The Borg Cube Case Mod, Part 5

Finishing Touches and Special Effects
I discovered that the Thermaltake water-cooling kit for the CPU has a neat little installation trick. The pump and the small shampoo-bottle style reservoir already had flat steel brackets mounted to them. The water cooling kit includes a number of small, extremely strong magnets that are to be placed between the bracket and the case, holding the pump and reservoir to a steel case without mounting screws. (If you don't have a steel case, there are several thin steel plates and some mounting dots to hold them to aluminum or plastic.)

I liked the concept so much, I took the idea and applied it to holding other things in place. Do you have problems with the little foam mounting-tape pads failing and your lights falling off? Grind a shallow hole in the end block, and epoxy glue small magnets in place. Snap -- and the lights are in place; but they can still easily be removed or adjusted anytime you want.

For the plastic panels and assorted parts inside the case, I just hot glued a number of small magnetic "feet" to the back, and then dropped the whole thing into the chassis. I repeated the process with some plastic drive bay panels by grinding the tabs off and then using hot glue to attach magnets to the back. On the inside of the side panel, an ultraviolet LED was hot glued to a small magnet then positioned to shine on the water flow indicator.

Thermaltake includes some water additive to prevent mold and algae from growing in the tubing and pump; they also recommend adding regular automotive antifreeze 1:10 to the water. This gives it a nice fluorescent yellow-green glow under black light CCFT and UV LEDs.

[caption id="attachment_137" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="The green glow of the pump and hoses is from antifreeze mixed to a 1:10 ratio with distilled water."][/caption]

I started with a Thermaltake Aquarius II water cooling kit and replaced the CPU block with a newer model that works with the Socket 775 processors and mounting holes. I added a flow indicator and the top-mounted drive bay reservoir — which required hose barb adapters to feed from the large reservoir hoses into the smaller tube size used in the kit.

[caption id="attachment_138" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="The Borg logo cover conceals the floppy drive and card reader, top-to-bottom drive bays are behind the cover on the right."][/caption]

The front of the case is a hinged plastic cover, with a small door over the floppy bays, and a large door over the row of 5 1/4" bays. Using a spiral cutting bit in a Dremel tool, I cut the front louvers off of the large drive bay door and glued a rounded vent panel down into the opening. I glued some "chrome" pieces from a toy gun over the ends of a Spiral Liquid Cold Cathode Light and recessed the entire thing down one side of the large door.

For the floppy drive door, I created a Borg "logo" from 1/4" Plexiglas and mounted a piece of red electroluminescent film behind it. This is held to the panel with double-stick carpet tape, and the inverter mounted on the inside of the cover. Both the CCFT tube and the EL panel use 12volts with a common cable running inside to the power supply.

[caption id="attachment_139" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="Front of case after painting - doors open."][/caption]

More panels cover the inside of the door to conceal the chewed-up plastic edges. Toy parts, some wire and an old Cyrix 686 CPU with the pins ground off and the core exposed add some interest to the fan side of the case front vents. I mounted a double-plug USB connector in the plastic block, with the cable threading back through the case front to the system board.

For the green cold cathode tube under the chassis (between the wheels), I attached the inverter to the rear of the case with Velcro, and ran the power plug to a Mutant Mods' 3 Port External LP4 Modding Backplate; the tube is held to the bottom with magnets.

CAUTION: don't use magnets to hold the inverters to the case. A strong magnetic field can interfere with the tiny transformer used in these, and could cause it to overheat or do strange things. (Take my word for it - I'm telling you that you will burn-out the CCFT inverter, and could risk a fire if it overheats in the process. Mine didn't burst into flame, but it did get very hot, and it did fail.)

All of the front drive bays are full: The two 3 1/2" bays hold a floppy drive and flash media card adapter. The 5 1/4" bays hold a DVD±RW drive, a CD-RW drive, two SATA hard drives (in mounting brackets), an Internal 5.25" Bay PC Stereo Speaker, and controllers for the fans and lights: Aerocool Gatewatch 4-fan controller and a SunbeamTech Lightbus controller.

