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Modding a Gateway mATX case

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Well, that didn't take long.... And guess what?!?! I must have jacked up my PSU doing my little genius mod. :rolleyes: That PSU doesn't work worth a poop, but hey, it's got some pretty sweet and short cables, ha!

Here it is in it's current state, with an old 300W psu leaning up against it. Good news is that it's cables are already pretty short. Bad news, it's way underpowered for the gtx260.
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But hey, it'll work for now! I do have a 7600GT XXX (XFX OC'ed) that should be able to play HL2 on 800x600, hahaha. :)
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Time to hit up the egg for a new psu. Needless to say I won't be messing with the cables. ;)
 
you can get modular PSU's and get shorter cable kits. Some PSUs also just have shorter cables, but probably not short enough ;-) Honestly, I think you can mod it without opening the actual case of the PSU and as long as you are super careful to put the right wires on the right pins of the connector, you should be fine.
 
I feel like this one (given the way your psu mounts, somewhat easy to adapt to) would be a potential candidate. It's on the expensive side again but it's a small form factor and has somewhat shorter cables.
 
Posting this from the freshly assembly pc! :D My frankenstein pc of old parts and 1 or 2 new parts.

I've got the other psu mounted and wired up. And I swapped out the power hungry gtx260 for a much more tame and equally puney 7600GT XXX. Woo, what a skulded beast it is!
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It isn't pretty, but I've got it up and going! I tied up all the excess cable with a blue velcro strap. Doesn't restrict the air flow too badly. Time for drivers....yay.... :)
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I've got a friend borrowing a 9800GT. Maybe I'll try to get that back. Then I can stick with the existing psu and do moderate gaming. Honestly, there is not point to this pc except to get on the internet, play a few games. My HTPC (PC1 in my sig) is the main gaming rig. Like I said at the very start of this mod worklog, post #1, I have no need for this case, but I filled it with my left overs and ended up with a pretty cool little machine. :D

But anyways, it's been a great build!
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Just a thought: I want to upgrade the PSU in my main sig rig (PC1). The PSU in that is a Raidmax RX730SS that is semi-modular. Semi-modular meaning is has the short pigtails rather than the ports/headers on the side of the psu housing. That would work in this case, not problem! The cables aren't terribly long and I can use just the cables I need. What do you think? If you say 'yay' then I'll need to find a new PSU for my main rig. :)
 
cmadki4 said:
Just a thought: I want to upgrade the PSU in my main sig rig (PC1). The PSU in that is a Raidmax RX730SS that is semi-modular. Semi-modular meaning is has the short pigtails rather than the ports/headers on the side of the psu housing. That would work in this case, not problem! The cables aren't terribly long and I can use just the cables I need. What do you think? If you say 'yay' then I'll need to find a new PSU for my main rig. :)
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Sounds like a decent idea to me:)
 
This case mod was brought to you by the cool and refreshing Snapple. Snapple, it's a drink.

I'll get a good report on temps this weekend. :)
 
Temperature report! Front (140mm) and top (120mm) fans set to low: ~800 rpm.

Idles temps:......CPU 22* | GPU 35*
Load temps:......CPU 68* | GPU 70*

Not terrible. However, those temps don't reflect the projected use of the gtx260, which is a little heater. :)
 
Flyinfinni said:
those temps are totally reasonable. Nice! Hope the 260 can handle it :)
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Yeah, I'm pleased so far. Haven't done much on it but surf the web and play a little L4D2, but it's holding up nicely. With the GTX260 being external exhaust I'm thinking it won't generate a whole lot more of ambient heat. And the air flow through this case really is outstanding. Hard to appreciate how much air it's actually moving until you feel it in person. :D
 
Update: I'm going to swap in my RX730SS power suppy, which is semi modular, and purchase a new psu for my main rig. I'm thinking a TX650 to juice my main machine???
 
What about the CX series by Corsair. Are those turds or what? I'm thinking the CX600 for cost down reasons.
 
It's decent for budget builds. I haven't had any complaints from the machines I've built with them.
 
Cool. Unless there are any serious objections, I'll probably end up ordering one of these. But if I get any promo code or some sort of email sale for the tx650 I'll go for that one.
 
Might be snatching up a Antec True Power Trio TP3-650 on the cheap. We'll see... If not I'll go with the CX600 and call it good and throw the GTX260 back in there and be good to go!
 
