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I've been in a case-modding mood. But looking at my case, I don't see anything else to do without making it tacky.. Already painted, got a window, plenty of fans, air ducts, fan bus, case lighting..
Soooo... I'm considering BUILDING a case. Nothing pre-made. Fabricating all parts myself. Materials?? Well, this is what should be interesting. I think I may build the basic frame from aluminum.. Then use plexi glass for everything else.. All side pannels, mobo-tray, etc. This should create a completly transparent case w/ lots of shiney bits inside to look at. Also with a few neon lights it'll be spectacular at night.
What do you think? I've brought this up in #bitbenderforums the other night and comments were made about RF interfearance due to a plexi mobo-tray. This has me considering a aluminum plate instead of plexi for the tray, but everything else should still be clear?
Any ideas people? I'm playin w/ plexi right now to see how well I can fabricate w/ it. I know I can do whatever I need w/ aluminum. The plexi has me unsure though.
Post any ideas/comments/thoughts/flamez. This still isn't a definate project yet, but it's been rattling around in my brain for a few weeks now.
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JB,
Good Idea.
Didnt know that you would have RF interfearance due to the Plexi Tray.
IDEA: Try making it as seamless as possible. I.E. Rounding things off. Corners ETC..
I have been thinking of doing this also. But don't have the money and I am not that big into case modding..
Going to Mod my Lite On FS020 starting soon though.
"Z" 
Cheers!
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quick point, those clear cases have a plexi tray, if they are selling it, it can't be an issue. I could be wrong. Not to sound cheap, bit I would also study how they make the clear cases to help you in your design. Sometimes it's good to get a few fresh ideas.
I can simpathize JB with the ideas, I have a few, but dtill trying to get them into reality 
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In my humble opinion the chance of getting RF interference to the mobo is virtually zilch.
Think about how many folks run their rigs with the side of the case off when it gets hot.
So unless you live right next door to a military installation, cab firm or the like, I wouldn't worry about it.
And there are actually plexi glass cases on the market. Damn expensive as well.
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Thanks for the responses guys 
I love getting input.
Zem: Seamless is a definate must But not sure about how I'm going to do the side pannels. I'd like to do them hinged, but don't really want the hinge on the oustide.. That's going to require a lil more thought
Cat: Excelent point. If they are producing em like that, then there's probably nothing to worry about ^_^
Skamp: True true.. Although with this case, I see a big hole in the mobo tray where the CPU socket is (for heat sink installation purposes) and more than likely another fan. People are currently doing that, so this shouldn't be a problem as you suggested ^_^
FBS: I know they're expensive This won't be cheep to build, either.. But I think I can make it really nice..
A few other ideas I havn't mentioned yet are
- Integrated wire conduits to help hide all those pesky/nasty little wires that always go everywhere
- Integrated FanBus with very nice fan control system
- Neon Lighting..
This idea I'm quite proud of.. I think i'll add an extra 5" or so to the case height, and with the lower 5" make a compartment into which I'll put 3 Neon Lights.. Blue, Red, and Green. Place them on a 3 way switch, so depending on the mood I'm in, I can have my case any of 3 colors. A full plexi case should transmit the light well thourghout, which means *theoretically* all panels should glow the color of whichever light is turned on.
Keep the input coming!
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Integrated Wire conduits...now that's an idea I would love to see bear fruit 
Im not a big fan of clear cases so I can't help ya there. I can say the gang is right and don't worry about RF inteference.
My suggestion would be for airflow design...take the chimeny airflow to the next level. Dual top blowholes, front and rear intakes, and dual side intakes. Now that's something I would like to see!!! Maybe even work a ducted desing in there...
And just remember to make a rear mobo socket cutout for your next cooler which is the Alpha
What about and easy access hinge door like the Antec SX series?
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Already planning on doing the rear-cutout and a blowhole over it more than likely. Picked up 2 neon tubes today.. Red and Blue.. Wal-Mart is having a heck of a sale on em. $9.96 for a 12v 10" tube. Veryyy nice.
Still cant decide which way I want the pannels to hinge.. Up? Down? To the Rear? To the Front? Split in the middle and open to each side?
The front bezzel has me a lil worried too.. Need to find momentary switches for power and reset.. Any momentary switch will do, right? Also need to score some LED adaptors so I can plug those switches, HDD activity, and Power LED's into the mobo.
Airflow will be paramount. Extensive detail will be poured into the placement of fans, direction of air travel, etc.
I've been trying to figure out exactly HOW the back pannel is to be designed.. Thats kinda precise, where the mobo is mounted in JUST the right spot so that PCI and AGP cards reach their brackets.. (breaks out paper, pen, and ruler and begins measuring out things)..
