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2013 BYOC casemods

[H]olyGeekboy[H]olyGeekboy PAX dad and PC builderClevelandRegistered User, ClubPA regular
Thorkon, you out here? :)

What're you bringing this year? Or is it a secret?! :)

I'll be revealing bits of mine as I go, but for now... I'm working on the display.

I wanted full 1080p, but such a monitor basically doesn't exist below 20.5 inches. I have a 19" 1440x900 display from last year's "SkateMod" that is too big for the case.

Plan: Go full custom & get a 17.3" Full HD panel from a laptop & control board. The big advantages are:

1) power - no longer need an external supply, a 17" LED panel uses 9 watts and the control just needs a 12V lead off the main PSU;
2) size, it's much slimmer, and
3) Nerd Factor :)

Last year's skateboard was too much of a compromise on gaming power to make it small and integrated. The mini ITX + Fusion CPU/GPU combo were capable, but barely. This year, I'm trying to do something that has a standard microATX board and full ATX PSU but can still fit in the under-seat area of an airplane.

Let us not mention the 200+ lb. behemoth DiVPC in his trunk of East 2011. Though he does look quite dandy sitting in my office. :)

Look forward to seeing all the mods. It's my favorite part of the show. PCs should be custom!

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    [H]olyGeekboy[H]olyGeekboy PAX dad and PC builder ClevelandRegistered User, ClubPA regular
    I have all the components in hand except the boot SSD (still deciding which one) and the display control board (being shipped from China)...
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    Core i5 3570K
    Intel DH77EB motherboard
    16GB DDR3-1600 Corsair Vengeance RAM
    eVGA GTX 660 2GB superclocked video card (will be using a 6-inch PCI Express x16 extension cable... we'll see how that performs!)
    Apple Airport Extreme wireless mini-PCIe card. (I'm trying to make the system Hackintosh compatible)
    750GB Western Digital Black data drive

    Optical drive and media bays will be available in an expansion chassis I'm building but not in the portable/LAN case.

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    [H]olyGeekboy[H]olyGeekboy PAX dad and PC builder ClevelandRegistered User, ClubPA regular
    "The Redeye" : A 1940s suitcase containing a gaming PC and 1080p display.

    10 days until I leave. The bottom picture was from yesterday- Will I finish in time??

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    KilonumKilonum [E] Somewhere near BostonRegistered User regular
    I hope you get L.A. Noire loaded onto that.

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    taumesontaumeson PAX PC Room Manager Minnesota?Registered User regular
    Dude, nice.

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    itzerokewlitzerokewl Registered User regular
    Looks awesome!

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    zerzhulzerzhul Registered User, Moderator mod
    I'm surprised nobody else has posted casemod info this year.

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    thorkonthorkon Registered User regular
    Just seen this! I'm not sure the weight on the pc I built this year but it's heavy! I had very favorable results with my mini itx in the Link pc case. Ran games very well but it sure was a cramped area.

    Just finished this:
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    http://youtu.be/Cz5muWnFMmg

    Yours is looking good and practical. That's a good setup for transportation of the pc.

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    [H]olyGeekboy[H]olyGeekboy PAX dad and PC builder ClevelandRegistered User, ClubPA regular
    I LOVE IT! :)

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    [H]olyGeekboy[H]olyGeekboy PAX dad and PC builder ClevelandRegistered User, ClubPA regular
    thorkon wrote: »
    Yours is looking good and practical. That's a good setup for transportation of the pc.

    I'm still worried about heat, as I haven't had it properly sealed up and left running yet. But portability was definitely a top priority. After that 150lb. trunk for DIV two years ago, and the plan to try to make it to Seattle this year, I had to see what I could do to "go small."

    I saw the suitcase in a small consignment shop off Boston Common in September when I drove out for the Roxette concert. Best $15 I've spent since the antique radio I modded for East 2010.

    p3HkbcM.png
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    [H]olyGeekboy[H]olyGeekboy PAX dad and PC builder ClevelandRegistered User, ClubPA regular
    I had to change up my components pretty considerably. I had to switch to Crucial memory for height. I had to switch down to all 2.5" hard drives - 256GB OCZ SSD, 90GB OCZ SSD, 500GB WD Blue, 750GB Seagate Momentus XT (Hybrid platter / SSD cache). I had to use an ITX power supply. I had to switch to a 1U copper heatsink with blower. I did manage to get the GTX 660 in without modding anything but the backplate (I thought about replacing the cooler with an arctic model). I used the whole case build as an excuse to buy a drill press. :)

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    thorkonthorkon Registered User regular
    What's the wattage on the itx psu? How deep is the suitcase? Couldn't you take the heatsink off the original ram?

    Ha, I don't have room to put a drill press in the apartment. Yet...
    I would like to increase my tools options but until I get a house I don't see that happening :)

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    [H]olyGeekboy[H]olyGeekboy PAX dad and PC builder ClevelandRegistered User, ClubPA regular
    The ITX PSU is 400 watts... with a 77watt max CPU and 130 watt GPU, I thought I'd be pretty safe. The RAM was bought locally so it was easy to return and get something shorter... it didn't look like the heatsink was meant to be removed. :)

    The drill press is pretty portable. It was $60 at Harbor Freight.

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    thorkonthorkon Registered User regular
    Makes sense. As long as the psu had good reviews I would think you would be fine. Should be sweet when your done

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    [H]olyGeekboy[H]olyGeekboy PAX dad and PC builder ClevelandRegistered User, ClubPA regular
    I haven't been able to correct the heat/airflow issues in the bottom left corner of the case. I'm picking up a GTX 650 shortly to try to correct it. IN the meantime..

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    itzerokewlitzerokewl Registered User regular
    Looks awesome!

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    thorkonthorkon Registered User regular
    /like

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