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My G4 FW800 in a G5 enclosure... possible?

Digitaljim

Digitaljim

macrumors regular
Original poster
Nov 14, 2006
103
0
Edinburgh, UK
Hello chaps

I have been offered an empty G5 enclosure (see pic) for £30 and was hoping to move my entire G4 FW800 setup into it. I think it'd look sexy with my 20" ACD.

First things first - is this even possible? If it is, would it be an easy operation? Anyone else tried it?

I suppose the main thing would be the motherboard fitting in, but as the G5 tower appears much larger than my G4 I'm hoping that would not be an issue.

The G4 specs are:

Single 1ghz (FW800 MDD model)
Standard motherboard for the model
Couple of extra pci cards
One superdrive & one combo drive

Any help would be much appreciated! :)

James
 

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Does it have a power supply ?

If not, where do you plan on mounting the appropriate G4 Power supply in that unit ?

I know that motherboard mount points will likely need to be drilled (and tapped) in order for it to be a clean install, unless you only plan on using 3 or 4 mount points for the MDD logic board.

What are you doing with the old MDD case ?
 
840quadra said:
Does it have a power supply ?

If not, where do you plan on mounting the appropriate G4 Power supply in that unit ?
Click to expand...

My G4 has a power supply, but the G5 case does not. Where am I going to mount it? Wherever it fits (if it will fit). Any suggestions?

840quadra said:
I know that motherboard mount points will likely need to be drilled (and tapped) in order for it to be a clean install, unless you only plan on using 3 or 4 mount points for the MDD logic board.

What are you doing with the old MDD case ?
Click to expand...

What does tapped mean? I'm quite nifty with a hand drill and have loads of time on my hands (just finished my thesis) so I should secure it in okay if mount points are the only barrier.

Regarding the MDD case: keeping it as a safety net until I'm sure the frankenstein-like creation isn't going to kill my trusty G4 brain/blow up in my face. After that i'd probably sell it - interested? :cool:
 
CanadaRAM said:
Keep your G4 machine in its original case, and donate the 40 or 50 hours you would spend on modding the G5 case to a volunteer organization instead...
Click to expand...

I just finished a stint entertaining kids during their school holidays for absolutely no pay at all; my charity quota is full for a while!

And 40-50 hrs - surely it wouldn't take that long. I was guessing 3-4 hrs max assuming it's planned in advance & i obtain all appropriate parts.
 
Digitaljim said:
I just finished a stint entertaining kids during their school holidays for absolutely no pay at all; my charity quota is full for a while!

And 40-50 hrs - surely it wouldn't take that long. I was guessing 3-4 hrs max assuming it's planned in advance & i obtain all appropriate parts.
Click to expand...

That's just it -- there are no appropriate parts.
You are going to have to fabricate your own brackets to mount things, and carve out aluminum inside the case to make'em fit, and lay out and drill a new back panel to match up with the new (old) port layout and, and...

But I admit, I have no idea whether it would be 10 hours or 100. 40 -50 was a WAG.
 
I don't see it as a hassle.. more of a 'challenge'. Plus I can't really afford a G5/MP and don't really require the associated performance increase.

What I have is time and an increasing curiosity. What I don't have is money.

Can anyone think of any more specific issues regarding the op? I just noticed the G5 only has one optical bay, so i'd have to lose the combo drive.

Thanks
 
I work in the alarm system supply industry and you can get lots of different board mounts. just go to any local dealer that sells alarm sys. keypads and psb boards. the industry offers a wide variety of electronic board mounts.

worst case.. use zip ties and rubber mounts/spacers. for great electronics oriented zip ties buy the brand called "Dottie" as they are VERY strong and very small.
 
Hello again

Just to keep you all updated: the case arrived and it's absolutely beautiful. I've decided to scrap the G4 transplant idea and am instead going to build a gaming PC inside it (conroe c2d 6600, geforce 7300gt, 2gb ram)

Hopefully it should require less aluminum butchering.

I will post pics when i'm done. Thanks for your help so far! :)
 
Digitaljim said:
Hello again

Just to keep you all updated: the case arrived and it's absolutely beautiful. I've decided to scrap the G4 transplant idea and am instead going to build a gaming PC inside it (conroe c2d 6600, geforce 7300gt, 2gb ram)

Hopefully it should require less aluminum butchering.

I will post pics when i'm done. Thanks for your help so far! :)
Click to expand...

not that i really like this idea, and not that it is that original but here is a link to something like what you have in mind..
 
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