[SOLVED] Use this 1970's Kenwood Amplifier as a Case

[jpfurney]

I have an old Amplifier from the 70's that doesn't work any more. I am inclined to turn it into a vintage looking gaming rig (under $2000).

Can it be done?

I should have prefaced this with... I have no idea what I am doing!

 

[USAFRet]

What specific model is that?
I'm 99% sure I have that exact same one in my garage right now.

 

[NightHawkRMX]

I have an old Amplifier from the 70's that doesn't work any more. I am inclined to turn it into a vintage looking gaming rig (under $2000).

Can it be done?

I should have prefaced this with... I have no idea what I am doing!

What are the dimensions?

If it is large enough and you have enough time/money/skills/tools/patience, sure it will work.

I have thought of doing this myself.

 

[7227Pro]

I would just sell it on eBay and get some big bucks out of it. and buy a case. People like me love vintage amps and restore them.

 

[USAFRet]

As far as "can it be done?'....yes, but it IS going to be a pain. An exercise in CAD and metalwork.

I've had the design thought process for doing exactly the same with the carcass of a Pioneer RT-707 reel to reel.
In conjunction with my 3D printer, it will be done.

Yes, they are large enough to build a PC inside of. As is your Kenwood.

But you'll have to carve out the back panel for the I/O port, massage the motherboard tray into the inside of that case, fans, etc, etc, etc.

 

[jpfurney]

What specific model is that?
I'm 99% sure I have that exact same one in my garage right now.

Ka-5002

 

[jpfurney]

I would just sell it on eBay and get some big bucks out of it. and buy a case. People like me love vintage amps and restore them.

I checked it out. Looks like I could get as much as a computer case would cost me. Might as well have my office look good

 

[jpfurney]

As far as "can it be done?'....yes, but it IS going to be a pain. An exercise in CAD and metalwork.

I've had the design thought process for doing exactly the same with the carcass of a Pioneer RT-707 reel to reel.
In conjunction with my 3D printer, it will be done.

Yes, they are large enough to build a PC inside of. As is your Kenwood.

But you'll have to carve out the back panel for the I/O port, massage the motherboard tray into the inside of that case, fans, etc, etc, etc.

I can do the cad, machining, and 3d printing. I know nothing about putting a computer together.

I've shopped around for parts, with graphics card shortages it would be cheaper for me to just buy a prebuilt machine from Alienware or something and just gut it. Seems like the big companies don't have to worry about the triple price spike of the gpu's

 

[USAFRet]

Ka-5002

Close.
I have the KA-7300
https://www.hifiengine.com/manual_library/kenwood/ka-7300.shtml


Can it be done? Sure.
But this is not much different than any other casemod. How are you with custom designs and metalwork?

 

[jpfurney]

Close.
I have the KA-7300
https://www.hifiengine.com/manual_library/kenwood/ka-7300.shtml


Can it be done? Sure.
But this is not much different than any other casemod. How are you with custom designs and metalwork?

Nice, I have a Pioneer sa-5800 too but that baby works perfectly.

Design and metal work isn't am issue. I have access to the machine shop at the college I work at. I just have zero experience inside of a computer.

 

[USAFRet]

I can do the cad, machining, and 3d printing. I know nothing about putting a computer together.

I've shopped around for parts, with graphics card shortages it would be cheaper for me to just buy a prebuilt machine from Alienware or something and just gut it. Seems like the big companies don't have to worry about the triple price spike of the gpu's

Then should not be much of a problem.
Think of that KA as just another PC case.

Buy some really old cheap system to take apart and see how it all goes together. Even find a couple for free, on trash day.
You're just looking for 'how it all goes together'.

ATX specs are a spec, for a reason. Everything matches up (mostly).
Don't buy an Alienware....


If you size things to any ATX spec system in the last decade, it will work with new parts from this year.

 

[jpfurney]

Then should not be much of a problem.
Think of that KA as just another PC case.

Buy some really old cheap system to take apart and see how it all goes together. Even find a couple for free, on trash day.
You're just looking for 'how it all goes together'.

ATX specs are a spec, for a reason. Everything matches up (mostly).
Don't buy an Alienware....


If you size things to any ATX spec system in the last decade, it will work with new parts from this year.

I might be able to get my hands on one of the disposable systems at my college. Thanks for the recommendation.

 

[USAFRet]

I might be able to get my hands on one of the disposable systems at my college. Thanks for the recommendation.

Take it apart.
Put it back together.
Repeat....

ATX size specs here:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ATX

https://web.aub.edu.lb/pub/docs/atx_201.pdf

 

[USAFRet]

The main thing you'll be looking for is the relationship between the motherboard tray and the I/O backplate.
Where the motherboard sits will dictate where that rectangular hole needs to be.

 

[NightHawkRMX]

If you can, use the parts from the spare computer to test fit.

One problem you might run into is that a lot of prebuilt computers don't use standard ATX components. Oddly shaped motherboards, proprietary form factor power supplies, etc.

 

[Karadjgne]

No. NOT Alienware. Quick, somebody shoot me. Dells are nothing but ovens disguised as a pc, with hundreds of dollars worth of absolutely worthless warranty added and a tech support that's worse.

Best bang for the buck pc is ibuypower, if you don't mind having to tinker to get it all dialed in and re-doing some cable management and possibly/probably minor repairs like reseating ram or changing fan headers etc. But you'll actually get the parts.

Best quality build is MainGear. Best tech support, best out of the box performance, pretty much you get a dream pc to be proud to take pictures of. But you'll spend more to get the same components as an ibuypower. But you can also opt for extras like etched TG with your logo or case painted (automotive grade paint) etc. Not something the cheaper boutiques offer.

HP is somewhere in between, along with most boutique builders like Origin, CyberPowerPC etc.

For that stereo case, I'd forget about ATX as a form factor. Start thinking mITX, small form factor builds. An SFX psu isn't much bigger than a couple of cigarette packs stacked, but will make life immeasurably easier, as will the 6in x 6in mITX motherboard vs a 9in x 13in ATX. You are limited not only by case size restraints but cooling necessity, that requires airflow and packing in the components reduces that significantly. So space saving is a must. Or you'll be needing a 8k rpm Delta server fan just to get air from one side of the shell to the other.