[Modding] Mini ITX - Parquet case for tiesos

[dogosoft]

Hello everyone, I'm new to the forum and I've decided to start my own modding project. I know a bit about PC parts and such, but I've never had a mini ITX before. As I mentioned in the title, for desktops, I want to use parts from my PC, which is a huge beast. Anyway, let's get to it.
The idea is to buy the mini ITX stuff all from Amazon, and I'll list the parts as I go.
MSI AM1I AMD Mini ITX
RAM from my PC, 2x4gb
Disks from my PC, 256gb SSD and 2tb 3.5 HDD
Graphics card from my PC.
The power supply, I'll have to buy a mini ITX one, or maybe I can use the ATX one, which would be cheaper. What's the cheapest mini ITX power supply?
Micro AM1 Athlon 5350_SPAM_
I'm already over 70 euros, but okay.
Plus the power supply, I don't know how much that will cost.
I'll buy the AC5 parquet from Leroy Merlin, the cheapest one, about 6 euros per meter, I'll have some left over.
I'll create a rectangle that fits the dimensions of the parts.
I'll use the short sheets from another old, useless PC to use as supports inside the parquet pieces without using any more nails.
And I'll screw one side that can be removed to put in or take out parts.
Where should I place a large 12cm fan so it doesn't make noise on top or the front?
Should it extract or draw in air?
One or two USB 3.0 ports on the front or top? I use those a lot.
As you can see, I don't need a DVD drive, I think that's already outdated because I never use it, and if I put one in, it would be in the back, like the laptop I have, so nothing is visible in the front. The power switch would also be in the back.
Since this wood is easy to cut and glue, I can use a drill to make holes for air intake or exhaust and cut to put in USB and DVD and other stuff.

Well, that's the idea so far. Now, tell me the drawbacks and important improvements you see. I think the design is nice because those woods are decorative and look good on top of or under a table. I was thinking of putting speakers inside, but that would increase the size, and if I use it for TV in the future, it wouldn't be useful.
Sorry for the long post. I'll upload a pic of the design I have in mind before I start working. I want to know the drawbacks or what else I should think about before I start. Oh, and I forgot, the performance is for Photoshop and office work, so I guess I won't have any problems. My PC is 4 years old and it's still going strong.

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[Fassou]

First of all: Welcome to the forum :sisi:

Second: congratulations on the initiative to make your own case, but as you describe it, it seems that you are still too far from the prototype, so I will tell you some things.

About the speaker, in addition to the space, keep in mind that it is an electromagnet, so the closer you get it to the hardware, the better it is not.

As for the power supply, it will depend on the graphics, and if you can put a normal power supply much better, because it can be part of the cooling.

Regarding the case, the keyword is: wooden frames

Remember to put pictures of what you want to do, it saves you a lot of text.

Salu2!

[dogosoft]

Thanks
I thought about the frame being made of sheet metal for the heat dissipation issue, all attached to a heatsink and this to a fan so that it evaporates from the metal, I don't know if it's a good idea but the theory is like that or so I think, if the speaker is ruled out and now I see that the plates are not all 17x17 and this one measures 25x25, the dimension would be 15cm wide, 26 high and 29 deep
So the plate thing has messed up what I had planned and that the atx power supply is good for ventilation?
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[dogosoft]

Ahh tomorrow if I can I'll make the prototype with the bad parquet that I have left over to see how it would look

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[whoololon]

I see that in the end it will cost you more than buying a tower for €20, but let's get down to business.
Focus on the metal bracket for the motherboard and follow your design from there.
The SSD can go anywhere and the HDD, as long as you fix it well, almost the same.
The graphics card, being discrete, will need a place to fix it.
Regarding the power supply (ATX), it depends on the aesthetics you want to give it to put it horizontally or vertically, in front or next to the motherboard.
On the other hand, the issue of the switches (ON/OFF and RESET) and the leds (PWR and HDD) has not been commented on, but I assume you will have thought it through.
Regarding ventilation, the key thing is not to interrupt the flow of the FA, for the rest, you can opt for perforated surfaces or large cavities in not very visible places (bottom and back)

Here would come an inquisitive paragraph about the parquet and the management of the edges, but almost not. ;D

Edit: If a surface measures more than the piece of parquet, why does it come with the tongue and groove?

[Espinetenbolas]

I agree with whoololon… it's more expensive to make a case for yourself than to buy one... always, unless you have the materials for free (including the auxiliary ones).

I think it's not worth it and it will look "ugly" unless you're a master of wood because case modding is an expensive hobby, that requires a lot of technique and it's not exactly for the faint of heart.

But that's just my opinion... make the prototype and evaluate it for yourself if you have that material for free.

As advice, if you're going to use wood, I can tell you that something that could look cool to improve the look is to use vinyl like the one used in tunning to cover the wood and give it a matte black finish or in carbon fiber.

[dogosoft]

Good, I still think it's very cheap to do it yourself, but first you have to make a mockup to see how it would look, I'm working on it, it's super cheap but I get an idea of how things would go, I see a problem with my case that has a 12cm fan and I can't put it facing backwards only on a side, that is, to drill holes on a side, I'm looking at how to avoid it so that it's only from the back and from the top where I'm going to put another air intake fan.
I'm not handy but I have a jigsaw, not more nails, a utility knife, apart from the price. That's not it, I think it would look nice, only a USB 3.0 would be seen in the front, everything else is floor

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[dogosoft]

ASUS Mini ITX - Motherboard AM1, DDR3, Mini ITX I saw this board that is 17x17 cm but I do not see a normal graphics connector like the one on my PC that I want to take advantage of
Well I think Amazon's measurements are wrong and it is 17x17 the first board so it improves the space issue, I just ordered a USB cable for the board with two females for usb3.0 for the front.
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[whoololon]

That motherboard does have a PCIe2x16 slot.

