Shooter116

So I have grown to hate this heatsucking case, and I want to be able to buy a new graphics card and PSU without having to get a new motherboard. Is there anything that may stop me from being able to do this? Just wondering if the HP's use standard parts or if they keep their stuff locked down.

vwgti

You can swap your guts to a new case, and as far from my experience a regular atx2.0 compliant power supply will work with your current motherboard.

Shooter116

nice thanks, I was hoping there wouldn't be any issues.

btw... vwvortex?

Tator Tot

Yes you can, aslong as the case supports your board size.

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Shooter116

cool. also, i've never swapped PC guts before. Is it hard to do as a first timer? I've only done small upgrades like PCI/PCIe cards, memory, HD...

Tator Tot

Usually not.

My first build was when I was 8.

Just remember the standards

Ground your self so you don't static shock anything.

Make sure you have your screws/screwdriver

And be gentle.

Its a simple process.

You lay your case down, unscrew your motherboard from the old case.
Then lay the standoffs (little brass things) into the proper hole in the case.
Then put your motherboard ontop of those and screw it down again.

You can do it with the CPU & Memory in, I usually take everything out.
Thats just cause I like to be a little bit more careful.

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Shooter116

Sounds easy enough. The main thing I worry about is what to do with all the cables. I see pictures of cases where you don't see any cables at all. I assume they are tucked behind the board, guess i'll have to try it first to truly understand.

Tator Tot

Pretty much, they tuck stuff away, behind the Motherboard tray. in back corners of the case behinds Hard Drives and such.

Its actually pretty hard in most cases.

Some not so much.

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tombom

Yeah, it might be a little hard depending on how old your computer is. And as per cable routing, some cases come with the option of routing the cables behind the motherboard tray (such as the CM590 and 690). If you wanted a really good cable routed, clean look, I'd suggest getting one of these cases, and in time, upgrading your PSU to a modular one (it saves space, because you only use the cables you need). I did this with my CM590, and it is so friggin clean, it's beautiful.

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Shooter116

Hmm, I do like the cable management of the CM cases. I actually ended up looking at the CM 690, as it appeals to me more. But i'm still undecided on whether I should grab that or the antec 900. Does the 900 have any form of cable management similar to the 590/690?