Log Teebs' 5L Stream PC & Peripherals in a Carry on

[Teebs]

Build update time~!

Hello~
It's been a while since my last post. I spent several months waiting for cable imports that would get canceled one after the other - before I eventually gave up and compromised, but everything worked out in the end and it's time to charge ahead with some build updates.

Parts to be installed today:

19/20 Pin mobo header to type E adapter & Type E to type C cable:

These are pre combined in the photo - I couldnt source a single cable solution for this connection and get it to ship out (even though they seem to exist) but this one is both flat & to length, so its not the worst outcome.

This will replace the type A to C cable that powers the case display, which previously originated in the back of my MOBO and ran through the case - this helps clean up the overall build and also frees up a port on the rear I/O

Noctua fan swap:

I already made this fan swap in a previous build update session, but when one of my GPU fans died I had to bring out the ol reliable brown and beige. Never had a Noctua fan die on me before, but their RMA process was solid and I'll be able to colour match once again <3

Updates in place:

Nothing major to see here from this view, but the header location is great for this use case. It's much clearer from the other angle




Can you spot the cable location?

The other angle:

Here we can see the clean rear IO (with very low profile Display port running back in to the case & everything else empty)

The display controller board aligns very nicely with both the DP video & type C power, although the ribbon cable is *slightly* long. I think it will all sit pretty cleanly once the frame is in place, as this will raise it off the surface of the desk about 3/4 inch, which helps align everything even better than it is now.

Everything set up once again:

I can never pass up an opportunity to post a glam shot of my steadily evolving build & desk setup. It's really coming together at this point, and aside from the monitor frame and some cable management I've almost cleared of my build log & desk related to do list.

Bonus update:

I have been having some problems with my mouse's wireless connectivity lately, likely due to the orientation of the rear IO on the Skyreach facing the dongle away from the peripherals.

In an attempt to solve this issue I have mounted a wireless dongle extension on the underside of my monitor riser stand. It's not perfect since this solution tethers me to the desk in a way I don't love for portability / AIO reasons, but if it works I'll take it, and perhaps iterate on my monitor case design to hack together a front facing usb port on the side of the case.

Signal seems vastly improved in the hour or so I've had this in place before writing~











Anyways, that's gonna be it for this one. I'm going to do some prep work and planning for the case monitor mounting solution next.
Gotta make some cad renders, source materials, and decide if I need the front facing USB port.

Then the foam will come soon after.

Thanks for reading~ <3

 

[Valantar]

Build update time~!

Hello~
It's been a while since my last post. I spent several months waiting for cable imports that would get canceled one after the other - before I eventually gave up and compromised, but everything worked out in the end and it's time to charge ahead with some build updates.

Parts to be installed today:

19/20 Pin mobo header to type E adapter & Type E to type C cable:

These are pre combined in the photo - I couldnt source a single cable solution for this connection and get it to ship out (even though they seem to exist) but this one is both flat & to length, so its not the worst outcome.

This will replace the type A to C cable that powers the case dsiplay, which previously originated in the back of my MOBO and ran through the case - this helps clean up the overall build and also frees up a port on the rear I/O

Noctua fan swap:

I already made this fan swap in a previous build update session, but when one of my GPU fans died I had to bring out the ol reliable brown and beige. Never had a Noctua fan die on me before, but their RMA process was solid and I'll be able to colour match once again <3

Updates in place:

Nothing major to see here from this view, but the header location is great for this use case. It's much clearer from the other angle

The other angle:

Here we can see the clean rear IO (with very low profile Display port running back in to the case & everything else empty)

The display controller board aligns very nicely with both the DP video & type C power, although the ribbon cable is *slightly* long. I think it will all sit pretty cleanly once the frame is in place, as this will raise it off the surface of the desk about 3/4 inch, which helps align everything even better than it is now.

Everything set up once again:

I can never pass up an opportunity to post a glam shot of my steadily evolving build & desk setup. It's really coming together at this point, and aside from the monitor frame and some cable management I've almost cleared of my build log & desk related to do list.

Bonus update:

I have been having some problems with my mouse's wireless connectivity lately, likely due to the orientation of the rear IO on the Skyreach facing the dongle away from the peripherals.