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hey jb, yeah any momentary switch should do, also something to think about, is that plexy can do a very good job holding static electicity, make sure that all of your components are well grounded, and a few points on the plexy itself, wouldn't want the pc to zap itself, otherwise sounds like it should be pretty cool, gl,
lurch
ps, love that winamp skin, though my fav character is vegita, still cool
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From what i've read you seem to be going along with the idea of building the case in exactly the same layout as most standard cases. But have you considered trying different layouts?
You don't have to have the mobo mounted vertiacally, you don't have to build a box.
Try and think about building the case to provide the best air flow around all of the components and intgrate that into the gernal airflow design of the case so that it all flows in one direction.
You build a custom case, build it to do what you want.
If you want me to put ideas into drawings i can do so easily, it's what i'm good at.
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Heres a link clearpc
Hmm... trying a different setup would be really interesting, but I would hate to see it not work out when its half finished. More planning and time to make, but it would sure be worth it to have something truly unique.
Sounds like the appearance will be important.
Tower, desktop or something else entirely?
How about diagonal, just to be different
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Yeah - why not make the shape totally different from a "regular box"
It could be a sphere, scuptural or very funtional like DaDa movement - it doesn't mean the layout for the parts is not right for supercooling - but just taking an unconventional aproach.
Whatever way you goes - make sure you keep the piccies coming
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Dewy, Cheatum, And Howe
If you are looking for something to make your project different, check this out.....Remote startup for the PC.....
http://www.general-house.com/gh_PA-RC-168.html
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Cool man, keep us updated on the status of the project and give us a look at your designs, see if any of us can spot any mistakes you might have made or any places where there could be improvment
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5 x 120mm fans? 
This is sounding interesting JB
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Well it's definatley be loud what ever it is, and cery cool too.
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Noise shouldnt be TOO bad. They're only rated @ 41dba each. Considerin I've got a 46dba Delta in my case right now, these should be quiet to my ears
Also, with good fan control, it'll be quiet when I need it to be.. Still deciding wether to use a rheobus or flat out 7v/12v switch em. Need to get the fans and see exactly how loud they are.
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May as well go the whole hog with this case and use a reo bus.
You can then fine tune the system for optimal cooling at the minimum noise. Remeber, huge airflow from fans doesn't always mean huge airflow through case.
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I guess the only definite shape has to include the motherboard with agp/pci cards installed, cpu, ram and cables. Everything else can be positioned where you want. If you want a good view of the motherboard, (and who doesnt) the drives and psu could go on the back/bottom side of the mobo.
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Heres my suggestion for fans...
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Hey prod brought up a nice idea...why not do a "double-wide" case. Put the mobo in one side and all the drives and PSU's on the other. That will open up new airflow options!
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actually i was thinking parallel to the motherboard, thus vertical for a tower.
I suppose tower is better for cooling.
Been thinking about a 120mm behind the pci cards.
Would it be a good idea to leave an open slot wherever possible so the fan could move air between the cards?
The cables to the cards and IO panel would go through holes in the case, around the fans, then to the motherboard. That would mean instead of plugging everything into the back of the case, the back of the pci cards would actually be inside the case, not on the back.
What do you guys think, good idea or bad?
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That idea with the 120mil behind the PCI cards is novel. You might have some probs getting the cables into the card with any ammount of ease. I spose the 120mil could be mounted on a hinge that you could use to move it out of the way when you needed to get at the back of the PCI card. I'd also recommend a grill over the 120mil just in case.
However the airflow you've got setup there seems quite good. The only issue is in getting air into the HSF and then out again. I spose if you used an Alpha you could mount the fan on the side of the unit so as to keep the airflow all moving parallel to the mobo.
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Ok.. Quick question.
Do alpha's "Blow" or "Suck"?
I've got an airflow idea of my own working out, so I need this info before procedding.. I know I can MAKE it do either, but most HSF's have a method they prefer.
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Registered User
Alphas are made to suck, but some aussies like the reverse. :stoner1:
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Master of Useless Trivia
just back on the RF interference topic for a mo I dont think you have to worry about the PC getttting interfered with more the other way around, when I run my rig with the side off it trashes my TV signal
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Do you use RF Antanna, Cable, or Satellite?
I've never gotten TV interfearance with my rig opened up.. TV is only about 5 foot from the PC
UPDATE:
Still waiting on that pacakge to get here. UPS e-mail says expected delivery is monday Gotta get measurements off some of those parts before I go designing things.. I have some ideas scratched down already, just waiting to get exact numbers, then I'll begin the build
Played with some plexi, and I have to say the stuff rox. Easy to bend with a lil heat, drills easily, cuts great, and is sturdy. I like the stuff ^_^.
Havn't tried putting screws in it yet.. Guess that's the next test.
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Master of Useless Trivia
RF Antenna - I'll point out tho that I have really weak reception here
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JB don't know if you saw this or not but I thought this may interest you...
http://overclockersclub.com/plexicom...asehowto.shtml
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No! I hadn't seen! But thanks for showing me!
UPS Says my package should be here tomorrow, so with luck construction will finally get started this week.
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