This project was started when my computer finally died. I built my desktop in high-school, and it worked for 4-5 years. Unfortunately the used AIO I put in it finally gave up the ghost. This left me with a few options: I could replace the cooler and continue using it, or finally build out the full potential of the case and not have to worry about further complications. I decided to build out the full potential of the case. Just replacing the cooler would have been short sighted as the PSU was 10 years old, there were no case fans, its hard drive config was a mess, and none of the IO was being utilized. Instead of just fixing the glaring issues, I decided to finally use a feature of the case that I never had the money to even attempt: I was going to build the dual chamber part of the case. Although I was going to build it out, I was still trying to conserve funds so I set a goal to do it for less than $1000.

I used the MetallicGear NEO Qube from the my old pc for this build. It is designed to mount a full E-ATX on one side and a mini-ATX on the other. In a effort to conserve funds I decided to reuse my CPU and motherboard. Not only does this save me funds but it also let me make a more powerful computer than I could with new parts. Originally my computer was a XXXX motherboard and a i5-9600k CPU. Both of these components were purchased new when I was in high-school, so I knew the condition they were in and both components were top of the line when purchased. However with my interest in CAD and board design I did not want to limit myself to the 6 cores found in the i5. Instead, I opted to upgrade the full-ATX side to a i9-9600KF, allowing the left over CPU to be used in the mini-ATX build.

With the rise of AI I also decided now would be a great time to outfit my PC with a AI accelerator to accommodate my future exploits into the world of machine learning. (Cool stuff is coming I swear) After a lot of research I found the most cost effective way to add a accelerator would be to add a old Nvidia Tesla GPU, particularly the blower style used in data centers. With a little more digging I decided the best compromise on budget and performance was the M40 24GB model. As luck would have it a user by the name of neophrema had created a fan adapter for this style of Tesla card. The only other requirement that would have to met was the wattage requirement. A 1000 watt PSU replaced the 10 year old 600 watt unit that was in my original build.

Having figured out the most efficient use of hardware, the first big challenge manifested itself. When I was in high-school (circa ~2018-2019) dual chamber builds were very novel. As such there were a lot of very specialized parts to support it. Two of the more specialized parts were the cases and the PSUs. While I had a case that could support 2 motherboards I did not have a PSU that could. Even worse was the fact that they had not produced a PSU with such a feature for around 3 years and the only one that was produce was riddled with problems. I began looking for a novel approach. This manifested itself in the foam of a SFX PSU . This smaller PSU could be mounted in the case in one of the many empty fan slots. This did require some case modification. The SFX PSU would require some kind of IEC connector extension since it was not mounted in a place were it would be exposed for any kind of connection.

After a little bit of careful planning I cut a slot into my case for a extra IEC connector. Once that was done I was able to make solder on the male end of the connector. Just like that my case had the IO required for the new PSU arrangement.

As a avid VR fan I also chose to add a SMA bulkhead on the case as well. This was added to accommodate a HTC VIVE wireless card. Normally these cards are plugged into the PCIE-Express 1.0x slot on your motherboard, which is exactly how I added it to the E-ATX side of this computer. However mini-ATX boards only have PCIE-16x slot which is what is used for the GPU. This meant if I wanted to use my wireless VR kit on either side of this computer I would need to get creative. Ultimately my solution was to purchase a mini-ATX board with dual m.2 PCIE slots. this meant with a adapter I would be able add a PICE-4.0x slot to the mini-ATX board. Coupled with the SMA bulkhead to add the required external antenna I was able to add the wireless HTC VIVE card tot he mini-ATX side of the build.

During this time I also had to find a new GPU for the mini-ATX side of the computer. I was reusing the the i5 and the ram kit from my original build however I still needed a motherboard and GPU. The motherboard choice was mostly driven by the aforementioned dual m.2 slot requirement. I ended up picking up a Gigabyte Z370N WIFI motherboard off eBay. The GPU required a little more thought, the case required a low profile GPU which severally limited my options. After coming around the only two options that were in my price range were a Intel Arc A380 and the NVIDIA 3050 LP. I ended up going with the NVIDIA 3050 LP due to the better documented compatibility with the various software and OS’s I use.

As for the GPU on the E-ATX side I chose to use a NVIDIA RTX 2070 that was gifted to me by a friend. I was able to source the i9 that I had chosen to use was sourced off Facebook Marketplace for a very reasonable price. I also need to find a way to cool both of the CPUs, especially since 9th gen Intel chips were know to to produce a lot of heat. This required a little bit of thought as the SFX PSU took up one of the fan slots that would normally be used for the two 360mm radiators used to cool the CPUs. THis meant that the most the case could support was one 280mm radiator and one 360mm radiator. as the i9 produced legendary amounts of heat I paired it with the larger 360mm AIO and the 280mm AIO with the i5.

This pretty much completed the build and I began assembly. For the most part the assembly was straight forward. I did have to buy a adapter or two to make the most of the IO available on the boards. The biggest challenge was the insane cable management, since I was cramming not only two computers into the case but two fully speced work stations. Evey step of the way i had to make sure that the cabling was as minimal as possible. I also had to 3d print a custom mount for the SFX PSU that was going in the fan slot. After all of this was complete I was left with the mother of all workstations.