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Case Mod - In Progress Project Bad Apple - My G5 Casemod

Discussion in 'Project Logs' started by MrBean, 1 Oct 2006.

  1. MrBean

    MrBean Minimodder

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    Hello,
    Thanx to Modsquad for the name!
    So starts my 1st Project Log Down Under. Greetings from Melbourne.

    It has always been a dream of mine to convert a X86 System into one of the newer generation PowerMac boxes, having admired the sleek, curvatious body...err...I mean cases for a very long time.

    On relocating to Melbourne from sunny South Africa, I had the opportunity to get a brandnew PowerMac G5 case of Ebay, it was an impulsive buy, ok, as most of my purchases are But, it came with 600W Apple PSU, some cabling, drive trays etc, and I saw in it an opportunity to at last get my hands on this case.

    Goals:
    1st SLi capable "PowerMac" in the world - I have 2x 7800GTX BFG OC's, watercooled, that will go in here.
    Dualcore 4800+ AMD CPU
    2 gig OCZ 2-2-2-5 TCCD memory

    Special Micro-ATX eVGA SLi motherboard, 1st of it's kind in the world.

    Utilizing standard Apple 600W PSU

    Biggest goal, and challenge, would be NOT to butcher the rear of the G5 case, as I have seen done on each and every X86 conversion so far. I want a clean, basic look, without hacking everything to bits.

    So, by utilizing the eVGA micro-SLi mobo, I hope to use the same 4x PCI-slot standard as on the back of the G5 case, and do the cutout for the rear ports using std ATX backplate - I should be able to even retain the original G5 fanholes/guards, for that clean, original look.

    System will be watercooled, using BIX II 2x 120mm rad, DD5 Laing pump, and customized Antarctica waterblock for the cpu.

    DVD writer is a multiburner, std ide style - it will mount same position as original, and retain the very unique PowerMac slide-down front bezel plate - spiffy design by Apple, I must add.

    Harddrives are 2x WD Raptor 74gigs, in Raid 0, and I will have a Firewire external 250gig for large storage capacity, if required.

    This PC will be my main racing sim rig, and with the hardware, will be up to the task for at least another 3years or longer.

    Tonight I will start posting some pictures, I have stripped the case bare, and started with planning - usually this takes me a couple of hours just staring at the empty case, and visualizing the end result.

    I need to rewire Apple PSU, as the ATX-plug is wired totally different to X86 ATX standards, but, I openend it up, had a quick look, and all signals I need are available, so I will "code" the ATX plug to conform to X86 standard. I would luv to keep this supply, as it is low-profile, and blends in nicely with G5 case, giving me the looks I am after.

    BIX rad will go up front, vertical next to front-panel port/switch unit, hopefully I can manufacture a custom shroud to get a clean transition from rad->fans->cpu area, similar to PowerMac look.

    Harddrives will stay where they are in original PowerMac position, upper rear of the case, with the 2x center fans providing cooling for them.

    Front panel connector will be fully functional, incl Firewire ports, USB/Audio and power LED - board requires 25V to function, but that I can take from Apple PSU.

    Well, be certain, I will give it my best shot, and hopefully end up with a very unique hybrid.

    Feedback would be appreciated.

    Br,
    MrBean
     
    Last edited: 2 Oct 2006
  2. MrBean

    MrBean Minimodder

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    Ok, to follow are photos, which will continue as the log progresses....

    Here is a close-up of the powerswitch, and ports...

    [​IMG]

    Side shot - both sides appear similar

    [​IMG]

    From the rear....

    [​IMG]

    Close-up of fangrills - yes, they're metal, and they're held in place by small screws....

    [​IMG]

    a Shot of the latch - very nice construction, solid aluminium, with a nice meganism on the inside....

    [​IMG]
     
  3. MrBean

    MrBean Minimodder

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    Shot with the airbaffle open....

    [​IMG]

    Airbaffle in normal position......

    [​IMG]

    600W PSU mounted in the bottom - very neat, notice 2x 60mm fans in the front for cooling - I like this design, about the size of 120mmx2 rad, just wider

    [​IMG]

    2x 3.5" harddrive cage - see the locks on the right side - here they're open.....

    [​IMG]

    And here they're closed/locked....

    [​IMG]

    Here is the fans mounted to cool harddrives down....

