NES Case Build... Help/Advice Wanted!

[Foxhound7]

Hey guys!

So I recently saw a build where a guy used the guts of an old NES as the case for his PC. I've got a $500 bonus coming in a week or two and I happen to have an old NES lying around so I figured it was time to upgrade.

My gaming PC now is solid, but it's loud and not very portable. My work has LAN parties every month now and I'd like something cool to bring along with me.

I'm running a Radeon HD 6850 along with a Phenom X2 1090T in my current rig and it's just now starting to show its age. I'd like something powerful enough to run games like The Witcher 3 or Dying Light on high settings. It's been awhile since I built a PC so I'm not sure if I'm even in the right price range for something like that (hence why I'm asking you fine folks! )

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Approximate Purchase Date: Within the next couple months

Budget Range: $500-$600 (can be pushed upwards of $700 if it's worth it)

System Usage from Most to Least Important: Gaming, Daily Stuff, Media

Are you buying a monitor: No

Parts to Upgrade: N/A New Build

Do you need to buy OS: Yes (Maybe, I have to talk to a friend...)

Preferred Website(s) for Parts: Newegg.com, Amazon.com

Location: Haverhill, MA USA

Parts Preferences: Cheap and reliable? I'm so out of the loop on who has quality these days...

Overclocking: No

SLI or Crossfire: No. Although if I could do an AMD APU and Hybrid Crossfire for equal or better preformance than a CPU and discrete card and get out a bit cheaper, I'd be willing to do that.

Your Monitor Resolution: 1920x1080 preferably

Additional Comments: I'll be putting all the guts into a gutted NES. I have HDDs (SSDs and regular drives) so I won't need those. I also have all the peripherals (mouse, keyboard, headphones, etc.)

Also, if anyone has any advice for mounting the thing inside the case, I'd love to hear it

And Most Importantly, Why Are You Upgrading: I want a mobile gaming rig with some flair

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These are the parts I was looking at right now...

Motherboard:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130852

Video Card:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814487133

PSU:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817182169

Memory:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231659

CPU:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819113372

Total Cost: $643.20 before shipping.

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As always folks, thanks in advance!

 

[boosted1g]

Its not like all the parts just bolt right in to the NES. You are talking about a lot of custom modification.

You need to have strong fabrication skills to add the standoffs, cutouts, make custom brackets for gpu/hard drives. Need to understand how to rewire the power button to the case. You also need to have the tools/workshop available to do these things.

 

[Ok Go]

hey, great man thinks alike lol. i've tried this once but it ended terrible (i blame my lousy dremmel skill). but i learned some from my exp.
first i dont think you'll fit the PSU in there, i've tried using sfx PSU from some old rackmount and it's still to big for me to try and find a good seat for it. so, for the psu i finally got a zotac mini itx mobo that uses powerbrick(laptop adaper) instead of PSU and that really limits my choice of GPU. i've tried putting the psu on a makeshift box that acting as a stand for the nes, and it was freaking ugly(i blame my carpentry skill), so ugly i ended up putting the atx PSU inside a shoebox and call it a day lol.
and overclocking is out of the gameplan since i cant find a good cooler that can oc with minimal airflow. for the intake and exhaust i used 4x40mm 5v fans and those little ah heck is noisy, high pitch noisy.

oh, and rest assured, you'll blow your starting budget out of the window when the project is done.

fyi, at the time i build mine the only viable gpu is a low-profile hd4670 from sapphire.

 

[quilciri]

Fitting a double slot graphics card inside an NES case is extremely difficult. Considerable heat issues make getting even a single slot card in a tall order, and the strongest single slot card, the HD 7750/R7 250 is weaker than the 6850 you already have. On top of that, those options require a PCI-e riser, which takes $20-30 out of your budget off the top.

For practicality's sake, You'll need to choose between building a PC that's stronger than what you have or building a PC (that can game a bit) inside an NES case.

 

[Foxhound7]

I got a message from someone on here who says he can build what I'm looking for. I'll have to see what ideas he has in mind.

In regards to making it all fit, I do have friends who have access to CNC machines and/or 3D printers, so the fabrication could be possible.

I get where you guys are coming from with the size restrictions and heat issues. Are there any external PSUs or small form factor ones? And does anyone have any resources where you can easily compare the actual physical size of cards? I think I could squeeze in a full size card if it was small enough. Worst case scenario, I could mod the top of the case a bit to give it a little extra room.

I was really hoping to put together something like this...

http://www.polygon.com/2015/7/6/8903627/gaming-pc-is-disguised-as-nes

 

[Foxhound7]

I ran the build through a online calculator and I think I can use the power supply below...

http://www.amazon.com/HDPLEX-Hi-Fi-DC-ATX-Supply-16V-24V/dp/B00J3X7RU6/ref=sr_1_9?ie=UTF8&qid=1436296710&sr=8-9&keywords=pico+psu


System Type: 1 physical CPU
Motherboard: Mini-ITX
CPU Socket: Socket FM2+
CPU: AMD A10 7800 3500 MHz Kaveri
CPU Utilization (TDP): 90% TDP

RAM: 2 Modules DDR3 SDRAM
Video Card 1: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 960

ATTENTION: FOR PERSONAL, NON-COMMERCIAL USE ONLY

M.2 SSD: 1 Drive

Fans
Regular: 2 Fans 120mm;

Keyboard and mouse: Yes

System Load: 90 %


Minimum PSU Wattage: 197 Watts
Recommended Wattage: 247 Watts

That would free up some space.

 

[quilciri]

My humble suggestion at the same TDP. stronger CPU and slim optical drive:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4570S 2.9GHz Quad-Core Processor ($188.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Asus H97I-PLUS Mini ITX LGA1150 Motherboard ($101.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: Crucial 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($52.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: A-Data SP900 M.2 128GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive ($67.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 960 2GB Superclocked Video Card ($199.99 @ Amazon)
Optical Drive: LG GTB0N DVD/CD Writer ($11.09 @ Amazon)

Total: $623.04
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

 

[Foxhound7]

@quilciri

That looks solid. Is that the fastest memory that board can handle? Any I'm still a bit confused on the hookups for the HDPLEX PSU, but it should have the hookups needed for the GPU right?

 

[quilciri]

Yes, that's the fastest memory supported by that board. The GPU uses a single 6-pin PCI-e, which is included with the PSU.

 

[Foxhound7]

Thanks quilciri!