Change the internal parts of Studio XPS 435MT with another Dell case?

[LukeWarm]

Hi guys, I have a Dell Studio 435MT and it is performing well, it has got: 1x BD-RE drive, 1x DVD-RW, 2x 640WD Caviar Black SATA HDDs, 1x OCZ Vertex 96GB SSD, 1x Radeon HD 5770, 1x SATA controller PCIe, 1x ATI TV Wonder HD600 PCIe. I noticed that my CPU corei7 920 is ranging from 47~50C when normally used according to Speed Fan and the Radeon HD 5770 stays still at about 57C and while gaming it'll reach about +8C according to ATI CCC. To support all this, I already have a Thermal take 500w PSU upgrade. I really like the OEM cases as they are well thought out with lots of sound proof and vibration proof parts. I would like to know if I can move my Studio XPS 435MT internals to a Studio XPS 8100 or even an Optiplex 745/755 case. Has anyone tried other larger cases also because I really would like to do minimal to no case modification if possible?

[Virtuous]

If you are a new guy, then don’t worries this may be like a project for you. Though it is not easy to swap. But to answer your questions, there are a few parts that you can reuse, the heat sink can be used on a generic x58 motherboard or the Dell mobo, but you'll have to remove Dell mobo from the XPS’s box to get to the "X" clamp from under the motherboard for the new case and the motherboard. I don't recommend you do this is because very likely the Dell’s ports on the motherboard will not match up to any normal case's back panel without some custom cutting and drilling. If you're good with that kind of thing, then you can go for it. Good luck with that and please post some pictures if you finish doing that.

[Arjuna3]

If you tend to use any non dell machine or motherboard then I guess you have to also get a copy of new operating system for your machine. The reason is because you get the operating system with the dell machine only for the dell’s machine and if you install that operating system on any other machine then every time you start your machine it will just show you that the copy of the operating system is not genuine. Or else you can call the Microsoft support and tell them that you have scrapped your previous machine and that’s why you need a new serial key to register this copy of windows on your new machine.

[Gajanand]

Hi, The best case situation would be if you could simply swap everything from one case to the other case, though there are few things I am not sure about, the main one is the wiring from the front panel of the case to the motherboard and how that would work. I won’t be able to tell you what would go where, but you can download the manual of the motherboard. Secondly you need to check whether the heat sink would stay or you need to remove it. If you simplify unscrew it from the back plate and lift the motherboard out on its own. Also there is a problem with the back I/O motherboard panel; it is not removable from the case hence you would need to make one yourself. There is a wire mesh that also covers the back I/O panel on the inside of the case so you must use the stencil and cut out the rite holes then cut out the rite holes and use the stencil and the wire mesh together as a back panel. Try these steps and let me know if you require any further help.