    [​IMG]
     
  4. MrBean

    MrBean Minimodder

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    Here is a close-up of front powerswitch/ports viewed from the inside...

    [​IMG]

    Here is a shot of the cdrom front stealh tray - it actually moves down when cdrom opens, and back up when cdrom retracts - cool!

    [​IMG]

    a Final shot of the open side, with neat cable tray in place.....

    [​IMG]

    Ok, a small update - firstly, been stripping the case to prep it for little cutting/machining work.....

    Also ended up at Dick Smith Electronics, and found this:

    [​IMG]

    Going to be used as a mobo tray for this setup, as exsisting G5 mobo standoffs differ from ATX format - a pity, but a nice challenge.

    [​IMG]

    Next to case to show size...

    [​IMG]

    Where will it go....

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    a Set of Torx keys, to disassemble this case.....decent quality at Aud $10- , from Dick Smith.....

    [​IMG]

    Case from the rear, with fanguards removed...

    [​IMG]

    Fanguards.....

    [​IMG]

    and finally, a shot showing my plan for the rear, purple areas will stay, but blue will be removed - I will customize a rear port plate out of same alu, and bolt it in place with tiny screws, to keep Apple neatness factor...

    [​IMG]

    More to follow soon.....
     
  5. MrBean

    MrBean Minimodder

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    I re-thought my mobo tray setup, and changed my plan a little - instead of using 300x300 backplate and trim it down to fit mobo's 245/240mm profile, I will use a much larger backplate, to cover all the studs etc in the G5 box....

    It will basically become a 2nd sidepanel, with approx 8mm gap between exsisting panel and new one, with new panel bolting to original - albeit shortened - Apple mobo studs, and then drilling and tapping new holes to mount new X86 mobo.

    This will create a very smooth interior, creating the illusion of an original G5 side without studs. The 10mm gap between mobo tray and sidecover will still house the original G5 cable duct, see 1st pictures with grey cable duct.

    Then, I will probably mount my Enermax 600W PSu into the G5 600W housing, as I doubt the 600W Apple PSU has enough vooma to supply 7800GTX SLi - it has 3x 12V rails, 13.5A, 9A and 13.5A respectively, which won't cut it.

    I have checked, you can easily fit 2x ATX supplies into the G5 PSU housing, and height won't be a problem either, even though the G5 PSU's housing have a lower profile. I will leave G5 PSU cooling fans on the front to ccol Enermax electronics.

    This will save me a lot of rewiring, making up 6-pin gfx power plugs, etc.... and will work a lot better

    Anyway, a few photos of the motherbaord....

    Comes in this non-descriptive brown packaging, oem style, but Duane at SEA apologized for this, as eVGA have not finalized retail box for this yet......

    [​IMG]

    No worries for me, as I am more excited to what's in the box.....

    [​IMG]

    Quite a good bunch of goodies for OEM anyway, small manual, SATA Raid drivers, SLi bridge, rear I/O port plate, 2x rounded IDE cables, and of course the mobo itself.....a shot of the rear I/O ports...

    [​IMG]

    Angled view of the board.....

    [​IMG]

    Top view of the board - nice and compact, and by a quick estimation, it seems I should be able to retain stock G5 PCI rack, and fanholes in case - just need to modify rear I/O port plate in the case...but that was to be expected....

    [​IMG]

    Board is 24.5cm X 24.0cm, same width as a std ATX board, but lower in height due to 2 to 3 PCI slots less. 2x Yellow Sli PCI-Express ports are 8x, but middle blue one is 16x.....which will anyway not be useable once 2x GFX's are fitted.....

    Now to do some planning, and rethink motherboard tray plate......
     
  6. MrBean

    MrBean Minimodder

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    Basically the red block is the 300mm sheet I got from Dick Smith's, but, after some deliberation I decided to use a larger sheet, to cover all the ungainly G5 mobo studs, and have the tray go behind the psu all the way to the bottom of the G5 floor - or at least, close to the floor.

    This would round of the looks quite a bit.....the plate will go between the rear side wall, and PSU, there is a 1cm gap...

    See this piece of photo-editing brilliance....

    [​IMG]

    Then, on top off the PSU, front to back of the case, and the width of the PSU, basically covering the complete top of it, there will be another aly sheet, bolted to the lid of the PSU, and isolating the PSU air stream from the rest of the mobo compartment.....

