Wolf in Sheep's Clothing (a.k.a. WTF DO YOU HAVE IN THAT DELL!?)

[Red_Machine]

Hey guys, I had a crazy idea for a system build based on some stuff I've seen on here.

Now we all know this case, we all know what it's like inside and I'm sure quite a few of us have used one or twelve over the years. We got a Dimension 4700 in at work that is due for disposal and I want to salvage it for the case. I love these old grey and black Dimensions, so much nostalgia. I've got the crazy idea of gutting it and putting in not just some modern components, but over-the-top crazy powerful ones.

I'm not gonna be buying anything current. I already have an Ivy Bridge rig with a GTX 580 for gaming, but I always wanted a Nehalem i7 rig and a GTX 480. I was thinking of trying to grab a cheap used i7 9xx series and getting the other parts as cheaply as I could. Maybe look for an older water cooler like my Thermaltake Water 2.0 for it, because I suspect cooling will be an issue with this case. Ziptie some extra fans to it, clean it up a bit and viola. Something nobody will suspect.

Any thoughts?

 

[newtekie1]

LAN party sleeper. I like.

 

[shovenose]

The good part? I know for a fact it's standard MicroATX and uses a standard PSU Space for three HDDs if you mount one in the front 3.5" bay in addition to two 3.5" HDD trays mounted vertically inside the case. You've also got two normal external bays. Only thing you'll have to do is modify the front panel connections.

 

[Red_Machine]

The USB connector is standard, I've swapped mobos on a Dimension 1100 before and didn't have a problem. Plus I have a SoundBlaster Audigy with a compatible front panel audio connector I can use.

 

[Xenturion]

Cooling is definitely going to be a challenge with an X58 system and a GTX 480 in there. Although, if the left panel is indeed perforated like in the image, it might not be too tough. Think you might have some video card length-clearance issues as well against the HDD bays, but I might be mistaken.

 

[Vario]

Always thought an Apple IIe would be a great ITX setup with a flat screen, so the monitor hole could hold more components. (power supply?)

 

[FreedomEclipse]

I think if you wanted to go crazy - you can add water cooling, though it might be limited to 2x120mm/140mm rads.

It would be funny just to see how OTT you can make it. Its a DELL, but not a DELL as we know it!


Throw out them optical drives and stick a bayres in there.

ALSO

Im not sure how big the dell logo is on the side but what you can do is tap little holes in the circle its in making sure not to damage the logo then put a 200-220mm fan on the side.

 

[a_ump]

i recently built a p4 rig with 2gb ram and a 8800GT in it out of an old old gateway 2000 case. I'm talking 800mb master HD with a 457mb slave drive lol. Its cool though, people will think piece of shit(granted mine isn't great) but really is a diamond in the ruff

 

[d1nky]

I think if you wanted to go crazy - you can add water cooling, though it might be limited to 2x120mm/140mm rads.

It would be funny just to see how OTT you can make it. Its a DELL, but not a DELL as we know it!


Throw out them optical drives and stick a bayres in there.

ALSO

Im not sure how big the dell logo is on the side but what you can do is tap little holes in the circle its in making sure not to damage the logo then put a 200-220mm fan on the side.

if its meant to be undercover, id rip the front of them disk drives off and glue them to the front of the bay res, if thats what youre planning.

cooling is the biggest issue, and doesnt the PSU sit at the top which would be another problem.

just fit what ya can in it, some fan brackets are probably needed, ideally modded to vital places.

 

[FreedomEclipse]

if its meant to be undercover, id rip the front of them disk drives off and glue them to the front of the bay res, if thats what youre planning.

cooling is the biggest issue, and doesnt the PSU sit at the top which would be another problem.

just fit what ya can in it, some fan brackets are probably needed, ideally modded to vital places.

In that case, you might as well get some 3.5" hotswap 5.25" bays at the top. remove the part of the frame that held the original hard drive previously and stick a 240mm rad there.

I think it would be a squeeze but it could definitely work. space might be VERY tight though. depending on how 'fat' the case is maybe a 180mm rad would be more appropriate.

stick a 180mm Silverstone AP on the end of that rad and it will channel air directly at the GPU

Just looking at this pic for reference.

 

[brandonwh64]

I had one of these for a while with a I7 setup crunching but airflow was the worst. It was the EXACT dell case

 

[Red_Machine]

That's a pretty good idea, actually. Torrent box and cruncher. It's small enough to fit on my desk beind my monitor, too.

 

[FreedomEclipse]

Water cool it and turn it into a NASbox.

Why you would ever need a watercooled NAS is beyond me but we are enthusiasts right?? everything we do is supposed to be OTT

 

[Red_Machine]

I could grab a pair of 4TB drives and stick them in there for all my file storage needs and have a small SSD (like 64GB or something) screwed into the case as the boot drive. This is shaping up to be something functional as well as lolworthy.

 

[red_stapler]

Heh, Dell used to put P4 660s in the Dimention 4700, and those had a 115W TDP. They used a nice shroud with a delta / panasonic server fan, and a heatpipe tower type heatsink. If you can find one of those setups, it would probably cool an i7 adequately.

Of course, you guys are talking about crazy water cooling stuff, so carry on!

 

[d1nky]

looking at that pics of inside, id put very small feet on it, drill a bunch of holes on the bottom, enough space for two 120mm fans in pull config.

whatever that is on the right (front of chassis) can go, replace with 140mm rad.

slimline pump/res if you can find one and fit in the bays.

could go as far as making your own modular cables and sleeved, cut to the perfect length. solves cable management.

 

[Random Murderer]

This will be awesome if you pull it off. reminds me of:

 

[d1nky]

and maybe purchase some fan filters ^^

 

[FreedomEclipse]

and maybe purchase some fan filters ^^

and some chunky rubbers from a stationary shop that can be superglued on because theres gonna be a lot of dead air underneath that case.

 

[Nordic]

This doesn't exactly help the undercover part, but I had one of those cases that I started modding on. I never finished though. The plan was to put a 360mm radiator underneath.

 

[brandonwh64]

Wished I could find an old picture of mine. It was a I7-920 @ 4Ghz on a Asus Rampage II Gene

 

[RCoon]

Private message this guy, he had an awesome rig, i7 and 580 plus all the nice stuff for a total of £450, I would have bought it if I had the money.

 

[MxPhenom 216]

The USB connector is standard, I've swapped mobos on a Dimension 1100 before and didn't have a problem. Plus I have a SoundBlaster Audigy with a compatible front panel audio connector I can use.

It is not standard. I just rebuilt my old Dell 3000 into a file server with a new board and everything, and the USB connection had the FP audio with it too which would not work. Had to completely do away with the front panel connections. Got power button to work, but had to get a different connection.

 

[Red_Machine]

The 4700 and 1100 are similar vintages (the 1100 had the last Pentium 4 sticker, the light blue Pentium Dual-Core-esque one), so maybe it was different by then.

I won't be buying anything just yet. I've only just got this job and want to get a few pay packets behind me before I start buying more computer parts. But I'll keep an eye on the FS section anyways.

 

[micropage7]

i always like branded case material, they usually pretty solid and thats kinda nice you make it like street sleeper. just keep the exterior like stock but beast inside