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Custom PC case build

Former Member

Im a huge fan of the show and it's inspired me to branch out from strictly programming into working with small electronics.

I thought it would be cool to design a custom pc that isn't a laptop but is more portable than your average desktop.

It should have a built in wireless router, internal speakers, and a few power outlets. This way it could would be one plug into the wall, one into the modem, the monitor plugs into the pc case (both for video and power), and an extra power plug for external speakers.

I also use a wireless xbox 360 controller for gaming, and a logitech wireless keyboard and mouse, so if the wireless recievers could be built into the case that would be less cords carry.

Space might be tight with all those components and a high power video card so water cooling might be an option.

  • A water cooling system would be a lot heavier; I don't think it's something you want in a portable case. It should either have an easy way to accomplish a lot of air cooling (computer cooling fans aren't very heavy, and since the case itself is custom, you can design it with, say two very open sides with intake and exhaust fans; that plus a big heatsink on the video card could do the trick) or maybe you should have slightly lower expectations of the performance of a highly-portable system.

     

    The rest, however, shouldn't be too difficult. If you use, say, a mini- or even micro-ATX motherboard (or any number of other high-powered small motherboards; it'd be interesting to see what you could do with something tiny but powerful like the Beagleboard), a laptop-sized HDD and slimline DVD drive, then if your case is something like the size of a full-sized ATX case, everything should fit fine. You may even be able to include a cabinet to hold the controller, mouse, and even keyboard if it's a small one. One idea might be to make a small cabinet like that at each end with grating for the inner wall, so when you open it to get your I/O devices, you'll be opening the cooling vents, and when you close them after putting everything away, your computer is now sealed against the elements for travel.

     

    And, of course, having both a handle and a strap would give you carrying options. If you think that having a computer strapped over your shoulder sounds uncomfortable, I'll point out that a friend of mine actually has an ATX-sized computer case that came with a strap for portability, and he says it works pretty well.