be so tiny as to make it pretty much pointless.

Even the 800D, which is "only" $279, is considered a really expensive case and doesn't sell in quantities anywhere near the numbers you'd see from, say, a $99 "Gaming" case from a popular brand like Antec or Cooler Master.

Even if everybody in the world who wanted to spend more than $200 on a computer case bought it, you'd still have a tiny market.

Click to expand...

Well said. Everything in the MP is placed perfectly and in places that will cause motherboards and power supplies to be built differently also.
Very small market and I'm sure Apple will agree their Mac Pro tailors to a very small market also.

WorldExclusive said:

The Mac Pro case is exclusive to Apple and can be custom made to fit their components.
PC cases has to follow the ATX specifications.
The only case recently tried to compartmentalize was the Thermaltake LvL10.

Click to expand...

Not true. 800D, new Lian Li v series, etc.

Also, I really wasn't talking about its interior layout. I was talking about its build quality and how no case manufacturer is even close to touching it.

WorldExclusive said:

The Mac Pro case is exclusive to Apple and can be custom made to fit their components.
PC cases has to follow the ATX specifications.
The only case recently tried to compartmentalize was the Thermaltake LvL10.




Well said. Everything in the MP is placed perfectly and in places that will cause motherboards and power supplies to be built differently also.
Very small market and I'm sure Apple will agree their Mac Pro tailors to a very small market also.

Click to expand...

I've seen and admired MacPro cases. So here is my "dumb" question. Can you get a really, really old MacPro for cheap enough that you gut the case? then can you do some mods on the case interior so you can mount a standard PC motherboard, etc.

x509 said:

I've seen and admired MacPro cases. So here is my "dumb" question. Can you get a really, really old MacPro for cheap enough that you gut the case? then can you do some mods on the case interior so you can mount a standard PC motherboard, etc.

Click to expand...

Not sure about macpro cases but the very similar powermac g5 cases can be found for under 100 dollars on ebaay. Atx conversion takes some time and attention to detail but is definitely doable. The macpro cases are a bit more because they're newer, but the build is very similar.

Redbeard said:

Reproducing that case is tremendously expensive. Tremendously.

Like Omerta said, it would cost hundreds to manufacture, not to count the markup and sales. Plus it would cost hundreds of thousands (possibly over $1M) in tooling before you even built the first one. The manufacturing process on Apple stuff is crazy complex and impressive.

Even if we could reproduce the thing at 100% quality, the cost would be well north of $500, so the number of people buying it would be so tiny as to make it pretty much pointless.

Even the 800D, which is "only" $279, is considered a really expensive case and doesn't sell in quantities anywhere near the numbers you'd see from, say, a $99 "Gaming" case from a popular brand like Antec or Cooler Master.

Even if everybody in the world who wanted to spend more than $200 on a computer case bought it, you'd still have a tiny market.

Click to expand...

And just what I want to see: Someone in the business answering the question.

Omerta said:

Also, I really wasn't talking about its interior layout. I was talking about its build quality and how no case manufacturer is even close to touching it.

Click to expand...

Omerta said:

If Lian Li released a case with the exact build quality and with the same thick aluminum, they'd charge no less than $600 for it. That's also taking into account the mac pro is basically the size of a mid-tower.

Click to expand...

You're comparing a 2.5 - 5 thousand dollar top-to-bottom OEM design with heavy upgrade restrictions to computer cases that must accept a variety of possible components. If you just want the case, Raw Mac Pro chassis sell for $300-600, but what are you gonna put inside without Aquamac levels of modding? I remember Anand of Anandtech trying to upgrade his Mac Pro's Xeons a few years back, and one tiny mistake cost him ~$600. Proprietary/specialized stuff ain't cheap.

As Redbeard pointed out, the reason no mere case manufacturer can match a huge OEM like Apple is economies of scale. By comparison, companies like Sony, Toshiba, Dell, Asus, or HP would have a better chance of creating something akin to the Mac Pro case (remember Blackbird?), but none of them are able to offer the same quality package of form, function, software, hardware, connectivity and marketing that allows Apple to move a ton of units from multiple product lines while also charging Apple's huge premiums.

Sir_Poop_Alot said:

can you upgrade stuff in that case in a few years. that would be cool (case) to have if that's possible.

Click to expand...

