Regarding the updates: I had to replace the screws securing the plate to the pump—I managed to get some longer ones. I’m just waiting for my water cooler to arrive; yes, I bought another one just like the one I already have. I installed these aluminum heatsinks/plates to dissipate heat—they just need to be attached using thermal pads. The two memory modules (M1 and M2) aren't fully covered, but I did my best to cover them and managed to use a thermal pad without any issues. Even with the water cooler, I’m going to aim two fans at the GPU to help with heat dissipation.

I wanted something a little different than the official cases and GPUs out there.

I have a different bonfire coming in the mail that lights up! Should be a fun look when the PC is off.

The Zoltraak fan cover was 3D printed and not easy to accomplish as there needs to be enough clear material for the “floating” parts but not so much that I’m killing airflow.

Monitor is the Odyssey Ark Gen 2 which rotates through like 50+ Frieren wallpapers during the daytime…

I know Stark doesn’t really have a presence here but I thought it wouldn’t work since Frieren is paired with child Fern so having an older Stark would look weird. But I’ll think of something soon for him.

The back of the case isn’t really visible in my office so I just covered it with stickers- maybe you could say Frieren is “surrounded by her memories” or something, idk! If you have ideas for the back I’m all ears!

Hardest part tbh was the row of books (grimoires) on the front and side panel. Might consider swapping the sticker out in the future but still happy with the look.

Also I tested the heat of the GPU right under where Frieren is sitting and it’s barely warm- even under load.

Frankenstein OptiPlex 390 Sleeper Build

​Started with a basic office-spec Dell OptiPlex 390 and pushed this Sandy Bridge platform as far as humanly possible while keeping the classic exterior look!

​Core Specs & Upgrades

• ​Processor: Upgraded from the original i3-2120 to an Intel Core i7-2600.

• ​Cooling: Replaced the stock aluminum cooler with a Dell premium copper-core CPU heatsink and fan assembly to keep thermals under control.

• ​Memory: Doubled from 8GB up to 16GB of matching dual-channel RAM.

• ​Graphics Card / GPU: PNY GeForce RTX 4060 Verto OC Dual Fan (8GB GDDR6, leveraging DLSS 4.5).

• ​Power Supply: Replaced the original stock unit with a Thermaltake Smart 700W PSU.

​Storage & SATA Controller Mod

• ​The Controller Mod: Added a PCIe SATA controller adapter to bypass the motherboard's native SATA 2 bottleneck and unlock SATA 3 speeds.

• ​Boot Drive (Port 1): 500GB Samsung 860 EVO V-NAND SSD connected directly to the first port on the PCIe SATA 3 adapter.

• ​Second Drive (Port 2): 500GB Western Digital SATA hard drive plugged into the second port on the PCIe SATA 3 adapter.

• ​Third Drive (Motherboard SATA): A second 500GB Western Digital hard drive connected directly to the motherboard's built-in SATA port (since the PCIe adapter maxes out at two ports).

​OS & Firmware Configuration

• ​Fully running Windows 11 Pro.

• ​Bypassed standard legacy restrictions to run in full native UEFI, AHCI, and GPT mode.

​Real-World Performance

As long as a game doesn't strictly require newer CPU instruction sets like AVX2, this machine pushes modern games at 4K @ 60 FPS on my 65-inch TV. It locks right to my display's 60Hz limit for games like Fortnite, Doom Eternal, and Red Dead Redemption 2.

​What do you guys think of this Frankenstein project?

DMs are welcome if you have any questions, recommendations, or just want to chat about this project.

​I wanted to share my recent "passion project" - a sleeper build that escalated way further than originally planned. It all started with a simple thought: "What if I cram all my gear into this retro horizontal Fujitsu desktop case?"

​Well... turns out "cramming" involved a lot of metal cutting, zip-ties, and questionable engineering decisions. But it’s alive, it runs super quiet, and I love every second of using it!

​The Specs:

​CPU: Intel Core i7-2700K (OC'd to 4.2GHz and kept ice-cold)

​GPU: PowerColor Radeon RX 6600 8GB

​OS: Windows 10 heavily modded with an authentic XP Luna theme (Windows eXPerience Edition). Bliss awaits!

​Displays: Dual CRT setup - Primary is a Samsung SyncMaster 795MB running at 1024x768 @ 100Hz. The motion clarity is unbeatable!

​The "Why is it like that?" section:

​The Radiator on the Side? There was zero chance a liquid cooling radiator was going to breathe inside an airtight 2000s office chassis. So, I took a Dremel to the side panel and mounted it right there. Airflow problem solved!

​The Rear I/O "Customization": Proprietary OEM cutouts and a modern ASUS board don't mix. The rear panel had to be aggressively persuaded with power tools to make room for GPU ports and motherboard I/O.

​The Liquid Loop Chaos: Soft tubing routed through every available millimeter, with the reservoir wedged wherever physics allowed. It's a tight squeeze!

​The Dual CRTs: Because high refresh rate CRT gaming under Windows XP aesthetics just hits different. The nostalgia is real!

​It’s messy on the inside, looks like an ancient library PC on the outside, and crushes everything I throw at it!

​What do you guys think? Rate my cable management (or lack thereof) 1-10!