Build your own XPC!
About three years ago, I put together a Shuttle XPC and we’ve loved it ever since. It is small and very quiet, allowing it to sit on the desk and not clutter the floor. I affectionately named it “Blackbird” after the little stealth BSG ship. 
Over the holiday break, I decided it was time for an upgrade, so I ordered parts for yet another XPC.
With just a couple of exceptions (like the famous “BSR door” computer – but that is a story for another time…), I’ve built every PC that I’ve owned. I was always picky about the case, the video card, the disk controller, etc. Now days, almost everything is built on the motherboard, so there’s not much choice in that regard unless you are a hard core gamer; it is simply a hobby for me. So, let’s get started!
The whole point of an XPC is the small form factor (here’s a shot of my hand on the open chassis for comparison) but they are actually quite easy to assemble. A Shuttle “bare bones” package comes with the motherboard already mounted in the case.
The XPC uses a unique cooling engine that acts like a radiator to carry heat away from the CPU. Here is the ICE assembly removed so that the processor can be installed, followed by a shot of the case with the assembly back in place.
For this machine, I installed an Intel Core2 Duo 3.0GHz processor. I just love looking at these chips – no pins, just surface contacts. Be sure to lather on plenty of heat sink compound!
Getting the processor installed is the bulk of the job. I use a two screwdriver technique to secure the ICE assembly, pushing down on one corner while screwing in the opposite one. The Shuttle chassis is well thought out, as demonstrated by having access from both sides to easily snap down the memory modules with your thumbs.
The case also contains very nice cable management. For this machine, both the hard disk and optical drive are SATA, so I removed the ribbon cables completely. And while the form factor is super small, there’s still room for a PCI Express video card. I chose an Asus EN8400GS Silent model that has a large heat sink instead of a fan. I am an occasional gamer and do appreciate something better than the standard Intel onboard graphics, but there’s no point in having a quiet PC if you are going to ram a video card with two fans into it.
Here’s the final product along with the unused Intel heat sink and fan that come with the processor. Pretty amazing what you can pack into that small chassis!
And for those of you that live for the particulars…
- Shuttle SG31G2 black with Intel G31 chipset
- Intel Core2 Duo e8400 3.0GHz
- Crucial 4GB DDR2 (2 x 2GB)
- LG GGW-H20L 6X Blu-Ray writer, HD-DVD reader
- Seagate 500GB ST3500320AS SATA300
- Asus EN8400GS Silent (GeForce 8400 GS) 512M GDDR2 PCI Express x16
The old XPC that I am replacing is for sale… any takers?
Need another final picture with something to understand the size. Maybe a spool of CDs or a reem of paper. Also… would like to know pricing… at least overall cost… want to know cost diff for Shuttle pc over just a small pc that I put together for my mom. I looked at those but thought they were a lot more. Any guess as to what % more?
Comment by David K — March 6, 2009 @ 4:36 pmIt’s about 7.75 inches wide, 7.5 inches high and 11.5 inches deep. The bare bones system with 4GB of memory and 3.0GHz Core2 Duo processor was $407.50, the Seagate 500GB disk was $68.49, and I paid up for the Blu-Ray writer at $239.28. The video card is a passively cooled ASUS 8400GS that cost around $30. Throw in Windows Vista Home Premium OEM at $99.84 and you’re getting upwards of $850 with no monitor, though you could shave off a couple hundred with a vanilla DVD writer and the on-board video instead of a card. I ordered everything from http://www.mwave.com except for the video card, which I got from http://www.newegg.com.
Comment by jason — March 11, 2009 @ 8:29 pmHi Jason,
Chanced upon your site while trying to troubleshoot a sg31g2 I am putting together. I am using an e2180 chip that I removed from another machine with a samsung sata dvd/rw, 2x1gb 667MHz DDR2 and a 7200RPM IDE. After I installed all the components and turned it on I don’t get a video signal or any indication that the mobo is working. Any ideas on how I can troubleshoot? Thanks in advance for any suggestions.
Comment by rjv — August 26, 2009 @ 9:16 pmI would start by unhooking anything that draws load – CD drive, hard disk, add on video card, etc. See if you can get it to post with just the chip and memory. If it is still baked, try it without the memory – some will at least give you a beep sequence indicating that there is no memory, which would at least tell you that the board is posting and maybe the memory is the problem. As you take things out, hopefully you’ll stumble upon something that you can determine is the problem. That is tough with the memory and chip unless you have extras laying around to test. Barring that, I’d double check jumpers and connectors such as fans, lights, etc, and get your hands on a power supply tester and maybe another chip to try. Good luck!
Comment by jason — August 26, 2009 @ 9:38 pmThanks for the suggestion. I disconnected everything including the memory and tried powering on only with the CPU and all I hear is the power unit fan turning on. No beeps no lights etc. Not sure where to go from here. Let me know if you can think of anything else I can try. Thanks again
Comment by rjv — August 27, 2009 @ 6:55 amI think the main board has a light near the front that indicates it is getting power. If you don’t see that, I’m guessing either the board is dead or the power supply is suspect.
Comment by jason — August 27, 2009 @ 6:42 pmJason – thank you for your suggestion via email, too. I see a green light to the right of RAM slot 2 that is on when I power on the system (if thats the one you mean).
Someone else mentioned that I make sure the jumper for the PCI-e display is off so the system can use the onboard, but I dont see any jumper slot for that. I am going to try a pci display card just in case.
Comment by rjv — August 28, 2009 @ 8:47 pm