Incredible find!!😁

[Dusnoetos]

>Story time<
Please read all - it's fun
​

Early yesterday morning, I was flipping through local Craigslist - mostly looking for a better GPU. I came across a listing for a really sweet HTPC case, a Fractal Design Node 605 "with extras" for $50. The pictures were really dark, but it was clear that it had a complete system in it. In spite of the bad pictures, I recognized the PSU, an Antec TruePower Quattro 1000W !! That got me to look up the case. I decided the Node 605 would be a perfect upgrade for my current HTPC case - a generic short tower case on its side to fit my AV rack that never looked good. And after my recent purchase of a Ryzen 5 1600, MB, and memory combo; I was already in the process of upgrading all of my home computers. Ryzen 5 in main rig, Phenom II 1100T transferred to the HTPC and the Athlon II X4 640 from the HTPC to my neighbor (who was in need...).

Or so I thought! ​

Well, on a whim I bought the case. Best $50 I've spent in a long time! The seller could not remember what the system was except that it was over 5years old and that he spent well over a grand on it. He mentioned multiple times that this was a "top dog" computer when he bought it. Well, once I got back to my truck, I had to take a quick look inside. Surprisingly clean. 3 nice 120mm fans. The easily identified components are: Intel MB (with a fun skull printed on it. model number was hidden under NIC, HD 5570, Sound blaster X-FI Xtrem, High end NIC, and 6gb DDR3, and 80gb SSD. CPU would have to wait till I got home, but the Intel labeled heat-pipe heatsink had me hugely curious.
After a few hours of work, (I am a self-employed handyman) I got home. After obligatory time with family, I get to find out what I bought that morning. Figured the easiest way was to plug it in and enter BIOS. Well, I was not fast enough to hit F2 and it loaded Windows (7 pro, and if an article I recently read is correct, I can still use this to upgrade to Win 10 for free). Well simple check of the system showed that I have a CORE I7 X-980 on an Intel DX58SO Motherboard

While yes this is a 12-year-old system it would appear that it is still very capable here in 2022. From a cost point of view, the MB alone averages $200+, CPU $100+, PSU $60+, GPU $30ish and the Case $100+ for equivalent designs.

So, the I7 X-980 system will now be my new HTPC. The Phenom II 1100T system will go to neighbor. And the Athlon II X4 640 system may go to my kids (who love Minecraft) or will sit in limbo...


Well, if this was entertaining to at least 1 person I will be happy,

 

[EarthDog]

Sounds like a nice find man...love it when that happens! An old hex-core X58 chip.... w00t!

 

[ATMINSIDE]

CORE I7 X-980 on an Intel DX58SO Motherboard

What a find!! Very capable CPU and a great OC motherboard for it too. Get a better cooler on there and shoot for the moon!

 

[JLK03F150]

 

[WrkBoot]

Yeah.......pictures please

 

[Dusnoetos]

I will take some pictures today.....

 

[Dusnoetos]

Get a better cooler on there and shoot for the moon!

I hear ya. While the Intel heatpipe cooler is among the best "stock" coolers I have seen. The 'better' coolers I currently own are simply too tall to fit in the case.

 

[ATMINSIDE]

I hear ya. While the Intel heatpipe cooler is among the best "stock" coolers I have seen. The 'better' coolers I currently own are simply too tall to fit in the case.

What height do you have available?

 

[Dusnoetos]

Already, as requested (sorry a day late) pictures!

The Case: Personally I think it is gorgeous. Very sleek, minimalist design. It has 3 - 120mm fans connected to a "hi, med, low" switch (left side of 3rd picture) and 2 - 80mm fans.


The Guts: I decided to swap out the massive Antec 1000w PSU for the smaller Thermaltake PSU. This allowed for much easier wire management. Plus the Thermaltake PSU has a 120mm fan that gets to pull air from outside the case. The gloss white bracket holds the Hard drives. I am using the 80GB SSD that came with system for windows and added a 1TB drive for storage.


The GPU: While older it should be good enough for HTPC duties for now. I just wish it vented out of the case.


The SSD: Older, But should still be faster than any mechanical drive...


And lastly the PSU: I decided that I could use this massive PSU else where...




A crazy side note... I am so glad I decided to remove the heat sink - to clean it. To my absolute shock and horror, previous owner did not remove the blue protective plastic film from the bottom of the heat sink. He just blobed the thermal paste over the plastic film! Obviously it did not kill the I7-980X since I am using the system to write this post!

 

[freakdiablo]

A lot cleaner than I expected. Surprising, considering the little detail about the heatsink film...

You're probably the first one to run it at full speed, as I wouldn't be surprised if it was constantly throttled for the last owner.

 

[Dusnoetos]

What height do you have available?

The Intel cooler is 124mm tall. Nothing taller would fit this case.

Post magically merged: Feb 4, 2022

A lot cleaner than I expected. Surprising, considering the little detail about the heatsink film...

You're probably the first one to run it at full speed, as I wouldn't be surprised if it was constantly throttled for the last owner.

Hum, that is a interesting observation about the CPU speed.

 

[JLK03F150]

Thanks for the pictures! I agree, that's a really good looking case. You are fortunate to find such a great deal.

 

[Mr.Scott]

It's nice.
FWIW, that TR2 430 ain't a good PSU. It's way old and notorious for going poof.

 

[ATMINSIDE]

The Intel cooler is 124mm tall. Nothing taller would fit this case.

Consider a Noctua NH-C14S with the fan mounted under the cooler if you want more cooling capability or a quieter cooler at some point. Still can't believe this find though!

 

[WrkBoot]

WOW that is a nice find. I like the custom fan shroud on the CPU heheheheh I guess It never got hot enough to melt the plastic.

 

[ihrsetrdr]

Sweeeet! I can do Paypal or cash if you wanna get rid of it....operators are standing by.

 

[Dusnoetos]

Sweeeet! I can do Paypal or cash if you wanna get rid of it....operators are standing by.

I'll let you all know if it goes up for sale....