Using the gear is fun too, but it's much different than building something with your hands. Obtaining the gear that really suits you is fun, and customizing it to make it easy to setup and use is also fun. Events last just a few hours, then it's over for a few weeks or so, and frankly, it has reached the point for me where the gigs themselves are pretty easy (once all the gear is set up). It's the setup and tear down that are not fun. So I'm constantly trying to figure out ways to make THAT part of it quicker, easier, lighter, and less of a chore. If, by doing the redesign and rebuilding projects, I can make things better for myself (and my clients), then it's worth the effort I put into it.[emoji4]
Reworking My Large System
- Thread starter DJ Bobcat
- Start date
Using the gear is fun too, but it's much different than building something with your hands. Obtaining the gear that really suits you is fun, and customizing it to make it easy to setup and use is also fun. Events last just a few hours, then it's over for a few weeks or so, and frankly, it has reached the point for me where the gigs themselves are pretty easy (once all the gear is set up). It's the setup and tear down that are not fun. So I'm constantly trying to figure out ways to make THAT part of it quicker, easier, lighter, and less of a chore. If, by doing the redesign and rebuilding projects, I can make things better for myself (and my clients), then it's worth the effort I put into it.[emoji4]
This my entire system minus powered speakers simple easy to use and transport it been nearly the same for 7 years I just realized I don’t need all the extra stuff
Looks pretty cool. What's in it you DON'T need? 7 years is a long time, but I think I'd leave mine the same too if I was completely satisfied with it. The difference is; I've only been DJing for a short time, and built my system having ZERO experience. Now I'm a little smarter (and taking the good advice I get here on this forum), and I think this new system might end up being a significant improvement. I've had a number of other components in my Large System over the last few years too, but I finally decided to simplify my signal chain as much as possible. My small system is SO nice, it made me realize I don't NEED all the extra stuff.
Interesting that you put your patch panel on the front. Do you prefer having it there, or was it because your case has no rails on the back side?
Interesting that you put your patch panel on the front. Do you prefer having it there, or was it because your case has no rails on the back side?
I'm taking a little break from the rack reconstruction part of the project today. The wife is home today, so I'll do stuff inside so she doesn't feel like she's been deserted.[emoji1]
So I'll work on the server upgrade aspect. As you may recall, my old Gator Case DJ rack is now my home server rack, and my three main NAS's are mounted in it. That worked out great, but I bought two Dell T30 servers (because of @steve149[emoji1]), and they need to be setup. The T30's came with a single 1TB hard drive in each one. That's WAY too much space for a system drive, but not enough space for data drives, so I have a couple of new 250GB drives I'll put in them for system drives, then I'll either add some additional 1TB drives, or I'll put in some larger drives for data... I think I have a couple of 4TB drives sitting around here somewhere.[emoji1]
I'm kind of excited though about the progress on my rack mods, so it will be nice to get back to it tomorrow. I have one more support to install, but it needs to be cut down a bit in order to fit correctly, and it will need some shaping (rounding off the edges) so it will fit tightly against the molded plastic insides. Once that last support is installed, I'll be done with most of the outside work, and I can complete the rest of the work inside.
So I'll work on the server upgrade aspect. As you may recall, my old Gator Case DJ rack is now my home server rack, and my three main NAS's are mounted in it. That worked out great, but I bought two Dell T30 servers (because of @steve149[emoji1]), and they need to be setup. The T30's came with a single 1TB hard drive in each one. That's WAY too much space for a system drive, but not enough space for data drives, so I have a couple of new 250GB drives I'll put in them for system drives, then I'll either add some additional 1TB drives, or I'll put in some larger drives for data... I think I have a couple of 4TB drives sitting around here somewhere.[emoji1]
I'm kind of excited though about the progress on my rack mods, so it will be nice to get back to it tomorrow. I have one more support to install, but it needs to be cut down a bit in order to fit correctly, and it will need some shaping (rounding off the edges) so it will fit tightly against the molded plastic insides. Once that last support is installed, I'll be done with most of the outside work, and I can complete the rest of the work inside.
Patch panel is on the front for a couple reasons
All connections easy to reach
It’s much easier to deal with all cabling on the front of unit to present a clean look
I haven’t even opened the back of this case if a year or so
I have two exact duplicate version of this system no need for a small and a large system, occasional ill run a small PA mixed if I need more mics or other inputs, but it’s a pretty rare occurance
Well... There's a few posts missing now... some of you are probably saying; "Thank You Merciful GOD"![emoji23] No worries... I can't remember everything I posted, but I CAN remember the pics I posted today, so I'll repost those. I can't remember the exact narrative that went along with them, but I'll get as close as I can, then I have a couple of new pics from today. So here goes (from earlier today)...