    It will butt at right angles to the new mobo tray, acting as a false floor, and hiding PSU below it......

    So, something like this.....please, no comments on my l33t editing skillz.... ;) I know, you would like to know how to do it, but for now I'll keep it a secret...rofl...

    [​IMG]

    Been doing some thinking, most importantly on how to keep internal layout and looks clean as Apple intended - even though I am refitting with watercooling, 2x 120mm rad, reservoir, pump, and X86 components.

    So, with that in mind, I decided to keep original Apple 600W psu housing, which looks like this on the inside....note the monster pcb, with very large heatsinks - bigger than anything I have sen on any ATX psu up to date...

    [​IMG]

    This is what it looks like naked...

    [​IMG]

    And maybe we can fot both ATX internals, as well as bayres inside - should look very clean, and do away with bulk res would add to inside of case...

    [​IMG]

    This is the ATX candidate...some would recognize it from my previous Project Supercool ;)

    [​IMG]

    and this is what this one looks naked....yay baby...come to daddy...

    [​IMG]
     
  7. MrBean

    MrBean Minimodder

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    The 220Vac filter I am going to transplant to Apple plug-connector...

    [​IMG]

    a Little soldering later, and it fits here....

    [​IMG]

    See how small ATX internals is are compared to original Apple 600W unit.....and this is the Enermax 600W unit...wow...tiny...

    [​IMG]

    This is how I plan on fitting reservoir and psu internals into the apple casing....with space to spare...

    [​IMG]

    Here is another image from the top....

    [​IMG]

    I need to redo wiring completely, so this will be a purpose-wired setup, getting rid of unwanted/unused wires, and making setup modular, like those fancy psu's you can buy nowadays - I want to do this myself, so....

    Fan will go on top, on the outside of the psu housing, blowing into the housing, cooling the heatsinks directly underneath. a Decent 120mm fan spinning at around 8-9V should do the job quite nicely....

    I will do some more work on the weekend, was waiting for some minor hardware things, like more alu plate etc....

    Let me know what you think ;)

    For those that don't know, here are the specs for the Enermax 600w unit....

    [​IMG]

    Ok, I decided to get all outstanding hardware to finish off this project - visited the PcCasegear website, and ordered a whole list of goodies, nearly Aud $600- worth....

    Struggling to find alu plate in sizes I want, I ordered 2x Lian-Li PC 70 side panels, which would be the donor's for the backplate, rad shroud, psu top cover plate etc....

    Also got new Cathar G4 CPU block (Siftie Storm), nice Swiftech 655 pump, Swiftie chipset cooler (hopefully it will fit between SLi gfx cards), some tubing, and a few odds and ends.

    This is what I got .....2x Lian-Li PC70 blank alu sidepanels, to use for motherboards tray, rad shroud, psu cover, etc.....they come very well packed, decent foam support etc....pity I have to cut these up :(

    [​IMG]

    Then, 4x of these Scythe S-Flex SFF21F 120mm fans with fluid bearings, 150k hours life (or 17 years ) super quiet, producing 63.7cfm at 28db only.....noice.....they're 25mm thick, which is good...

    [​IMG]

    a Decent 24pin ATX psu tester, can test all voltages fom your supply....

    [​IMG]

    another angle, out of box....

    [​IMG]

    and another 1....

    [​IMG]

    and from the other end...

    [​IMG]

    a Multi port adapter.....

    [​IMG]

    and another angle....6x led ports, 4x 5V fan ports, 4x 12V fan ports

    [​IMG]

    and a beautiful 2x 120mm black aluminium fan grill - will go nicely with black and alu theme...

    [​IMG]

    Ok, now onto the more serious hardware.....

    The now standard (for me) Swiftech 655 pump, exactly the same as Laing DD5 unit.....here you can see the specs....

    [​IMG]

    and another view to give idea of the size - approx 1/2 of Eheim 1048 - but a few times more powerful.....

    [​IMG]

    This little bugger I will try and squeeze between the 2x SLi 7800GTX cards, it should just fit on the eVGA mobo (hopefully) - it is a Swiftie Chipset block - nice and cute - I was amzed at the size....

    [​IMG]

    and it's bigger brother, the G4 Storm, for the cpu of course....note the jet-plate inside...

    [​IMG]

    and here are the 2 side by side....

