Shifty's Chop Chop MacPro (OR) EPIC RIG OF EPIC PROPORTIONS!
What's up, guys?
I've mentioned this to people a few times, but never right out in the openess of the forums. But I figured, "What the heck, it's kinda cool... I think". This is actually a mash up of a few posts I made at another forum where people actually kinda SPECIALIZE in hacking up Macintosh computers, so forgive me if it references things that aren't shown here.
I bring to you the Shifty mATXPro that I have been working on for the last month as pieces and parts trickle in.
The Plan:
1. Install Laserhive rear I/O plate
2. Add Laserhive motherboard tray.
3. Build fan brackets for the front of the case. Bought Laserhive front fan bracket.
4. Install 92mm fans on Laserhive rear I/O plate.
5. Install front panel board
6. Install wiring adapter made by BlackCH
7. Install modular PSU
8. Fabricate female to male extension cable from PSU to existing rear port on case.
9. Install hdd tray behind fabricated fan bracket (Might reinstall HDD bay in stock location). New solution needed.
10. Run power cables from PSU to required areas
Parts List:
Intel i5 3750k (Thanks, Mr. D.!)
CPU Fan/cooler
Radeon HD 7850 (Original plan was for GTX 560 TI)
Corsair CX600M PSU (would a 550watt be sufficient?)
ASRock Z77M Motherboard
Crucial Ballistix Sport 8gig (2 x 4gig) ram
2 x 92mm Arctic F9 Case Fans
2 x 120mm Arctic F12 Case Fan
I already own quite a few WD Black 1TB SATA HDDs, so I am not going to purchase new ones.
Here's my case, it's got a few minor scratches, but it's a beauty from 2ft away. http://forum.redlynx.com/forum/image...icon/smile.gif
http://i.imgur.com/WcwtfLn.jpg
Also, here's some pictures of the disassembly process.
http://i.imgur.com/cvuXqro.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/VkVWf18.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/UO01mwF.jpg
Anyhow, I am now waiting for parts, but I want to thank all of the people who have done this before for so generously documenting the steps that they took and how to avoid some issues as well.
Ok, the case didn't come with a front panel board (power switch, USB, Firewire, and audio out) so I had to pick one up. It was from a slightly earlier model, but it fit like a champ.
http://i.imgur.com/Vd2jj5L.jpg
and from the front....
http://i.imgur.com/EE9jYv5.jpg
I've started planning the layout of my MacPro/PC, and this will eventually change:
http://www.mediafire.com/conv/60846b...a90c71606g.jpg
Nice size box arrived from NewEgg, so it's time to start putting stuff together!
http://s21.postimage.org/uytbhm1av/allofit.png
I am posting from the new MATX Pro, so you should already see that as good news. Now I'll recap some of the things I went through and post a few pictures of the build process. I had hoped for more pics, but it does become something you forget to do while you are actually working on something.
http://i.imgur.com/I88ypVt.jpg
So yesterday (Saturday, March 22nd) I got a package from Laserhive in the post. This is the last thing I was waiting for, so it's time to begin! I masked off the whole back of my case with blue painters tape to guard it from scratches in case my Dremel went all 1-man-fire-hose (out of control). I then placed the custom rear I/O plate onto the case, lined up where it needed to go, and marked the outside of the plate with pen.
http://i.imgur.com/ytXcWpk.jpg
I then marked where I would actually be cutting with a black pen, then a green pen, and finally a marker (outlined in red because my flash washed it out). Yes, I marked it three different times to make sure I would be cutting it correctly.
After marking, it's time for hardware modification:
http://i.imgur.com/a39h0TW.jpg
Those holes through the tape on the outside perimeter of the cutout are where the Rear I/O plate mounts to the rear of the case.
http://i.imgur.com/30QhTmF.jpg
Here is my initial cut. Please note that in my haste to get moving on this project I left the front panel board (in red) attached to the case. THIS IS BAD, I don't know why I didn't take the 30 seconds to remove all of the pieces. I just had a brain-fart because it's covered in metal and I forgot about it. It would be bad if metal shavings from the back of the case shorted out my board.
Here's where we start the FUN part:
http://i.imgur.com/EDzvpUD.jpg
Time Warp! Ok, so now I have the door latching mechanism rebuilt (not fun), and you can see the basis for my modular HDD assembly. "What is this Modular HDD Assembly?", you ask. It's heavy-duty velcro. Now, before you say "That's Cheating!", I know http://forum.redlynx.com/forum/image...on/biggrin.gif
It helps me to be able to rearrange the interior of my case without making a lot of permanent, and irreversible, cuts, especially to the top tray. With this particular velcro I know that the adhesive will fail before the hook & loop will, and I also know that none of the pieces that I am "making modular" weigh enough to cause failure. Added benefit, The mechanical HDD now has a bit of a cushion against vibration.
However, cable management for the DVD drive, SSD, and HDD are making it a bit of a nightmare in the top shelf as shown in the next picture.
http://i.imgur.com/1wHBn2X.jpg
As you can see, I have 3 SATA cables running up to the top shelf. These are 18 inch cables, because my initial plan was to put the PSU where the HDD is now located, and as such, are a bit (about 12 inches) too long and end up filling the top shelf. What you CAN'T see is that I am using 2 of the modular SATA power cables from my PSU. Each cable powers up to 3 SATA drives, and I only have 3 drives, why wouldn't I be using 1? Because of the way that my drives are spaced, I cannot connect the DVD drive to the same power cable as the storage drives.
