Hello!
The Goal: To build a PC capable of classic game emulation inside of a NES shell. Bonus if capable to play some "modern" PC games. Stupendous if able to play some 3d games well. Final goal, to be used in an Arcade PC
The Parts:
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant
| Type | Item | Price |
|---|---|---|
| CPU | AMD 5350 2.05Ghz Quad-Core Processor | $35.99 @ Amazon |
| Motherboard | ASRock AM1H-ITX Mini ITX AM1 Motherboard | $50.98 @ Newegg |
| Memory | A-Data XPG V1.0 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory | - |
| Storage | Crucial M500 240GB 2.5" Solid State Drive | $64.99 |
| Operating System | Microsoft Windows 7 Ultimate Full 32/64-bit | Purchased For $0.00 |
| Case Fan | StarTech FAN5X1TX3 8.6 CFM 50mm Fan | $5.98 @ OutletPC |
| Other | NES Shell | |
| Other | External Power supply | $13.10 |
| Other | USB 3.0 | $8.98 |
| Other | Bezel Light Kit | $3.99 |
| Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts | ||
| Total | $184.01 | |
| Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-09-23 16:44 EDT-0400 |
When I was a kid, I remembered watching The Screen Savers have a section where a guy built a PC inside of an NES and was absolutely blow away by the idea. I tried to take it on by putting an old Celeron inside of an Xbox case, but never really got around too it, and it looked horrible (we're talking we added wood too it.)
Fast forward to 2014, and I began this build after my brother found a dud of an NES when garage saleing. I originally got some of these parts for Christmas from my In-laws (the CPU and motherboard) and then was going to buy the rest as time went on. Original plan, 3 months tops. Didn't happen, as life got in the way, and other hobbies become more important over spring/summer/fall (Cycling especially!)
Eventually, my buddy and I get to chopping up the case and starting to figure out where things would go. Now, again, I'm absolutely new to this and had no idea what I was doing (and the pics show it). Get the motherboard mounted and make sure the height works...and it doesn't.
The cpu fan was too thick. BUT! I bought small case fan to use to help push air around, and it's the same size as the cpu fan, but thinner! Perfect, swapped those two around, and it worked perfectly! 8 months in and we're finally moving the pc from the temporary case to the actual shell, after installing OS and verifying functionality. All that was left was to get the power switches working and then away she goes.
And then it sat...and sat...and sat. I knew nothing about getting the switches rerouted, no soldering equipment or experience, and frankly, not enough desire to invest into it at the time. but, with winter coming up, I decided enough excuses, I need to figure out something. I took apart the power switches, used sections of them to attach to the case, and then put the power and reset bumper behind a piece of plastic attached to the respective switch. And voila, it worked! Glued the power light in place, and my god, the computer was almost done.
Now, the front USB section was a quick thought, and I wanted to mount it, but at this point I'll call it done for this iteration. It works, and that's all I was after for this.
What I'd do differently: Absolutely take more time and research. Buy a dremel instead of borrowing one, and learn to use it well. Learn to solder, and invest in the equipment. Build faster, as the SSD was much more expensive when I bought it.
While it's not the prettiest belle at the ball, the idea of it is great, and it is surprisingly powerful for what it is. Some frame rates that I gathered using fraps ( And some screenshots for quality of ES games )
- Game Max Min Avg
- Counter Strike GO: 1080p Low no AA/AF 43 25 34
- Counter Strike GO: 720p Low no AA/AF 45 29 36
- Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim 720p Low No aa/af 44 24 33
- Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim 1080p Low No aa/af 26 11 19 (pointless to play at)
- Elder Scrolls IV 1080p Medium 30 16 23 (unplayable)
- Elder Scrolls IV 1080p Very Low 57 27 45 (Hilarious, looks like a PS2 game)
- Elder Scrolls IV 720P Medium 48 30 41 (night and day difference, absolutely playable)
- Mass Effect 720 Low 40 14 31 (smooth as butter, absolutely playable)
Thanks for reading, it has been a blast, and I look forward to attempting this again in the future!
Submitted by lskennedy | #Specialdealer Special Offer Online Shopping Store 2016
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