Just posting a couple of pics depicting my progress on the slant-top rack...
The first two items on the left of the first pic are my two fold-down monitor mounting stands, one of which I'll mount on the top edge of the slant-top rack. I'm still leaning toward the square pole, but I'll wait to see which one looks better after completing the mods to the rack...
The item on the right (in the above pic) is the back side of the piece I cut out of the front of the rack, which will eventually becone half of a fold-down keyboard/mouse shelf. I cut a piece to fit behind the molded plastic in order to create a solid base for mounting hinges, and to provide a sturdy shelf. Once it's filled, sanded, painted, and covered with a rubberized mousepad material, it SHOULD look pretty good.
The second pic shows the wooden supports I put in the slant-top rack after cutting out the front section. Again, once it's filled, sanded, and painted, it should look like it was always that way.
The modifications to this rack were a little more difficult, but similar to what I did with the (Gator Cases) rack I use for my Small System (see Small System in-progress pictures below)...
I hope this new rack will end up looking as good as my Small System when it's finished (see completed Small System Below)...
Just posting a couple of pics depicting my progress on the slant-top rack...
The first two items on the left of the first pic are my two fold-down monitor mounting stands, one of which I'll mount on the top edge of the slant-top rack. I'm still leaning toward the square pole, but I'll wait to see which one looks better after completing the mods to the rack...
The item on the right (in the above pic) is the back side of the piece I cut out of the front of the rack, which will eventually becone half of a fold-down keyboard/mouse shelf. I cut a piece to fit behind the molded plastic in order to create a solid base for mounting hinges, and to provide a sturdy shelf. Once it's filled, sanded, painted, and covered with a rubberized mousepad material, it SHOULD look pretty good.
The second pic shows the wooden supports I put in the slant-top rack after cutting out the front section. Again, once it's filled, sanded, and painted, it should look like it was always that way.
The modifications to this rack were a little more difficult, but similar to what I did with the (Gator Cases) rack I use for my Small System (see Small System in-progress pictures below)...
I hope this new rack will end up looking as good as my Small System when it's finished (see completed Small System Below)...
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This next pic is the rack I'll mount in the rear of the SKB slant-top rack. The rack has no rails, but there's almost 6U of space back there. Unfortunately, cutting (slightly enlarging) the rear opening to install rails (like I did on my Small System rac) would make it nearly impossible to use the rear/top cover. So I'm going to mount the rails further inboard, behind the rear opening. The opening is large enough to access the connections, but the screws (attaching the rack-mounted panels0 will not be visible (or accessible) from the back. I don't expect to change the panels in the back much after the rack is completed, but if I need to, the entire rack can be easily removed through the top...
The patch panel is still as it was in my old Large System, and still needs a few changes before the rack system is mounted inside the new SKB rack. Several of the connectors will no longer be necessary, but I'll have a couple of new connectors to install, so it should be a wash.
The patch panel is still as it was in my old Large System, and still needs a few changes before the rack system is mounted inside the new SKB rack. Several of the connectors will no longer be necessary, but I'll have a couple of new connectors to install, so it should be a wash.
OK... now for the new stuff. I got all the supports in, and I wanted to see if the MONITOR MOUNT would work. Like I said earlier, my preference is to use the square pole, so this is what it will look like...
Keep in mind, nothing is painted yet, so it looks a little rough, but it will be shiny and new looking when I'm done. This is what it looks like in the back...
I think it's gonna work. I forgot to take a pic of it folded down before I put everything away for the day, but I'll do that tomorrow.[emoji23]
Keep in mind, nothing is painted yet, so it looks a little rough, but it will be shiny and new looking when I'm done.
This is what it looks like in the back...I think it's gonna work.
I forgot to take a pic of it folded down before I put everything away for the day, but I'll do that tomorrow.[emoji23]
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WELL... another SLIGHT miscalculation.[emoji1] When I mounted the monitor stand/pole, it didn't have the VESA mount on it, so it folded down well within the area it would need to in order for the lid to fit. Attaching the VESA mount added a couple of inches on each side. I folded it down and... it's CLOSE.... REAL CLOSE.[emoji1] I'm not TOO worried about it. It can be moved pretty easily... just a matter of drilling another hole[emoji1]. It sits on a large steel plate, so that will cover up any remnants of the current hole, which I will fill and paint over. I didn't have time to take a pic, as I was just heading out to go to breakfast, but I'll take one later today.
