OCA Project Case - PSU Installation and Cable Modding
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OCA Project CASEMOD featuring the Antec Plus View 1000AMG
PSU Installation and Cable Modding
PSU installation is straight forward however I wanted to cover a few things we did before installing the unit in our case, as well as what we did with the cables afterward. First we took the excellent Enermax EG365PE PSU that was provided by Sidewindercomputers.com.
Next, I unraveled the cables to find the annoying AUX power connector. These things are like Floppy drives. Ya just can't get rid of 'em! Well, until now that is. I was going to get rid of this antiquated piece of power connection before installing this PSU in my shinny new modded case if it was the end of me. Fortunately, it wasn't, but it was damn sure the end of the AUX power connector! Here's the little varmit that I'm talkin' about.
I could have taken the easy way out and simply snipped them off and been done with it, but I certainly didn't want the ends starring at me from inside the case, or have them touch and blow the PSU so I took the casing off of the PSU and snipped them right at the root as seen below.
After cutting them off I taped them up real good with electrical tape and put the casing back on the PSU. I was happy to get rid of the little sucker but there would be more wire work left to do.
The Enermax PSU's notoriously come with quite a few Molex connectors for your peripheral power needs. Unfortunately, sometimes there are too many and they can end up just dangling around in your case hampering airflow and making the place a general mess. First I sat and tried to think of all the peripheral and power connections I would need, and then hide the rest. Here is where we started.
What a friggin' mess. I hate to see all this stuff just laying about the case so I decided to route any unused connectors to the opposite side of the case. Also notice the molex connectors onthe right side by the PSU that are from the exhaust fans seen below.
I routed these wires behind the mobo tray over to the backside of the case. This keep them nice and tidy and out of site, which is our main goal here. Nothing to worry about though, since these are the type of connections that once you make them, you really won't ever think about them again.
I decided to use a combination of cable loom and sleeving. The loom is much easier to install, however the sleeving looks much better. Here is a shot of some of the power connectors that I simply taped to the backside of the mobo tray. I did this with quite a few of the longer cables, as well as ones that weren't needed. I could have cut them off completely, but you never know when you might need that extra Molex power connection.
I already have some of these sleeved as well. Keeping them taped will help with installation and removal of the case side, as well as keep things tidy. I also tucked a few connectors up top by the CD-Rom racks. Below are some "work in progress" shots.
Wow, starting to look halfway decent up in there. Next up is mounting an 80mm LED Fan provided by Xoxide and covering the wires with wire wrap that was also provided by OX.
XO has several different colors from which to choose, but I decided to use blue to keep with the theme of the case which is all blue and metallic grey. First I peel the plastic off of the window (oh it's so pretty).
Next I take off the 3pin connector from the fan very carefully. After cutting a piece of wire wrap to the proper length I slide the wires inside and we end up with something like this.
A fan with a nice tidy wire wrap and some heatshrink tubing at the end looks very polished. I remember my first experience in seeing this was with the Swiftech MC370 Review. It was just a small jesture of quality that went a long way, making me think that Swiffy products were top notch, and of course they remain so to this day.
This ends part ONE of the OCA Case Mod Project. Soon to follow are making the case badge with the Case Badge kits provided by ZXMods, as well as mounting and sporting the Appliqué's provided by Shattered Web. These guys do absolutely kickass work and I promise you won't be disappointed.
What? You think I was gonna leave you guys hangin' w/out so much as a few teaser pics? I wouldn't do that. Stay tuned for Part TWO!!
Once again we would like to thank all the contributing sites that hooked us up with some absolutely killer hardware to make this article possible. Thanks to:
Antec for the excellent Plus View 1000AMG (An absolutely gorgeous case)
Xoxide for the plethora of Fans, cable wrap and loom, LED Fans, Case Screws, and Much More
ZXMods for the Bullet Window and Case Badge Kit (You wont' find better windows for Antec/Chieftech cases ANYWHERE!)
Sidewinder Computers for the Enermax PSU
Shattered Web for the awesome Appliqués and OCA FraggPad that you'll see in part TWO.
Again, be sure to stay tuned for Part TWO coming soon. Want to discuss this in the DevHardware Forums? Thanks for joining us here today.
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