Old dell pc

[Smurger burger]

Do you guys know what is my old pcs motherboard size.  Im Going to make a computer and im wondering if i can use my old dell case as a base. Like can i put a rtx 3060 in it and all that other nonsense. Also, im taking everything out of it except the fan. That looks pretty useful

[Electronics Wizardy]

Looks like a matx case.

 

But thats gonna run real toasty with a 3060 in it.

[Sarra]

Nope. The mounting hole locations, power supply, and pretty much everything is proprietary in that.

 

You would be way better off getting a PC case that isn't basically a rehashed 1998 design.

 

That case would be a nightmare to build a custom PC in, even if you did swap out the PSU, and if the mounting holes lined up.

 

Oh, snap, is that Socket 370? Yeah, I think it is from 1998... Nope, XP Home, it's from 2006~ish. Maybe Socket 476? Or whatever the early P4's lived in.

[Smurger burger]

 

13 minutes ago, Sarra said:

Nope. The mounting hole locations, power supply, and pretty much everything is proprietary in that.

 

You would be way better off getting a PC case that isn't basically a rehashed 1998 design.

 

That case would be a nightmare to build a custom PC in, even if you did swap out the PSU, and if the mounting holes lined up.

 

Oh, snap, is that Socket 370? Yeah, I think it is from 1998... Nope, XP Home, it's from 2006~ish. Maybe Socket 476? Or whatever the early P4's lived in.

Aw man, i thought i would be able to use it.

[Sarra]

1 minute ago, Smurger burger said:

 

Aw man, i thought i would be able to use it.

If you want to do a sleeper build, get a Mini ITX board, a new PSU, a drill, and a tap, and run something in the case. But it's going to be really limited, because that box will get hot. You'd have to drill new mounting holes for your board, and then tap them for the standoffs.

 

I see the appeal, I've wanted to do this myself, but the work just doesn't make sense. Plus, you'd be limited to MATX or Mini ITX, and realistically, a Ryzen APU. I'm not sure that case could actually keep an APU cool... But, you never know, maybe you can mod it until it works?

[Smurger burger]

13 minutes ago, Sarra said:

If you want to do a sleeper build, get a Mini ITX board, a new PSU, a drill, and a tap, and run something in the case. But it's going to be really limited, because that box will get hot. You'd have to drill new mounting holes for your board, and then tap them for the standoffs.

 

I see the appeal, I've wanted to do this myself, but the work just doesn't make sense. Plus, you'd be limited to MATX or Mini ITX, and realistically, a Ryzen APU. I'm not sure that case could actually keep an APU cool... But, you never know, maybe you can mod it until it works?

I'm going to keep the case open so whatever gpu and cpu im buying would have a little bit more room to breath. I would also put like a giant fan next to it so it does not explode. Wait, i just learned what a APU is. So instead of a cpu and gpu i should just get that?

[Needfuldoer]

6 hours ago, Sarra said:

Nope. The mounting hole locations, power supply, and pretty much everything is proprietary in that.

Dimension towers from that era were regular MicroATX. Even the power supplies and IO shield were standard.

 

You can gut that case and use it as a modern sleeper chassis, but cooling is going to be an issue. If you remove that hard drive bracket you might be able to drill out some extra holes where you won't see them, and put a 120mm fan with decent static pressure in there. You might have to go through the 'floor' of the case.

 

You'll have to add regular headers to the front panel buttons and LEDs, too.

[Smurger burger]

2 hours ago, Needfuldoer said:

Dimension towers from that era were regular MicroATX. Even the power supplies and IO shield were standard.

 

You can gut that case and use it as a modern sleeper chassis, but cooling is going to be an issue. If you remove that hard drive bracket you might be able to drill out some extra holes where you won't see them, and put a 120mm fan with decent static pressure in there. You might have to go through the 'floor' of the case.

 

You'll have to add regular headers to the front panel buttons and LEDs, too.

I basically took everything out of it. Except for the side fan of course im going to try to clean that ,but i took everything else out. If i can find my drill i would definitely screw some holes so i can add a extra fan or two.

[da na]

No, there's no airflow plus that is a proprietary form factor.

[Needfuldoer]

22 minutes ago, Mel0n. said:

No, there's no airflow plus that is a proprietary form factor.

It's plain old Micro ATX. Only the front panel connectors are proprietary and need modding to work with generic motherboards.

