Heat, Custom Casing...tons of questions...

I've been thinking about this crazy desgin scheme...(idk where to put this...its not really modding category...for the fact I need to know answers to things about what I need to be careful of when it comes to hardware)

ok, lets say I wanted to design my own computer case and build a custom computer that was pretty unique..

I was googling...and couldn't really find a solid answer..

what is worse for dispersing heat..

wood..
or metal?

like...not in terms of cpu cooling or anything..

but if I made a case out of metal...
or a case out of wood...which one would be hotter?..

you also have to take into consideration that with a wood case, I can make it as big as I would like...and throw in alot of fans.


I've been putting alot of thought into this idea...and I think it would be pretty awesome.

 

theres some pros and cons I can think of with this..

pros:

+can be built as big as I need....

+if I can build it bigger, I can have more space to work with for a custom watercooling setup later..

+ wood would also be a more suitable building material simply because its easy to change.

+I can more easily add 5+ fans to this computer to cool it off if needed.

+I can give the case a pretty cool, unique custom paintjob

+possibility of it floating in case it was dropped in a pool (haha..idk)

cons...

-I don't know how much heat I will actually end up having to deal with...

- will most likely be alot heavier than plastic/metal cases

- slightly more difficult to show off lighting effects and whatnot

 

additionally, what would be some big issues I would need to watch out for?

 

well, can anyone give me any suggestions or anything?

 

I know that working with wood would be a WHOLE lot easier unless you happen to have access to a metal shop, complete with presses and forming benches (for bending the sheet metal into the desired shape), etc. I saw an article on the 'net a while back (on ZDNet if I remember) where a guy built his own case from plywood. They had photos of each step, a parts list, a tools list, the whole deal. It actually turned out pretty slick. If I remember, he had a 120mm fan in front down low, another 120mm up high in the back, 2 80mm on the side access panel, and 2 80mm fans on top about 6 inches apart. He mounted the PSU in a non-standard location and one of 120mm fans was where the PSU would be in a standard ATX case.... I'll try to find the link for you and I'll post it if I do find it. In the meantime, you could probably poke around at zdnet.com and see of you can find it. I think they require free registration w/ an email address....

hd2k

 

thanks, I'll try that as soon as I get done Googleing a few other things.