Classic Computer Desk / Entertainment Center

jjgoertz · Jul 4, 2012

After seeing some computer in a desk builds I couldn't keep myself from designing one, but with a bit of a classic twist. I'm rather partial to wood finishes, so I decided on building from birch.

I started with a sketch in Solidworks that looked a bit like this. The goals for the design were to get good airflow, with minimum noise, and have a good size working surface. As you can see in the pictures, I'll have 6 intake fans at the front, blow through a 480 radiator to the back, and blow the hot air down at the back.

jjgoertz · Jul 4, 2012

To give myself something to build too, and make sure everything would fit properly, I started out by getting some water cooling components from frozen cpu, the fans, and a mother board tray from mountain mods.

Lots of goodies.

a pump

and a group shot

The mother board tray. Fairly solid, and the powder coat seems nice.

Tons of fans. With the fans at full speed it should exchange all the air in the case somewhere around 80 times a minute.

And to control the fan speed I'm going to parallel all the fans and put them in series with this rheostat. At full resistance it should drop the fans all the way to their starting voltage, where they'll be all but silent.

And that's about it for components at the moment.

BraveSoul · Jul 4, 2012

this is getting interesting,, keep going :cool:

MxPhenom 216 · Jul 4, 2012

Why did you choose those fans? Because to be honest they are shitty fans.

erocker · Jul 4, 2012

nvidiaintelftw said:
Why did you choose those fans? Because to be honest they are shitty fans.

No, not really. I used them before and they move a very good amount of air. They aren't so good for radiators though, not much static pressure... That's their design though.

jjgoertz · Jul 4, 2012

I got the wood cut this weekend, and have started some preliminary assembly.

The pile of wood. It was two sheets of 3/4" birch plywood.

Starting the build from the bottom, this is a folding shelf for the legs that's also the structural support.

And here's a couple shots of the legs assembled. The legs fold flat after taking out a couple screws. A useful feature since I have to move in a few months.

I then disassembled the legs for finishing. Here they are after the initial stain. The color is Early American by Minwax

The second coat of varnish is actually drying tonight, so the legs should be finished tomorrow, and I'll have some more pics.

For the top of the desk, I've only worked on the baseplate so far. Here it is with the fan holes routed, and trim attached.

And then I finished the fan holes with a 1/4" rounding bit for smoother airflow.

That's all I have done for now, but I have tomorrow off, and am hoping to get some more done.

jjgoertz · Jul 4, 2012

nvidiaintelftw said:
Why did you choose those fans? Because to be honest they are shitty fans.

I picked them because they had good reviews, and I was able to find some decent data on noise and airflow at different voltages.

Plus I thought the blade design looked nifty.

MxPhenom 216 · Jul 4, 2012

Ive used them too and they really sucked with under volting with a controller. They are also built pretty cheap and use sleeve bearings. The ones i had a horrible click sound when on a controller.

ThE_MaD_ShOt · Jul 4, 2012

Nice work there :toast:

micropage7 · Jul 4, 2012

looks nice :toast:

but where you gonna place your HDD? and the right side looks empty, just the rad, pump and fans

patrico · Jul 4, 2012

hiya, nice project, nice work, the birch is very nice and I was wondering what type of varnish you used to protect (does it have to be a special type), because I was thinking of making a homemade table myself.

Thx and cant wait to keep watching your progress :toast:

jjgoertz · Jul 4, 2012

Originally the hard drives were going to mount on the far left side, below the mother board. I've since decided to mount them on that bridge in the center, and move the res over to the far right side.

The varnish isn't technically varnish, its Minwax semi-gloss polyurethane.

jjgoertz · Jul 4, 2012

The legs are finished! I'm really happy with how the finish turned out, and the brass hinges are a nice contrast.

patrico · Jul 4, 2012

jjgoertz said:
Originally the hard drives were going to mount on the far left side, below the mother board. I've since decided to mount them on that bridge in the center, and move the res over to the far right side.

The varnish isn't technically varnish, its Minwax semi-gloss polyurethane.

thx for the reply I'll have to look into that, and the finish is lovely :toast:

Sinzia · Jul 5, 2012

in4sub!

