A user wants to install an optical drive in his gaming PC. Due to its design, the housing does not offer any space for this. The user solves the problem in a simple and ingenious way.
Newer PC cases are one thing above all: stylish. But closed designs can also pose problems. For example, if you want to expand your computer with certain components.
In the case of one Reddit user, his Corsair case was his downfall. While older PC cases usually offered multiple slots for optical drives, his model is not designed for this at all. In a similar case, the PC case was also the reason why a gamer had to get inventive.
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Since external drives are too expensive for him, he opts for a more cost-effective DIY solution with a drive that is actually supposed to be installed internally. You can find out everything about his simple and ingenious idea in this article.
DIY solution costs 100 euros less
Why did the user have to be inventive? The user with the Reddit-Named hunter-man needed an optical drive in his gaming PC. However, his PC case from Corsair is designed in such a way that a 5.25-inch drive cannot be installed in the front.
The entire front is closed and has 3 fans behind it. A suitable installation slot simply does not exist. There are also creative hobbyists who design housings to suit their needs, for example in the form of an old printer.
In his search for a suitable external drive with a normal 5.25-inch design, he found suitable models for the equivalent of 170 euros. He was able to save a lot of money by choosing an internal drive that he would mount outside of his computer.
The selected HP drive, an adapter and the mounting material cost him a total of just over 70 euros. In this way he was able to save 100 euros compared to a full external drive.
How did hunter-man mount the drive? In order to quickly reach the optical drive, the user decided to mount it below the desk top, just behind the front edge of the table.
To attach it, he used 2 flat steel rails. He edited these slightly and angled them. This meant he could completely enclose the optical drive with the rails. 4 screws in the underside of the table top and 4 screws in the drive keep the whole thing in place. To prevent vibrations and shocks on the desk, he also installed rubber stoppers between the table top and the drive.
How was the drive connected? Since the HP model is actually intended for internal installation, the user had to use a SATA to USB adapter. He inserted the side with the SATA interface into the drive. He connected the USB cable that came out to his PC. Thanks to an additional power supply for the adapter, powering the drive was no problem.
Such adapters can also be used to connect removed hard drives to the computer via USB. Depending on the size and power requirement, the extra power supply is then connected to the adapter.
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Were there any other options for a drive? Yes, there were. He initially tried to connect an existing external USB slim drive with a compact size to his gaming PC. The attempt failed because the USB extension cable could not transfer enough power to the drive. In addition, the drive did not recognize some of his DVDs and Blu-Rays.
Have you ever had problems installing components because your housing was unsuitable at the time? And did you then become as creative as the user with an optical drive?
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