Custom server case

[meringu]

Hey guys!

 

This is my first post/case mod and my first time working with aluminum, or any metal for that matter. I had my server sitting on a networking switch, in an old motherboard tray. I decided to build a case for it and this is what I ended up with.

After helping a mate upgrade to a 8350, he gave me his old parts for being his personal tech support. He gave me the following:

- Amd Athlon X4 640

- Gigabyte MA74GMT-S2

- Kingston 2x2GB DDR3 1333MHz low profile memory

I also upgraded some parts to make the build more 'enterprise grade'. I bought two Western Digital RE4 500GB Sata II drives to put in raid 1 compared to an old seagate 7200.10 320GB. The power supply I was originally using was from my friend also, actually exploded in a huge spark that flashed out of the PSU case. The largest capacitor inside blew open, and the main transformer was blackened. I quickly bought a non no-name Corsair CX500. I bought 2 120mm Fractal Design Silent Series R2 case fans. The stock Amd cooler was too loud and whiney, so i replaced it with the Cooler Master GeminII M4, which I may try to run passively.

The case itself is made from scrap aluminium. The equal angle is actually off cuts of 'W-channel' that was stripped down to U-channel for use in showers. The aluminium sheets are from and old case that used to house a Pentium IV Extreme Edition. It would have cost thousands back in the day, but was donated to me as it is hopelessly slow now. The sides of the case are also from showers, they're of cut offs of the material that lines the walls. I bought the power button from Jaycar.

I recycled the motherboard tray from the same case I got the side panels from. The hard drives sit in the bottom of the box, the motherboard tray then slides on top, then the lid slides on too. The case is designed to fit a full sized atx board, up to 6 hard drives (provided you can handle the cable management and it doesn't get too hot down there) and long video cards. And you probably guessed by the fan spacings this case can also hold thick 240mm radiators. Inspite of this the case measures only 340mm deep by 360mm wide by 210mm tall.

The server runs Ubuntu 12.04. It is used to host personal cloud services for myself and some friends, various web pages, game servers and most importantly a platform to experiment on.

Here are some shots of the completed build:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Photos taken with a Nikon D3200

 

Feedback is welcomed.

[Guest]

That looks pretty good though I would go and find some front fan covers such as those from MNPCTech or even make your own. 

[M-ursu]

Looks awesome, but i would paint that case black.

[Samdb]

I don't like how close the heatsink is to the PSU, but that's just me being picky.

[Nicktrance]

You should try making a few holes in the top and turn that PSU around since it's taking air away from the CPU and get some fan cover because the whole rig will be covered in dust in a month.

[jclappers]

Personally i would have moved the psu to the other side and flipped it, unless you have put a gpu in there. then its able to take air from outside and the heatsink isnt blocked off

[meringu]

I don't like how close the heatsink is to the PSU, but that's just me being picky.

 

 

You should try making a few holes in the top and turn that PSU around since it's taking air away from the CPU and get some fan cover because the whole rig will be covered in dust in a month.

 

 

Personally i would have moved the psu to the other side and flipped it, unless you have put a gpu in there. then its able to take air from outside and the heatsink isnt blocked off

 

The default cooler used to run in a case with similar thermals to a Bitfenix Shinobi, with an added fan in the window. Even though I have speed reducers on silent series fans, this case results in lower temperatures. Also this is the only place to put the PSU and keep such a small form factor. I didn't want to cover the PCI slots, as in the future I want to use this as a Steam box. I mentioned in the OP I wanted to run the new cooler passively, then there would be a lot more space between the PSU and the cooler.

[meringu]

That looks pretty good though I would go and find some front fan covers such as those from MNPCTech or even make your own. 

 

I think fan covers would detract from the build, and I really like the look of the fans. Plus I live in NZ and everly thing PC related seems so expensive here. But even after three weeks the fans were quite dusty. I'll defiantly look into getting filters. I wouldn't buy some, but I haven't seen any decent home made ones, so I might hold out for now. If you have any suggestions on home made filters, I'd look into it.

[Viepert]

You could make your own fanguards. When u mou t them stretch a piece of stocking between them and the case. Then remove the excess from the outside of the guards. Voila, home made filters.

[EvilBugga]

Very nice!, 

i love how this case looks its nice and simple and i love the choice of the fractal fans, nice and quite and looks very nice.

i would suggest on maybe adding dust filters on the front fans or even behind them if you like the look of the fans and if you havent already 

add some rubber inbetween the hard drive and the case to prevent vibrations.

very nice build!!

[Raboo]

I like it I would put fan covers on the fan's

[alpenwasser]

Ah, the WD RE4 :wub:

I have four 2 TB RE4 s and I am really happy with them. Very much liking the space efficiency

of this build. If you get decent temps with the PSU and the CPU cooler so close together then

it doesn't really matter all that much I'd say.

It reminds me a bit of an old prototype air plane without any paint (they often weren't painted

either), reduced to the bare necessities.

[meringu]

Very nice!, 

i love how this case looks its nice and simple and i love the choice of the fractal fans, nice and quite and looks very nice.

i would suggest on maybe adding dust filters on the front fans or even behind them if you like the look of the fans and if you havent already 

add some rubber inbetween the hard drive and the case to prevent vibrations.

very nice build!!

 

Thanks for the feedback.  Mounting the filter behind the fans is a very good idea. I could make them clip/slide on, then it would be tool less to open the case and pull the filters off to give them a vacuum. I could even do it when the server is running! I was thinking about putting felt in the bottom of the basement, but rubber covered screws is another option.

[meringu]

Ah, the WD RE4 :wub:

I have four 2 TB RE4 s and I am really happy with them. Very much liking the space efficiency

of this build. If you get decent temps with the PSU and the CPU cooler so close together then

it doesn't really matter all that much I'd say.

It reminds me a bit of an old prototype air plane without any paint (they often weren't painted

either), reduced to the bare necessities.

 

I am very impressed with the RE4's. They are so silent and cool, yet high performing. The aluminum panels are coated in something as they came from another case. The edge pieces I am hoping will oxidize to form a protective layer.

[Giancarlo124]

That is super cool.

[zxcvbnmmssdh]

Looks great, i like it