Looks nice so far, but I agree, those fans don't have much in the way of static pressure, which is what you'd want to force the air thru the radiator, otherwise the air essentially bounces off the rad and doesn't cool much.

jjgoertz · Jul 5, 2012

Sinzia said:
in4sub!

Looks nice so far, but I agree, those fans don't have much in the way of static pressure, which is what you'd want to force the air thru the radiator, otherwise the air essentially bounces off the rad and doesn't cool much.

This radiator does have really wide spacing on the fins, so it shouldn't produce too much back pressure. I guess I'll just have to see if it works once things go together.

jjgoertz · Jul 5, 2012

Today I started by finishing the back plate of the desks perimeter, which involved the cable pass-through for all my IO, and a smaller hole for the power cable.

Then I put together the rest of the outside edge, and glued it to the baseplate.

Finally I put the top on the legs and put some components in for show. It's finally starting to look like something!

And in this last pic, it's kind of hard to see, but I put on the glass top.

p8blr · Jul 5, 2012

DO WANT. Sick dude, mad props. Very clean.
lol sorry im excited.

jjgoertz · Jul 6, 2012

Not much of an update for tonight, just attached the trim to the upper edge of the desk.

MxPhenom 216 · Jul 6, 2012

What stain color is that?

jjgoertz · Jul 6, 2012

nvidiaintelftw said:
What stain color is that?

Minwax Early American

jjgoertz · Jul 7, 2012

I've started out the day (and last night) with some beautification, layout, and making the divider panel/rad mount.

The trim was attached to the divider panel, and then all the upper trim was sanded flush and rounded.

The divider was, unfortunately, a bit warped, so we'll have to fix that later.

I did the layout for the IO cut out by spacing the motherboard tray for 25mm standoffs, and positioning it laterally for even spacing of the far left fan and the wire bridge.

Then I clamped the tray onto the divider panel so I could trace the cutout and the mounting holes.

The results looked something like this:

I then repeated the process for the radiator.

Then it was time to rout some holes.

And do the rest of the cutouts with a jig-saw. Not much left of the panel at this point.

Then the radiator hole, the fan hole, and the cable pass through were chamfered.

I believe it's now time for me to start staining the top. woot.

(FIH) The Don · Jul 8, 2012

sub'd, awesome work

Bunchies · Jul 8, 2012

Sub'd cant awit to see it done

Nordic · Jul 8, 2012

Sub'd
I am just a sucker for these computer/desk systems...

System Name	Filtration tower
Processor	i9 7900@4.4ghz
Motherboard	ASRock X299 Taichi
Cooling	Air
Memory	64g 3200 quad channel
Video Card(s)	ASUS GTX 1080Ti
Storage	500gb Nvme, 200gb SSD, 1700gb HDD
Display(s)	34" Acer Predator 3440x1440
Case	Thermaltake v71
Power Supply	EVGA supernova 850 T2

System Name	Ryzen Reflection
Processor	AMD Ryzen 9 5900x
Motherboard	Gigabyte X570S Aorus Master
Cooling	2x EK PE360 \| TechN AM4 AMD Block Black \| EK Quantum Vector Trinity GPU Nickel + Plexi
Memory	Teamgroup T-Force Xtreem 2x16GB B-Die 3600 @ 14-14-14-28-42-288-2T 1.45v
Video Card(s)	Zotac AMP HoloBlack RTX 3080Ti 12G \| 950mV 1950Mhz
Storage	WD SN850 500GB (OS) \| Samsung 980 Pro 1TB (Games_1) \| Samsung 970 Evo 1TB (Games_2)
Display(s)	Asus XG27AQM 240Hz G-Sync Fast-IPS \| Gigabyte M27Q-P 165Hz 1440P IPS \| LG 24" IPS 1440p
Case	Lian Li PC-011D XL \| Custom cables by Cablemodz
Audio Device(s)	FiiO K7 \| Sennheiser HD650 + Beyerdynamic FOX Mic
Power Supply	Seasonic Prime Ultra Platinum 850
Mouse	Razer Viper v2 Pro
Keyboard	Corsair K65 Plus 75% Wireless - USB Mode
Software	Windows 11 Pro 64-Bit