Just speaking from the physical hardware stand point, the corsair builder series are made by CWT which historically has made tier 4 (one step away from being the bottom of the barrel) power supplies.
 
Yeah, I've been a little leery about the CX series because of how few have been sold so far at the egg. Especially relative to the TX series. But I did end up getting that TP3-650 (along with a sweet MSI am3 motherboard) in a direct trade with fellow [H]er buickgs. So that means the TP3 will go in my main rig (along with the new MSI mobo) and the RX730SS will go in this modded gateway. Or the Snapple, as it has become to be known. :D Dog that raidmax all you want, it's been going strong since I got it and it's semi-modular so cable management will be a bit easier. :)

I'm currently working on a really basic mod. I'm breathing some new life into my old Antec 300. Last night, I cut out holes in the motherboard tray for improved cable management. Then I painted it all flat black with the primer and paint I had left over from the snapple mod. Just thought I'd tell you. Not sure it justifies a worklog, so just thought I'd mention it.

I am, however, going to post some mods that I do to my Zalman 9700 cpu cooler. This new MSI mobo will allow me to unlock the 4th core and do some serious OCing so I want the extra cooling this mod will offer. That'll be coming soon in a separate worklog. :)
 
I have a Coolermaster SilentPro 700M and I'll vouch for it as having super small modular cables, they are also very flexible and you would be able to fold them quite flat. Was recommended by JonnyGuru PSU review as well. I got it for $59 on sale. I only have to hook up one cable as well to power 3 drives which saves a ton of space.

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Since you have the big area under the plastic hood on the top of the case, have you considered routing the PSU cables through there instead? You could drill a hole in the side of the PSU and have all the cables and ATX connector go through the side and into the plastic hood on the roof of your case and snake them beside the 120mm fan you have up there. That'd be a great way to get them out of the way.

I too am concerned about your CPU cooler not having any breathing space at all.
 
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silent-circuit said:
^^^
Awesome plan if there's sufficient clearance in there.
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yeah, it looked to me like there was plenty of room on the sides of the 120mm fan for tons of cabling. Then the PSU cables just come out near the front (or even down behind the front panel) or beside the optical bay.

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That's a really interesting idea! I'd have to double check, lengths and clearances, but I am inclined to say that there isn't as much room under the top shroud as you may think. That 120mm fan just barely squeezes in between the mounting tabs for the top cover. Actually, I had to trim those tabs down a bit to fit that fan in there at all. I could completely remove the tabs so that the PSU cables could pass right through. But I would need to find another means of fastening the top cover to the chassis. Hmmm.... food for thought. Which I will wash down with a cold, refreshing diet snapple. ;)

Edit: The temps haven't been an issue. I've stress the little guy pretty well so far and no abnormal temperatures. The airflow through that case is insane. I think I struck a great balance. It's so quiet, yet you can feel air rushing in and out of it. :cool:
 
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mannyman said:
why are you selling it?
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Gotta fund the next modding adventure! ;) I didn't really need the case in the first place and I'm more about the modding process than I am about keeping the final product. I'd love to mod for living! :D
 
i believe you need to retitle the case in your FS thread to being the (appended as i realised that IT is the diet version) Diet Snapple Custom mATX case...thank you very much
 
xjmtx said:
i believe you need to retitle the case in your FS thread to being the (appended as i realised that IT is the diet version) Diet Snapple Custom mATX case...thank you very much
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You got it boss. The Dient Snapple mATX case is now available for purchase. Includes free empty bottle of the ever cool and refreshing Diet Snapple. Snapple...it's a drink. ;)
 
lol, if it were a mini itx case i would probably have bought it although i'm looking for something more receiver like for that computer
 
Too much overlap from the PSU and the optical drive. It could easily fit on the front fan though. Which would work out because Corsair recommends putting the H50 on an intake, rather than exhaust. And that has yielded the best results for me. :)
 
cmadki4 said:
Too much overlap from the PSU and the optical drive. It could easily fit on the front fan though. Which would work out because Corsair recommends putting the H50 on an intake, rather than exhaust. And that has yielded the best results for me. :)
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But isn't the intake fan large?
 
cmadki4 said:
You got it boss. The Diet Snapple mATX case is now available for purchase. Includes free empty bottle of the ever cool and refreshing Diet Snapple. Snapple...it's a drink. ;)
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I swear I LOLed so hard i started coughing, and then followed it up with the same thing when i checked the FS page. My kids were really confused. SO priceless. thanks chief, for bringing that kind of laughter out of me
 
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