Both controllers were already a silver finish, so - a little silver model paint, and so are the rest of the front panels including the speaker, optical drives and bay covers. Once all of the plastic parts have been attached, some flat black enamel paint helps to assimilate them into a uniform whole. Some gold and silver model paint on select panels and box covers completes the case mod appearance.

Next: The Borg Cube assimilates multiple OS versions

Choosing a Case

Computer cases come in many shapes, sizes, colors and levels of functionality. Before purchasing a case you'll want to consider several things.

Functionality vs. Aesthetics
End users tend to choose a case based on outside appearance and price. Computer experts tend to choose based on functionality and brands. The quality of most cases that would be considered aesthetically pleasing tends to vary, since much of the styling is done by plastic shells over a simple metal box. Check the display models whenever possible to avoid unpleasant surprises.

Power supply
The power supply is one of a few PC components that has moving parts (a cooling fan or fans), and is a possible point of future failures. Therefore, choosing a case with a reliable power supply is very important. The wattage of a power supply is likely less important than its reliability. 450W-500W is more than enough for the majority of systems running today.

500-750W may be necessary when multiple hard drives and optical drives are used in conjunction with high end video or other components. Industry standards for measuring the reliability of a power supply (or most other PC components) do not exist. When in doubt, we recommend staying with major brands such as Antec.

High end gaming systems or system running two or three video cards and water cooling may need power supplies up in the 800-1000W range! One work-around you may see is systems using dual power supplies to distribute the load between components, and providing better stability for overclocking.

Cooling
A case fan (or fans) is highly recommended! With the modern processors used today it is important to deliver cool air to hot components such as processors, video cards, and hard drives. Failure to do so can result in decreased stability and longevity of a system, especially since the failure of a power supply fan can go unnoticed for weeks in a system until the power supply fails or shuts down from overheating.

High temperature is one of the worst enemies of all computer components! A front case fan should pull ambient air into the case, while the power supply fan and rear case fans will move hot air from inside the case out. This creates a flow of air across the CPU and helps maintain the temperature inside the case at a relatively low and constant level. Top or rear case fans should push hot air out of the case.

Side panel fans (usually positioned near the CPU assembly) should be mounted to pull cool air into the case where it is needed most. A dual fan power supply is recommended when using modern AMD Athlon/XP/64 processors or Intel Pentium 4 processors. The second fan on the power supply helps quickly move hot air away from the processor's heat sink fan combination.

Ease of Use
A roomy case that is easy to access and does not have sharp edges should be on your list. To be fair, the manufacturers are doing much better in removing sharp edges and making strong, attractive cases. But, keep in mind that manufacturing a case out of thinner sheet metal, having straight, unrolled edges, no reinforced folds or framing. Using standard screws (or pop-rivets) are some simple ways manufacturers use to keep their cost down.

[caption id="attachment_76" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="Snap-on drive rails make installation quick and easy."][/caption]

If you are the type of person that is always changing something in your system, then investing in a case that uses time-saving features such as thumb screws, spring-locked covers, removable motherboard tray and snap-in drive rails will be a big plus!

[caption id="attachment_81" align="alignnone" width="186" caption="Thumb screws"][/caption]

Thumbscrews make accessing the inside of the case quick and easy. Cases may also have spring-lock catches, or other quick-release handles or tabs. These case styles still may use thumbscrews to secure the panels from vibration or torque during transport.

Form Factor and Compatibility
Matching the motherboard size specification to the case means that the mounting posts either line up or can be placed to match the holes in the motherboard, and that there is adequate room to install it in the case.

• ATX
  Almost all motherboards today are ATX or some variant thereof. ATX motherboards are typically 12" x 9.6" or slightly smaller. The most common size of case used to house an ATX motherboard is a Mid-Tower case. If a case supports ATX, it should also work with MicroATX and FlexATX motherboards.


• E-ATX and Full ATX
  Typically found in server cases such as full towers, cubes, and rack mounts, the size of these boards range from 12" x 11" to 12" x 13". If a case supports this size, it should also support ATX, MicroATX, and FlexATX. 
  