The monitors are HEAVY.[emoji1]... Same monitors I've been using for years, but they seem heavy when mounted on my little square post, which started it's life as a piece from a laptop stand I never used. They make Ultra-thin monitors now that weigh several pounds less than mine. I'm thinking seriously about buying a couple. I think the budget is BUSTED on this project anyway.[emoji1]
The materials for building my height extension came in. I'll pick those up today. I think this part should be an easy build.[emoji4]
... Had to move the monitor stand over a bit, but I needed to shorten it bit too, because the lid work not fit. Got it done. Here's the result...
Didn't get anything done on the Large System Reworking project today. Sometimes you have to finish one project in order to have what you need to work on another.[emoji4]... I need my new miter saw to build the 6 inch height extension for my new Large System rack. I have the saw, but no platform. I was gonna use the new mobile platform I built, then I decided the saw took up too much space on it. My old miter saw was mounted on an old steel printer stand from the late 70's, but it was not mobile, it was too low, and it had no table top (work surface). So I ordered a 24x30 inch top from Home Depot, bought some casters and some 2x4's and made a mobile table for my saw. Now I can use the saw to make what I need to extend the height of my rack.
My wife gives me a hard time about some of the stuff I keep, but it's amazing how it seems I can find the bits and pieces for various projects in-and-amongst the stuff I have in the garage. Keeping that old printer stand might have seemed crazy to some, but it made a really nice table for not much money. You couldn't buy anything as sturdy for the little money I spent on it.[emoji1]... and it didn't end up in a land fill.[emoji1] Also, as I was attaching the 2x4 legs to the table, I needed four large washers to use with the bolts I had just purchased at the hardware store. I was not about to go back and buy washers. I looked and looked through all my screw drawers, but could only find two that would work. However, I have a drawer filled with unused hardware from other items I bought, and found a bag of large, long bolts... with the perfect washers. Problem solved![emoji1]
So tomorrow, it's back to the project. I need to finish it SOON, because otherwise I keep tweaking the design. I had decided to use a rack mount shelf inside the rack and beneath the controller to mount my Nano computers on. Now I think a 1/4" thick wooden shelf would be easier to fit than the steel shelf, and it will be lighter weight. It won't be holding much weight. The steel would have been overkill anyway, but more importantly, I think it would have obstructed the mounting of the rear internal rack. So I should be able to get the computer shelf made and installed tomorrow. Stay tuned[emoji1].
My wife gives me a hard time about some of the stuff I keep, but it's amazing how it seems I can find the bits and pieces for various projects in-and-amongst the stuff I have in the garage. Keeping that old printer stand might have seemed crazy to some, but it made a really nice table for not much money. You couldn't buy anything as sturdy for the little money I spent on it.[emoji1]... and it didn't end up in a land fill.[emoji1] Also, as I was attaching the 2x4 legs to the table, I needed four large washers to use with the bolts I had just purchased at the hardware store. I was not about to go back and buy washers. I looked and looked through all my screw drawers, but could only find two that would work. However, I have a drawer filled with unused hardware from other items I bought, and found a bag of large, long bolts... with the perfect washers. Problem solved![emoji1]
So tomorrow, it's back to the project. I need to finish it SOON, because otherwise I keep tweaking the design. I had decided to use a rack mount shelf inside the rack and beneath the controller to mount my Nano computers on. Now I think a 1/4" thick wooden shelf would be easier to fit than the steel shelf, and it will be lighter weight. It won't be holding much weight. The steel would have been overkill anyway, but more importantly, I think it would have obstructed the mounting of the rear internal rack. So I should be able to get the computer shelf made and installed tomorrow. Stay tuned[emoji1].
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I got the computer shelf made yesterday, but didn't do much more on the rack mods. I DID make a nice little mobile cart for the stack of CD storage boxes I store in the garage. Those boxes are HEAVY, so every time I need to move them, it's one box at a time. Now the entire stack is on wheels, so I can move the stack around pretty easily.