    [​IMG]

    and a last shot to show-off the tiny little cutie chipset block......hehe

    Let me know what you guys think so far - now I can start modding seriously.....was waiting for the alu-sheeting to start in earnest.....

    [​IMG]
     
  8. MrBean

    MrBean Minimodder

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    Ok Boys and Girls....been doing a bit of modding this weekend, had to run around to get small bits and pieces from Bunnings, like taps and dies, some rubber standoffs etc....and of course metal blades for my Bosch Jigsaw - with the relocation mine got packed in somewhere, and I just couldn't find it.

    anyway, this is what I have been busy with....

    [​IMG]

    Here is a close-up shot of the new motherboard tray, with brass standoffs fitted. take note that mobo-tray will be secured with allan-cap stainless steel screws, those used is just for testing purposes....

    Formed the tray to blend in nicely with the top tray, looking very good.

    [​IMG]

    Here is a close up shot of the rear, showing that I will be using original pci-slot integrated plate of G5 case. The I/O plate will be changed though, I will dremel that out later, but again, as mentioned earlier, I will not butcher the case, even the original fan holes will remain :) And yes, the system will be SLi of course.

    Here I have test GFX cars, ATi X600 Fitted. Also note the 108Mbit D-link wireless card...

    [​IMG]

    And, here's a shot of the motherboard test fit, with gfx card and motherbaord mounted to motherbaord tray....

    [​IMG]

    And here is a head-on shot, showing a little more detail.

    [​IMG]

    As mentioned earlier, original G5 psu housing will be retained, but fitted out with Enermax 600W internals.....This will go in the area immediately below the motherboard....

    Let me know what you think so far, progress is slow, but hey, I need to do a lot of planning here to maintain simplicity/uniqueness/neatness ;)

    MrBean.
     
  9. MrBean

    MrBean Minimodder

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    Ok, just to show you where rad, and psu fits in the picture (no pun intended) - if I use this rad, might replace it with BI Stealth GT240...

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    And a nice angled shot from the rear, giving you an idea of the real-estate available in the case....remember, reservoir will fit inside psu housing too, and then harddrives and cdrom will fit in original Apple positions, on the top tray......

    [​IMG]

    Ok a short update -

    Here is the front of the stock supply, showing mounting location of 2x 60mm (original) fans. This will change.

    [​IMG]

    Here is the top where 2x 120mm fans will be resting, the one on the left is towards the rear of the case, and will suck through the psu housing, where the one on the right will blow into the housing, to create proper aeration.

    [​IMG]

    Don't worry, it makes sense to me, and will work a charm....I will run fans 8v or so, have them very quiet, but still have better-than-stock cooling/flow across the heatsinks.

    [​IMG]

    Here is a last piccie (for now) to show where the Enermax electronics will be located - you can see where I installed the threaded inserts (rivnuts they are called) to mount the electronics.

    [​IMG]

    Don't worry about the color, etc, there is a lot to be done before psu is finished, eg good spray, etc.....some filing, dremel action, making holes for fans....all in good time.


    To explain airflow a bit better, look at my artistic rendition of airflow into housing, flowing left-to-right across electronics, and being evacuated by the rear fan - don't worry about actual directions, but the principle is simple :) Then, once the hot air is evacuated, there will be 2x 92mm rear case fans, mounted in original Apple location, that will exhaust it from the case.....

    [​IMG]

    Ok, been studying the radiator placement a little.....height, and slightly off-center to accommodate standard G5 powerswitch etc....

    This is where it will go.....

    [​IMG]

    and a little closer view....yes, that is a temporary support keeping it at the correct height ;) Will be replaced by something the exact same height, but a little more permanent....hehe

    [​IMG]

    And this is the view from the front, not much I can do to hide the rad...except maybe using a nice black fanfilter material that will make the view a little more opaque...

    Another worry I have is how to secure the rad - but I may have a clean solution....

    [​IMG]
     
  10. MrBean

    MrBean Minimodder

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    [​IMG]

    Mmm...I was toying with this idea, thinking on how I want to do this, doing something unique, while keeping the stock G5 rear.....original intent was to keep fanholes, cut out G5 ports, and replace it with my own io plate.....but.....won't that distract from one of my goals, to keep case (on the exterior at least) as close to stock as possible?

