• Some users have recently had their accounts hijacked. It seems that the now defunct EVGA forums might have compromised your password there and seems many are using the same PW here. We would suggest you UPDATE YOUR PASSWORD and TURN ON 2FA for your account here to further secure it. None of the compromised accounts had 2FA turned on.
    Once you have enabled 2FA, your account will be updated soon to show a badge, letting other members know that you use 2FA to protect your account. This should be beneficial for everyone that uses FSFT.

My First mod (preview)

Z

zer0-one

n00b
Joined
Feb 10, 2004
Messages
34
This is a preview of my first attempt at a case mod and desk mod. I took this

DESK2.JPG


and turned it into this

desk2006_0421AG2.JPG


What do ya think of it?

I will update when completed. I have been taking pics and I am working on a review. Let me know if you would like to see what I have so far.
 
Wow, pretty freakin' nice.
Desk-Case-Mod action. I like it a lot.

You should put some handles on.
Ya know, for them Lan Parties.
 
nice work with the viewing window, Was thinking of doing something like that for a server in the future, just have a built in comp in the desk, and turn one of the side cabinets into a massive HDD storage bin.

*EDIT* but always got to be careful that you don't turn this into another 10k desk mod, using pre-built desks and planning ahead definitely cut the costs of mistakes and changes later. My main problem is finding the right desk to mod, need something thick to fit the comp in, probably a corner desk (if at all possible) with a hutch up top and a couple of cabinets (one for server storage, another to cut out for Gaming pc mount.
 
did you put a server rack on your desk or what? I can hardly see what you did
 
I built a custom case out of oak and plexiglass to fit in that space. Here is a new shot for your enjoyment. Like I said I am working on writing up the whole process and I will post it when it's done.......

desk3.jpg


I still have some finishing work to do also, plexi the top of the desk (routed to fit flush), cable management, power button, another light and another fan. So be patient.
 
Awesome!!
maybe paint the oak black... and the inside trim you cut for the window, paint that black too. it will make it look cleaner. ;)

but yeah looks great... nice idea.



oh and do you always keep your keyboard over there now??
 
Deffinetly painting the inside trim for the window black, prolly not the oak though.Maybe a darker stain.

And no, the keyboard is positioned between two monitors.
 
i'm thinking about making a really small case outta wood, just like how u built it into ur desk cept, mobile. Does having your mobo mounted on wood increase the chances of something setting on fire say if like there was a power outage or something?
 
New cathode lights and extra fan in place, and painted the wood for the window. One last step, gotta get a router and fit the plexi window.

desk4.jpg
 
What a great idea man... I love it. The black paint helped a lot

Any plans for the plexi... etching or frosting? I think I may like just a clean clear look best tho

I still feel like the oak needs to be painted but it still look nice as is
 
I hope to have this completed this weekend. I will post my full worklog after. Stay tuned and thanks for the comments.
 
Looks pretty cool......definitely a good job on everything so far! :)

I am surprised, though, that none of the case modders here has given you grief over your lack of wiring organization under your desk, since it's now your computer case, ya know?? :rolleyes: ;)
 
I have cablemanagment in mind and will get them all cleaned up.

Temperature: {Case: 37°C, CPU: 48°C, Fan 2: 2428RPM}
 
zer0-one said:
I have cablemanagment in mind and will get them all cleaned up.

Temperature: {Case: 37°C, CPU: 48°C, Fan 2: 2428RPM}
Click to expand...


Yea hold on... I sure hope that isnt idle temp... maybe a typo?? :confused:
 
Wow I'm impressed. Very nice indeed. Keep it up! I like the blue theme as I'm going for the same thing with my case now. I added in one green cathode and it really brings in some depth. Maybe you should pick one up to just to switch it up a little bit and to get eyes moving over. :)
 
you guys think that is too hot? should I add another exhaust fan? Maybe clean and redo the cpu fan? I thought this was about a normal idle temp. It has gone down 20 degrees from the start of this project. I could add one more 80mm fan for exhaust out the front. However half the fan would be blocked by the keyboard tray.

