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Ersterhernd's G5 PowerMac Case Mod

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Nov 25, 2010
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AsRock X570M Pro4
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Ryzen 3700x
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RX 580
Hi Everyone,

After spending some time in the Case Mod forum, this community of Hackintoshers inspired me to build up a G5 PowerMac. Members such as eelhead, chaosdesigns and minihack (and others too) were big motivators to take this project on. Many thanks to all of the modders who have posted their work here. I am going to take the time to post my work as well, so hopefully others can benefit from my ideas.

For now, here's a quick pic of the final result.

Also a vid of it booting/shutting down here ---> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rc-3C2WxXZg


A complete work log will follow...

Cheers!


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Step 1 -- The Case

Finding the empty case took a bit of searching. There's plenty out there, but getting one in clean condition takes some doing. Finally I found one on eBay that looked good, so grabbed it for about 90 bucks. Unfortunately when it arrived, the bottom rear corner (the curved part) of the foot was bent out about 1/4 inch. I repaired it with a couple of Irwin clamps and a careful application of JB Weld. Left it for 48 hours before unclamping and it turned out great. The rest of case is 95%, not bad for a piece of hardware that's almost 10 years old.

I will add that there are 2 different layouts of standoffs on the G5 cases, specific to which motherboard was originally installed. I got a case that had standoffs placed much differently than I expected. Watch for this when you purchase. After having completed this project, I would recommend buying a complete or non-working G5 and then gut it out, keeping all parts. The time and money I spent obtaining extra screws, power supply and other misc required items would have been eliminated if I had just bought a complete unit. Just my 2 cents.


eBay Pics

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The repaired corner

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Good presentation. I look forward to reading your work log and seeing the innovations hinted to by this single photo.

neil
 
Step 2 -- The Motherboard Tray and Backplate

After reviewing the options available, I decided to purchase the tray and backplate from David Chugg at Laser Hive. His workmanship is incredible, as he laser cuts the pieces to precision accuracy. He shipped the products with concise instructions and meticulous packaging at a great price. Highly recommended.

The tray I used was for an ATX board, he actually cut the tray into 2 pieces so I could switch to Micro ATX later if I wanted. I wanted to utilize the G5 2x92mm rear fan assembly, so I used his original backplate kit. He also offers a backplate for a single 120mm fan. I only have access to four of the available slots on my ATX board, but wanted to keep the look of the original numbered (1-4) PCI slots on the back of the G5, as I won't have any use for the other three slots. Laser Hive now makes a full ATX (7 slot) kit.

Link to the motherboard tray -----> http://www.thelaserhive.com/products/powermac-g5-conversion-products/motherboard-tray/

Link to the backplate ----> http://www.thelaserhive.com/products/powermac-g5-conversion-products/g5-matx-conversion-kit/


Pics of Laser Hive tray (2 pcs) and backplate kit mounted to my G5 Case.
I hadn't peeled off the protective film yet, as this was just an initial test fit.

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looks great! very tidy, i am also in the middle of a G5 mod at the moment and was planning a top shelf cover with apple logo as well (looks great i might add)

look forward to the log
 
Step 3 -- The Power Supply

Adapting an ATX PSU to the G5 is perhaps the single most critical factor in the final outcome of the project.

First, the height of the ATX and G5 are some 25mm different, with the ATX being an inch taller and needing either modification or retrofitting to conceal the excess height.

Second, the mass of wires coming out of the ATX PSU presents a huge challenge to effectively conceal from view. Modular ATX PSU's are more adaptable, but nonetheless still have to supply power to a lot of components spread around the system.

My first priority was that I didn't want to disassemble the ATX PSU. I am aware that some members have done it successfully, but didn't consider it as an option for my build. I wanted a clean unmodified plugin, no warranty voiding, easy replacement and the stock PSU cooling intact. As my Gigabyte system board is ATX form factor mounted all the way to the top of the G5 case, a top-rear mounted PSU wasn't an option; it had to be in the bottom.