I also worked on another little project that I had been thinking about for a while, but never did it. Now that I have these new saws, I'm more motivated to do some of these projects. I need a place to put my new Dell T30 Servers... so I have this old stereo component cabinet in my Exercise Room. It used to have a VCR and receiver in it, and a 13" tube TV on top, so we could play videos while exercising. All the video stuff is gone, and all I used it for was storing unused UPS's.[emoji4] Turns out though, the two Dell servers fit nicely, side-by-side on the bottom shelf. The space in the stereo cabinet above where the servers will go is a perfect 14U space. So I bought some 14U rails, and I'll make a rack in the top for my old servers. The cabinet (even with rails installed) is wider than a standard rack though, so I cut some wooden supports to mount on the sides to provide the proper width for the rack rails. I also cut a couple of lateral supports, since I took the back off, which affected it's lateral strength. Today I'll paint all the pieces (black), put it all together, add some strong casters, and I'll have a recycled server rack.[emoji4]
You might ask; well didn't you just put all your home servers in your old Gator Cases DJ rack?[emoji1]... Well, yes; yes I did, and it turned out nicely, but no space for the Dell servers or anything else, for that matter. So, I'll put all the servers in the new stereo cabinet rack, and some rack mounted computers in the old DJ rack, leaving space in the DJ rack for future experiments.[emoji1] And... I'll put a nice flat panel TV on top (of the stereo cabinet/server rack), so my wife can watch videos while using the Elipse.[emoji4]
Basically, all I did yesterday was cut wood. I LOVE the new table saw and miter saw, but they DO make a mess, so it's good to get everything for every project cut at one time, then I can work on each project as I choose without stopping to set up a saw and cut some wood. Cleaning up the mess (saw dust) afterward is a PITA and takes a lot of time. Saw dust gets EVERYWHERE![emoji1] Don't wanna have to do it too often. Even setting up by the garage door, the wind just blows the saw dust in anyway. It's worth it though... being able to make almost anything I can imagine.[emoji4]
I also worked on another little project that I had been thinking about for a while, but never did it. Now that I have these new saws, I'm more motivated to do some of these projects. I need a place to put my new Dell T30 Servers... so I have this old stereo component cabinet in my Exercise Room. It used to have a VCR and receiver in it, and a 13" tube TV on top, so we could play videos while exercising. All the video stuff is gone, and all I used it for was storing unused UPS's.[emoji4] Turns out though, the two Dell servers fit nicely, side-by-side on the bottom shelf. The space in the stereo cabinet above where the servers will go is a perfect 14U space. So I bought some 14U rails, and I'll make a rack in the top for my old servers. The cabinet (even with rails installed) is wider than a standard rack though, so I cut some wooden supports to mount on the sides to provide the proper width for the rack rails. I also cut a couple of lateral supports, since I took the back off, which affected it's lateral strength. Today I'll paint all the pieces (black), put it all together, add some strong casters, and I'll have a recycled server rack.[emoji4]
You might ask; well didn't you just put all your home servers in your old Gator Cases DJ rack?[emoji1]... Well, yes; yes I did, and it turned out nicely, but no space for the Dell servers or anything else, for that matter. So, I'll put all the servers in the new stereo cabinet rack, and some rack mounted computers in the old DJ rack, leaving space in the DJ rack for future experiments.[emoji1] And... I'll put a nice flat panel TV on top (of the stereo cabinet/server rack), so my wife can watch videos while using the Elipse.[emoji4]
Basically, all I did yesterday was cut wood. I LOVE the new table saw and miter saw, but they DO make a mess, so it's good to get everything for every project cut at one time, then I can work on each project as I choose without stopping to set up a saw and cut some wood. Cleaning up the mess (saw dust) afterward is a PITA and takes a lot of time. Saw dust gets EVERYWHERE![emoji1] Don't wanna have to do it too often. Even setting up by the garage door, the wind just blows the saw dust in anyway. It's worth it though... being able to make almost anything I can imagine.[emoji4]
TAX DAY... That's my new target completion date for my Large System rack... tax day. I know it seems like this project has been going on forever, but I really only started buying stuff in the middle of January. The weather, and my inability to make a few key decisions were the major reasons why this project has taken so long... and of course all the other projects (like transferring my home servers into the old DJ rack and getting rid of my 24U steel server rack). Working on projects in the garage in the middle of Winter is difficult at best. Hard to get motivated to go out there and FREEZE my a$$ off.[emoji1] So given all that, I don't think 3 months is unreasonable. I DO have a REAL life, you know![emoji1] I'm not so sure I have a REAL DJ business... got nothing booked until May and I could probably get by with my small system for that one. I have a class reunion in June, which will probably be my first chance to use the new Large System. That will give me plenty of time to practice with it before using it for a gig. I've been thinking about contingencies as I've worked on this Large System, but I need to practice different failure scenarios so I'll know exactly what I need to do if some critical component fails.[emoji4]