    Well, I might still go the io plate route, but, am considering a different approach - more difficult, but, end result would be more aesthetic......why don't I jump onto my Protel software, and design a pcb, double layer, buy new usb/ps2/optical audio etc ports from one of the many such distributors, remove the old ports from the motherboard......and then solder new ports onto the newly designed pcb, so that the io ports will now be removed from the mobo, relocated to the new pcb, 2 or 3 very small screws bolting this to the back of the G5 case, and you will never be able to tell the difference?

    New pcb will have ide-like cable connecting it to the connections on the motherboard....at the same time, I will do away with the legacy parallel- and serial-, and analog audio ports.....

    I will have 4x usb2, 1x firewire, 1 x digital co-ax audio, 1x digital optical audio, 1x ps2 mouse and 1x ps2 k/b...

    Just to refresh everyone with what I have in mind.....or as close to this as possible...this is why I have to go for a new rad :( Mine is slightly to tall to fit between psu, and top baffle plate (the one where harddrives/optical drive mount onto)

    This rad is 313mm tall, the one I will be getting now is only 277mm tall - that would give me the room I need....hehe - but, let me go think about this, and see exactly what I want to acheive....this step is quite important in the overall scheme of things, so please bear with me....

    This is what I want to to have at the end of the day....;)

    [​IMG]
     
  11. MrBean

    MrBean Minimodder

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    Ok, a brief update - wrt the motherboard tray, and finishing that part off....

    I had to secure the mobo tray with the correct distance from the case shell, so that, when using standard length brass mobo standoffs, the cards would socket firmly into pci/pci-express slots, and still be able to but against pci-slot io plate, so it can be secured with a screw....

    So, I used these little spacers......

    [​IMG]

    and here....(the stainless nuts with washers....)

    [​IMG]

    Then I had to countersunk the 5 little 3.5mm holes......

    [​IMG]

    a little close-up shot....

    [​IMG]

    to accept the very nice 3mm allencap stainless screws, like so.....

    [​IMG]

    Ok, I also got myself some very decent aluminium Coolermaster 120mm fans to go with the theme, that will push air through the rad....yes, push :) not pull, in this case, as I am after a specific aesthetic result...for the purists.....rofl....

    I got 4x 80mm at the same time, also Coolermast alu's, but unfortunately the rear fans on Apple G5 is 92mm....well, the hunt's on...

    Will post some shots of the fans later, I also have to get my hands on another radiator, slightly lower than the current Coolwave at 313mm..... I need max a 290mm high unit....something like the new Black Ice 240 Gt or similar...

    Ok, a quick update....the Scythe fans featured earlier were donated to my PC70 mod, so I had to get new fans for this babe....well, finally found something I thought would complement this mod.....

    4x 80mm Coolermaster alu fans, yes, real aluminium housings, and 2x 120mm units.....I will only use 2x 120mm, and 2x 80mm for this mod.....it will all become clear a little later, but real simple anyways....

    [​IMG]

    Here is a shot of the 80mm specs....

    [​IMG]

    and the same for the 120mmm unit...notice the rather hefty 12W power consumption for the 120mm fan....1A @ 12V...a bit rough for the 57cfm airvolume it delivers......

    [​IMG]

    Here you can see the nice finish on the fan body, and this is what made me realize how well the will fit in with the G5 casemod theme....perfect color!

    [​IMG]

    Here are a few sots showing front and back of 80mm vs 120mm, and size difference...boring, I know, but I just luv these fans...so pretty...

    [​IMG]

    and

    [​IMG]

    Here is a nice review should you guys be interested using these.....
     
  12. MrBean

    MrBean Minimodder

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    My new GT 240 Black Ice rad has arrived from David and Karma's, so finally hardware needed for this mod complete, except psu mod kit, and extra Tygon tubing....

    Not a problem now, I can do a lot before that's needed.

    Here you can see a pic of the size diff between Coolwave 2x120, and BI GT240.....

    [​IMG]

    Will the thinner rad be less effective in this setup than the thicker Coolwave....well, I don't think so, and here is why.....look at the fin density of new rad, vs Coolwave.....

    [​IMG]

    Here's a side on comparo between the new (right) and old (left) rads....

    [​IMG]

    the hight difference is what makes it fit in here so nicely....exactly what I wanted to start off with, so I can stick to original goals.......