I gi\uess what I will do when I take it out again is redo the cpu fan and add another exhaust fan, clean up the cables and do the plexi top this weekend. As I type this the temps are Temperature: {Case: 35°C/95°F, CPU: 47°C/117°F, Fan 2: 2445RPM} and that is idle.
 
Considering the noise vs. cooling balance, I don't think that temp is bad at all. My CPU idles at 60 c and is designed for that thermal load, so I leave it at that; it stays at 60 deg all day long and is so much quieter than my old hair dryer system was with a bunch of loud 80 mm fans. CPU's are much hardier than you think. :)
 
brasherman brings a good point... the noise / temp ratio

for only one case fan (a 80mm exhaust i think) 48C isnt that bad i guess... My P4 OCed 300MHz over stock idles at 37C and thats with 1 exhaust and 2 intake. Something that helps with mine is that i have a hole in my case right next to the cpu fan.

A good thing for your setup is that it is probably not that loud so that's nice. Adding another exhaust i dont think would do much (especially if half will be covered up by the keyboard tray) and would bring more noise. That might look a little silly too ;)

If it is possible, try finding a way to give the cpu heatsink/fan access to colder out-of-case air...either by making a hole close to the fan or ducting from a hole somwhere else. Maybe also try reapplying thermal grease on the heatsink. All those options have potential to help the temperature drop while making no extra noise

But brasherman is right... CPUs are quite tough. Although I dont know your load temps... your computer will still run fine. It might be more stable at lower temps tho and the cpu will prolly last longer :D

But I say dont add another exhaust fan... really not worth it
 
How about these temps?
Temperature: {Case: 29°C/84°F, CPU: 34°C/93°F, Fan 2: 2428RPM}
I cleaned and re-applied some arctic silver to the CPU fan. Uptime is only about 5 minutes though. :)

I did some cable managment, and borrowed a router. I have to go buy the right bit for it though to get the plexi flush with the desktop. Here is a pic.....

desk05.jpg


Should be done by sunday night, finally!
 
That is very nice. And I have those exact speakers....they were only 100 bucks but man they made them sound like they are worth so much more.
 
zer0-one said:
How about these temps?
Temperature: {Case: 29°C/84°F, CPU: 34°C/93°F, Fan 2: 2428RPM}
I cleaned and re-applied some arctic silver to the CPU fan. Uptime is only about 5 minutes though. :)
Click to expand...


Hold on... all you did was clean the HSF and re-apply some AS5??! Thats a huge improvement if thats all you did. Cause yeah those temps are great.

Although what do you mean by 'uptime only 5 minutes'?
 
Geo Fry said:
Although what do you mean by 'uptime only 5 minutes'?
Click to expand...

Means he's had the computer on for 5mins so far with the new AS5 ;)

Might see a further inprovement in temps after the AS5 cures.
 
OK, got the desk routed and the plexi fitted. Worklog comming soon. Here is a pic.....

desk10.jpg
 
A little ebony stain or black spray paint and that front panel will blend very nicely for the finishing touch. Looks good, and that AS5 reapplication did more than I thought it would. 93 F is a very good temp for a proc on air with moderate cooling. :cool:
 
From start to now was about 4 weeks, but actual man hrs was roughly 40hrs. A lot of time was spent waiting for parts and design planning.

Worklog should be completed by mid week.
 
Seriously that looks really nice; but I cant stop thinking how much better it would look if you either painted the wood front panel black or, like brasherman said, give it a nice ebony stain

Great job on the routing... looks awesome :)
 
Here's an idea. Liquid cooling.

Silent (except for the pump) and low profile. Plus, your temps will be much cooler in that tight wood case.

Its just an idea, but it would cost alot of money.
 
Oh yeah and can you get a straight shot looking into the case through the plexi ?

I keep finding myself wanting to get up from my chair and peek into your pics :p
 
I will definatly get a dark stain on the front, no paint though. I just hate to paint a nice piece of wood. Here is a shot from above as requested.

abovedesk.jpg
 
That's very cool. Just wish the drives weren't in the view. Maybe paint that part of the plexiglass black?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top