Processor	AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D
Motherboard	ASUS TUF x670e-Plus Wifi
Cooling	EK AIO 360. Phantek T30 fans.
Memory	64GB G.Skill 6000Mhz
Video Card(s)	Asus RTX 4090
Storage	WD/Samsung m.2's
Display(s)	LG C2 Evo OLED 42"
Case	Fractal Design North
Audio Device(s)	Topping E70 DAC, SMSL SP200 Amp, Adam Audio T5V's, Hifiman Sundara's.
Power Supply	FSP Hydro Ti PRO 1000W
Mouse	Razer Basilisk V3 Pro
Keyboard	Epomaker 84 key
Software	Windows 11 Pro

System Name	Ryzen Reflection
Processor	AMD Ryzen 9 5900x
Motherboard	Gigabyte X570S Aorus Master
Cooling	2x EK PE360 \| TechN AM4 AMD Block Black \| EK Quantum Vector Trinity GPU Nickel + Plexi
Memory	Teamgroup T-Force Xtreem 2x16GB B-Die 3600 @ 14-14-14-28-42-288-2T 1.45v
Video Card(s)	Zotac AMP HoloBlack RTX 3080Ti 12G \| 950mV 1950Mhz
Storage	WD SN850 500GB (OS) \| Samsung 980 Pro 1TB (Games_1) \| Samsung 970 Evo 1TB (Games_2)
Display(s)	Asus XG27AQM 240Hz G-Sync Fast-IPS \| Gigabyte M27Q-P 165Hz 1440P IPS \| LG 24" IPS 1440p
Case	Lian Li PC-011D XL \| Custom cables by Cablemodz
Audio Device(s)	FiiO K7 \| Sennheiser HD650 + Beyerdynamic FOX Mic
Power Supply	Seasonic Prime Ultra Platinum 850
Mouse	Razer Viper v2 Pro
Keyboard	Corsair K65 Plus 75% Wireless - USB Mode
Software	Windows 11 Pro 64-Bit

System Name	Agent Texas / Selene / Eve
Processor	Ryzen7 5800x / Fx 8350 / Fx 8350
Motherboard	Gigabyte B550 Aorus Elite Ax V2 / Gigabyte 990FXA-UD3 r4.0 / Msi 970a Krait
Cooling	Msi Mag Core liquid / H100i / Cryo-pc Cooler
Memory	2 x32 GB Gskil Ripjaws v series / 4x 8gb G.Skill Snipers / 2x 8gb G.Skill Ripjaws
Video Card(s)	Gigabyte Rx 6800xt / Msi RX580 / Gigabyte R9 290x
Storage	1tb M.2, 2tb wd / 500 gb ssd, 2x 2tb Wd Blacks/ 500 gb ssd, 1tb WD Black
Display(s)	Dell Ultra Sharp 2408 WFp / Hp w2207 / Sanyo tv
Case	Corsair 780t White / Raidmax Vampire / NZXT Phantom 240
Audio Device(s)	Onboard Hd Audio / Onboard Hd Audio / Onboard Hd Audio
Power Supply	Corsair Rm 850 watt / Corsair TX 850 watt / Corsair TX 750 watt
Mouse	Logitech G502 Hero / Logitech G500s / Logitech wireless
Keyboard	Corsair Strafe / Corsair k50 / Logitech wireless
Software	Win 11 pro / Win 11 pro / Win 11 pro
Benchmark Scores	What are benchmarks anyway?

