[Build Log] Stalker v2.0 - Custom Micro PC build [Complete]

[MEC-777]

Aaaaaaand, its' alive!!!

 

Hard drive is just sitting on top temporarily. Will be grabbing a cheap second-hand 128GB SSD off the local classifieds. I can't stand the slow boot times with this old HDD and there really isn't even room for it inside this case, so yeah.

 

 

Runs great (using it as a type this post), fairly quiet and so far there's no issues with temps. Side panel is open, I know, but having the PSU so close to the CPU cooler I thought might cause higher temps on the CPU. Running P95, the CPU temp levelled out around 69-70*C, which is totally fine. It'll never be pushed that hard under normal use, so I'm confident the 120mm intake fan at the front will be more than enough to keep temps under control.

 

Still have to figure out what to do with the remaining side panel. Leaning towards using hinges mounted at the front edge so it swings open like a car door, but not 100% sure yet. 

 

 

Stay tuned, more to come....

[Heesleemer]

Ah I love your hp case mods!

[mr.squishy]

I love it. Looks great!

[hearthofsin]

looks awesome man! 

[MEC-777]

Ah I love your hp case mods!

I love it. Looks great!

looks awesome man! 

 

Thanks.

[hearthofsin]

i just love that you would rather mod an old case and make it suit your needs better rather than going out and spending money on a new one! can't wait for the next update

[Retrorockit]

On 11/9/2015 at 0:36 AM, MEC-777 said:

This is the next evolutionary stage of a custom build I did earlier this year; Project Stalker, which you can find the original build log for here: http://linustechtips.com/main/topic/365996-build-log-project-stalker-complete/ and my first dive into major custom case modding/building.

 

Been thinking about what to do as my next project and thinking I'd love to try doing some more "heavy" case modding. Was sitting around one day a couple weeks ago, looking at Project Stalker with the side panel off thinking of what could be done to improve this PC. One thing that struck me the most was that there was a considerable amount of wasted open space inside. One of the main functions of Stalker was for it to be a portable PC - easy to carry around. Well, making it much smaller would make it a lot more portable. After spending some time messing around with a tape measure and moving things around, came up with a plan to remove 4.5" from the height and 4" off the depth. The result would be a very small PC 10" tall x 10.5" deep x 6.5" wide.

 

Just a reminder of what this PC actually started out as: 

 

 

Which was then gutted, pained and transformed into this:

 

 

 

Specs have changed a little since the original Stalker was completed and are now as follows:

 

CPU - Pentium G2358 @ 3.8

Motherboard - Gigabyte GA-H87N Wifi mITX

Memory - AData XPG 2x4GB 1600

Storage - Hitatchi 400GB 7200 HDD

GPU - Asus GTX 460 1GB GDDR5 DCU-Top (brand spanking new)

PSU - Cooler Master V650 Gold Semi-Modular

 

Just a few quick tags: @mr.squishy @tmcclelland455 @dragoon20005 @AlwaysFSX @Antibull

 

Now, I could have just taken a hack saw, made some marks and started cutting. But this wasn't going to be that simple to pull off. I had to think about how the top, sides, bottom and front/back ends would all "fit together" after cutting sections out. Also had to think about how each section would be fastened to one another. Eventually figured it out (for the most part) and started taping off where to make all the cuts. I wanted to keep the clean face panel which means that has to be cut down as well. Turns out the section with the two 5.25 bay doors and the weird HP drive bay section, could be cut out completely and the rest will line up almost perfectly (at least in theory... lol, we shall see.).

 

 

 

 

 

There are a lot of rivets to be drilled out and precision cuts to be made. Thus, the tools of the trade. Went through about 10 of those little cut-off discs and they aren't cheap, unfortunately. But they are perfect for making thin, straight, controlled cuts in sheet metal.

 

More updates and pics to come soon.... 

 

Thanks for looking. Any tips/suggestions for doing this type of case modding is welcome.  

There are 2 types of nibbler. One that pulls small wide rectangular chips out., and one that make long cuts by pulling out a thin strip of metal. No discs, and no metal dust getting into everything. The first one is good for opening up areas, and making corners. The 2nd one for making long straight cuts.

http://www.digikey.com/catalog/en/partgroup/nibbler-tool/1721?WT.srch=1

http://www.amazon.com/Draper-35748-Expert-255Mm-Nibbler/dp/B0001K9TGU/ref=pd_sim_469_5?ie=UTF8&dpID=31zt784fsPL&dpSrc=sims&preST=_AC_UL160_SR160%2C160_&refRID=1G15H0VRQ4H6DB37FJ62

[CarterDavison]

Absolutely amazing.