Unless it's the ram, vid card or hdd/ssd, forget about it. Macs are meant to be used/sold as appliances and very few Mac owners I know (which is a lot) ever open their cases. Then again, most PC owners don't open their cases either, but the point is, until the last ~6 years or so, Apple was a PITA when it came to upgrades. This is partially because, like Dell, Apple makes a lot of profit selling cpu/ram/cpu upgrades.

coconutboy said:

*snip*

Click to expand...

I'm not talking about the functionality of the case, the interior layout, the way it is designed, they way hardware is upgraded in the case, or anything like that. Thought I already said that. I am purely just talking about the build quality, construction, and the quality of the aluminum being used. Lian Li would definitely have the ability to match the build quality of the Mac Pro, but they'd charge an arm and a leg for it, but it'd kind of be nice to get a case as well built as the Mac Pro on the PC side of things.

I personally like the Lian Li V series more, even when taking into account build quality.

I really like my TJ07 as well, but the build quality is not nearly as high, somethings just don't fit exactly right.

xveganx said:

I personally like the Lian Li V series more, even when taking into account build quality.

I really like my TJ07 as well, but the build quality is not nearly as high, somethings just don't fit exactly right.

Click to expand...

The Lian Li V series of cases have the best build quality out of every all aluminum case I've seen from case manufacturers, but its build quality doesn't quite match up to that of the Mac Pro chassis. I do actually prefer the look of the Lian Li V series though, especially their older discontinued models. Their older discontinued models are my favorite looking cases of all time.




They're just gorgeous.

I find comments about build quality to be highly subjective....meaning opinions vary quite a bit.

Omerta said:

The Lian Li V series of cases have the best build quality out of every all aluminum case I've seen from case manufacturers, but its build quality doesn't quite match up to that of the Mac Pro chassis. I do actually prefer the look of the Lian Li V series though, especially their older discontinued models. Their older discontinued models are my favorite looking cases of all time.




They're just gorgeous.

Click to expand...

Ugh, why so many 5.25"?

x509 said:

I've seen and admired MacPro cases. So here is my "dumb" question. Can you get a really, really old MacPro for cheap enough that you gut the case? then can you do some mods on the case interior so you can mount a standard PC motherboard, etc.

Click to expand...

In the quote below is sort of a guide and link to bare Apple cases for sale.

coconutboy said:

You're comparing a 2.5 - 5 thousand dollar top-to-bottom OEM design with heavy upgrade restrictions to computer cases that must accept a variety of possible components. If you just want the case, Raw Mac Pro chassis sell for $300-600, but what are you gonna put inside without Aquamac levels of modding? [/url]

Click to expand...

That motherboard tray is from a TJ07.

AQ_OC said:

I find comments about build quality to be highly subjective....meaning opinions vary quite a bit.

Click to expand...

This is 100% true. I know my expectations of build quality are higher than most - partially because I've seen so many cases. There are things about every case I've launched that I would change, looking back. None of them are major or anything, but just little details like the material used for the rubber grommets or the texture of the paint on the fan control knob on the 600T.

But at some point you have to stop making changes and ship the damn thing. We do roll-in changes and fixes to most of our products when we find major issues, but luckily we haven't had many on the cases.

As for build quality, though - the Mac Pro tower case is fantastic - but like somebody said, it's a lot easier to build an enclosure when you know for certain what components will be inside it and how they're going to be laid out.

And as for aluminum, there are a lot of alloys out there and the Apple stuff is very different from most of the stuff you'd see in the PC market. It's a closely guarded secret as to what kind of alloy they use for the different devices. Even if you did have the alloy, some of the manufacturing processes are patented.

This is one of the reasons for the "Apple Tax".

I am more than happy with my 800D. If you could give me a Mac Pro case for the same price, I'd not buy it.

The conversion isn't really bad. If you can make do with one optical drive, the powermac g5 case costs a fraction of what the mac pro case costs and is very similar.

http://www.insanelymac.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=4525

It's not that difficult to do, just takes some patience. There have gotta be hundreds of powemac g5 and macpro to ATX conversions floating around.

I bought a mac pro when they first launched for two reasons:
their 4x PCIx16 motherboard (which was very hard to find in the consumer market at the time)
and because I fell in love with the case

years later after I had butchered the components, stolen the CPU's and RAM for another build and pulled out all the wiring harnesses to sell the other apple components.... I kept the case in storage because it was so fantastic... it was the last part I sold.

Meh, I don't really think G5/Mac Pro cases are as far ahead of any regular PC case manufacturer myself, but whatever. Having a G5 at my desk and being inside of it several times for ram and HD upgrades, I know the build quality fairly well. I've also owned several LL cases.

