Hello all fellow modders and enthusiasts. I got a Mac Pro case for free that was 'damaged' (power button came loose, easy fix) and have decided to make it into an ATX pc case, since I think it's a cool looking case. I plan to transfer the parts I currently have into the Mac Pro case when done with the mod. Since I have a P6T Deluxe V2 and am running SLI, I will be converting the case to ATX, with all 7 slots available for use. It looks like almost all other Mac Pro mods I've seen have been conversions to MATX or are ATX, but don't allow multiple video cards.
The 2012 MacBook Pro is the only Apple laptop that has an easily replaceable battery. 'The battery is the biggest deal for me, and it's easy to swap,' Wiens said. 'Size and thickness is a non-issue.
Hopefully the mod will be unique and turn out well. To start off modding, I stripped the case down to just the enclosure.
This required removing the cabling, covers/panels, and the 'divider shelf' between the top and bottom of the case. Once I got to this point, I decided to order an aluminum ATX motherboard tray to use, basically replacing the Mac Pro's rear panel. I decided to go with tray, from mountain mods in the 2x80mm configuration. Once the tray arrived, I marked the rear panel of the case with my sharpie and went to work cutting it out with the dremel. Several reinforced cutoff wheels later, we have this result. (sorry about the quality of the pics, I only had my cell phone with me.).
I attached the standoffs to the tray, roughed up the standoff and the inside of the case, and then put a 'dab' of jb weld on the standoff and then set it in place overnight. I also drilled holes into the backplate and pro case to secure the back plate in place. There is just enough room, so I found, to still put a power supply above the motherboard plate (in the standard mac pro position), even with a full atx board. I decided to JB weld two 'elevator bolts' to the inside top back of the case, which will support a crossbar that will hold the power supply 'clamped' against the top of the case.
Ok, more progress on the mod. I got the 'divider shelf' between the top and bottom of the case cut out. I was originally going to use the dremel, but quickly found that that would have taken a lot of cutoff wheels and time. It was harder to cut than the rest of the case, since it's steel (I believe) instead of aluminum. It also is 2 layers thick and has some sort of material (possibly sound deadening or anti-vibration?) sandwiched between the layers. I did manage to cut it out by clamping it to my vice at the workbench and using a handheld jig-saw with a medium toothed metal cutting blade. And installed.
Ok, I got an actual camera and took some pics too. Next up will be doing cabling and mounting items (fans, power supply, etc). The front panel board on the Mac Pro case is not like on a PC so I will have to make up a 'harness' to adapt it to standard power button, power led, and usb connections. Luckily, I found a on the aquamac forums to help me figure it out.
Also, I want to make up sata to dual 3pin fan power connector cables to power the fans. I purchased a new power supply to put in the system, a.
The modular design will make for a lot cleaner install in the case, hopefully very little visible wiring. That's all for now folks. I'm pleased with the results so far.considering I'm no 'pro' at this.
Click to expand.There's some issues with the PSU in the lower front. Not 100% sure on Mac Pro, but unless it's 2' deeper than the G5 case, I'd imagine it has the same problem.
The PSU won't really fit in the lower front. It has to overlap the mobo by an inch or two, which would mean it covers the RAM slots (or at least my average-sized 650w seasonic rebadge did). The workaroud is that there's enough space down there if you raise the mobo about 3', so the last PCI slot is almost against the top of the case (where OP's PSU is now). The downside to this is that long video cards in the last few slots could have clearance issues with the rear of the optical drives. Mahdiy85, the first thing I did to take the shelf out was remove everything removable from the chassis (brackets, cabling, etc). The first part I removed was the metal divider bracket that is between the optical drive and power supply.
It had some nuts to remove, but also some rivets IIRC. So between wrench, dremel, and chisel, I finally got that out after much labor. I'm not sure if the upper divider is necessary to remove to get the shelf out, but I wanted it removed regardless. Next, I removed the door latching mechanism from the shelf.
That involved removing the 'e-clip' from the pin in the latch, the pin itself, and the four 'spring clips' that hold the door latches onto the latching rod. I then removed the four door latch pieces from the rod (they just slide out when the clips are removed) and unscrewed the four torx screws on the bottom of the shelf that hold the rod in place. At this point I believe the rod was free and with some maneuvering, I got it out.
With the rod out of the picture, I started removing the shelf itself. There were about 10 (+/-) torx screws that hold the underside of the shelf that needed removed.
After those were out, I removed two philips screws along the front and another two along the back of the tray. At this point.I think the tray was free (it's hard to remember exactly). I got it out by pushing upward on the underside and rotating the tray somewhat within the chassis. I then was able to dislodge it and take it out fully. Hopefully that is helpful. If there's a specific step that's getting you stuck, let me know and I might be able to jog my memory further.