Case Mod - In Progress Ultra X-Blaster - New Design Idea [NEW PICTURES]

Well I've been looking at some peoples modded cases and I've decided to do some modding while I have my case part for paint due to 3 deep scratches on the backside of the case. I know they wont be in view but I still want to get it all fixed. Going to be cutting out some holes in the motherboard tray for better wire management. In the future when I start to get my other HDD's and video cards I am going to add on to the botom of the case for more room. Im going to move the HDD cage to the newly added space when I make it or have it made at a shop i know of that does laser cutting and has a CNC bender. Going to also have a second PSU installed in the bottom for my SLI setup for better wire management and also the power supply i have now doesnt have many 6 pin connections for video cards.

No water cooling for this new builder. Ill do that when I get more comforable with building and decide to tackle something harder in the future.

I will also post a rendering of how the case will look like and will most likely be done in either MS Paint or photoshop.







I know what some of you are thinking "Why are you using the old out of date IDE cables?"
Well just to let you know I will be using all SATA connections when I get my HDD and DVD burner.

I will have an update later this afternoon probably.
Time to get out the drill dremel and sander!

 

Today I got quite a bit done. Still have some sanding to do and finish the cable managment test. So far it seems pretty good.I might make the hole at the bottom of the case bigger for the other wires to go through for the top USB, Firewire, and audio cables to go though. The HDD cage isnt going to be used because of the airflow and the GPU's im going to get might be to long to have the cage in.

The teardown.










Marking where I'm going to cut for cable managment.




Still some more sanding to do but that shouldnt take that long.






The cable managment test. Seems like it will work out pretty well but any suggestions will be good to this new modder.

 

Case is all sanded down finally and tomorrow when I'm out I will pick up some paint. I wish I could afford more stuff like some plexy glass and laser cutting. When work picks up I will deffinately get some plexy and make some panels plus make a clear window for the side panel. Im ordering my motherboard some fans and a DVD Reader/Writer really soon. Hopefully all will go well.







I think it looks kind of cool like that but it would be a lot more work to make it look really good.

Any suggestions that anyone has on how to make a cover for an ASUS Triton 70 CPU cooler would be helpfull. It will have to fans I just dont like the boxy design plus im getting it for free from NewEgg as a combo deal. I have aluminum and some other stuff laying around I could use.

 

As a simple tip from a not-so-experienced modder, I would advise you to cover the cable management holes just in case. You'd probably already have thought about it but seeing as cuts can be rough, it'd be a good idea to either sand/file it smooth or put some kind of covers around em (i.e. rubber or something like that).

Other than that, looking good so far, seeing as you got materials and you got the tools or help needed for this, I'd say let your imagination do its thing. That's what makes a mod one of a kind, I'm pretty sure you'll do fine.

Good luck!

 

I actually took some 220 grit and made a rounded jig so i could sand inside the holes. I can run my finger in it all day and no rough edges. I was also thinking of putting some rubber in the holes just to be extra safe but I would need to make the holes bigger to compensate for the size of the rubber. Im also thinking of removing the front USB Audio port because i dont use it that much or even moving it to the side of the case like some of the other Ultra cases.

 

Sorry that I dont have any updated pics to show you guys. I have the case all painted but im letting it cure good for at least 12 hours. So tomorrow I should have some pictures of it all back together. I just need to find a rivet gun to rivet the top back on. I painted it satin black, its a very nice black. Not really shiny and not really dull. I think most computers are done in a satin type paint. Check back tomorrow to see the pictures.

 

Well I have an update for everybody. It is all painted and put together and all the wires are run. Later on when I get more money I will have the side panel cut and a piece of plexyglass mounted to it. I just ordered about 300 dollars worth of stuff for 225 dollars. I will get it within 3 days. Sorry about the poor quality pics, all the batteries for my camera is dead so I had to use my phone. I will take some more later. I might have to do some touch-up painting on some parts.









No more scratches!




Cables are ran.






Tool less fan mounts installed for the 2 Masscool 120mm fans.

 

Paint done

Well Since this was a double post I decided to go ahead and show everyone my first order thats going to get here on thursday 4/02/09

 

Now THAT is a big double post.

 

I know.. i dont know how that happened either.



Well all the paint is done as you can see. Also when I was looking over my order from NewEgg I noticed that they are sending me an IDE DVD burner. Not that big of a deal. Ill get a SATA DVD later. Im currently saving up for a HD and OS which I have the money I just have to start a bank account and wait to get a card so I can order it. In the future im going to get a new case and mod this one even further. Im also going to mod the new case I'm going to get but not that much. Just the front grill make a clear side panel and make a panel to cover the side of the drive bays in the case. The rest of the case is awesome. But im debateing on whether to get the Ultra eXo aluminum case which is 199.99 or the Ultra m923 case. Here are pics of both.

Ultra m923




Ultra eXo

 

For that prize you can get a lian-li :S

 

The eXo does have the power distribution thing though, and it's painted black.....

 

Well since the eXo is around 300 and there is 100 off instantly with power management i will probly get that but if i dont have that much i will get the m923.

When i look at all the mods that are done on here it seems like its all Lian-Li cases and i want to give people new cases to look at instead of Lian-Li, NZXT, and CoolerMaster cases.

Ill be getting most of my hardware on Thursday. I dont know why its taking so long to get here. But I did manage to get my hands on a rivet gun and rivet the top back on the frame. All I have to do now is cut out a side window and put some plexy in it. After that i might repaint the whole thing over again since some of it is chipping away for some reason, but I will wait to do the painting when I get another case.

 

I like your thinking. Keep up the great work.

 

Thanks 500mph. Since this is my first mod I might try to cut out a side window when it gets warmer out here. Ive seen how other people do it and it doesnt look all to hard. I cant use the Ultra side intake cone bacause of the cooler that im getting here on thursday.

I also have a couple of questions, I know what power coating is but i dont really understand the anodizing. What exactly is it. And is there any other way I could get a straight cut withough having to file all the straight parts?

 

I'm also an Ultra lover, got me an Aluminus and gonna mod a Grid soon. They're very good for the price - my friend's 900 is harder to work with than the Aluminus or Grid.

 

Yea I looked at the Grid and Aluminus but i dont like the cases with the doors on the front. That would be the first thing to go if i got one. My case was like 70 with a 500 watt psu that came with it.

 

Well I this is kind of a late post. I recived my package and got everything installed. All I need to do now is order a HDD and OS. I may get a HDD cooler to put in my case but before that I'm going to get another stick of RAM just so I have enough RAM to run everything and nothing will be bogged down. A also may need to get some new thermal past and another fan or I might just get 2 new LED fans. But anyways everything went together well. I do need to redo the paint on my case but ill just wait to do that when I get a new case.

 

Well guys I am glad to say that I officially cut out a place in my side panel to put a clear sided window. I might of made the hole just a little to big but thats no real problem. The way I cut it was a little different from some people out there. I first marked where i was going to just this this point I found in the tool box. Measured everything and got it square then broke out the cutting wheel and just took my time cutting. I also bought a new bit kit because I ran out of wheels last night. It all went pretty well but sadly I don't have any pictures at the moment. I WILL post some pictures of it tomorrow with the glass in hopefully. Im also thinking of making an ASUS logo and an AMD badge to put in the case or on the glass. Im still trying to figure out a way that I can order the rest of my computer stuff.

Im also thinking of getting some 90mm fans to put on my cpu cooler with leds in it but i think it might be a little to much. What do you guys think?

 

The new paint job looks much better than the original one, gotta love a black interior . Nice work.