Ok this is my first time trying to mod anything, let alone what Im attempting. Please bear with my noobness. Im going to be asking alot of questions and some of them WILL be noobish. So please bear with me. Ok... I know people build custom PC cases all the time. What I wanna do is build a custom case for my PS2. I wanna remove the black metal/plastic covers on the system itself and on the front of the CD tray and custom build a case. What I wanna know: Should I use plexi? If not, what material should I use? I want it to be see-thru. If I DO use plexi, how can I put it together? Would it be best to lead it with a scoring bit and then drill the screw into the drilled hole, or to just screw it into the plexi (i heard it has a higher chance to crack if I do it that way)? Should I drill right through from one piece of plexi to the other, use L-brackets, or use a long "L" shaped brace all along the edge of 2 pieces of plexi? Also, I want to install small (6-10") blacklights or colored cathodes. How would I power the lights? Would it be possible to just splice the wires that lead to the "power on" indicator and use them to power the lights? Ive been to pctoys.com and have seen their cathode kits and most of them have that power inverter but I doubt the PS2 came with an outlet for that. hehe. Do I need any special blades to cut plexi or can I just use a jigsaw and then just sand the plexi? How thick should I go with the plexi? 1/4"? 1/8"? Are there any links to any posts here or anywhere else that would help with this? Are there any sites that I could to go for help? Anything? Anything that anyone can give me info on would be GREATLY appreciated. Thanks in advance everyone.
I just saw Ben999's site for modding the PS2 and its cool as anything. Thing is... I dont wanna mod my PS2 case. I wanna build a new one. The power supply information was good though. Edit: That was the homepage for the site I just said I saw. Hehe. Thanks though. Ill see if theres anything on there I could use. btw... noob question. Whats a mobo? motherboard? *hides*
After looking at the websites I found, I figured that as my first mod job, I should try something a little less endearing. So what Im thinkin about doing is cutting away most of the plastic on the top, bottom, and sides and just installing plexi or lexican in the holes I cut. That way, I can leave in the more vital parts (the power switch area, the controller/mem card port area, area around the on/off and eject buttons, etc) alone until I learn to do this better. Only thing is... I dunno how to solder, so I wont be able to solder the wires to the mobo. Is there another way to do it, or do I just need to learn to solder?
soldering is easy. just be sure to practise first, it looks like a fairly small area to solder the wires to so chances are that you'll short somthing out if you don't edit: there's a soldering guide on the mod guide forum
Yep..soldering is easy. If you have any old components like old floppy drives or cd drives you don't use why not mess around and solder the l.e.d.s on and off, things like that. Make sure you are confident with soldering before you try it on the PS2! You don't want to be PS2less!!! Here's the link to the soldering guide. You could always search on google too. Have a search on google for PS2 mods for some ideas, and probs drop me a email!
havent read the thread but i tell u one thing, change the fan my friend brought his ps2 to a sleepover party and when we turnd it on to see the dude who got xt (extorcistance) it sounded like a F17 Jumpjet
if you decide to stick with your original idea (full custom case) i'd suggest 1/8" plexi, quarter inch sounds waaaay too thick for what you need. there are some useful guides on bit as far as plexi work goes this and this (recent link in another thread by eddie the dane saved me even searching ) good luck, and if you want my 2p's worth, aim high and go for the initial idea instead of wimping out and just windowing the ps2 if the soldering thing seems like something out of your league (i dont think that prodding the ps2 with a soldering iron is a good introduction to soldering), why not install a small psu in there? i know maplin used to make some <100watt jobs that were VERY small (caseless) and were completely passively cooled
PS2 Mod I too wanted to Mod up my PS2. Put on a new case with plexi, some led fans, maybe some cathodes. But, it is a pain in the ass to do and it will void out the warranty. I suggest paying a Skin off of Ebay. I did it and it looks really cool. Peace!
If your still going with the original idea, I would suggest joining the plexi at the edges with weld•on 4. You just butt the edges together and apply this stuff to the crack, it melts the plexi at the joint and creates a nearly invisible strong joint. Forget the bolts and screws. Also, I think you should go with the 1/4" plexi. I think 1/8" is to fragile for this application.
I really dont wanna wimp out and go with just framing the PS2. I wanna build a whole case for it, but it seems like SO much. The thing is... if I build the case... there are some things that I cannot avoid doing... Ill have to leave the power and eject buttons as they are... they are run from this weird looking wire system comprised of a bunch of very thin wires all stuck together (not sure what that kind of wire is called). That wire, along with the power and eject buttons, is stuck to the case (unless it can be unscrewed.. *makes a mental note to check*). The controller and memory card ports also cant be touched. So Im going to have to incorporate them into the box as well. I might wind up painting them if I do. See... Ive never done this before.. and to take on such an involved task as your first project... it involves alot. I'd either have to learn to solder, learn how to work with the PS2 PSU (which I have NO idea how to) or learn to install and use a newer PSU to power the lights and possibly the new fan. Thanks for all the info and advice everyone I really appreciate all your help and support.
I'd suggest buying a broken ps2 off ebay for about £10 so you can have a proper prod around on the inside without worrying. What you're saying about the power and eject switch just sounds like a push to make pad (if you've ever taken apart a controller you'll know what i mean). And on the point of controller ports, you can make your own if you like. I've seen nes pc's with authentic nes pads for control, or take a look at how zapwizard changed the connections on his ammo pc. Pretty much anything is possible if you really want it I would never suggest going halfway with a mod, especially since you seem to have an idea of what you really want... you just won't be happy with your results unless you go for it. Then again maybe thats just me, and that was just my 2p... i'll stop preaching now
No no. By all means, you are correct. I feel the same way, that if you want something done a certain way, you should go for it full throttle, not half-gassed ( ). I might do what you said, and just buy one off of ebay. Might be a good idea to play around with it first.. see what I can take off, what I can leave on, etc. Only thing with that... if I buy a broken one, I wont know if I broke something when Im messin with it. hehe.
