Skip to main content
PC Gamer PC Gamer THE GLOBAL AUTHORITY ON PC GAMES
UK EditionUK US EditionUS CA EditionCanada AU EditionAustralia
Sign in
  • View Profile
  • Sign out
  • Black Friday
  • Games
  • Hardware
  • News
  • Reviews
  • Guides
  • Video
  • Forum
  • More
    • PC Gaming Show
    • Software
    • Movies & TV
    • Codes
    • Coupons
    • Magazine
    • Newsletter
    • Affiliate links
    • Meet the team
    • Community guidelines
    • About PC Gamer
PC Gamer Magazine Subscription
PC Gamer Magazine Subscription
Why subscribe?
  • Subscribe to the world's #1 PC gaming mag
  • Try a single issue or save on a subscription
  • Issues delivered straight to your door or device
From$32.49
Subscribe now
Don't miss these
A custom DIY walnut wooden ITX PC case by MXC Builds
PC Cases If anything were to convince me to try out carpentry it would be this gorgeous DIY mini walnut PC case housing an Asus ProArt RTX 5080
A promotional image of the Maxsun MS Terminator B760BKB D5 motherboard, showing how a graphics card installs in the rear-mounted PCIe slot.
Motherboards Tired of jiggling your GPU to get it to fit in a small form factor PC? Maxsun reckons it has the answer to that problem around the back
A photo of the Thermal Grizzly Der8enchtable test platform next to its retail packaging
PC Cases Thermal Grizzly Der8enchtable review
A gaming PC in the process of being built, using Radeon and Ryzen components and an Asus Pro Art PA401 PC case.
Gaming PCs Moody and wooden, this PC and I have a lot in common: Asus ProArt Case PA401, Ryzen 7 9800X3D and RX 9070 XT build
A white gaming PC built using a Thermaltake PC case, Cooler Master fans, and an AMD CPU.
Gaming PCs I've taken a proper bargain of a case from Thermaltake and built a gorgeous white PC with it
A side-by-side comparison from left to right of the PS5 slim, Not From Concentrate's tiny PS5 rebuild, and a standard, fullsize PS5 on top of a blue desk.
Hardware Tiny PS5 build reduces size of original console by 60%, making it look like a mini PC while slashing its power draw and temps too
Arctic's Xtender PC case on a white desk with various parts being installed to build a functional gaming PC.
Hardware I build loads of gaming PCs and this is the first to make me regret my decisions with my own personal rig—here's what you need to build it yourself
A terrible gaming PC built into a plastic jug
Gaming PCs This €130 gaming PC in a plastic jug churns out a whole 15 fps in Fortnite and might be the best/worst DIY build I've ever seen
A gaming PC in the process of being built, using Radeon and Ryzen components and an Asus Pro Art PA401 PC case.
Gaming PCs I build multiple gaming PCs a month and this is my favorite so far this year—here's what you'd need to build it yourself
Two PC cases on a yellow background with the PC Gamer recommends badge in the upper right corner.
PC Cases The best PC cases in 2025: These are the chassis I'd use for my next gaming build
An image of the Maxsun Terminator H770YTX D5 motherboard.
Motherboards PC component maker Maxsun decides the time is right for a new motherboard format, by taking a hacksaw to an mATX circuit board
Dave Plummer's RA82 disk drive
Storage Ex Microsoft engineer Dave Plummer says 'SD cards are lame!' and opts to rescue a 200 lb 14-inch magnetic disc drive from the '80s with just 622 MB of storage
A promotional image of the SilverStone SST-FLP02 retro-styled PC case
PC Cases The age of beige is back! SilverStone's new case is a glorious nod to PCs of the 1980s and 90s
SignalRGB's custom gaming PC built inside of an old microwave.
Gaming PCs Toasty CPU? This microwave PC build demonstrates that you ain't seen nothing yet
Two of the best PC cases with the PC Gamer Recommended badge in the top right.
PC Cases The best fish tank PC case in 2025: I've tested heaps of stylish chassis but only a few have earned my recommendation
Popular
  • Black Friday Live!
  • Best PC gear
  • Arc Raiders
  • PC Gaming Show
  • Quizzes
  1. Hardware
  2. PC Cases

Build of the week: Open-air testbench

Features
By Bo Moore published 20 September 2016

Four hard drives and a large PSU make for a tight fit inside this tiny testing center.

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.

Page 1 of 7
Page 1 of 7

Page 2 of 7
Page 2 of 7

Page 3 of 7
Page 3 of 7

Page 4 of 7
Page 4 of 7

Page 5 of 7
Page 5 of 7

Page 6 of 7
Page 6 of 7

Page 7 of 7
Page 7 of 7
Bo Moore
Bo Moore
Social Links Navigation

As the former head of PC Gamer's hardware coverage, Bo was in charge of helping readers better understand and use PC hardware. He also headed up the buying guides, picking the best peripherals and components to spend your hard-earned money on. He can usually be found playing Overwatch, Apex Legends, or more likely, with his cats. He is now IGN's resident tech editor and PC hardware expert. 

Every Monday, Build of the week highlights a unique rig from the web’s most dedicated PC building communities.

