Project YAAC (Yet Another Antec Case) Finished 05/07/03

Project YAAC (Yet Another Antec Case) *Finished 05/07/2003* 56K Make Some Coffee !

My new project is to replace my old one here.
While I was pleased with the overall case I produced it seemed a little too "ghetto" and didnt have enough cooling. So I decided on a new case, an Antec Plusview 1000AMG to be precise. There have been a lot of mods done with this case, such as removing the door/window/grills etc, but I like the clean look it has so I'm doing this case with minimal exterior modding. There will be a few minor mods here and there with the internals but I'm aiming to keep the case as clean as possible.
I'm trying to go with a blue lighting theme with this case, I know some people feel blue is getting a little 'old' but done well it can look good.
I can here you cry "Non-modded Antec Case ! Blue Theme ! is this guy gonna do anything original ?" Well maybe. But this case isnt really about orignality - its about functionality. ( I need to copyright that last line )

Most of my old system will do into making this one but there were a few extra bits I've bought from ebuyer,

1 x Antec Plusview 1000 AMG
1 x QTEC 550 Watt PSU
5 x Coolermaster LED Fans (Bl00!)
2 x LED 8cm Case Fan Blue LEDs
1 x Scorpion Stainless Steel 8cm Laser Cut Fan Guard

(the last item I bought cos it looked cool hehe)

I would have gone for a higher priced PSU but hey I'm on a budget here.
Now Im gonna shut the hell up and get onto some piccies

 

Ive done some work on the case so far, heres the pictorial progress....

The 2 cheaper bl00 led fans I bought I installed into the QTEC along with adding a power switch. Heres a pic without flash.



Also I sleeved all the PSU cables with expandable nylon sleeving, the ends made off with heatshrink.



Now this case will have 5 Coolermaster LED fans in. I want to control the fan speed with a self made diodebus but reducing the fan voltage reduces the LED's brightness until at around 10V they go out. So some fan modding was in order.

I desoldered the LED cable and the Speed sensor cable from the fan as shown here



Then I soldered them together, so that I could provide a full 12V to the fans LEDs and adjust the fan speed. It also provides an added bonus that If the bl00 gets a bit too much I can just turn all the LEDs off.



To control these 5 fans I'm using a home made diode bus. The first thing I needed to make was the front panel controls. The Idea was to have 4 knobs (1 controlling 2 fans, 3 for 3 fans) each backlit. So for the backlights I made 4 perspex discs and 'frosted' them by lightly sanding there surface. Heres a pic showing me making them ( Dremel use Idea thanks to Bard )



I drilled 4 carefully measured holes in a 5 1/4 face plate and installed the 6 way rotary switches. Above the switch hole is a smaller one for a LED per switch. Then installed the backlights and the black aluminium knobs. Soooo heres the money shot...



Im quite pleased with things so far. More things to come once I get some time

 

I love the glowing rings around the knobs!
I didn't really get that soldering the RPM wire to the LED wire (+) I assume, though. Are you running plain 12V through the RPM wire instead of connecting it to the mobo?

 

Yeah the RPM wire will be connected to 12V via a switch (and a 10 Ohm Resistor, theres one in the fan) so I can turn on/off the LEDs

 

Hi

Great looking fan-controller there...

I would like to see a mod guide on that !!
Pretty Please

L

 

I'll prolly do a guide once I've finished the case

 

Update !

Well Ive done some more work and here are the piccies

Here is my diodebus PCB mounted under the top of the case. The bundle of wires comming from each side go to the switches at the front.



My Coolermaster LED fans installed Yay




Some 3mm bl00 leds to replace the normal green, yellow and amber ones



And the effect they give



I decided to make my own backlit case badge. I cut a square section of perspex and 'frosted' it with sandpaper. I then sanded a LED flat and glued it to the perspex. Here are the results







I should have another update in a couple of days as things are moving along quickly

 

i like it alot... might have to use some of the ideas (such as the backlit case badge) on my new case i will be starting very soon

 

I like the backlit case badge. Can we get a front pic of that one, preferably in the dark, just to see the whole effect?

 

Dude, you better rename that project NJAAC (Not Just Another Antec Case)!!!

 

I'm building this case at work atm so it never gets very dark there for me to take night-time shots. I'll try and take one in the morning when I get in cos its a little darker than most other times then. Once I get the beast home in all its finished glory you can have as many low light shots as ya like

Thanks d00d

 

Coming along very nicely! Keep up the good work... I wish I could mod at work, what do you do, I need a job like yours, I might actually get some modding done then

 

Im an electronic engineer for a small company, I manage to fit in my modding around jobs.

I mod at work simply cos its easier. I have all the tools I need, all the space and electronic components as well if needed

 

Well Ive finished ( until I decide to mod it a little more ) my case and Its just waiting for me to install the hardware. But thats gonna have to wait until the weekend.

Here are a few more pictures to gawp over

The clean look case in all its glory



Heres a little shot with the door open. mmmmm glowy



From the back



and the window



Inside the case at the back



and inside front



This one shows the fan wiring loom and the USB / I/O from the front panel sleeved.



And the close up on the badge that bard wanted



I'll probably take a few more pics once the hardware is in

 

Nice case man...

Now I am not the smartest guy in the world, but what are the bracket thingies on the bottom of the case for?

 

Their the funny rail things that you use for mounting your cd-rom drives etc

Wicked case man it looks lush mite have to get me one of those

 

Niiiiiiiiiiiiiiiice case dude


I dunno, but there seem to be a few too many wires here




Ahem.. can i have the old fans from the q-tec? (as per my wanted thread).

 

I still have them, there pink but aint XP cooler branded. There branded under another name which I cant think of right now.

Pop me an email hippo (at) prog-tech (dot) co (dot) uk and we'll sort something out

 

Well I managed to get into work today and transfer all the hardware from my old case to this one....And I took some pictures once I got the beast home

Heres a piccy with the flash on



One with less light



And one with almost none



Heres a shot of the window which shows off my scorpian fan grill nicely



The door open



A little lower. Damn thats bright



A shot from behind. Oooer missus



And finally a flash shot of the internals



Im really happy with how this case has turned out. The case itself is really of a high standard, so are the coolermaster led fans. The front case badge and the diodebus are little homemade items that I feel have turned out well. The QTEC PSU seems to cope with all my hardware and the voltages are well within acceptable tolerances. Sleeving all the cables has made a real difference imho and the rounded coolermaster cables top it all off

I am a Happy Bunny

 

Where's the sleeving from? And is it the kind of stuff you have to take the molexs off for (i.e. a tube) or do you just wrap it round and zip tie it (i.e. a sheet)?

Very interested in getting some.


Nice case dude.. the baybus looks ace.