Switching Computer Cases?

[Herpderp23]

Hey,i know some about computers but not alot so i need help, i was thinking about switching computer cases, i have a dell dimension 8300 and its a complete HEATBOX because of all the plastic on the outside and barely any ventilation, how can i find out what size or kind of case i need to get so everything will fit properly?

 

[Andrew2020]

If it is a DELL you probably can't put it in another case. I have a dell and they specialty make things so number one you have to buy parts from them. And number two they don't really want you changeing cases becuase they want to be advertised when people see your computer. But you might be able to switch. In that case you probably can switch to any case becuase they are useually pritty universal.
Unless there really small like the Mac mini or somethin like that.....

...Andrew...

 

[Techy Geek]

this isnt very professional or useful, but im sure if you cannot get brackets etc. for Dell parts, you could manufacture them, or if the worst comes to the worst, tape them to the case, Im sure they offer parts though, if not that is another reason why Dell are so cr*p.

 

[lurkswithin]

Yes, dell is extremely proprietary. While i looked at the specs i couldn't get a real look at the layout of the mobo itself and that is going to determine the ability to change cases. The one issue that struk me was the 4 usb ports on the flat screen monitor and how those are powered and connected to the computer and also how the PCI /AGP slots will allign with the case,. there are rules that most builders conform to and that is called form factor. This is a modularation building system so that all component builders/manufacturers can supply parts and have them fit. these are AT, ATX, MINI ATX, BABY ATX and so forth. These also carry a letter designation as A,B,C,D,.
With that in mind what you would have to do is compare your systems port outlets to that of another motherboard and to the dimensions. If it lines up and looks fairly similar then more than likely it will fit. The rear port panel should pop-out and interchange with the new case. You may need to drill some small holes to correspond with the mounting holes in the motherboard so pick a case that has mounting hardware.
I would go towards a full tower case over that of a mid tower because you will have a little more leway to work around.
All in all I think that you should be able to do it without too much trouble.

 

[wiktorek01]

here's a pick of it opened

 

[Herpderp23]

Heres the specs for my comp i got it off the website, the only differant thing is that i have a 6800 with a silencer on it, hopefully u all can help me more if u see specs :-/

1 G0101 PROCESSOR, 80532, 3.0G, 512, 800FSB, SOCKET N
1 W2562 CARD (CIRCUIT), PLANAR (MOTHERBOARD), DIM8300, AUDIO 5.1/NIC
1 T0185 KIT, KEYBOARD, MOUSE, 104, UNITED STATES, WIRELESS, NMB
1 P1554 CARD (CIRCUIT), MULTI-MEDIA, AUDIO, 1394, SB0353
1 J2523 KIT, SPEAKER, 120V, DELL5650, DELL AMERICAS ORGANIZATION
1 C3776 MODEM, V.92, DATA FAX, INTERNAL, PC INTERFACE, DELL AMERICAS ORGANIZATION
1 G3171 DIGITAL VIDEO DISK DRIVE, 16X, IDE (INTEGRATED DRIVE ELECTRONICS), HALF HEIGHT, EXTERNAL, CHASSIS 2001
1 9Y452 CARD (CIRCUIT), GRAPHICS, 128MB, NV34, DIMENSION
1 5U692 FLOPPY DRIVE, 1.44M, 3.5" FORM FACTOR, 3MD, NO BEZEL, SAMSUNG, CHASSIS 2001
1 R0190 HARD DRIVE, 120G, I, 8M, 7.2K, Serial ATA, SEAGATE-ALPINE
1 1Y379 ASSEMBLY, CABLE, Serial ATA, TRANSFORMER SKY DIVE MINITOWER, 1.0
1 P0253 CABLE, POWER, 6P, AUXILIARY, Serial ATA, TRANSFORMER SKY DIVE MINITOWER
1 P1536 KIT, SOFTWARE, COREL OFFICE, V11, ENGLAND/ENGLISH
1 R2553 KIT, SOFTWARE, OVERPACK, WXPHSP1A, COMPACT DISKETTE W/DOCUMENTATION, ENGLAND/ENGLISH
1 G2876 KIT, DOCUMENTATON ON FLOPPY DISK, SOFTWARE, CYBERLINK, 4.14, DIMENSION
1 4N736 DISPLAY, CATHODE-RAY TUBE, 19, DUAL, M992, MIDNIGHT GRAY, DELL AMERICAS ORGANIZATION
2 J0202 DUAL IN-LINE MEMORY MODULE, 512, 400M, 64X64, 8K, 184
1 W1043 DIGITAL VIDEO DISK DRIVE, DVD+RW, 4.7, TEAC, 8X, DVD+R, CHASSIS 2001

 

[ExGamer]

U can now put it in a new case they that a diff type of wire plug in...I call it the all in wonder lol i tried to cheange my delll 4600
s case if u need a picture of the difrent plug i can get ya one

 

[Herpderp23]

Yah i might need a pic lol ty

 

[ExGamer]

k ill get one posted around 12 or 1 today

 

[setishock]

Jeeze...

Dell is so dumb when it comes to making cases like this. They honestly think we're just gonna use these things and let them burn up with really stupid methods of cooling or lack of in their cases.
The ductwork over the cpu is the only way it gets cooled and the rest goes out through the power supply. Save your money.

If that pic is indeed your system there is a couple of things you can do right quick to save having to move that beast. One is to yank off the ductwork over the cpu and mount a cpu fan on the heat sink. Next would be to mount an 80mm high speed fan on the bottom vent hole from the inside. You might have to use screws and nuts with some washers to get it to stay. I've modded a bunch of these cases and it gets a bit tricky but can be done. It's amazing what you can do with a hole saw and duct tape. LOL