[da na]

1 minute ago, Needfuldoer said:

It's plain old Micro ATX. Only the front panel connectors are proprietary and need modding to work with generic motherboards.

My bad then. Must have switched to their evil almost-mATX boards a few years later

[Smurger burger]

33 minutes ago, Mel0n. said:

No, there's no airflow plus that is a proprietary form factor.

What if i keep the case open? Would that give it better airflow?

[da na]

4 minutes ago, Smurger burger said:

What if i keep the case open? Would that give it better airflow?

Somewhat. But having a fan blowing onto your components is ideal. You could leave the panel open and put a 120mm fan near where the HDD is, that's a thought, with the intake side facing the open side panel...

[Smurger burger]

30 minutes ago, Needfuldoer said:

It's plain old Micro ATX. Only the front panel connectors are proprietary and need modding to work with generic motherboards.

Would i only have to mod in a fan? Because there is like cords specifically for the power on/off button.

[Smurger burger]

15 minutes ago, Mel0n. said:

Somewhat. But having a fan blowing onto your components is ideal. You could leave the panel open and put a 120mm fan near where the HDD is, that's a thought, with the intake side facing the open side panel...

Okay, thanks for the info! I will make sure to buy a 120mm fan.

[Needfuldoer]

30 minutes ago, Smurger burger said:

Would i only have to mod in a fan? Because there is like cords specifically for the power on/off button.

If that just goes to the regular generic pin header, you're okay. If they go to a small multi-pin connector, you'll have to snip the connector off and attach generic ones somehow. The USB ports probably don't have standard connectors on the motherboard end either.

 

It's been a hot minute since I tore one of those Dimension chassis down, so I don't remember everything offhand.

[Arika]

1 hour ago, Smurger burger said:

What if i keep the case open? Would that give it better airflow?

If it's mean to be a sleeper, you want everything to be closed. if you want it to have good airflow and are willing to leave an entire panel off, why the overwhelming desire to use this particular case?

[Smurger burger]

14 minutes ago, Arika S said:

If it's mean to be a sleeper, you want everything to be closed. if you want it to have good airflow and are willing to leave an entire panel off, why the overwhelming desire to use this particular case?

I just find this case interesting. I think it looks decent and want to work with it. Find what works and what doesnt. Also, i dont want a sleeper pc. I never said i did, i just want to play games on it. Also, it was just laying around my house so why the heck not.

[Smurger burger]

46 minutes ago, Needfuldoer said:

If that just goes to the regular generic pin header, you're okay. If they go to a small multi-pin connector, you'll have to snip the connector off and attach generic ones somehow. The USB ports probably don't have standard connectors on the motherboard end either.

 

It's been a hot minute since I tore one of those Dimension chassis down, so I don't remember everything

Yeah i think its just a generic pin header.

[Smurger burger]

Also heads up the pc im showing is a dell dimension 2350. Just incase any of you guys were wondering what dell dimension it is.

[thrasher_565]

how dose that drive in the front work its pointed at the ground? unless im missing something oh its a ide hdd...

Edited August 5, 2022 by thrasher_565

[Needfuldoer]

2 hours ago, thrasher_565 said:

how dose that drive in the front work its pointed at the ground? unless im missing something oh its a ide hdd...

That wasn't so uncommon back in the late 90s and early 2000s. Sometimes on very cheap PCs, the drive would be attached there just by punching four holes in the front (behind the bezel) and screwing into the bottom screw bosses on the drive.

[thrasher_565]

6 hours ago, Needfuldoer said:

That wasn't so uncommon back in the late 90s and early 2000s. Sometimes on very cheap PCs, the drive would be attached there just by punching four holes in the front (behind the bezel) and screwing into the bottom screw bosses on the drive.

ya i got a p2 from school and it was well slow  but it had this pcb the made all the cards vertical and my dad shows me how to oc it with a jumper here i come 133mhz... but all i used it for was a pc to run diablo 2 so i can xfer items

 

ya pcs back then didn't have mush cooling if any at all and i guess it still worked and lasted... except the psu didn't... thoe tiny slits on the back was not enough air for the psu... in this case that psu has an extreme amount of air flow but no air

Edited August 5, 2022 by thrasher_565

[Smurger burger]

Okay, i managed to get everything out of the pc. I also accidently cut myself when i took out the fan (hope i dont get a infection). So heres a better picture of it.

[Sarra]

For cereal, make sure your tetanus shot is up to date. o.x;;;

 

Is the drive cage at the top removable?