Second priority was keeping the floor of the case clutter-free in the final presentation. The decision had to be made to either cut the floor, or the bottom of the case. Apple threw modders our first bone here. The G5 sits on front a rear feet that elevate the case bottom (inside) 1 3/8" off the desktop. After measuring this, I realized that I could effectively cradle the excess 25mm (1") of the ATX PSU through a hole the bottom of the G5 with fan facing downward, and still have 3/8" clearance for drawing air upwards into the G5 PSU casing. The cradle would have to be made of a porous material that allowed the ATX PSU to breathe properly.

Using this method would allow the case floor to remain untouched and uncluttered by the bottom mounted ATX PSU, with little cosmetic detriment to the project overall, as the underside of the G5 case is perhaps the least noticeable location of all. It was worth a try!



The victim -- A dead G5 PSU from eBay for 8 dollars

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Ohhhhh this looks bad. Years worth of dust-balls

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Gutted, Cut Out and Wired up to an ATX plug

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Mounted the PSU shell with four screws and traced a hole with pencil onto the bottom of the G5 for cutting.
IMPORTANT: The G5 PSU does NOT mount straight downward, it must slide approx 1/2" to the right after seating, so as to enter into the plug receptacle at the rear. Because of this, an extra 1/2" of material must be cut from the case bottom on the LEFT edge of the hole. I found this out after I tried to fit it for the first time. End result, the hole in the case bottom extends 1/2" (towards the FRONT of the case) beyond the hole cut in the PSU shell.

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Apple throws us the second bone now. There is a gracious 1/2" of clearance between the G5 PSU and the case wall. This is a godsend for hiding cables later. To utilize this precious 1/2" of free space, I cut a small 'side door' in the PSU shell to run the mass of cables through later.

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To cut the case bottom, an interesting problem presented itself... I couldn't fit my dremel inside the G5 case to cut the hole. To work around this, I drilled one small hole at each corner from the inside, then drew lines connecting them on the exterior of the case bottom. This made it possible to effective cut an accurate hole from the outside of the case. Accurate alignment of the PSU hole with the G5 case bottom hole is critical for proper seating of the PSU.

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Case bottom -- cut and filed

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I found a perfect piece of thin perforated aluminum material on a construction site I was on. It bent easily to fit the shape of my ATX PSU and drop the unit downward the required 25mm out the bottom of the PSU shell. It allows the fan to draw plenty of air through the perforated holes, and was super easy to shape. I also installed four little sticky feet to sit the ATX PSU onto. I used JB Weld and a couple of short pieces of aluminum 1/8" flatbar to secure the mesh cradle to the inside of the G5 PSU shell.

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Seat the ATX PSU and route the ATX Cables

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Plug in the ATX cord and turn on the power switch

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Mounted view from underside

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Top views with G5 PSU lid closed and screwed down. Note that I had to cut one small piece of the shell lid to accomodate one corner of the ATX PSU. Very minor. Also note the tight tolerance of the closed lid to the surface of the ATX PSU. Careful measurement was critical in the heights to keep as much of the PSU in the shell as possible.

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Closeup of PSU fan capable of breathing through aluminum mesh cradle

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Test mounted in the case. 3/8" of clearance for proper breathing.

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Underside clearance view (rear perspective)

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Underside clearance view (side perspective)

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This was a long-winded post, but it showed all steps in achieving the end result. The PSU is barely noticeable now that the machine is finished (see pic from post #1), and a quick 'cool wet finger' test indicates good airflow into and out of the ATX PSU in its bottom mounted location.
 
Step 4 -- Back Plate Installation

Cutting the rear of the G5 to fit Laser Hives mATX plate wasn't difficult, but the old saying 'measure twice, cut once' was certainly a good idea. Following LH's instructions, I had the case marked and cut out in about a half hour. I used a dremel 3000 with the reinforced fibreglass cutting wheels for all my cuts. I went through about 13 wheels in this entire project.

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Note the preserved G5 numbered PCI slots and rear fan cages with Laser Hive's backplate.

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Original G5 rear fan assembly with new 92mm Zalmans fans. Also pictured is the Laser Hive ATX motherboard tray in two pieces.