Might be just me but I don't see what the fuss is about. They're nice cases, yeah, but I wouldn't go so far as to say they're light years ahead of anything else, like they're from the future and everyone else only makes beige boxes from the 80s.

rflcptr said:

Ugh, why so many 5.25"?

Click to expand...

I have the opposite feelings about the mac cases. If you have the room to have a lot of bays (which the mac cases do) I don't see why you would not want to use it. It seems like without the extra bays you are wasting a lot of space. The Mac case is very nice, I just don't see it as any nicer then any other high end cases that are available.

TheGreySpectre said:

I have the opposite feelings about the mac cases. If you have the room to have a lot of bays (which the mac cases do) I don't see why you would not want to use it. It seems like without the extra bays you are wasting a lot of space. The Mac case is very nice, I just don't see it as any nicer then any other high end cases that are available.

Click to expand...

But what do you need seven of them for? Optical drive, there's one, maybe two if you have a blu-ray that isn't a burner. Fan controller is also one, maybe two if you get one of the big fugly ones with a screen. What else? Watercooling reservoir? Sure, in the big Lian Li fulltower there's enough room for a solid watercooling setup, but the mac cases are too small to do it well. Few are watercooled, and those ones often have a 240mm rad in the front anyway, and adding more 5.25" bays would only leave enough room for a 120mm rad.

I guess I am in the minority for thinking their Mac Pro case looks like ass and was designed by someone in the 1980's.
I found it to be a misstep compared to the, otherwise, totally solid looking products they sell.

Omerta said:

If Lian Li released a case with the exact build quality and with the same thick aluminum, they'd charge no less than $600 for it. That's also taking into account the mac pro is basically the size of a mid-tower.

Click to expand...

Have you ever dealt with a V2000 or similar? Pretty much exactly the same thing, just without the weird internal divider things. it's an old design so not really fair to make a direct comparison.

I'd love it if some PC manufacturer made an aluminum case that was as high quality as the Mac Pro case. The thick aluminum that Apple uses is so much better and sturdier than what I had with my prior Lian Li V1100 and Coolermaster cases. As it's been said here many times though, it would result in a very expensive case, so oh well.

Either way, I'm happy going back to steel with the new Corsair cases. I frigging love my 800D and I'm getting my friend into a 600T or 650D pretty soon. For my aluminum fix I still have my Macbook Pro and iMac, so whatever.

nalc said:

But what do you need seven of them for? Optical drive, there's one, maybe two if you have a blu-ray that isn't a burner. Fan controller is also one, maybe two if you get one of the big fugly ones with a screen. What else? Watercooling reservoir? Sure, in the big Lian Li fulltower there's enough room for a solid watercooling setup, but the mac cases are too small to do it well. Few are watercooled, and those ones often have a 240mm rad in the front anyway, and adding more 5.25" bays would only leave enough room for a 120mm rad.

Click to expand...

DVD drive, Blu-ray Drive, fan controller(s), front audio panels, hot swappable drive bays, and yes, possibly a reservoir. A v2000 can fit a 2x120mm rad in the top also.
Now to be fair the Mac case is not as big as a V2000, it is more of a V1000 size which has 5 5.25 bays instead of 7. There is also the fact that a Mac is not meant to be customizable so it will probably not have things likes hot swappable bays, or fan controllers. To me the Lian Li cases are what mac cases would be if macs were meant to be customizable.

I'm not trying to dis on Mac cases, they are very nice cases that serve there purpose. There purpose is not to be customizable though, I think there are other cases out there with equal craftsmanship and aesthetics that server the PC community better.

The Aluminum on the v2000s is very high quality and quite thick (roughly 1/8 inch) as well. Macs are built very well but it really does not seem any better to me then the lian li cases.

silent-circuit said:

Have you ever dealt with a V2000 or similar? Pretty much exactly the same thing, just without the weird internal divider things. it's an old design so not really fair to make a direct comparison.

Click to expand...

Yes, but I'm not talking about the way they look, internal layout, or features. Again, I am just purely talking about build quality, and the Mac Pro surpasses the build quality of any PC case I've seen.

TheGreySpectre said:

The Aluminum on the v2000s is very high quality and quite thick (roughly 1/8 inch) as well. Macs are built very well but it really does not seem any better to me then the lian li cases.

Click to expand...

The Mac Pro has thicker aluminum and is better built than Lian Li V series cases. If you dealt with both of them, you'd see. And if you did and still don't see that, I don't know what to tell you.