  [caption id="attachment_79" align="alignnone" width="225" caption="Interior of ATX case"][/caption]

Most cases have holes to set the standoffs where they match the holes in your motherboard. Removable trays make installation easier, but add weight and cost. Watch out for cases that have fixed mounting posts, if they do not match your motherboard form factor, you will not be able to use the two together.

[caption id="attachment_82" align="alignnone" width="98" caption="Metal standoffs"][/caption]

 

[caption id="attachment_84" align="alignnone" width="182" caption="Nylon standoffs"][/caption]

Case standoffs should be installed to exactly match the holes in the motherboard. Standoffs support the motherboard, and position it to line up with the rear slots and case openings. Nylon standoffs can be used if there is a possibility of shorting out the circuit board; they also make for fast snap-in installation, although removing the board later can be a challenge.

Design
Some people like a case that has a slide out side panel, while others like a connected top and cover. Some people like having a slide out motherboard tray, while others prefer a very roomy case to install the motherboard to. We feel that each of these design elements has their pros and cons and that it's largely a matter of personal preference.

Case Material
Steel cases are inexpensive, but heavy. Aluminum cases are much lighter than steel cases, but tend to be much more expensive. The light weight makes it a popular choice among people who move their PCs around very often, such as LAN party fans. Some people believe that aluminum cases have slightly better cooling than the steel ones. While aluminum cases may have a more modern and exotic look than steel cases, they have a drawback of being structurally weaker than steel and more prone to surface scratching and damage.

Noise
Computers have very few moving parts except for fans and drives. The optical drives typically only run at full speed when accessing data, installing, or sometimes burning media. The same is true of floppy disks, in that you only access them to load or save data. The hard drive generally rotates whenever the computer is on, although power management may turn it off during periods of inactivity. Fans on the other hand, run all the time. Fans on the CPU, fans on the case, fans in the power supply. How the fan is mounted, the size and speed of the fan, and where the fan is located all contribute to system noise levels. Fan speed control kits, thermal sensors and pc-health monitored fan control can reduce the overall system noise during normal operation. Reinforced or sound-dampening construction can make the difference between quite operation and a noisy system.

Vibration Transfer Control
In thin steel cases, aluminum cases, and some of the ultra low-cost models, vibration can become a problem. Vibration Transfer can happen if a piece with moving parts (such as a fan, hard drive, power supply or optical drive) is screwed directly into the case. In severe cases this vibration can be transmitted into the side panels which case then act as noise amplifiers (think steel drums).

As a rule of thumb, the thicker the case is, the less likely this is to be a problem. Thicker materials tend to absorb vibration rather than transmit it. High quality cases will usually have a thick drive mounting frame. This increases stability and reduces the possibility of transfer. Another approach to this is to use plastic or another substance as an intermediary between the two mounting surfaces. To that end, a large number of cases now use plastic fan mounts instead of traditional fan mounting screws. Fans tend to be a bigger source of vibration then drives.

Drive Bays
The number, position and size of the drive bays may be an important factor when selecting a case. How many optical drives do you want? Do you need a floppy drive or bay-mounted memory card reader? (Many cases only have a single 3 1/2" drive bay opening.) Another factor that you may run into when starting assembly is positioning your drives so that the data cables can reach, or getting power-splitter cables to connect the drives to the power supply or reach other additions like lighting kits.

DIY Mods (Do It Yourself Modifications)
Some cases are more modification friendly then others. If you are thinking about purchasing a case and "modding" it then we recommend that you look for a case that has solid metal panels (either metal or aluminum) instead of plastic or a plastic/steel mix. Solid metal panels are much easier to alter. Also, it is better to have separated sides and top instead of joined sides and top. For top window or "blow-hole" mods, it is best to find a case that uses screws instead of rivets to hold the top of the case on, and use a case that has a flat metal top vs. a curved plastic top.

Special Features
Once you go beyond basics, the case manufacturers are trying to get your attention with a diverse set of enhancements, many of which sever no real purpose other than to look cool. Some of the case enhancements include thermometer display panels with sensors that you can place under the CPU or next to a hard drive. There are LED illuminated case fans, ultraviolet reactive case fittings, and light-up doors or front panel light shows. There are concealing drive bay doors that hide the ugly beige or black.