Dreamcast 2 - Logic Supply MC600 - Portable Gaming PC

zovc

King of Cable Management
Original poster
Jan 5, 2017
852
603
Hey!

My project changes again, but it's actually going back towards its roots. Originally when I contacted Josh about the S4 mini, I pitched my idea of a "Dreamcast 2" theme for my build to him. Of course--being the passionate guy he is--he was enthusiastic about the idea. The plan was to powder coat an S4 mini and try to make a custom top panel for it with a logo cut out over the CPU to allow airflow. Fast forward about a year from then and here we are, I still have both a Logic Supply MC600 and a S4 Mini, and I'm still afraid to mod that beautiful S4 Mini where as Logic Supply literally sent me this MC600 (for free) to see what kind of mod I would do to it... It's really long overdue I do something with that MC600.

I've never modded a case. I've always been interested but a lot of barriers kept me from being able to. I've been in a rut and really need to start focusing on doing projects rather than thinking about them, so I've committed to getting the ball rolling on this one. (and a few others!)

The basic rundown on this system is that I'm migrating my old gaming computer with an i7-4790K and a GTX 980 into an ITX chassis, and even after I upgrade the system (probably next year), I'll keep this one around for taking with me to LANs at friends houses, and when it's at home it'll be in our utilities closet, available for Steam In-Home Streaming to my roommates/our company.

The 980 was too big to fit in any of the cooler, newer ITX systems, so I needed to get an ITX card. (Also I sold it to a friend like two weeks ago. lol) A while back I pulled the trigger on the Galax 1070 Mini. I don't love that its fans idle at 30%, but they're not the loudest thing in the world--maybe I'll figure out some kind of hack to get around that. Whether it's using different fans on CPU headers or whatever else.

I've taken two baby steps in the process of modding this case so far. I cut away enough material to fit the power connector of my G-Unique power supply from guryhwa through one of the serial ports on the case, and this morning I started work on the cutout for my video card's fans/intake.

The current roadblock I'm facing with this system is that the ASRock Z97E-ITX/ac motherboard I bought (used on /r/hardwareswap) does not support PCI-e risers (???), this is what ASRock themselves have told me, though the representative I've been dealing with has said they will ask "HQ" about it. Right now, I'm eyeing an ASUS Z97I-Plus, I asked the seller about their return policy and if they can confirm the board works with PCI-e risers. (A user on the forums here has said theirs works without any issue, so I'm pretty confident.) I also asked ASUS's support about it.

Anyways, I took a few pictures of my work which I'll probably end up uploading tomorrow after I get some more work done. Cutting with a "Dremel"/rotary cutting tool is harder than I thought, but so far I'm cutting pretty straight (just not very cleanly), I can see why Josh said he prefers an angle grinder. For this cutting on the underside, I think it'll be fine, and I can probably clean it up well enough.

I'll also end up dressing this post up more nicely at some point in the future.

Thanks!
 

zovc

King of Cable Management
Original poster
Jan 5, 2017
852
603
Reserving this post for archival purposes, feel free to post now!
 

zovc

King of Cable Management
Original poster
Jan 5, 2017
852
603
So I maybe built up a little too much confidence with that first run with the Dremel. My cuts came out pretty rough. But, I achieved the function I was aiming for and I can clean up my work once I get a little more familiar with the tool.


The first few pictures is me trying to point out how I laid out my cuts. It was honestly hard to do with the MC600, as it's too cramped in there for my calipers and also the surface of the bottom panel isn't completely flush on the inside. There are little studs and risers and some random obstacles that made it hard to lay a ruler flat. So, I decided to do my best to lay out my "start point" on the inside and I made that cut from the inside. Then, I used the cut as my frame of reference for the rest of my laying out... the bottom of the MC600 is pretty much flush, except for the cut I made and was trying to base my measurements off of...

Anyways, we got the job done. I created a cutout that will allow my 1070 to intake air from the bottom of the case. I'm going to figure out how to try to true the hole up, then I'm going to order a custom-sized magnetic mesh filter. I hear they're only a few bucks. As-is, the hole should be perfectly functional even if I don't clean it up. I just need to install some feet on the bottom of the case to allow it to actually pull air in.

A friend of mine who does drafting is helping me try to create an accurate stencil of the symbol I want to cut out of the top panel, it's basically going to be a combination of the original Dreamcast logo and the number "2" with the Dreamcast spiral being the top of the 2. I'll also be getting a magnetic mesh dust filter to put under it.

With those two main cuts done, I'm going to be making (or purchasing) a custom front panel. I'm thinking of doing thin sheet aluminum with "Dreamcast 2" cut out on the GPU side. (The card exhausts a lot out of its "back.") And then, of course a power button and I/O on the other side. The I/O will probably just be 2 USB 3.1 ports, I'm thinking I'm going to use an adapter like this for wireless dongles (controllers, etc) inside the case.