[Series] ~Chronicles of a Showa PC Geek~ Part 14: "The Universe Inside the Case"

Since I started building my own PCs, some people might focus on the "insides" that determine a computer's performance, such as the motherboard, CPU, memory, and graphics card, but I focus on the case.

I love making my cases "shine as much as possible" more than anything.

Yes, the case is the very worldview of a PC itself.

And before I knew it, I had started creating "the universe inside the case."

Meeting KUROSUKE

This was the PC I built as my third custom machine. (My first and second custom machines were introduced in Part 12: "My First Custom Build")

Its name was—

KUROSUKE

It was a pitch-black case with a transparent acrylic door on the left side, designed so you could see inside. I bought it because I liked the structure that allowed you to see the interior, and as shown in the photo, I built a so-called "glowing PC" that shone brilliantly with LED fans and an AIO liquid cooler with a glowing head.

Light spreads inside the case,
the fans rotate,
and the cables are neatly arranged.

It was just like,
a small universe.

And this KUROSUKE had
one other major feature.

That was—

that I attached casters to it. Since KUROSUKE was slim, I could use commercially available PC casters, so I adopted them.

The beginning of caster culture

Without exception, my PC cases
have casters attached.

Why?

The reason is simple.

It makes moving it easy.

When you build your own PCs, the cases just keep getting bigger.

Power supplies get larger,
graphics cards become massive,
and the number of HDDs increases.

Before you know it, the PC has become a
heavyweight machine weighing nearly 20kg.

Pulling something like that out from under a desk is a chore.

That is where casters come in.

You can roll it out easily.
Cleaning is easy too.
Maintenance is also a breeze.

Once you use a PC with casters,
you can never go back.

For me, KUROSUKE was
the beginning of

the glowing PC culture
and
the caster culture

.

The romance of the full tower

My fourth custom-built PC was a CM Stacker.

After KUROSUKE,
my case selection escalated even further.

And that is when I encountered
a legendary case.

CoolerMaster CM Stacker

It was, simply put, enormous.

It had both height and depth, and
the interior was overwhelmingly spacious.

It had a massive number of drive bays, and
its expandability could be called infinite.

Back then, I thought to myself.

"With this case, I can do anything."

Stacking multiple HDDs,
adding more fans,
and organizing the wiring,

I would build the inside of the case into
my ideal spacestep by step.

The joy of building a PC
isn't just about choosing the parts.

It's about how you construct the interior of the case.

It felt just like

architecture

or perhaps

space exploration

a sensation like that.

The pinnacle of romance

I've forgotten which build it was, but it was the white LEVEL10 I made just before my current PC.

And then,
the most impactful case
in my entire history of using cases appeared.

That was

Thermaltake LEVEL10GT

.

When I first saw this case,
I was speechless.

It was completely different
from a normal PC case.

Each part was arranged as an independent module,
with a design that looked like a machine from a sci-fi movie.

Yes, the Thermaltake "Level 10" series was a groundbreaking PC case, very famous for being designed by the BMW Group's design firm, BMW Group Designworks USA.

And what I chose was

the white LEVEL 10

In a world where PC cases are mostly black,
the white LEVEL 10 was simply beautiful.

The price, weight, and size
were all completely in the realm of "romance".

To be honest,

if it were just about practicality, another case would have been better.

But that's okay.

Because—

it's about romance.

The hobby of building your own PC
always requires this "romance".

And now

View71 TG RGB

And now,
this is my main PC case.

Thermaltake View71 TG RGB

Full tower case.
Four-sided tempered glass.

And RGB fans.

The inside of the case is
structured entirely for "showing off."

What you see through the glass is

the motherboard
the graphics card
the liquid cooler
and the glowing fans

The sight of them moving quietly is
truly

the universe inside the case

.

At night, I dim the room lights a little
and gaze at the PC.

The fan lights rotate slowly,
and light spreads inside the case.

Just watching that
makes me feel satisfied somehow.

Even though it's a computer,
it's just like interior decor.

By the way, this case
weighs about 20kg. Including the parts inside, it's nearly 30kg.

Naturally, it comes with casters.

The case is a romance

I think there are various joys to building your own PC, but for me, it's the case. I just want to make it glow. I want to make it glow and show off the PC beautifully.

The case is

the foundation that supports performance,
the stage that creates beauty,
and

the owner's romance itself

That is what I believe.

Depending on the person,
some prefer small cases.

Some pursue silent PCs.

Some are obsessed with water cooling.

But in my case, it is different.

A massive full tower.
Glowing fans.
A heavy case.
And casters.

That is my style.

And even now,
inside the case

fans are spinning,
light is spreading,
and parts are quietly continuing to work.

Just like a small universe.

Building your own PC is,
a hobby of pursuing performance.

But at the same time,

it is also a hobby of chasing romance.

And I will surely
continue to choose large cases from here on out.

Because—

it is romance.

🔔 Part 15 Preview

"My Encounter with a Small Windows"
~The Shock of a Junk Tablet~

I have been chasing the "massive romance" of full-tower PCs.
However, one day, I have an unexpected encounter in the junk corner of Hard Off.

It was—
a small Windows tablet.

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