When they are connected there is quite a bit of torque where the plugin meets the DVD drive, so in order to not cause damage to the cable (not a problem) OR to the power port on the DVD drive (would be a problem) I opted to use 2 cables.
http://i.imgur.com/Pxmr2oF.jpg
Next up I installed to front fan bracket made by Laserhive. Install seemed a bit tricky, but that's only because I was trying to mount it the wrong way. I was honestly fighting this thing for 10 minutes before I just let it do it's own thing. It's own thing, as it turns out, is the intended way for it to fit....
http://i.imgur.com/xJxNIWV.jpg
Here is most of my hardware in place. Please note that the red boxes indicate the fan power cables, and the green box is where they are supposed to plug in. Unless they can grow about an inch then they aren't going to reach. I have purchased a braided y-cable so I can run them both off of the same power.
http://i.imgur.com/cCTumxg.jpg
This is another issue that I am facing. This is actually a straight on shot of the rear I/O panel, which sits about 1/2 inch inside of the case, and as you can see, sits a bit too much to the right. Did I just totally screw up on mounting this, or what? Currently there is no way for me to use an IO shield anyhow (it attaches to a fan bracket that I don't have, so I can't mount) but I would like to finish this area off in a cleaner manner.
http://i.imgur.com/HIypC1l.jpg
As you can see, the expansion slots line up almost perfectly (it looks SOOOOOOO nice), so I know that I am doing something wrong with the I/O shield.
http://i.imgur.com/xU6nYQI.jpg
So now I have all of the parts in the case in the basic layout I am going to be using. I'm not a huge fan of the PSU sitting right under the RAM and CPU, but with the dual 120s (when I get them powered) I think I'll be ok heat-wise. Without those fans I am sitting at about 35c on the CPU, so for browsing and whatnot I should be ok.
http://i.imgur.com/UnjgAtr.jpg
This is about all I can do for cable management for now. I don't want to get too far into cleaning it all up (if I can) until I have all of my case fans up and running.
http://i.imgur.com/MuR1nD9.jpg
I still need to make this extension cable for the PSU, but I don't have the piece that I will be mounting to the case. Hard to build without it.
Loading up Windows 8 nets me the following User Experience Index Scores. With the parts I selected I am not terribly surprised.
http://i.imgur.com/JHJhSLw.jpg
And here it is up and running (ignore those lazy fans for now)! As you can see, the power LED doesn't stay on. I'm not sure if I've done something wrong with the wiring as it lights up only while it is being pressed, then it turns off. My front firewire doesn't work, but that's because I don't have a firewire connector. USB, Audio, and the switches all work.
http://i.imgur.com/CsxWC1C.jpg
Today's Final Thoughts:
I have a few more things I want to accomplish, as listed below.
1. Get front fans working. http://forum.redlynx.com/forum/image...con_asleep.gif ordered a Y splitter today, should have it on Tuesday. Thanks Amazon Prime)
2. Get I/O panel in the back sorted out. It works, but it doesn't look very "clean" right now.
3. Get Rear fans mounted and working.
4. Get front LED to light up when the system is on.
5. PSU to Case extension cable.
6. ...
7. PROFIT!
Anyhow, that's how I turn an old Mac Pro case into a PC gaming rig. What's your system like? Stock, super-modded? Let me know and post some pics!
Re: Shifty's Chop Chop MacPro (OR) EPIC RIG OF EPIC PROPORTI
So this is what youve been up to...looks sweet...And as for this thread... http://forum.redlynx.com/forum/image.../icon/clap.gif
Re: Shifty's Chop Chop MacPro (OR) EPIC RIG OF EPIC PROPORTI
Great! My laptop can't manage properly TEGE, so i have to update my old computer...
How much for all those components? http://forum.redlynx.com/forum/image...icon/smile.gif
Re: Shifty's Chop Chop MacPro (OR) EPIC RIG OF EPIC PROPORTI
nice mobjob. but the main question, what os are you running on it?
Re: Shifty's Chop Chop MacPro (OR) EPIC RIG OF EPIC PROPORTI
Quote:
Originally Posted by ShiftySamurai
Loading up Windows 8 nets me the following User Experience Index Scores. With the parts I selected I am not terribly surprised.
http://forum.redlynx.com/forum/image.../icon/razz.gif
Re: Shifty's Chop Chop MacPro (OR) EPIC RIG OF EPIC PROPORTI
Very Impressive Shifty. Shame the kind of games you will be playing on it will be Sim City and Oblivion http://forum.redlynx.com/forum/image.../icon/razz.gif jk
Re: Shifty's Chop Chop MacPro (OR) EPIC RIG OF EPIC PROPORTI
Quote:
Originally Posted by MaTiSpOrT
ah i missed that, thx
system is flawed then :p (kidding)
Re: Shifty's Chop Chop MacPro (OR) EPIC RIG OF EPIC PROPORTI
Quote:
Originally Posted by apdenton1
Updating for the next gen games? http://forum.redlynx.com/forum/image...icon/think.gif
Re: Shifty's Chop Chop MacPro (OR) EPIC RIG OF EPIC PROPORTI
Quote:
Originally Posted by MaTiSpOrT
I said the "kind of games" http://forum.redlynx.com/forum/image.../icon/razz.gif I was pointlessly taking a poke at shifty's gaming tastes because he said he approves of Sim City (new one, which was a disaster in many ways). Just ignore me, his EPIC RIG is sweet and I would like to steal it!
Re: Shifty's Chop Chop MacPro (OR) EPIC RIG OF EPIC PROPORTI
Looks really good! Now I want to build something too http://forum.redlynx.com/forum/image...on/biggrin.gif