Is this even worth messing with?

Edward78 · 19 May 2021 at 19:14

https://www.commodore-info.com/foto/brochure/brochure_commodore_c128_01_01.jpg
I have a idea, to get a old C128 case, empty it {even the keyboard if possible} & put a mini ITX, a duel GPU & small sized psu in it to have a portable upgradable PC/ Thought about making it tall as the C64 so a sfx would fit.

**Do Not Hotlink Images **

jsmoke · 19 May 2021 at 19:20

Why not use a mini case that's designed for this?

Edward78 · 20 May 2021 at 04:15

jsmoke said:
Why not use a mini case that's designed for this?

I am bored & think about this stuff to much.

Jay85 · 20 May 2021 at 11:52

wish i still had my Amiga commodore 64, it was in tip top condition still! Still got about 30 copied games on floppy disks haha! Are they even worth anything these days?

InfiniteNoise · 22 May 2021 at 22:56

If you have the time and resources to do so, go for it, I like seeing these kind of builds.

LePhuronn · 3 Jun 2021 at 19:47

I sincerely doubt you'd get it to work. Rough maths off the top of my head, you'd need a minimum internal clearance of 51mm to get the board and cooler in. Calculation is based on Noctua NH-L9i cooler (37mm tall), Intel standard LGA z-height (7mm), ATX spec PCB thickness (rounded up to 2mm) and 6mm mounting standoffs. You'd probably need a couple more mm so the CPU fan isn't wedged directly against the internal roof of the case, too.

Is the C128 even that thick?

Also, Mini ITX boards are 170x170mm, so that's likely to be too long for the back half of the C128 case.

There are options though, you can go smaller with STX boards or thinner with Thin ITX boards and use lateral coolers with heatpipes, rather than a traditional unit sat atop the CPU. Anything is possible, but you're likely looking at paying a mental premium in components to make this work.

But if you can get that C128 for a price you're comfortable writing off if it isn't viable, then by all means grab it, gut it and measure it. I'd be quite excited to bounce ideas off you

Edward78 · 4 Jun 2021 at 04:45

LePhuronn said:
I sincerely doubt you'd get it to work. Rough maths off the top of my head, you'd need a minimum internal clearance of 51mm to get the board and cooler in. Calculation is based on Noctua NH-L9i cooler (37mm tall), Intel standard LGA z-height (7mm), ATX spec PCB thickness (rounded up to 2mm) and 6mm mounting standoffs. You'd probably need a couple more mm so the CPU fan isn't wedged directly against the internal roof of the case, too.

Is the C128 even that thick?

Also, Mini ITX boards are 170x170mm, so that's likely to be too long for the back half of the C128 case.

There are options though, you can go smaller with STX boards or thinner with Thin ITX boards and use lateral coolers with heatpipes, rather than a traditional unit sat atop the CPU. Anything is possible, but you're likely looking at paying a mental premium in components to make this work.

But if you can get that C128 for a price you're comfortable writing off if it isn't viable, then by all means grab it, gut it and measure it. I'd be quite excited to bounce ideas off you

Well, it would be awesome, but I figured it prob. won't work. Now a XBox 1 would be a cool pc.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2fL3VbC2izo that is a good vid. What will a mITX MB & a gpu on a riser measure. The XBox 1 is 12 inches wide.

LePhuronn · 4 Jun 2021 at 11:46

A chunky triple-slot GPU can go over 50mm thick, 2-slot coolers are about 36mm. But you also need to consider length too. The Xboxne may be 12 inches wide (roughly 300mm), but it's only about 8 inches long, which will greatly limit the cards you can use.

In fact, that Linus video pretty much shows you exactly what you can fit into the Xbone chassis.

Edward78 · 4 Jun 2021 at 18:41

LePhuronn said:
A chunky triple-slot GPU can go over 50mm thick, 2-slot coolers are about 36mm. But you also need to consider length too. The Xboxne may be 12 inches wide (roughly 300mm), but it's only about 8 inches long, which will greatly limit the cards you can use.

In fact, that Linus video pretty much shows you exactly what you can fit into the Xbone chassis.

Hmmm, that means double slot cards are 1.41732 inches & motherboards are prob less, a XBox is 4 inches tall. Seems like a SFX could go under/over the GPU, they did act like it got cramped though, maybe I am missing something? God, I want to make it work out, it would be awesome. How much space is needed for a sandwich style case?

LePhuronn · 4 Jun 2021 at 19:39

I've kinda given you the dimensions you need to do some fag packet scribbles already. Assume using a low profile cooler like the Noctua NH-L9i on a Mini ITX board and round up a bit. That gives you a volume footprint of 170x170x50mm. You can't do a full-length graphics card so limit yourself to the shorter models with 2 slot coolers, although most of them are taller than the PCB: volume footprint of roughly 250x130x40mm Those are your main components.

PSU is a different kettle of fish, and this is where things can get really expensive. Standard SFX PSU is volume footprint of 125x100x64mm, SFX-L is 125x130x64mm. But then you can go Flex ATX or specific small form factor units like HDPlex which plug directly into the 24 pin on your motherboard and fed either by external power brick, or with an internal AC/DC converter similar to a Flex ATX PSU in size, but much more capable.

So those are your main measurements, do some scribbles to see how/if they can be arranged inside the space you have available.

SypherSage · 16 Jun 2021 at 02:59

That would be very awesome to do a build in but it would definitely need heavy modding between the different interfaces and the amount of airflow you could get through that tiny thing, if planned well it would surely be an amazing build but not sure you could fit a gpu in there!

Edward78 · 16 Jun 2021 at 04:33

A TFX/FlexATX psu would go good. If I could put the MB & GPU on a sandwich style tray a SFX would go. A 2 slot GPU is 1.50 inches right? A MB has to be the same height.