Building your hackintosh in a G5 case

[Lerxst]

I was lucky enough to score a G5 Powermac case for $3.25 via ebay. SHipping was $20. For you hardcore fans who want your hack to look as much like a Mac as possible there are more case for sale at dirt cheap prices.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=260593404677

You might watch this guys ebay store. He's who I bought it from:

http://shop.ebay.com/macboneyard/m.html?_nkw=&_armrs=1&_from=&_ipg=&_trksid=p4340

Here is one he has for sale:
http://cgi.ebay.com/Apple-G5-DP-1-8-Ghz-Case-W-All-Wiring-Fans-Shield-Scrws-/260594501954?

I was shocked because most "buy it now" prices are between $60 and $100 for the aluminum tower case.

Now the work begins to retrofit it so my UD2 build fits. I'm sure I'll spend all the money I saved on the case to make it happen

 

[Helianthus]

Re: Got a G5 Powermac case for $3.25 via ebay

That's exciting. I paid substantially more for mine, but that's because I live in Canada and all of the ebay sellers wanted at least $100 to ship to me.

Keep us posted as to how it goes. I'm currently trying to fit a P55M-UD4 in the same case. How are you planning on doing the back I/O ports? Are you using the original fans or original PSU housing?

 

[Lerxst]

Re: Got a G5 Powermac case for $3.25 via ebay

I dont have a plan yet..*laughing*

I need to get the case in my hands first and start doing some measuring.

Several things come to mind though:

I may shop ebay or a local recycled computer store for reference materials like a micro atx motherboard and a power supply. In this case they can be dead, non working items because I'm simply using them for measuring purposes.

I'm also considering finding a used micro atx case just to strip down for the frame and mounting purposes.

As for the back panel I'd like to see if I can bridge the connections first. If thats not possible maybe I'll have a custom back panel cut out of aluminum or pull one from an old case.

Maybe we can start a G5 custom build thread once we get going.

Brett

 

[Helianthus]

Re: Got a G5 Powermac case for $3.25 via ebay

Because the mATX board lines up perfectly with the 4 slots on the G5 case, I'm not going to bother with a tray. I'm going to pry the existing standoffs off the case, insert a pci card in to the new mobo for stability purposes and mark the new holds. I'm then going to roughen the areas I've marked, and then use JB weld to cold weld the standoffs to my desired positions.

My one goal is to keep the case looking 100% from the outside. Wiring the front panel seems relatively simple, as well as using the existing fans and PSU shell, however, the back I/O panel seems much more difficult. I'm either going to chop that portion off the old G5 board and try to rewire it to the new board, or run cable extenders from the motherboard to the ports.

 

[Lerxst]

Re: Got a G5 Powermac case for $3.25 via ebay

A couple of things come to mind concerning the mATX board and aligning the UD2 board.

You might be able to buy an old ATX or mATX case and cut the back wall out of it. Then your board would have pre-made, and properly aligned attachment points. It would also give you a way to manage space from the back wall if needed.

You could also cut the drive days out of an old case and mount it inside the G5 case.

These suggestions seem link the path of least resistance, quickest results and most compatibility.

I'll have to see how much space is actually in there and where things fit.

I think having a second UD2 board or an old mATX board would be really helpful.

I'm thinking of laying all my things out in Adobe illustrator and having them cut out of aluminum or plexiglass. How wild would that be?

Lets keep comparing notes as we go along.
Brett

 

[Helianthus]

Re: Got a G5 Powermac case for $3.25 via ebay

I didn't get too far on mine last night. I just started gutting the case, but ran in to a roadbloack trying to get the motherboard out. I need a little philips head screwdriver to remove the back fanmount and grill before the motherboard can slide out. I've also found that I have a late 2005 model G5 with the more complicated front panel that no one ever 100% figured out.

For optical drives / hdds, I was just planning to use the space that already exists in the case. It can already store 2 HDD, and I also read that you can put one in above the optical drive, as long as you put it in first. I'm going to explore that possibility before I start taking drive bays out of another system. For my use, 2-3 HDD will be fine. Likely 1 WD 2GB and 2 64GB SSD (Corsair maybe?). I only plan to use the one optical drive, as I don't want to hack the external appearance of the case.

I think I'm going to stick to cold welding the standoffs in the correct positions. I don't have access to a spare case and I don't want to spend additional cash as I already purchased the JB weld.

I'm still not quite sure what I want to do with the rear I/O ports. I haven't been able to find any detailed information on how to incorporate them in to my system. I'm tempted to go the easy route, buy the Lian Li mobo tray and cut out half the back. So much less hassle, but not what I'm looking for I guess.

I'll continue to update once I get somewhere with the case.

 

[Helianthus]

Re: Got a G5 Powermac case for $3.25 via ebay

Well, I've changed my approach. Using the original parts is going to be far too difficult for me. It is far beyond my expertise and rather than risk screwing something up, I'm going to swap the GA-P55M-UD4 for a GA-P55-UD5 (UD6 is sold out). I'm going to set the board in the case a little bit and run cable extenders to the ports in the back. It will be costly, but it will be easy and keep the orginal aesthetic of the case.

 

[dh22r]

Re: Got a G5 Powermac case for $3.25 via ebay

i've a old power mac g5 (dual 2.7) w/3.5GB of ram. i was hoping to craigslist it for $200 (in seattle area). is it realistic? should i rather just mod it and put my abit IP35-PRO & Q6600 into it instead? i'm running 10.6.3 on the board already; just it's in a HAF-922 case.

opinions?

 

[Helianthus]

Re: Got a G5 Powermac case for $3.25 via ebay

I'm not sure what the market is like where you are, but I paid $150CDN for a case with PSU, fans and logic board. I anticipate you could get at least $200 for a working model.

 

[Lerxst]

Re: Got a G5 Powermac case for $3.25 via ebay

If your G5 is working you should get over $300 for it. Our University here sells their old G5 dual 2.0 Ghz computers with 2 Gb RAM for $300 and they jump off the shelves. They dont even have an installed OS.

Check ebay for what they sell for.