I had a Mac G5 at one point, sometimes I wish I kept it just for the case.

Omerta said:

The Mac Pro has thicker aluminum and is better built than Lian Li V series cases.

Click to expand...

It also costs probably at least twice as much to manufacture.

Look here:
http://www.videography.com/uploadedimages/VideoGraphy/Videography_News/AppleMacProUpdate-1bg.jpg

That's the Mac Pro case. See how the "handles" are one contiguous piece that wraps around the backside of the chassis? Effectively that piece of aluminum by itself probably costs as much to manufacture as the entire 600T case. Possibly more. It looks like one solid piece of cast aluminum. And that piece has no real functionality but to add rigidity to the chassis and act as a handle. Also, look at the screws that mount the interior frame to that handle. Seams are clean, very few screws, no visible rivets. Everything is exceptionally well controlled from a manufacturing standpoint.

In comparison, look here:
http://lian-li.com/v2/tw/product/upload/image/v1020/v1020-09.jpg

That's the V1020 from Lian-Li. A great case. Costs about $250 at Newegg, available anodized. But look at the difference in the aluminum alloy, the number of rivets and their placement. Look at the two back to back and the difference is pretty clear where Apple spends their money.

This is not to denigrate Lian-Li, they make fantastic cases and I've owned a few of them in the past. If Corsair didn't make cases, I'd still recommend them to people. They're definitely in the top 3 case manufacturers from a quality standpoint.

In fairness, here's the 800D:
http://www.corsair.com/media/catalo...d6e5fb8d27136e95/8/0/800d_newdoor-wcovers.png

I think our quality of manufacturing (even though it's steel) is as good as anybody else we compete against and better than most. But even we can't produce something like the Mac Pro chassis for a reasonable price. The 800D costs a LOT to build, and would cost still more if it were aluminum instead of steel.

J

450 said:

I had a Mac G5 at one point, sometimes I wish I kept it just for the case.

Click to expand...

I still have mine. DP 1.8ghz. It still works which pisses me off. I say it's the oldest computer I have in my possession right now. About 6 plus yrs. Keeping it cause the case is nice and selling it is meaningless as I won't get what the case alone is worth.

Right now I'm practicing on modding a Dell XPS 700 series case. Need to source me a motherboard tray that'll cover the entire back.

Mine was the single core 1.6GHz model. Even with just 512MB RAM it felt quick.

Redbeard said:

That's the Mac Pro case. See how the "handles" are one contiguous piece that wraps around the backside of the chassis? Effectively that piece of aluminum by itself probably costs as much to manufacture as the entire 600T case. Possibly more. It looks like one solid piece of cast aluminum. And that piece has no real functionality but to add rigidity to the chassis and act as a handle. Also, look at the screws that mount the interior frame to that handle. Seams are clean, very few screws, no visible rivets. Everything is exceptionally well controlled from a manufacturing standpoint.

Click to expand...

Thanks for providing a bunch of insightful information on Apple's manufacturing. Redbeard, would you say that Apple has an advantage in manufacturing and engineering (at least when it comes to the design of enclosures) over other manufacturers that they compete against (Sony, HTC, Dell, HP, Samsung, etc)?


Also, yes, the Corsair cases are very well built. Definitely on par with Lian Li and Silverstone. I'd put Corsair, Lian Li, and Silverstone in the top three when it comes to quality. Corsair does pay great attention to detail for the most part. Just release some stealth optical drive covers and fan controllers with the same matching aluminum as the 800D, 650D, and 700D, and improve the airflow in your cases .

The mac cases probably made in China/Taiwan anways... just like the Lian Li. We all know that the iphones are made in China With deductive reasoning they should have similar built quality

Sir_Poop_Alot said:

The mac cases probably made in China/Taiwan anways... just like the Lian Li. We all know that the iphones are made in China With deductive reasoning they should have similar built quality

Click to expand...

Them being made in China or Taiwan has nothing to do with anything. Even If Lian Li manufactured their cases in America, there'd really no be difference in quality. The materials being used and the way it's all put together has way more to do with build quality than the country it's all put together in.

(edit: lol, guess I should refresh before posting. Well said Omerta)

Sir_Poop_Alot said:

The mac cases probably made in China/Taiwan anways... just like the Lian Li. We all know that the iphones are made in China With deductive reasoning they should have similar built quality

Click to expand...