... But speaking of tax day, I haven't done mine yet. My CPA (wife) actually does our taxes. My part is to prepare a spreadsheet for her with expenditures by specific categories, and income. She does the rest. I need to do my part this week too.[emoji4]
... But speaking of tax day, I haven't done mine yet. My CPA (wife) actually does our taxes. My part is to prepare a spreadsheet for her with expenditures by specific categories, and income. She does the rest. I need to do my part this week too.[emoji4]
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LOL... OK, OK[emoji1]... I know, but I REALLY AM beginning to see the light at the end of the (project) tunnel. Most of the really hard parts are done. It just doesn't look like it because all the pieces are not put together. I'm pretty confident I'll have it done next week, but I have a couple of SPECIAL twists I'm adding, so I gave myself an extra week. I DO need to get my tax spreadsheet done next week though, 'cause the wife wants to do the taxes next weekend.[emoji4]
I DID get my stereo cabinet/server rack conversion done today though, and it works pretty perfectly. I need to finish copying data to the second Dell T30 server and put it in the rack, but I can do that in the evenings as I'm sitting on the couch with the wife watching TV.[emoji4]
[emoji1]... Wellll... Another slight miscalculation... I forgot that some of my servers have handles that extend about 2" out from the front of the case, preventing the glass doors from closing on the stereo cabinet/rack.[emoji1] I could easily move the rails back two inches, but that would take two inches from the depth of rack, which isn't very deep to start with. So I just removed the handles. I'll put them in some baggies and store them (the handles) out in the garage for later use... and I'll probably forget they're there or where I put them.[emoji1]Other than that, the rack works GREAT![emoji4]
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Is that boom light so we can see it, or do you really run it that way so YOU can see what you're doing??
Alright... Maybe I should have made this clearer from the beginning. I'm reworking my Large System to make it easier to transport, setup/tear-down, and use less space in my minivan. But I'm also doing it FOR FUN. I'm sure there are better, and possibly cheaper options, but those would deny me the fun factor. I think I went over budget a month ago... OH WELL!!![emoji1]
Now... for an update... the weather still sucks, so I haven't worked out in the garage... too dang cold![emoji1] The rubberized material for the keyboard/mouse shelf came in today. I think that's the last of the materials I need for the rack mods. There's still a few things I'm waiting for that I ordered for the facade, though.
Having restricted my activities to the indoors[emoji4], I was able to complete my Dell Server builds, and have all my data copied over. In another thread, we talked about Windows verses OS X... well there's one problem with copying data with OS X; if it hits a corrupted file, the copy aborts, then you have to figure out where the copied data ends and the un-copied begins before you can resume. With Linux, the copy pauses for you to choose what to do, so you can SKIP the corrupted file and the copy continues where it left off. I'll be using my Linux VM for all large copies from now on. Out of 176,000 files in this last copy to the new server, there were six corrupted files. I jotted down the file names, and copied them from other locations when the mass data copy was completed. I have ONE more big mass copy to do, then it'll be done... takes about 8 hours if there's no corrupted files, but I don't sit around and watch this stuff, so it generally takes a while before I discover the copy had paused due to a corrupted file. That last Copy took about 14 hours.[emoji1]
Now... for an update... the weather still sucks, so I haven't worked out in the garage... too dang cold![emoji1] The rubberized material for the keyboard/mouse shelf came in today. I think that's the last of the materials I need for the rack mods. There's still a few things I'm waiting for that I ordered for the facade, though.
Having restricted my activities to the indoors[emoji4], I was able to complete my Dell Server builds, and have all my data copied over. In another thread, we talked about Windows verses OS X... well there's one problem with copying data with OS X; if it hits a corrupted file, the copy aborts, then you have to figure out where the copied data ends and the un-copied begins before you can resume. With Linux, the copy pauses for you to choose what to do, so you can SKIP the corrupted file and the copy continues where it left off. I'll be using my Linux VM for all large copies from now on. Out of 176,000 files in this last copy to the new server, there were six corrupted files. I jotted down the file names, and copied them from other locations when the mass data copy was completed. I have ONE more big mass copy to do, then it'll be done... takes about 8 hours if there's no corrupted files, but I don't sit around and watch this stuff, so it generally takes a while before I discover the copy had paused due to a corrupted file. That last Copy took about 14 hours.[emoji1]