Trial

A computer case built into a cabinet — a piece of furniture that hides the technology while optimising for airflow and function. In this project I did everything from PCB design, to metalworking. With a bit of woodworking in between.

Trial started as a response to my previous cases — Tilia was too tailored to specific components with no upgrade path, and E32B turned out too large and reliant on water cooling. I had evolved as a person and wanted something that would fit into my office without obviously being a computer. I've always been fascinated by making furniture functional, so I took inspiration from rack-mounted servers and furniture design to build my own cabinet with a computer inside — one with serious cooling capacity and room for basically any component.

I started in Fusion 360, designing the metal enclosure and all specifications for it. I then contracted Qbior, a Finnish manufacturer who had also built E32B, to fabricate the core metal parts.

With the metal structure done, I moved on to woodworking. I sourced high-quality oak-veneered plywood — I've been fascinated with it ever since seeing the Eames lounge chair, and I love the layered lines that plywood provides. After a few iterations on the design, I committed to a complex mitre joint for the corners. I had never built anything like it, but I just went for it and learned how to construct a cabinet made of multiple smaller boxes.

For the backside, I taught myself to use a CNC router to cut specific exhaust cutouts for the computer's airflow. I also had to design a custom PCB for the power button — I learned KiCad for that and had it manufactured by PCBWay. With both components ready, I glued the core together and started building the boxes. Unfortunately, due to some miscommunication, the handles from Finland came out wrong — so I went back to CAD and the CNC machine and fabricated my own metal handles, bending them into shape myself.

The result is a fully functional piece of furniture that houses my computer. It's heavy as fuck, but it works — and I'm really proud of it. Trial was featured on the front page of SweClockers and is the most upvoted gallery on the site ever.

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