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Step 5 -- Cable Management Cover Plate and G5 Hard Drive Cage Mounts

Without a doubt, clean cable routing defines the success of a case build. As I mentioned in Step 3, Apple threw us modders a bone with a 1/2" empty space between the G5 PSU shell and the mounting wall of the case. I chose to utilize this precious 1/2" by mounting a piece of 1/16th aluminum plating raised exactly 1/2" off the surface of the case wall. It would support the cooling fans on the front, touch the top tray at the top, align very tightly to the motherboard on the right and finally run along the case floor at the bottom. Note that this plating doesn't support any weight loads at all. It only covers the mounting bars that are JB Welded behind it.


Pictured below is the full 1/16th sheet before cutting cable routing holes. I notched out two spaces on the upper left to accomodate two threaded G5 standoffs that would be used for front fan assembly mounting.

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There is a perfect material that is readily available for spacing the 1/2" gap off the G5 surface. It is easily cuttable and tappable for threading, and its cheap. It is 1/2 x 1/2 aluminum bar. Using JB Weld, it provides an ideal and flexible mounting method for anything required to be bolted to the case wall. I bought 5 feet of it, this is the remaining 12" I have leftover at the end...

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Accurate mounting of the G5 HDD cages required:

1. Drilling the 3 holes per cage in the Cover Plate
2. Cutting and tapping the required pieces of support bar
3. Feeding 3 bolts through each HDD cage & Cover Plate
4. Tighten bolts into the tapped bars behind
5. JB Welding the reverse side of the bars (rough up with sandpaper)
6. Accurately place the entire bolted assembly (HDD cages, Plate and bars) on the case wall
7. Place heavy object onto the assembly (rock shown)
8. Allow to set for 24 hours

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Upon removal of the bolts, the HDD cages and Cover Plate come off, leaving perfectly positioned 1/2" threaded mounting standoffs. The HDD cages can now be installed and removed sitting on top of the Cover Plate. Since these mounting standoffs are not visible after the cover plate is on, placement should only be concerned with how the ATX Cables will route through them. Be sure to think your entire cable routing scheme through BEFORE the JB Weld goes on. I eventually added four more aluminum bar standoffs to allow bolting only the plate (no HDD cages) to the case wall. Those mounts can be seen in Step 6 -- Cable Management. I highly recommend as many standoffs as possible for support of the Cover Plate during the final mounting.

(Note: the second lower hole on the upper left bar serves no purpose, please ignore it)

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Test mount of lower HDD cage with SATA cables routed through holes cut in the Cover Plate

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Left the top HDD cage out for this test cable routing. The hidden SATA cable routing is demonstrated here. These are 18" cables, only about 3" is visible.

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Step 6 -- Cable Management

After all 1/2" bar standoffs are JB Welded into position, its a good idea to test out the Cable Management. Shown here was how I routed my cabling from the ATX PSU at the bottom and from the SATA ports at the top. Using clear tape really helped to keep things in place while trying to fit the Cover Plate on. It can be seen from the photo how important that both the length and placement angle of the standoff bars is.

Note the four threaded standoffs I added so the plate could be attached without HDD cages in place.

Caution: Don't place standoffs at the bottom too close together, as it makes sliding in the assembled G5 PSU much more difficult with all the cables hanging out.

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After the mounting of the Cable Management Cover Plate. This is a good time to mount the HDD cages and drives to test the length of the SATA cables and power lines. My 18" SATA cables worked out to be within 1 inch of the perfect length. There's not a lot of room behind the plate for any excess.

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Unfortunately, most HDD power cable connectors are spaced ridiculously far apart.

I recommend following this Youtube Video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ls14BmwkeWg to reposition your SATA power connectors on the lines so they can be cleanly routed with minimal extra wire visible. Its incredibly easy to do.

I moved the existing connectors on the stock wires from my Antec modular power supply to fit my G5 HDD mount cages perfectly. This made the task of hiding the SATA power lines much easier. I even spray painted the wires black afterwards to get rid of the multicoloured look.

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