In an attempt to solve this issue I have mounted a wireless dongle extension on the underside of my monitor riser stand. It's not perfect since this solution tethers me to the desk in a way I don't love for portability / AIO reasons, but if it works I'll take it, and perhaps iterate on my monitor case design to hack together a front facing usb port on the side of the case.

Signal seems vastly improved in the hour or so I've had this in place before writing~











Anyways, that's gonna be it for this one. I'm going to do some prep work and planning for the case monitor mounting solution next.
Gotta make some cad renders, source materials, and decide if I need the front facing USB port.

Then the foam will come soon after.

Thanks for reading~ <3

Hey, a Keychron K3! I got one of those about a month ago, and really like it. Their "brown" switches are a bit weird (nothing at all like Cherry MX Browns), but still pretty good.

Nice to see this coming along, looking forward to seeing the display frame come together.

 

[Teebs]

Hey, a Keychron K3! I got one of those about a month ago, and really like it. Their "brown" switches are a bit weird (nothing at all like Cherry MX Browns), but still pretty good.

Nice to see this coming along, looking forward to seeing the display frame come together.

I've had mine for maybe 6 months at this point and I'm pretty happy with it overall. the slightly long time to wake from sleep is my only real issue with the board.

Its so compact though, i like the switches I went with (black) espescially that they are hotswappable. Here's to a long board life~ :cheers:

 

[Teebs]

The Final Build Update!
It's a success story several years in the making.

The last outlier - by over two years - was figuring out how I would go about actually attaching the display to the build.
I had been planning to add some aluminium bevel to the case, that I would bring to a local metalworker and have them cut + weld the frame to the case.
It's a solid plan, and it would have worked - but it was high cost high effort, and although I had made some calls and found out it was doable - the pandemic really put this in person step on the backburner.

But this year for christmas, my girlfriend found this ipad diplay case on aliexpress. It was the off the shelf solution that would work in place of the bespoke and hand crafted option. Much cheaper, much easier, and it's one of the most specific and helpful gifts I think I have ever recieved.

Scoping out the Goods:

Here is the PC with the display just dangling in front (how it was for 2+ years of daily driving)
The new frame is ready to be installed.

Carving out this guy:

I went ahead and taped off the section I would need to cut, and then removed it with my offbrand dremml. This step took me way longer than it should have, but it turned out pretty good.
Sanded it down nice and smooth so the cables wouldn't get stripped in there.

(Looks like a funny face to me )

Keeping it Together:

Next step, I attached some screws and washers through the PC side panel and in to the vesa mounts on the back of this display case.

Securing the Hardware:

I applied some antistatic tape over the screws to help create a barrier between the new metal extrusions and anything inside.
At this step I also had to remove one of the screws because the monitor alignment was off when all 4 were in place.
I could have also made some small notches in my PC case, and was considering doing so.
But I decided since it holds well with 3 - if I ever take the monitor off my side panel won't have bonus holes in it this way.

Everything in frame:

Here we have a great WIP shot where everything is coming together. You can see more antistatic tape on the inside of the case to help protect the display controller (on the back of the panel) from the metal around it. The display port and power for the monitor are also coming out of the case and through the hole I cut to run them. everything fits well - juts gotta close it up.

Finished Product:

And, here it is! all sealed up and looking clean.



















Full Desk Glam shot:

So, what's next?

I am finally done the build. I have been tempted to get a type C hub to run all my peripherals in to on the back of the primary monitor - and then run them all to the PC on a single cable to help clean things up a bit. I don't know yet if I will end up doing that, but I will probably look at some hubs this weekend and see if anything fits the bill. cable management improvements are always good value.

And finally, I have always planned to get some custom laser cut foam to transport this in a carry on suitcase. I need to decide on the hub first (so it can have a home in the foam) but that will be the portability payoff for the build.




I have been using this PC for a couple years now, and I love it. It has been great to have free space on the desk/floor, not to mention moving it a few times over the years has been very easy as well.

Thanks for coming along on this journey with me - and I hope you enjoyed seeing the finale after so much time has passed.

Until next time,
Teebs