So funny enough the one thing that isn’t working on my new Ryzen build is my Soundblaster Z card, and that appears to be more of a Windows 10 issue than a mobo/pci issue. Then I went to the onboard motherboard audio drivers which is advertised as being really awesome and isolated and able to drive high impedence cans. But I was getting a lot of latency leading to cracks and pops and noise. I’ve maybe narrowed it to, of all things, my 3D Connexion mouse which tends to cause issues in general when I let it idle and then start using it again. But was not entirely satisfied with that and don’t feel like chasing that ghost.
So I bought an external DAC/Amp from Schiit, and I’m no longer giving a single fuck about computer noise, either aural or electrical. Mostly because the Schiit Stack is blowing my ears out of my head with the knob at 12:00.
I might end up doing that in the end out of necessity, but I want to try making the whole case out of wood if I can. It’s more a way for me to get better at woodworking by making something actually useful to me rather than just being an aesthetic choice.
[quote=“VictorFrost, post:62, topic:327, full:true”]
I might end up doing that in the end out of necessity, but I want to try making the whole case out of wood if I can. It’s more a way for me to get better at woodworking by making something actually useful to me rather than just being an aesthetic choice.
[/quote]Trust me, it would be a HUGE pain in the ass, even if you were far more experienced. Making the kind of detail work you need for making something strong and secure enough, precisely enough, to hold your internals properly would be a bastard of a job. Not to mention it would require a number of tools I’m not entirely sure you have handy, and most of them aren’t exactly cheap.
For real, you’ll learn plenty just skinning the bare rails with wood and making it look nice. It’s harder than it sounds.
The only pain in the ass part would be the PCI slot supports. If not using PCI (could also mount GPU via riser cable) then there isnt much that is too specific. I/O cover, maybe, if one wants the bother.
Really tis as simple as printing a mobo template to drill holes for the risers, fan templates (or just fans) to mark where fan holes go, and HDD/SSD templates for those. I guess the PSU as well. But each thing is discrete, put it literally whererver as long as it fits.
A simple hole and a switch and suddenly you have an on/off even.
Still reusing a steel chassis frame isnt a bad idea. Certainly could see a very nice steel/wood combo making a great case.
I would also generally recommend using an old pci bracket / motherboard plate for building custom cases.
Whatever you do I would suggest picking up some threaded inserts (the kind that screw into the wood and give you a threaded hole for machine screws). Almost all screws in desktops are either #6-32 or M3, so I’d pick one of those.
Another reason you would want to use parts of a metal case would be to provide an area for proper grounding. Give yourself somewhere to attach an ESD wrist cable if you want to work on the computer.
[quote=“Apreche, post:65, topic:327”]
Option 2: Put some kind of plate or bracket attached to the wood. Now you can swap motherboards and the case can maybe be reused for the next PC.
[/quote]That just looks like an apple crate with a coat of stain and lacquer. Where’s the challenge in building a box? Like, that’s literally the sort of thing you set first-timers doing in high-school shop class.
Use a template, drill holes in wood. Use coupling nuts and screw in from the backside to create threaded standoffs (McMaster-Carr) that are secure to the case. As long as all drilling was reasonably square you’re gonna be close enough to get the board to mount.
Yes. 'tis a shitty box. But it was the best I could find on Google image search illustrating the mounting board behind the motherboard. All the other wooden cases had motherboards that were large enough such that this was not visible.
[quote=“Apreche, post:74, topic:327, full:true”]
Yes. 'tis a shitty box. But it was the best I could find on Google image search illustrating the mounting board behind the motherboard. All the other wooden cases had motherboards that were large enough such that this was not visible.
[/quote]Fair enough. It is a nice box, though, just that Boxes are easy.
Of course, for a setup like that, what you could do is get an old, shitty case from goodwill or the like, cut the backing plate for the motherboard out, Measure and mark it, drill it a little, drop a toothed washer in and then run some small bolts through to hold the backing plate in place securely. Get a plug cutter the right size for the hole, get some plugs from matching scrap wood, then just glue the plugs back in on top. As long as you’re careful putting the plugs back in, should look pretty much like you’d never drilled it.
[quote=“Apreche, post:76, topic:327, full:true”]
I want to see some Japanese wood joinery to hold the box together. Only screws for the electronic bits.
[/quote]I would actually pay serious money for that. It’d be rad.
The motherboard backing plate usually comes with the motherboard and is snapped into the back of most modern cases. Now the PCI slots, that’s something work transplanting.
What would be worth while might be vertically mounting the motherboard so the slots are on the top and the hotter air can rise out of the machine.
You’re talking about the I/O shield on the back of the case where the USB ports stick out. That part is easy. It’s just a hole. I’m talking about underneath the motherboard.