Seriously, it's not to take away from your enthusiasm...

Tacens Anima AC016 USB 3.0 Case/Tower
Tacens Mars Gaming MC0 USB 3.0 Case/Tower
Tacens Versa Slim USB 3.0 Black Case/Tower

...well, partly yes. :ugly:

[dogosoft]

Well the idea is to make something really nice after being a mess but well the idea is the idea.
Dimensions: 336 x 170 x 345 mm.
The one I intend to make are 26x 17x 29 and of parquet the same as my floor.

EDIT
An important issue that I don't know if it's correct is that according to the position of my source with a 12 cm fan it collects air from inside the box to take it out from behind, I don't know if that will be a problem
the idea is to put another 12 cm one in the upper part bringing air in so that it makes the circuit, but I don't know if it will pick up the hot air from inside the box... in my current PC which is where I'm going to take the source it's like this, but of course the box is a mammoth and it has plenty of space on all sides which is something that in the new one will be completely different.

Advantage that it takes the air out of the box, disadvantage that it theoretically picks up hot air from the source.
Edited again

One thing I've thought about that I don't think will affect is putting the motherboard upside down that is with the graphics card on top,
so that it ventilates better, in the end I see myself putting the cold air intake fan in the front, down, but I wouldn't like to have to drill the front for aesthetic reasons.
How do you see it?

[dogosoft]

Attached image of how it would look, I thought that if I leave 2cm to the font it can suck in the air from below and I make some holes in the front to put another fan that brings in cold air to help, now I would need one more I would like to put it from behind but it would be 8cm which is the only one that fits if not above,
the question is whether it brings in or takes out air? and what would be the best option, today I have done the space tests and I think that with the drawing I attach it would be valid.
you tell me what you see better
I have numbered the fans so that you can measure the number and so there is no confusion.
Regards

[whoololon]

I visualize the idea of mounting the motherboard vertically and the power supply at the bottom.
The fact that the graphics card is at the top is only a problem if it doesn't have enough space to breathe.
Regarding the airflow and air reflux... a little cap I made on my case has shown me that it's better to have a large perforated side surface than to rely on the front intake.
Before continuing, what cooler does the micro use?

Edit: seeing your layout, lower the power supply to the bottom and perforate as needed for the fan, or place it vertically doing the same on the left panel.
Without perforated panels, top intake and rear exhaust.
Suggestion: remove the top fan and move it to the left side, intake between the micro and the graphics card.

[dogosoft]

The heatsink is what it will bring I suppose the micro is an amd am1 the cheapest one I've seen for 38 euros 4 cores 2ghz I have another one in my pc but I don't know if it's worth it.
If I lower the power supply to the bottom will it hit the floor or the table and not pull air?
Ahh I ruled out the graphics card at the top, in the drawing it appears at the bottom
The idea is not to make many holes so that the case looks nice.
I don't care about the back.
By the way the whiteboard is great
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[whoololon]

@dogosoft:

The heatsink is what it will bring I suppose the micro is an amd am1 the cheapest one I've seen for 38 euros 4 cores 2ghz I have another one in my pc but I don't know if it's worth it.
If I lower the power supply to the bottom it will hit the floor or the table and won't pull air?
Ahh I ruled out the graphics card up there, in the drawing it appears down
The idea is not to make many holes so that the case looks nice.
I don't care about the back.
By the way the whiteboard is great
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The power supply pulls air from the bottom…
Are you going to put legs on it or some protectors like those on chairs to raise it between 10 and 15 mm?

Edit: The idea may not be to make many holes, but consider the side better than the top, if something spills, gravity will finish it off.

[Espinetenbolas]

Well, if it helps you, you can get ideas like this:

Aerodyne

Level Twelve

You should, before you start, create a 2D design in AutoCAD or at least in SketchUP… something more professional and easier to use is Autodesk Inventor or SolidWorks.

With the latter two, in addition to being able to appreciate the visual aspect it will have, you can generate the manufacturing plans for all the parts.

BONUS: If you need 3D parts for your case, you have the website GRABCAD where you will even find motherboards in maximum detail, sockets, screws, hard drives, etc…

[dogosoft]

Thank you very much for your response
but I think it will take me longer to design it than to make it, let me see if I install the AutoCAD that I used to handle it years ago, let me see if I remember…

I have changed my idea, I think I will put the power supply at the top to take advantage of the fan it has and blow the air out, a front intake at the bottom for cold air and the outlet through the power supply, maybe I will make a slot just above the graphics card on the back to help it evacuate air.

let me see if they bring me the plate already so I can start to see how it would look.

[dogosoft]

Here I leave you the pieces to see what you think
Msi am1 motherboard
AMD am1 5350 micro
Tacens mp600 power supply
Gigabyte n610d3 2gb graphics
8 gb HyperX Fury white RAM
256 ssd that I already had from the other pc and 2 tb hdd
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[Yorus]

I don't know what use you're going to give it, but I don't see the point of putting a low-end graphics card like the GT610 when that APU already includes a more than decent graphics card for multimedia use.

A comparison between the APU's graphics card and several low-end ones, although it's on Linux but it serves as a reference:

http://www.phoronix.com/scan.php?page=article&item=amd_am1_discrete&num=1

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[dogosoft]

It's that I have bad experiences with integrated graphics, the PC loses power and it's not for multimedia use, it's for photoshop and office work, no games

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[Yorus]

Look at the link I posted earlier, you responded so quickly that I didn't have time to finish editing it. Later on the PC I'll look at it better, but it's possible that the GT610 is worse than the integrated one, and more so if the RAM is fast, which is very noticeable in AMD APUs.

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