[Project] PC casemod.

[kakefarmer]

Right, so i'm gonna make myself a casemod for my PC.
I've decided to make it into a suitcase like this one.

The guy who made it was kind enough to make a worklog of his build located here.
So i'm basically gonna follow it to make my case.

My specs are as follows:
Graphics: XFX GeForce 9800 GX2 Black edition
CPU: AMD Phenom 9650 Quad-Core Processor 2,30 GHz
MB: Asus M3A
PSU: Corsair TX 750W
HDD: 1x Samsung 500GB, 1x 1TB (will put in brand when returning home after easter)
RAM: 2x 2GB with cooling ribs (pro ;D )
CD drive: Samsung with DVD-burner

Let's get to the story:
I live at my school's dorm, but due to regulations by the state (no, not US. Can't think of a better name for it :P Basically think of it like a county with many counties in it. )
i'm not allowed to stay there during weekends, and that forces me on a 3 hour bus ride back to my mom's house. My laptop just don't cut it for playing wow. Or, it does all right with all settings on low in raids etc. But i don't like being on a flying mount and all i see is the sky over and under me. So i've decided to make a case that is travel-friendly and this fit perfectly.

I'm going to use a case with 44x32x13,5 cm measurements. Looks exactly like the first one used in the worklog i'm following.
I'm also going to add an extra detail to it, because it looks awesome :P

I go to an aviation technics school, so i have access to tools woth A LOT of money, so i won't be missing any tools for the job :P
It will probably be a little while before i start this up, but when i do, i'll keep this thread updated with my progress and my successes (and failures)

As an opening question, i'm worried about my graphics card, because the 9800 GX2 series have a history of being very hot, and at a peak, mine has been over 120 degrees celcius while playing wow. This was on a char i was levelling in Eversong Woods.
Will it be able to handle being confined in such a small case?

[Iokau]

If your gpu is getting that hot, you need more cooling than what you have.

[kakefarmer]

If your gpu is getting that hot, you need more cooling than what you have.

The 9800 GX2 is actually 2 graphics cards slammed on top of each other with a cooling unit in between them. I have tried removing it, but in the end i found it too risky...
Also, there are little to none 3rd party coolers to the GX2 on the market.

[Trokar]

im all for casemods, but im not to smart on the subject.

as far as a portable cool case goes, the storm scout by coolermaster is an excelent choice

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811119196

as coolermaster advertised it, its the case for the gamer on the go (gamers who go to alot of LAN parties)

[op3l]

I've never done a custom case like that but just though I'd throw in some ideas.

Would it be possible for you to cut a hole right on top of where the graphics card will be at? Then maybe put a fan there to blow cool air from outside straight towards the card? If there is enough clearance, maybe install some piping to direct airflow inside the case? Make it so it blows cool air across the graphic card part and blow it directly towards the exhaust fans?

Another thing you can look into doing is to build a shroud around the heat sink of the graphics card and attach some fans to the opening to blow cool air through the duct, then direct the duct to the exhaust fan. This would ensure the heat sink get maximum airflow 100% of the time. Kind of like this from the xbox 360:

http://www.xbox360-hacks.com/images/xbox360_inside1.jpg

Another thing that might become a problem is since this is a suitcase the gaps are much smaller than a regular PC case, you might have to put 2 intake fans to offset the exhaust fans. I think with the case size that small, you need good directed airflow. But that's easier said than done obviously.

Then I guess there's always the option of downgrading the video card a bit, or go for one of the Radeon cards. My HD4850 runs 43C currently and it's just a regular heatsink/fan unit.