Chaning Case On a Dell e520

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lutics

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I recently got a dell dimension e520 desktop computer.
I'm looking to buy a new case.
One that looks good & one that has better cooling as I use it alot & my hard drive seems to heat up pretty fast.

What I need to know?


Is there anything I should know before spending money on a new case.
I found out its a ATX (not sure what that means). I am also very noobish when it comes to computer terms xD so if you could explain it, I would appreciate it. Anyway..

Also would it void my warranty if I was to transfer the guts of the computer into a new case? I'm guessing it would..

I was looking around at some forums yesterday & alot of them were saying that dells motherboards are custom & wont fit many Cases. Is this true?

Also what are your thoughts on Water Cooling VS Fan Cooling.

xD Thanks for reading it.. & I look forward to reading your response.
 
Hey lutics,
Welcome to T.F.!


ATX is a form factor for a motherboard. ATX is the standard. Theres also Micro-ATX, Extended ATX, BTX, and others.

It would void your warranty, if it's still under warranty.

Since you said it's ATX form factor, I think it should have no problem.

Water cooling is for the advanced techies. And if you're going water cooling, don't skimp on it. A cheap watercooling kit is not worth it. A good watercooling kit will run you, about $250+. So I'd stick to very good air cooling.

I was looking up inside pics, of your computer, and it looks like BTX. I'm not sure if it's just an ATX turned upside down.

edit:OK it's BTX.
 
I see..

So do i need to worry about where the USB ports & stuff a positioned or can they be repositioned?
 
ok thank you for that :) Mind if I ask a few more questions xD before I go to sleep hehe :)

also with the power supply. I think mines 305w would it matter if I got a 400w? or something higher?

umm & with ram do I need to buy it from dell specifically? or can it be any ddr2 sd ram?
 
I know Dell parts are proprietary. I would check to make sure. And you can do this by, getting a program called CPU-Z, and looking at the memory tab. It will tell you what type.

edit:While looking up specs, for that computer, it says DDR2 so it's ok.

It wouldn't matter if you got a 400W power supply, or higher. If you are planning though, I would suggest this for 400W:
Newegg.com - FSP Group (Fortron Source) AX400-PN, RoHS, 12cm FAN, version 2.2, 2 SATA, 20+ 4 pin, PCI Express, 400W Power Supply - Retail
 
make sure any case you consider does support BTX. There are a few that do, so be sure.

If you go with a bigger wattage PSU, look at the GFX card you want to use one day and buy a PSU that will power it and the rest of your system.

Read the reviews and ask here about any case as far as air flow. The wrong case won't help you at all.

Also, what kind of budget are you looking at for the case and for the PSU?
 
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