Classic Computer Desk / Entertainment Center

jjgoertz

jjgoertz

BraveSoul

MxPhenom 216

ASIC Engineer

erocker

*

jjgoertz

jjgoertz

MxPhenom 216

ASIC Engineer

ThE_MaD_ShOt

micropage7

patrico

jjgoertz

jjgoertz

patrico

Sinzia

jjgoertz

jjgoertz

p8blr

jjgoertz

MxPhenom 216

ASIC Engineer

jjgoertz

jjgoertz

(FIH) The Don

Bunchies

New Member

Nordic

Processor	q6600 G0 @ 2.8Ghz
Motherboard	ex38 DS4
Cooling	air
Memory	4 *1gig tracer ballistic
Video Card(s)	sapphire dual bios 6950
Storage	ssd- sandisk 120gb, sata- 2 500gb samsung in raid 1 & 1 samsung 400gb
Display(s)	LG w2452tx
Case	nzxt
Audio Device(s)	na
Power Supply	hiper 730
Mouse	g9
Keyboard	bt microsoft arch
Software	win7

System Name	FragBox
Processor	Intel Core i7 2600K @ 5.0GHz/1.45 volts
Motherboard	Asus P8Z77 WS
Cooling	Custom CPU loop
Memory	Kingston 12GB DDR3 1600
Video Card(s)	Galaxy GTX 680/Zotac GTX 680 in SLi/EVGA GTX 650Ti
Storage	2 Vertex 3 120's, raid 0, 2 Seagate Momentus XT 500GB's in raid 0, 1 Hitatchi 2TB for backup
Display(s)	3 Acer S232HLX2 in nvidia surround
Case	Corsair C70 White
Audio Device(s)	Onboard
Power Supply	Corsair AX1200
Software	Win 7 x64 Pro

System Name	CosmosII
Processor	Ryzen 7700
Motherboard	Gigabyte b650 gaming x ax v2
Cooling	BeQuiet Pure Rock v2
Memory	Corsair Vengeance RGB DDR5-6000 2x16GB
Video Card(s)	Inno3d RTX 4070 Ti Super
Storage	1tb Corsair MP600 Pro XT
Display(s)	34" Ultrawide
Case	Cosmos II
Audio Device(s)	stock onboard thing
Power Supply	RM850E
Software	½½

Processor	7800x3d
Motherboard	Gigabyte B650 Auros Elite AX
Cooling	Custom Water
Memory	GSKILL 2x16gb 6000mhz Cas 30 with custom timings
Video Card(s)	MSI RX 6750 XT MECH 2X 12G OC
Storage	Adata SX8200 1tb with Windows, Samsung 990 Pro 2tb with games
Display(s)	HP Omen 27q QHD 165hz
Case	ThermalTake P3
Power Supply	SuperFlower Leadex Titanium
Software	Windows 11 64 Bit
Benchmark Scores	CB23: 1811 / 19424 CB24: 1136 / 7687

System Name	micropage7
Processor	Intel Xeon X3470
Motherboard	Gigabyte Technology Co. Ltd. P55A-UD3R (Socket 1156)
Cooling	Enermax ETS-T40F
Memory	Samsung 8.00GB Dual-Channel DDR3
Video Card(s)	NVIDIA Quadro FX 1800
Storage	V-GEN03AS18EU120GB, Seagate 2 x 1TB and Seagate 4TB
Display(s)	Samsung 21 inch LCD Wide Screen
Case	Icute Super 18
Audio Device(s)	Auzentech X-Fi Forte
Power Supply	Silverstone 600 Watt
Mouse	Logitech G502
Keyboard	Sades Excalibur + Taihao keycaps
Software	Win 7 64-bit
Benchmark Scores	Classified

System Name	Bunchies
Processor	Intel i7-960 D0 @4Ghz (1.368v in bios)
Motherboard	Gigabyte G1. Guerrilla ,On the latest beta bios
Cooling	Corsair H60 (2013), Prolimatech Pro-Pk1 Thermel
Memory	Kingston HyperX Blu (3x4GB) = 12GB @ 1400Mhz 8-8-8-22
Video Card(s)	Evga Gtx 660 Ti 2Gb
Storage	1 Ocz Agility 3 Sata III SSD , 2x1 1TB Hardrive's , 1 80GB Hardrive
Display(s)	23.5" Lg Flatron E2341
Case	Thermaltake V3 Black Edition Mid Tower (Moded)
Audio Device(s)	Onboard Sound Chip, X-Fi Xtreme Fidelity and EAX 5.0
Power Supply	Cooler Master eXtreme Power Plus 700W
Software	Windows 7 64-Bit