Transplant your Dell Optiplex into a New mATX Case
I just got a new 50 dollar mATX case that has a white/black theme. Won't add any RGB fans or lighting but it looks to be very usable for a 9020 MT transplant. The OEM Dell PSU is pretty much non-usable in this due to the short 4 pin CPU power cable. It's designed to be top mounted only. Mine has coil whine anyway so I'm getting rid of it for something better. The fit and finish on the DLM 21 is really good and I haven't owned a white case in about the past 6 years so this one appealed to me. Mostly because of the hinged glass door for ease of access. I really hate losing side panel screws and constantly taking them on and off. This solves that annoyance in a very elegant way. The case is available at
Newegg and
Amazon for anyone interested. The DLM 22 is the same case but with a flat front that is steel. Looks like the NZXT H500/510.
The designers of this "borrowed" ideas from the Fractal Design Meshify C and the NZXT H500 cases. It's about 20-25 dollars less than those and isn't nearly as "high end" but it's certainly one of the nicer mATX cases available. There are many sub 35 dollar mATX cases that are really low quality that you'll regret buying later on. It's worth spending 15-20 dollars more for one you'll enjoy using for many years. So far, I've got the mobo installed, the SSD and cables routed but need to decide on a PSU that will work. The existing Dell CPU and rear exhaust fans will work just fine. May add one on top as well for exhaust. The ketchup, mustard and orange Sata power cable will be gone later on when I get the PSU. I can also put black sleeves on the multi-color fan cables too. Those are minor issues. Here is how the top I/O looks. Neat and clean layout. Magnetic dust filter on top. Room for a 240mm radiator if you're running an i 7-4790(K). All this in a 50 dollar case ? I'm impressed.
The best feature of this case as opposed to the Dell OEM is the extra space to the right of the mobo so that 10" plus graphics cards don't have any problems fitting. You can also place a 120mm fan in front to blow cool air directly over it. In the Dell case it takes much work to drill out all the rivets holding in the HDD cage to remove it. Then you must drill more holes in the front to be able to mount a 120mm fan properly. Two things I didn't want to mess with.
Also note the temperature sensor cable in the lower right corner of the mobo. You must plug that in and place the sensor inside your new case. If not, the CPU and case fan will run full tilt all the time. PWM control will be non-existent without it. You can ditch the internal speaker and
chassis intrusion button when you make the transplant. Those aren't necessary at all. If you want to keep them that's fine too.
Compare the above picture to how your Dell 9020 might look when you upgrade to an EVGA PSU to install an RX 570 or 580 graphics card into the Dell OEM case.
You get a major mess of cabling when using a non-modular PSU. No room for cable management.
Zoomed in view of where the temperature sensor plugs in. Connect this to enable PWM fan control. Without it your CPU and case fans will run full speed all the time.
You can also connect the 19 pin front panel USB/Audio connector just below there so you won't get warning messages at boot up.
Overall the Dell mATX motherboard lines up perfectly with all standoffs (there are 8). The rear I/O shield fits perfectly. It's really easy to install this into a DLM21 case. I think that I should be really happy with the result of this experiment.
Find the Dell Optiplex MT owner's manual attached below for directions for all of these things.