It's almost a given that nearly everything Apple makes is assembled in Taiwan/China, but build quality has little to do locale. Rent a BMW in the USA, Europe or China and it's same car minus a few regional necessities.

Omerta said:

would you say that Apple has an advantage in manufacturing and engineering (at least when it comes to the design of enclosures) over other manufacturers that they compete against (Sony, HTC, Dell, HP, Samsung, etc).

Click to expand...

The main advantage of Apple is that they're regarded as a luxury brand and can thereby charge more than their competitors. Sure Apple spends a ton on r&d, production and marketing, but just do a search for how many units they move. It's a ton more than ANY case manufacturer, but a pittance compared to other PC OEMs like Lenovo or Dell, especially on the worldwide market vs just the USA. Now, check any product model and Apple's profit on each item sold. Hp, Dell and Acer do higher volume, but those other companies' CFOs dream about the profits Apple turns into cash flow. An iPod costs $45-60, iPhone costs less than $200 to make, iPads are ~$270-350 etc. Add some more to the cost for marketing, delivery, sales etc.

So back to your earlier mussing about why nobody is making a case on par with the Mac Pro, the first reason is volume. Lian Li moves a fraction of Apple's computer business. Even Antec, the moneymaking and volume king of pc cases ain't close. Second, the pc case business is cutthroat and the profit margins are slim whereas Apple is less constrained. The third reason is risk: most customers aren't exactly anxious to spend big cash on PC cases and manufacturers know this. It'd be a lot easier if not for the variety of components that must be accounted for.

Also, we should recognize that there ARE, in fact, companies trying to make high end cases. Whether they succeed or not is debatable and asking for a Mac Pro is a high standard from companies doing some tiny fraction of Apple's business. For reference not only do we have the Lian Li/Silverstone/Corsair stuff, but how about Thermaltake's Level 10? TT is one of the largest 3-4 case manufacturers with a retail presence at Best Buy/Frys/Microcenter/etc and every major e-tailer. TT also got a ton of press for the Level 10 thanks to its outrageous styling and BMW tie-in. Yet, with all that going for them, I wonder how many $650-800 Level 10s they had to sell just to break even and if the profits made are anywhere near what TT rakes in from one of their popular sub-$100 models? I have no way of knowing, but it almost seems like Thermaltake keeps releasing these "high end" cases (Mozart, Level 10, Sword M) to keep themselves in the news and establish a reputation as a high-end manufacturer.

Omerta said:

... I am purely just talking about the build quality, construction, and the quality of the aluminum being used. Lian Li would definitely have the ability to match the build quality of the Mac Pro, but they'd charge an arm and a leg for it, but it'd kind of be nice to get a case as well built as the Mac Pro on the PC side of things.

Click to expand...

This is why I brought up scale economics. You seem to not understand that simply charging more for an individual product doesn't always work if the manufacturer can't move enough volume. Maybe I'm misunderstanding you and you're just sorta wishfully thinking aloud yearning for a PC case maker to step it up? I mean, I LOVE looking at the handmade customs seen here and at Bit-tech/XS/etc, but buying them would be nuts. Then again, back in the 90s, if you told me I'd be paying over $100 for a non-rackmount computer case, I'd have laughed. And ~6 years ago, if you'd told me I'd be spending over $200 on a case, I'd have told you a fool and his money are soon departed. Now I've spent over $500 on a case and couldn't help but laugh/cry when so few other people biought it that I coulda just waited 4 months and paid $200 less. No matter how great a case it is, on some level I know I'm a fool.

coconutboy said:

This is why I brought up scale economics. You seem to not understand that simply charging more for an individual product doesn't always work if the manufacturer can't move enough volume. Maybe I'm misunderstanding you and you're just sorta wishfully thinking aloud yearning for a PC case maker to step it up? I mean, I LOVE looking at the handmade customs seen here and at Bit-tech/XS/etc, but buying them would be nuts. Then again, back in the 90s, if you told me I'd be paying over $100 for a non-rackmount computer case, I'd have laughed. And ~6 years ago, if you'd told me I'd be spending over $200 on a case, I'd have told you a fool and his money are soon departed. Now I've spent over $500 on a case and couldn't help but laugh/cry when so few other people biought it that I coulda just waited 4 months and paid $200 less. No matter how great a case it is, on some level I know I'm a fool.

Click to expand...

I'd like PC case makers to step it up, but I also had no idea that cases over $200 had such low sales. Just based on the internet and what I read on forums and all the build logs, I thought the 800D was selling like hotcakes.