 

I came here to be bored and i'm massively disappointed

[MEC-777]

54 minutes ago, Retrorockit said:

There are 2 types of nibbler. One that pulls small wide rectangular chips out., and one that make long cuts by pulling out a thin strip of metal. No discs, and no metal dust getting into everything. The first one is good for opening up areas, and making corners. The 2nd one for making long straight cuts.

http://www.digikey.com/catalog/en/partgroup/nibbler-tool/1721?WT.srch=1

http://www.amazon.com/Draper-35748-Expert-255Mm-Nibbler/dp/B0001K9TGU/ref=pd_sim_469_5?ie=UTF8&dpID=31zt784fsPL&dpSrc=sims&preST=_AC_UL160_SR160%2C160_&refRID=1G15H0VRQ4H6DB37FJ62

Ah, very cool. I didn't even consider using something like this before. I definitely plan on building more custom PC's and doing more PC case modding, so something like that would come in very handy. Thanks!  

 

I actually recently just picked up a better cutting disc kit by Dremel with a quick-change collar and slightly larger/stronger cutting discs. So hopefully I can finish this project up pretty soon. Had to put it on hold for a while as life got quite busy on me over the last several months. 

 

Small update on the project: Now have an AData 120GB SSD instead of the old 400GB HDD (which won't fit in the case anymore anyways).

[MEC-777]

Ok BIG update. Project Stalker v2.0 is almost complete. It's on the home stretch! The weather was really nice and warm today - about 12-13*C - and I finally had some time to tackle this again. 

 

Finished up fabricating the removable side panel and put the final coat of flat black paint on the chassis. Looks like it was built this way from factory! (almost ).

 

Anyways here's a fair sized photo dump with some brief descriptions. Enjoy.

 

Fresh cost of Krylon Fusion flat black paint. Covers nice and didn't run like most automotive based paints do. 

 

Pulled the cooler off the GTX 460. Found something very interesting... The GPU has an IHS on it like a CPU. Never seen this before on a GPU.

 

And this is why I removed the GPU cooler...  Some of you might curse me for painting over that nice blue, but it didn't really fit with the theme and colours, so there!

 

Here's how the SSD was mounted to the chassis; dollar-store sticky Velcro strips.

 

And so the final cable management began... Spent quite a bit of time on the cables. Not a lot of room in this thing and I tried to hide them as much as possible. Glad this PSU is a semi-modular unit. Only extra cable needed was one for Sata power. Really good PSU, by the way. Highly recommend it.

 

Stuck some 1/2" rubber feet on the bottom to give it a little "stance" (it leans forward slightly).  Front panel fits nicely and the old multi card reader is just a dummy to keep the retro pre-built look. 

 

Sitting up next to it's big brother. The S340 is not a very big case, but looks massive beside the Stalker, lol.  

 

Big shout out to my very artistic Mother-in-law for taking the time to create a stencil of the "Stalker" logo to put on the side. She did an awesome job with it, can't wait to see how that turns out!  I'll have to wait for warmer weather to apply it, but it's ready to go (also have to figure out where to put it). 

 

One other thing to show you guys in this update; I bought one of these Dremel "EZ-Lock" quick-change collars for swapping out cutting discs. the cutting discs that come with this kit are FAR better than what I was using, they last waaaay longer. Awesome product. If you're into case modding and fabricating and use a Dremel tool, this is a must have.

 

Anyways, that's it for now. Once the paint dries on the GPU cover and I get that put back on, will be able to load the OS on the SSD. Will be running Ubuntu 15.10 Gnome again for now but might switch to windows 10 just for the better gaming support. Saw on Paul's Hardware YT channel that he gets his Windows keys for about $20 US through kinguin.net, so I might try that route.

 

More updates to follow soon... 

[Heesleemer]

that looks dirty!

 

I believe some older GPUs such as the 400 series have heat spreaders

[Tearass]

The subtle gunmetal/dark grey you chose for the GPU shroud looks great.

[MEC-777]

7 hours ago, Rumikarimu said:

The subtle gunmetal/dark grey you chose for the GPU shroud looks great.

Thanks. It was actually supposed to be more of a silver-white to match the silver strip around the front panel cover, but it ended up being more of an off-white. Should still look ok and will still match better than the blue did anyways. lol. The Stalker logo is also going to be done in that same colour. 