    [​IMG]

    Here is another angle.....and from this shot you can form an idea of what I want to acheive, if you think back to original layout of G5 Powermac setup....so, I will have some kind of mobo-cover running from rad all the way to the back of the case, aluminium of course.....will finalize details, but the idea is there...

    [​IMG]

    You guys like or not? And yes, I believe I will not loose more than 1-2 deg c compared to the old rad, but gain quite a lot in functionality and aesthetics....

    Nice :)

    Another small update....fitting the fans to the rad....fans are 38mm thick, rad 30mm....

    [​IMG]

    This is what the case looks like from the front, you might be just able to spot the fans behind the grill, in real life it looks extremely good with fand around 11cm away from front grill...just the look I was after...

    [​IMG]

    And here's the same, fitted to the case....

    [​IMG]

    And another angle, showcasing how nice the fans blend in with case color....

    [​IMG]

    I have used 4 rubber feet, 2x top, 2x bottom to mount rad, tomorrow I will make use of aluminium angle to mount rad to rear mobo tray....going to look pro...

    How's it look so far? Getting there?

    Original apple G5

    [​IMG]

    =

    My Plan

    [​IMG]
     
  13. MrBean

    MrBean Minimodder

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    Ok, a little planning from now onwards....

    I need to devise a motherbaord cover plate, that would be functional, allowing a lot of airflow across all components, eg motherboard capacitors, but more so, across SLi GFX card's ramsinks.

    CPU and GFX's will be watercooled, so it's essential to have some airflow across various components that would naturally be cooled by airstream from the aircooled heatsinks.

    With this in mind, I will channel bottom fan from rad across memory, and cpu area caps on motherboard, and the top fan towards the 2x 7800GTX gfx cards.

    At the rear I will exhaust via 2x 92mm fans, via the std G5 exhaust ports.

    Here is a template for the front coverplate......

    [​IMG]

    from a slightly different angle....

    [​IMG]

    short update to follow

    Ok, so this part will fit on top of the sidepanel in the shots above.....

    [​IMG]

    Like so....don't worry if it doesn't make sense, when it is fitted together you will see what I intend....

    [​IMG]

    After completion, it will look like this.....

    [​IMG]

    Then, the top 120mm rad fan will allow airflow across gfx like shown in blue, while the pink arrows represent the airflow into the channeled area, where cpu and ram etc are located.

    [​IMG]


    The hole shown on top for the fan will actually be a square one, where I will fit a very neat AC Ryan single 120mm square fangrill...so, the idea would be like a vent window coming out of rad onto gfx cards.

    Let me know what you guys think of the idea.

    Finally, it should look like this template, with a slight difference where the cpu heatsink will be replaced by Swiftech Storm cpu waterblock....

    [​IMG]

    and a close-up shot, bear in mind I still have to cut-out the hole where the AC Ryan radgrill will fit to allow airflow from rad to gfx cards.

    Template is of 1mm carton, mobo cover will be made from 1.6mm aluminium plate, same as what I have used as mobo mounting tray....should look decent, with a nice logo on the sidecover facing you, similar as G5 cpu covers, but with neat AMD logo.

    [​IMG]

    This is the fangrill I will use venting from top radiator fan onto graphics cards.....should look decent.

    [​IMG]
     
  14. MrBean

    MrBean Minimodder

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    Done a little bit of work again, all 2 hours worth of it .... finally got into making the bottom cover plate for the PSU, because the std version looks like bleh....

    [​IMG]

    and a close-up shot....

    [​IMG]

    Now, one of my main goals was to replicate the original G5 interior, and make some improvements if I could.....so I came up with this....

    [​IMG]

    and a different angle over here......

    [​IMG]

    and a close-up, to show how well the bottom plate fits with the rear motherboard tray......

    [​IMG]

    Now, here is a few shots with psu cover in place, but also with the side plexi baffle-tray fitted.....

    [​IMG]

    and another one here.....

    [​IMG]

    I will use the G5 plexi baffle-tray in my setup too....I will move rad a little forward towards the front of the case, and that will allow plexi baffle to fit without problems.

    Then, a small re-design of my motherboard ducting system, to fit in with the groove in the plexi baffle, and it should look stunning.....at least as good as intended, and very close to the original....

