Don't Buy a PC Case, Go Open Air!

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Showing off what you've got and easy access is worth risking a little dust.

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Transparent acrylic PC cases aren't exactly new, but AskTech Co. has at least two acrylic cases that are definitely designed for showing off your workstation's innards. The unimaginatively-named NK-OC350A is less PC case and more a platform for "open-air testing". The motherboard mount (for miniITX, microATX, and ATX motherboards) is slanted towards the viewer, with the drive and power supply mounts situated directly under.

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64 Comments Comment from the forums
  • sliem
    Mmmmm no.
    Reply
  • twbg4cq
    A while back I saw a pic of someone that just mounted everything on his wall behind his monitor. I'll see if I can find the pic...

    edit: this isn't the exact pic, http://www.joe-ks.com/archives_dec2007/RedneckComputer.jpg but the same idea. The difference was that everything was spread out a lot more and was mounted on a plank of wood. Looked cooler than this one.

    edit2: Looked more like this: http://www.chadabarrett.com/images/wall_1.jpg
    Reply
  • JasonAkkerman
    Unless everything was liquid cooled it would be too noisy. Four case fans, GPU, CPU and PS fans make a lot of noise.
    Reply
  • Anomalyx
    JasonAkkermanUnless everything was liquid cooled it would be too noisy. Four case fans, GPU, CPU and PS fans make a lot of noise.
    Well, throw out the case fans, since it's open-air. CPU, GPU, and PS fans are typically temperature-controlled, so I'd think the reduced air temp would make for a lower core temps and therefore lower fan speeds. Yes, I agree, you'll hear those 3 fans more, but in their defense, they should be spinning slower than if they're in an enclosed case. (in theory)

    I'd think watercooling would be loud too... haven't come across a pump quiet enough for me, especially to have sitting on my desk while running.
    Reply
  • captainnemojr
    Sure would suck to spill my beer on it or have the cat jump on it.
    Reply
  • kd0frg
    If you want a quiet machine just dunk the whole thing in mineral oil haha
    Reply
  • maigo
    The real problem is heat, there's no mass to help soak it up
    Reply
  • webmastir
    http://www.chadabarrett.com/images/wall_mobo.jpg
    Reply
  • Xlick
    twbg4cqA while back I saw a pic of someone that just mounted everything on his wall behind his monitor. I'll see if I can find the pic...edit: this isn't the exact pic, http://www.joe-ks.com/archives_dec mputer.jpg but the same idea. The difference was that everything was spread out a lot more and was mounted on a plank of wood. Looked cooler than this one.edit2: Looked more like this: http://www.chadabarrett.com/images/wall_1.jpg

    http://www.blogcdn.com/www.diylife.com/media/2007/07/pcguts03-by-visual-velocity-pc.jpg
    Reply
  • jojesa
    "Don't Buy a PC Case, Go Open Air!"
    I hope you don't have any kids, besides all other things that could happen in an open case (drop water, drinks, dust, something could fall into the fan, etc).
    I thinks is a good thing for someone alone or a PC tech.
    Reply