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Hehehe. My first sketch did it in just under an hour so it is not very good but it should give you an idea.

This is also just the frame. The innards still needs to be designed for it and then I will be able to put sizes to it. I think I will be going with the 200mm I will just have to watch the hight of the case.

Seems you have a similar idea to what I had Here

I like it man, only show the necessary stuff, hide the nasties.

Jip also the PSU and HDD's are the heavy stuff. It should also improve airflow to a certain degree.

Ya exactly. Do it!

I should possibly also mention that I want to make it like a plug in thing. If you pull one of the compartments out you should not struggle with power connectors and the sorts so it should just slot into adapters at the far end of the module which then links through to the components or whatever it should. toying on weather I should do this for the liquid cooling as well.

Sounds like a good idea. Except the liquid cooling...I think you'd want 100% certainty that everything is connectoed fully and correctly, and I'm not sure you'd have that certainty if you did it "automatically" so to speak.

UrBaN wrote:Sounds like a good idea. Except the liquid cooling...I think you'd want 100% certainty that everything is connectoed fully and correctly, and I'm not sure you'd have that certainty if you did it "automatically" so to speak.

Yeah that is whay I was only toying with the idea.

Tell you what, build it then test it with someone else's hardware

UrBaN wrote:Tell you what, build it then test it with someone else's hardware

Hey glad to have you as a volunteer. When will you be coming around to drop off your hardware

Should be there next week, just waiting for Prime to finish his mod so we have some hardware to test on

UrBaN wrote:Should be there next week, just waiting for Prime to finish his mod so we have some hardware to test on

Yeah, bring it on

RuadRauFlessa wrote:

UrBaN wrote:Should be there next week, just waiting for Prime to finish his mod so we have some hardware to test on

Yeah, bring it on

With a response like that, I'm bringing my girlfriend with me

UrBaN wrote:

RuadRauFlessa wrote:

UrBaN wrote:Should be there next week, just waiting for Prime to finish his mod so we have some hardware to test on

Yeah, bring it on

With a response like that, I'm bringing my girlfriend with me

Well she can always take my bed. You can get the spare bedroom with a blow up matress.

RuadRauFlessa, Anything that's blow-up in your house probably already has dodgy holes in it, I'll pass thanks

She wouldn't want you anyway, you're not weird enough

UrBaN wrote:RuadRauFlessa, Anything that's blow-up in your house probably already has dodgy holes in it, I'll pass thanks

She wouldn't want you anyway, you're not weird enough

There you go again. Ripping the pond right from under the duck. I didn't say anything like that.

ya but you thought it you bastid!

UrBaN wrote: ya but you thought it you bastid!

Nope, but any time you wanna come through you are welcome to visit.

Thanks man, if I'm ever....wherever it is you are, I'll come say howdy...

Just an update. I am currently busy installing a cad program to do a more precise drawing of what I already have on the board. Will propably be finished by the end of next week with the drawings. I want to do this as the box will be built from scratch and I don't want to make a muckup of it as I don't have money to waste.

Cool cool, just keep us updated.

K Update.

Played around with AutoCAD 2008 and came up with the below for the bottom tray. It is not final so I am willing to make changes if I find them viable.



RED = PSU
Yellow = HDD
Orange = CD/DVD
Green = Frame

Looks decent. I'm guessing one of the side panels would be solid, so as to hide the cables etc?

Do you plan on having rails on top of it, to slide the top section off? Or would all of those panels be solid?

RuadRauFlessa wrote:The basic concept is to have a solid frame with 2 rachs which pulls out from the rear of the case. The case is also internally devided into two, one on the top for the mobo and one on the bottom for disks + psu + dvd-rom. The frame will consist of aluminium with side windows which will only show the top area. So you won't see any disks through it. The trays which you can pull out will be made from plexi. Front panel of the case will basically be reserved for fans. And that is basicaaly how far I got for the moment.

UrBaN wrote:Looks decent. I'm guessing one of the side panels would be solid, so as to hide the cables etc?

Do you plan on having rails on top of it, to slide the top section off? Or would all of those panels be solid?

RuadRauFlessa wrote:The basic concept is to have a solid frame with 2 rachs which pulls out from the rear of the case. The case is also internally devided into two, one on the top for the mobo and one on the bottom for disks + psu + dvd-rom. The frame will consist of aluminium with side windows which will only show the top area. So you won't see any disks through it. The trays which you can pull out will be made from plexi. Front panel of the case will basically be reserved for fans. And that is basicaaly how far I got for the moment.

I think a tad more explanation is warranted here. The tray up top is the one of two trays which will be sliding in and out of the main chassis. Yes it will have rails. I wanted to design the layout around the components first before I get to the real problem solving. that rack is about 180mm in width. It might get wider once I put the rails and cable management on. The HDD's actually mount upside down in that pic by means of the bottom screws. I want to put some spring loaded thumb screws in there but I will get to designing that in as soon as I take some measurements regarding the location of the screw holes on a HDD. First though I would like to design the top part and then get back to it.

Agreed, get your design done, then work out the logistics regarding actually building it.

What colour scheme dude? Lighting? Water?

I was thinking of a brushed metal look. I really love anything which is black with silver trimming however. I will be mounting the lighting at the top of the top tray. The light source itself will not be visible. The colour will however depend on what I decide for the rest of the case though. I will be making space for water cooling in the top tray. My initial idea was to include space for the res and pump in the bottom tray but that only leads to more problems. Sometimes the simplist solution is the best. For the colour motif I have a graphic designer who will be helping me with it I just need to finish the design first before I try to make it nice. As you have noted I design from the inside outwards. Only way I know of to make everything fit properly.