[MEC-777]

Well, she's ready to run now.  GPU re-assembled and installed. Will have it up and running tonight! 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[pcnoob99]

Awsome!

[mr.squishy]

On 2/29/2016 at 11:05 PM, MEC-777 said:

Some of you might curse me for painting over that nice blue

I forgive you.

 

All jokes aside, it looks great! you did a phenomenal job!

[MEC-777]

Yet another update. Ubuntu Gnome 15.10 installed and running like a charm. If you think Windows is fast on an SSD, Linux is ridiculous. From hitting the power button to the desktop ready to go in about 10 seconds or less and shuts down (fully) in about 3 seconds, lol.

 

Ran a few games for a while. Performance is quite good on the 460, to be honest. Better than I expected. CPU and GPU temps hovered in the mid 50's at most with the side panel on. So air flow is not an issue. 

 

Some more pics:  (ignore the mess of cables and cords )

 

GPU is able to pull plenty of fresh air in through the handle hole.

 

With the side panel on. The perforated area lines up with the intake of the PSU so it can breath (exhausts out the back).

 

 

For size comparison; next to the G27 pedals and PC speaker subwoofer. It's a pretty small box.  

 

 

All that's left to do now is apply the Stalker logo and maybe clean up the two rough spots where I epoxied the silver trim piece around the front cover. 

 

On the home-stretch...

 

[Heesleemer]

will you be adding a filter in the air hole up top? or handle again?

how does linux perform compared to windows in games? 

[MEC-777]

8 hours ago, Heesleemer said:

will you be adding a filter in the air hole up top? or handle again?

how does linux perform compared to windows in games? 

Naw, won't be adding a filter. Would be kind of hard since that's the carry handle.  It won't be running often enough for dust to be a problem. Would like to move it up on top of my desk, but I need to figure out where it will fit, lol. 

 

Gaming on Linux has come a LOOOOONG way just in the last year or so. You can thank Steam/Valve for that with the launch of their SteamOS and Steam machine consoles (which are a bit of a failure and kind of silly, IMO). Drivers are better than ever, though still hit and miss on some AMD GPUs. 

 

The Linux compatible game list on Steam is now up around 1600 or so, which is awesome. As for performance, it varies from game to game. For the most part, performance is very close to windows. Most Valve (Source engine) games run pretty much the same as they do on windows. I had Day of Defeat Source running maxed out at over 150fps consistently on this old 460, so that should give you an idea.  

 

With the upcoming Vulkan API, the idea is to improve and achieve a level performance delta across windows and Linux so that games will no longer have to rely on DX or OpenGL to run on either OS. Only thing is it will up to the game devs to implement this. 

[CtW]

a silverstone sfx psu with the short cable kit would really help with the cable management. 

 

Aside from that, this build is awesome, nice work!

[MEC-777]

24 minutes ago, CtW said:

a silverstone sfx psu with the short cable kit would really help with the cable management. 

 

Aside from that, this build is awesome, nice work!

Thanks.  

 

Yeah, I actually have one of those Silverstone SFX PSU's in my HTPC (450w bronze) and it's an awesome little unit. I already had this CM 650w PSU as a spare, so that saved me the cost of buying another one. One of the aspects of this project was to keep it low-budget and those SFX units can be pretty pricey.  

[Heesleemer]

1 hour ago, MEC-777 said:

cows go moo

Thats good to hear, havent used linux in a year or so so I'll have to try it out again once I finish my itx rig

[MEC-777]

14 minutes ago, Heesleemer said:

Thats good to hear, havent used linux in a year or so so I'll have to try it out again once I finish my itx rig

I only really started getting into Linux in the last 2 years and within that time frame there's been a lot of progress and improvements across the board. If you're looking for a distro recommendation, I highly suggest Ubuntu Gnome 15.10.

[Heesleemer]

8 hours ago, MEC-777 said:

I only really started getting into Linux in the last 2 years and within that time frame there's been a lot of progress and improvements across the board. If you're looking for a distro recommendation, I highly suggest Ubuntu Gnome 15.10.

nice, I do like Linux mint as well (fairly standard) and for my OS X in me - Elementary 

[Guest]

17 hours ago, Heesleemer said:

nice, I do like Linux mint as well (fairly standard) and for my OS X in me - Elementary 

I do like elementary OS, it's rather beautiful and works out of the box better than some other options.