KVR Audio

Numanoid · Post by **Numanoid** » Fri Mar 04, 2016 9:35 pm

When building a PC, instead of buying a new case, is it advisable to take an old case, and use that?

Let's say I got a tower from 10 years ago, it has power and a fan, can I remove the motherboard, and input a new one?

budweiser · Post by **budweiser** » Fri Mar 04, 2016 9:44 pm

A least, you'd better change the psu. It's your computer food, give it some fresh vitamins !

Numanoid · Post by **Numanoid** » Fri Mar 04, 2016 9:52 pm

But more than often when buying a new case, the PSU is already in it.

Buying just the PSU, and spending time unscrewing the old and installing the new, would probably cost more than just buying a new case with the PSU already primed and ready.

So what you are saying is that an old case is no good?

PapaLazarou · Post by **PapaLazarou** » Fri Mar 04, 2016 10:03 pm

You can. However there can be benefits from a newer case. These include:

Larger case fans - for better cooling and lower noise levels. 10+ years ago - one or two 80mm fans was common. These days 120 or 140mm fans spinning at low speeds are more common. The better cases have air filtering to reduce dust intake.
Better cable management options - old cases typically have no provision for hiding cables out of the way, and you usually have to end up stuffing them into an empty drive bay... Most quality newer cases have extensive options for routing cables under motherboard tray etc for a much cleaner build, and better air flow.
Newer standards on front panel ports etc, for example USB 2.0/3.0 and HD Audio.

I would not use a case with bundled power supply unless it was a good quality one. The old cheapo cases with dodgy over rated power supply for £20 are really not something you want to use on something you will be keeping work on (and personally I would not use them on a system I was building for someone else either!).

phreaque · Post by **phreaque** » Fri Mar 04, 2016 10:06 pm

No good! New cases are more efficient to handle high temp, noise reduction, power management, I/O, the look etc. 10 years back even not compatible with current rig designs, I had a case from 2009 and I just threw it.

Numanoid · Post by **Numanoid** » Fri Mar 04, 2016 10:18 pm

So when it comes to the spare parts express:

What do you recommend holding on to when getting rid of an old computer?

xNiMiNx · Post by **xNiMiNx** » Sat Mar 05, 2016 12:52 am

Some cases are worth holding onto, and some arent. I still own every single Lian-Li case i have ever purchased, minus a few that i gave away.

If the case fan sizes / mobo form factor is still standard, if the case has good air flow / heat design, if it can fit current psu's and video cards, etc... id keep it.

If the design wasnt all that great, if i found keeping it running cool required upgprades over the years, if it had cheapo plastic parts that snap into place, how well did the plastic survive, etc.. id throw it out.

As for most cases coming with psu's, i find the opposite. I really cant remember the last time i purchased a case that came with one (15+ years?). Taking a look at newegg New Cases, 203 with psu, 999+ without.

I would be cautious with a case that comes with one. I would make sure its a decent psu, and also make sure that the size isnt some strange proprietary form.

As for the spare parts express, if you have the storage room, SPE would appreciate all working parts

rod_zero · Post by **rod_zero** » Sat Mar 05, 2016 8:27 pm

Depends on the case, if it is good and you like it no reason not to reuse it.

I built a new pc last year and I got a nice case that I am sure I will want to use in the future.

The PSU is another story, depending on its quality and system requirements it can las a few builds. Modularity is other feature to consider upgrading.

t3toooo · Post by **t3toooo** » Sat Mar 05, 2016 9:32 pm

Depending on the board,e.g how much heat it will produce i like those cases with separate PSU (backside) and motherboard compartments much better. No cables in between to disrupt the airflow.

Zombie Queen · Post by **Zombie Queen** » Sat Mar 05, 2016 9:41 pm

Numanoid wrote:But more than often when buying a new case, the PSU is already in it.

Buying just the PSU, and spending time unscrewing the old and installing the new, would probably cost more than just buying a new case with the PSU already primed and ready.

Case is just case, if it looks good keep it, but trash PSU and all fans, those wear out quickly. I used a 15 year old case when building a rack for my kid, which looked trashy cool, had to use grinder to make some extra holes though. It's always worth to save on casing and buy better PSU, IMO.

deastman · Post by **deastman** » Sat Mar 05, 2016 9:56 pm

I'm still using a couple of cases that I've had for twenty years. They are built like a tank, with plenty of space and drive bays for whatever I may need. Of course I've replaced the fans and PSUs numerous times, along with every other component.

Numanoid · Post by **Numanoid** » Sat Mar 05, 2016 9:58 pm

When it comes to PSU, is ATX like a standard?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ATX#Interchanging_PSUs

Ciberithm · Post by **Ciberithm** » Sat Mar 05, 2016 10:01 pm

It seems we live in a time when people want to get new just for the sake of it being new. I'm old enough to remember when we didn't replace things that weren't broke, and even if they were broke, only if it couldn't be fixed. If anyone is wondering, I also walked 5 miles to school in the rain and snow, and it was uphill both directions.

I have cases that are over 10 years old and they still function fine. I only replace the fans when they stop working. I do clean them when I do a rebuild. As far as air flow and heat dissipation, today's CPU's are more powerful and use less power, so unless you're building an over-the-top system, heat won't likely be an issue.

The only reasons I see to replace a case is if you can find a newer one with flashing LEDs, anodized aluminum heat sinks, and an alien logo on the front (with my apologies to anyone who purchased a new system with a case like this - no offense intended)

Numanoid · Post by **Numanoid** » Sat Mar 05, 2016 10:12 pm

xNiMiNx wrote:As for the spare parts express, if you have the storage room, SPE would appreciate all working parts

I try to hang on to as much as possible, but when it comes to stuff like 512 MB RAM sticks, how can those be utilized now?

Let's say I had 8GB of them in total, which motherboard has 16 slots for RAM sticks?

xNiMiNx · Post by **xNiMiNx** » Sat Mar 05, 2016 10:35 pm

If i was specifically looking to make use of large quantities of ram like that, i would look into finding an old server mobo. Something that was on the market when 512mb was big, should be cheap to pick up today, and the ram wont be a bottleneck in the system.

OTOH, you could keep 6x (4x to max out most mobo's, and 2x spares just in case), and sell the rest on ebay. Some of the stuff that is garbage to you, is exactly that rare piece someone else is iso.

You could dip your toe into the wonderful world of OC'ing and see how much ram you can destroy

Lots of choices, but that number drops dramatically if you throw most things out

Is it advisable to recycle the PC case when building new?