    Put it this way, die-hard Mac buffs will have a look at this, and realize something is not exactly 100% kosher with this "G5 PowerMac" - until they delve under the hood, and make the shocking discovery...rofl....

    Now I need to go and calculate mounting hole centers for psu cover, to be able to bolt it to exsisting psu lid mounting holes ;)

    Another shot of the cover in place, angled from above, to give you a better idea.....soz, forgot to post this one earlier....

    [​IMG]

    Anyway, now with the psu cover finished, I need to secure it somehow....and fortunately, there were these 2 holes where Apple had their cover plate secured to.....
    see the 2 areas with blue circles....all the other holes are to tigthen the psu lid down to the psu casing...

    [​IMG]

    after very careful and meticulous measurements, to keep everything square, and aligned, here is the front in place.....

    [​IMG]

    and the rear, these countersunk allencap screws really make it look neat and pro.....

    [​IMG]

    and here is a view of both, with psu cover plate secured to psu housing....

    [​IMG]

    Of course I will have to remove it again, to mark the 2 areas where the psu cables will come through the lid to supply gfx, and mobo with juice, but, rest assured, there will be virtually no cables visible, and just enough to power peripherals anyway....

    No excess like with normal psu's, only 1x short atx mobo psu cable, 1x cable to power 2 harddrives and optical drive, and 1 to the gfx cards....

    It will be absolutely clean :)
     
  15. MrBean

    MrBean Minimodder

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    Ok, a small, but significant update to this project.....as I have mentioned before, well, I would like to keep as close to Apple as possible with this mod.

    Not just in looks department, also in functionality - yeah yeah, you know what's coming, don't you? rofl...

    Well, watch this few pics below, and let me know if this will fit the theme of the mod - take note, I actually have this running on the system currently :)

    Bear with me....

    Installing Base System...

    [​IMG]

    and Media Files

    [​IMG]

    and French Language Files

    [​IMG]

    Installing AMD Enabler...

    [​IMG]

    and SSE3 Kernel Patch...

    [​IMG]

    Then, optimizing the installation....

    [​IMG]


    and finally, finishing setup.....

    [​IMG]

    and boot time!!
     
    Last edited: 2 Nov 2006
  16. bubsterboo

    bubsterboo What's a Dremel?

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    Wow, very interested... Looks good!
     
  17. MrBean

    MrBean Minimodder

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    Some screen asking me if I already own a Mac? rofl...yeah, I do....

    [​IMG]

    and Yippeeeee.....Mac Os X on my AMD dualcore setup....

    [​IMG]

    and testing gfx, with default Apple Screensaver.....

    [​IMG]

    You must love that symbol....looks so neat on the LCD....

    Guys, I don't know if this is allowed or not, I have placed a bid on ebay for Mac Os X authentic DVD, and won! Just received confirmation now, so I am in the clear. So, I own a legal licensed DVD for this OS, and am planning on using it on one PC only - which to me make it legal - please do not flame me over this, I will try and investigate if I am allowed to do this or not. I am not disseminating any software, etc, and purchased a legal copy.

    I have done some investigation and came to the conclusion that this is illegal to do, I can use Mac OS X on Apple-only products, and as such has removed the software from my harddrive - sorry but this will not be used as part of this Mod, Windows or Linux will have to do ;)

    as I said earlier I would luv to get my hands on this:

    [​IMG]

    So, it should be delivered mid next week, then I can go ahead at full steam again.

    Should round the project off nicely ;)

    a Small change of scope if you like: I have set my mind on the one board that will do this system justice, the just-announced Abit AW9D Max:

    [​IMG]

    The reason for that being I had great success in the past wiht Abit Max-Series mobos, so much so that I actually owned 3 of them at 1 point in time, 2 of them with the then-famous VTT-Autoregulating vmod.

    I am positive this board will be a great board, and if needed, yes, I will apply a few vmods :) no prob

    So, this change the hardware portion of this mod dramatically, I never was going to be happy with a 4800+AMD cpu if I could fit a 6800X Conroe in here? Don't you agree? hehe - thought so.

    Ram will be these parts here, OCZ Titanium Alpha VX2 PC2-8000 XTC 2Gb, to give me good bandwidth, but, with tight timings. Even though the new Conroes are not benefitting as much from tight latencies as old Netburst cpus, due to large 4M shared cache, it will still give extra few points when chasing records.

