Stroke of luck....new project.

zootfloot

zootfloot

zootfloot

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Skelton in Cleveland
Hi Folks,

I am completely new to anythin that is small form factor so please gentle.

Basically the Father in law has just called in and left me with a new SFF case which i am really excited about, he picked it up at a car boot sale for £6.00

So now i have a new project on the horizon, and i can imagine that im going to be needing a fair bit of help/advice with it.

Please see the Images below.....

EZBuddie.jpg


power-adapter.jpg


default-speed-display.jpg


inside-first-opened.jpg


bottom-of-system.jpg


mobo-tray-screw.jpg



Dimensions and some Specs

Power Supply
AC adaptor input 110~240V, 50~60Hz universal

Dimensions(mm)
262 x 162 x 310mm

Case material
Aluminum

What i want to do....

Basically i want to make this into a little media centre PC for the wife, i do have some bits and pieces lying around such as the following motherboard ASROCK 775VM800 http://www.asrock.com/mb/overview.asp?Model=775VM800&s= , Pentium 4 630 CPU, 1Gb RAM.

Now what im going to need to do is get a new PSU and make a custom enclosure for it (Due to their being no room in the case, and also i am going to do a fair bit of cutting and grinding to fit adequate cooling for case fans etc.

The graphics card could prove to be problematic....low profile AGP possibly?

Your thoughts/input into this build and if you think its worth bothering with would be much appreciated.
 
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don't think you're going to be able to fit that board in. Though the specifications I found quickly say it supports ATX, I think it is more likely that it supports M-ATX after having a look from the back:
back.jpg


As for getting An ATX PSU in there I think you might be pushing your luck a lot. Possible best bet would be to put the PSU outside the case and take the cables into the back of the case through a PCI slot (put the cables in a sleeve on the outside of the case)

Otherwise you'd probably have more luck if you used an ITX setup, but they cost more than re-using old parts obviously.
You could however pick up a ITX VIA board with a 1Ghz processor and onboard graphics 2nd hand for under £50 and then power it off a PicoITX PSU connector and a brick.
You then wouldn't have to worry about chopping up the case to fit things in, and you would still have room for an additional graphics card, the optical and HDD.

Here is a review I found on the case. (sorry overclockers if I'm not allowed to past this)
http://www.silentpcreview.com/article100-page1.html

Hope this helps.
 
That looks like a funky little case, should make a great HTPC. The only thing that worries me is that it doesnt look like it will fit a standard mAtx bobo, that one on your pic only has 2 expansion slots on the back. Have you measured it up at all? It has the look of a custom sized barebones package to me, which might be why it was so cheap. I'm sure you can find something to do with it though!

PK!
 
Thanks for the reply Guardsmon,

As far as i could tell the Asrock Mobo is Matx, it is smaller than the P35-DS3R that i am currently using.

With regards to the PSU, yes i was going to have it external, and build a custome enclosure for it...then feed in the cables through a vacant PCI slot.

The more i think about this build the more i am looking forward to the challenges that it brings.
 
misterPK said:
That looks like a funky little case, should make a great HTPC. The only thing that worries me is that it doesnt look like it will fit a standard mAtx bobo, that one on your pic only has 2 expansion slots on the back. Have you measured it up at all? It has the look of a custom sized barebones package to me
PK!
Click to expand...

Good thinking, i will check as soon as i can dig out the Mobo, then get back to you.

If all else fails i may even use it like a kind of HDD caddy and get rid of the annoying external hard drives that i am currently using.
 
You can get decent smaller motherboards these days, and since the rise of the HTPC they have been getting cheaper too. I looked into getting one when I had the idea of turning my old original playstation into a PC, but that case was just a touch too small to make it worth it. For some good inspiration check out Nixeh's little rascal project over in case central.

PK!
 
Quick update:

The Asrock 775VM800 motherboard's dimensions are 210mm x 240mm, the motherboard designed for use in this case is the same size but a different orientation (238mm x 208mm).

Therefore this will not work/fit.

I have now decided that i am going to go for a Mini-ITX....more updates as and when i get hold of the gear.
 
Sorry I thought I posted this last night: I have a Commell LV-677DC and a T2600 that I was going to use in a hoojum cubit setup that is now falling apart that I could sell. << is this OK to say?
 
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Um, you're not allowed to make that kind of offer in here, that is stricktly limited to the Members Market forums. I should edit it quickly before a Mod spots it.

PK!
 
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