HTPC in Xbox (orig.) case

dravis12

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I am building a new HTPC and found an old Xbox case in my basement which got me thinking. Would it be possible to fit an entire HTPC in an original Xbox enclosure? I am an experienced system builder, but have never used a custom case. Has anyone tried this / know someone who has?

I'm planning on using a Zotac ITX motherboard which is 6.7" x 6.7" (smaller than the Xbox motherboard). One thing that concerns me is the power supply. It needs to be very narrow. Has anyone encountered this problem / situation with a PC build?

Thoughts welcome.
 

rewindlabs

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It could definitely be done....sounds like a neat idea as i have three xboxs in my room atm...one is softmodded and one is stock...one is stock and broken...

I must admit the xbox is one hell of an awesome console to do emulation on....did i mention that the 360 SUCKSSS...so keep us posted
 

dravis12

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Thanks! That site has some great stuff. Now I just need to make sure the processor I use only needs 1 4-pin power plug. The E8400 i was going to use requires 2 I think. But a lower power processor may need just 1.

Here's what I plan to put into it if anyone's interested.

Processor: Intel E7400 2.8 GHz
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115206

Motherboard: ZOTAC GF9300-D-E LGA 775 NVIDIA GeForce 9300 HDMI Mini ITX
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813500022

RAM: 2x1GB OCZ platinum

HDD: tbd

Optical: Laptop slimline DVD/CD combo (w/ adapter to standard ATA)

I also plan to connect the front LEDs up to power/hdd activity and use the original power button of course. Haven't decided what to use the eject button for yet.
 

dravis12

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Interesting. It looks like I would have to use either Ion/Atom which I'm not crazy about doing. Neat that they embed the power though.
 

dravis12

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I think the Zotac motherboard is too tall to use the xbox DVD drive. They did some funky stuff to make sure that it would fit with the stock mobo. Also the supports for the mounting bracket will be covered up by my motherboard. I plan to mount the laptop drive to the inside of the top of the case, which should work fine. But there is a possibility that the Zotac will be just as short as the stock one, in which case I could try to modify the bracket and use any old 5.25" optical drive. I'll have to wait and see how the motherboard fits when I get it.

That E6300 is intriguing. Seems like it would be very low power indeed and dirt cheap.
 

rewindlabs

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WTH!....you can do full 1080p on an intel atom...have you done any research at all!...this is going to be a total waste of money if you buy a processor that is several times the power that you actually need....
 

dravis12

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Thanks for your opinion. I have done research into it and it looks interesting. I was not planning on using an Atom or Atom/Ion system because its very new and I don't have any experience with it.

On the other hand I am the one paying for the parts not you...

Still...worth a second look at whats available.
 

dravis12

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Thanks. That makes a huge difference. I get a lot of TV from Hulu and it could be a deal breaker. Maybe the Atom/Ion can wait until they beef up the power.
 

rewindlabs

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I never said you should buy an atom just that an 8400 or 7300 are way more than what you need...if you feel like being a moron and wasting cash yeah its your buy and your money ;)

And again i never said the atom platform was a good one or one worth getting...just that it does support full 1080p and its quite a notch down the the 8 and 7 series c2d's....how you people got that i was recommending an atom is quite odd...
 
The OP never said specifically what this build will be used for. For all you know, he will be doing video encoding which requires quite a bit of CPU horsepower. There's no need to resort to name calling because you are making assumptions.
 

rewindlabs

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He said HTPC...if he plans on doing more he should list that...
 

dravis12

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Yo chill out about my choice of CPU already. Who cares if you think I might pick an "overpowered" one. That's my choice. No one's forcing you to read this thread. End of story.
 

rewindlabs

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You asked for my opinion/thought and im giving that...and someone is bringing up the possibility that you will need extra cpu power..if you think you have what you need all down pat then yippe....usually people try to build cost vs performance htpcs....
 

dravis12

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I'm still not thrilled about the optical drive situation. I may just wait until after I get the motherboard and see what the space is like inside the 'box. Laptop DVD drive means buying an adapter to make it work.

Anyone know a good alternative to using a laptop DVD drive (that is smaller than standard 5.25")?
 

fullmetall

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Rewind, the whole thing about doing this is for a project. Have you tried to put anything into an old xbox? I dont think you have so, let the man do what he wants, it's a project he's willing to risk going for.

G.L.
 

tonyn84

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newegg has quite a few if you search for "slim dvd", most are external usb ones but some look like you could pop them out of their case
 

dravis12

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External DVD player not a bad idea. Though they're not terribly cheap (>$50). Most are USB powered/connected so that would be a bit funky but do-able.

After a quick browse it seems like I'd have to shell out ~$20 for a slim ATAPI to SATA adaptor card. But I could use my current laptop's drive (which I never use anyways).

Still best case is if I can squeeze a 5.25" drive over the motherboard. I'll have to wait and see. Not sure when I can order the motherboard yet, hopefully within a few days.
 

rewindlabs

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....try getting at me with something that actually matters....picking a less powerful or more powerful cpu isn't going to take up more sapce...thats decided by the cpu cooler he will chose :sarcastic: troll elsewhere....the suggestions im handing out are very useful but your pointless attempts at criticism are not...

Anyways

i also would recommend using your current laptop drive...there is quite a bit of room between the top of the xbox and its own motherboard i mean they fit an entire drive+brackets there...so you should have more than enough space to set one up....you should look for a low clearance cpu cooler depending on how you seat the motherboard....depending on what you do with the drive i mean you may only use the drive to rip dvds and play everything from your hdd so if the internal one doesn't fit...just run get an external dvd enclosure for the laptop drive and you can run it when you need it....

and yeah you should definitely post some pics on your progress...might entice me to use my spare box
 

dravis12

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Here's a few pics for those interested. I'll post some more when I get parts in.

DSC03610.jpg


Before removing all the parts. (for those of you who have never peeked inside an Xbox before...)


DSC03611.jpg


Took out the optical/HDD. underneath you see the mainboard and power supply


DSC03612.jpg


Everything ripped out. (front is facing to the right)


DSC03614.jpg


I made a mock up of the mobo i intend to get...used some cardboard and a stock intel cooler to get an idea of height. You cant see it very clearly, but the CPU fan is still about 3/4" below the top of the case which is fine.


Here's whats gonna save me...by using a Pico PSU I save a lot of space. (not shown, but it is basically is just cables)

DSC03615.jpg


By putting the motherboard to the right side (facing the front of the system), I think I can use a standard optical drive and put the HDD underneath it. As you can see, I will need to modify the DVD drive mounting bracket as it hits the motherboard in one spot, but that is no trouble.


DSC03617.jpg


Removed the front button panel. Going to connect the power switch and I plan on wiring up the LED's to power/HDD activity. I am thinking of trying to get the eject button to work also, but that would require soldering wires inside the DVD drive which I'm not not crazy about doing.
 

rewindlabs

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Make sure to keep up the sweet documentation as im definitely interested now...great pictures....make sure to show off the dvd drive bracket modification...
 

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