    [​IMG]
     
    Last edited: 2 Nov 2006
  18. bubsterboo

    bubsterboo What's a Dremel?

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    Nvidia cards barely work on X86 osx... Good luck getting SLI! www.macvidia.com has best drivers atm. But not even close.
     
  19. MrBean

    MrBean Minimodder

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    Take note that I am still awaiting availability of motherboard, and cpu. Ram I will order from PcManiacs in Melbourne, actually very close to where I live.

    What does all this mean for the mod, and one of my main goals, ie not to hack the case to pieces....

    Well, I will have to re-adjust my thinking a little, and do away with Apple 600W psu - this will not provide 7950 quad with decent power. So, psu will relocate to the top, ala new Mac Pro style, I will probably use my new 1kw PC Powe&Cooling in here, if this doesn't fit, then the 750W Toughpower must do - should be good, so no problem there.

    Harddrives will relocate to the bottom, well-hidden, dont worry, and I have to redo new motherboard mounting tray.

    With the std ATX form-factor mobo, I will have to do a little cutting on the back of the case, to mount a new alu IO plate, which I already have. Should look very good, exept that I deviate a little from original intentions of retaining original Apple IO Plate with custom PCB/sockets.... :(

    Cannot be helped.

    Take note that I will not use complete removeable motherboard tray/IO Plate combo like Lian-Li's, I will only use backplate. Tray will be same as one I made earlier, just covering full-lebgth inside case.

    Lot of extra work, but I am looking forward to it.

    I have to make these changes to accommodate the new 30" ACD I ordered, I want to game at 2560x1600 native. Hence the new hardware specs.

    Will keep you posted, obviously I have to await arrivasl of new motherboard before I can do much more - at least I will redo new motherboard tray, so it's ready for mobo and IO plate fitment.

    My new Mac 30" has arrived!

    Here is a quick pic, just showing a size comparison next to my 19" HP 1955 LCD, unbelievable.

    [​IMG]

    In the background is my PC70 Lian-Li case, another idea of the size of this 30" monster. Even my wife could not believe it, she says it's as big as our 74cm TV...rofl.

    Well, I installed 91.36 drivers, and they cause funny highlights on the display, like pinkish/blue/white pixel lines, so uninstalled, and used 91.31's, which works great.

    I have to say, sitting 1m away from the display, you have to literally turn your head side to side to view 2560/1600 goodness. Probably the best money ever spend - yay!

    Lemme know what you guys think....
     
  20. MrBean

    MrBean Minimodder

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    update time, and although not a huge update, it is one that took a lot of thinking, and careful planning, measurement, and some dremelling and filing action.

    What was I busy with, well.....interesting...remember this shot I posted at the beginning of this project:

    [​IMG]

    I was going to use the eVGA Micro ATX board with this case, but since then, I managed to get a few Conroe cpus, and even more motherboards. I decided to cancel the eVGA Micro ATX AMD 64 4800 setup, and rather make this a decent gaming rig by mounting the Asus P5W DH Deluxe board in this case, together with the X6800 cpu of mine.

    Well, obviously one of my goals was to try and keep the back of the G5 original, as in above photo, but that would have only worked with 4-slot micro-atx board.

    So, I had to make a plan, and in the end, the final result came out very well, near-factory look, or maybe even better than factor look. By making new backplate/IO-plate, I can of course now mount any ATX motherboard in future, and not limit myself to micr-atx only :)

    So, this is what I started of with, a 199mm x 391mm aluminium, this was cut from one of my spare Lian-Li PC70 sidepanels.

    [​IMG]

    This is what I want to do away with, in 2 steps, I need 2 steps to make accurate markings on the new donor i/o-plate.....

    [​IMG]

    and, after some high-speed dremel work, I end up wityh this - the top piece is original G5 i/o-plate, and the bottom one I removed from a cheapish alu case - I got the case specifically for this i/o-plate, as I did not want the bigger and bulkier Lian-Li PC65 unit.....

    [​IMG]

    This is the phase1 cutout complete....

    [​IMG]

    After some measurements and markings, I could start on the new backplate....

    [​IMG]

    And here's the cutout finished, before filing.....

    [​IMG]

    a bit of filing, and some more markings, and drilling, we end up with this - not complete yet, still a few more things to do, but good enough for now....

    [​IMG]
     

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