This custom open-air PC from Reddit user GodZ-ilA is as gorgeous as it is vulnerable to dust. To keep a rig like this spotless, we'd have a can of compressed air on our desk within arm's reach. But the resulting purity? So worth it.

The open design makes this a prime build for swapping out parts for testing purposes. The small box base was built from U-Channel and 2mm aluminum sheets, with a few pieces, such as the backside’s perforated metal, salvaged from an old side panel. Hard drives and the PSU live inside the box, while the motherboard and everything else sits on top.

Best picks for you
  • A custom DIY walnut wooden ITX PC case by MXC Builds If anything were to convince me to try out carpentry it would be this gorgeous DIY mini walnut PC case housing an Asus ProArt RTX 5080
  • A promotional image of the Maxsun MS Terminator B760BKB D5 motherboard, showing how a graphics card installs in the rear-mounted PCIe slot. Tired of jiggling your GPU to get it to fit in a small form factor PC? Maxsun reckons it has the answer to that problem around the back
  • A photo of the Thermal Grizzly Der8enchtable test platform next to its retail packaging Thermal Grizzly Der8enchtable review

As an added bonus, GodZ-ilA also built a USB volume knob with a matching black and white aesthetic. A full guide of that build is available on Instructables. Congrats on the prettiest test bench we've seen, GodZ-ilA!

Components:

  • CPU: i7-4770k
  • Cooler: Phanteks Cooler
  • RAM: 16GB Hyper-X Black DDR3
  • Motherboard: Asrock Z87M Extreme4
  • Graphics card: EVGA GTX 750Ti SC
  • Storage: Samsung 950 Pro 256GB, Intel 520 126GB, WD Caviar Green 1.5TB, WD Scorpio Blue 1TB, Seagate Constellation 2 1TB 
  • Wi-fi card: Gigabyte GC-WB867D-I
  • Power supply: SilverStone Modular 600W
Deals not to miss
A custom DIY walnut wooden ITX PC case by MXC Builds
If anything were to convince me to try out carpentry it would be this gorgeous DIY mini walnut PC case housing an Asus ProArt RTX 5080
 
 
A promotional image of the Maxsun MS Terminator B760BKB D5 motherboard, showing how a graphics card installs in the rear-mounted PCIe slot.
Tired of jiggling your GPU to get it to fit in a small form factor PC? Maxsun reckons it has the answer to that problem around the back
 
 
A photo of the Thermal Grizzly Der8enchtable test platform next to its retail packaging
Thermal Grizzly Der8enchtable review
 
 
A gaming PC in the process of being built, using Radeon and Ryzen components and an Asus Pro Art PA401 PC case.
Moody and wooden, this PC and I have a lot in common: Asus ProArt Case PA401, Ryzen 7 9800X3D and RX 9070 XT build
 
 
A white gaming PC built using a Thermaltake PC case, Cooler Master fans, and an AMD CPU.
I've taken a proper bargain of a case from Thermaltake and built a gorgeous white PC with it
 
 
A side-by-side comparison from left to right of the PS5 slim, Not From Concentrate's tiny PS5 rebuild, and a standard, fullsize PS5 on top of a blue desk.
Tiny PS5 build reduces size of original console by 60%, making it look like a mini PC while slashing its power draw and temps too
 
 
Latest in PC Cases
The HYTE Y70 mid-tower PC case in taro milk purple floats in the funky Black Friday deal void.
This Black Friday, the much coveted pastel colorways for the Hyte Y70 PC case are only $180
 
 
A photo of the Thermal Grizzly Der8enchtable test platform next to its retail packaging
Thermal Grizzly Der8enchtable review
 
 
Thermaltake View 390 Air chassis on a desk. We're building a PC into it for testing and comparison with other PC cases.
Thermaltake View 390 Air review
 
 
A screenshot of Dbrand's companion cube Steam Machine case
Dbrand has teased a render of a Portal companion cube Steam Machine case, so you can... put a case around your case?
 
 
A promotional image of the SilverStone SST-FLP02 retro-styled PC case
The age of beige is back! SilverStone's new case is a glorious nod to PCs of the 1980s and 90s
 
 
Fractal Design North
A UK retailer has honoured a redditor's £20 Fractal Design PC case purchase: 'You made it go viral. So we did what we believe is right—we owned it.'
 
 
Latest in Features
The hero of Moonlighter 2 running with a sword and full backpack.
Moonlighter 2 made me reckon with how 'cozy' a shopkeeping roguelite with a heavy helping of Hades can get
 
 
The trading screen in Insider Trading.
This Balatro-inspired stock-trading roguelike marks the first time I've ever screwed up in a deckbuilder by making my deck too good
 
 
The Swamp Witch looking menacing
Spellcasters Chronicles is my kind of MOBA, where I can summon skyscraper-sized titans, create an army of lizards, and just live happily in the chaos
 
 
Apple 14-inch MacBook Pro with an M5 processor inside it
iCame, iSaw, iConquered: With its new M5 chip, the Apple MacBook Pro is now a gaming PC. Just, y'know, without the games
 
 
Two products and a holiday-themed background with the PC Gamer logo.
The PC Gamer handheld gaming PC gift guide
 
 
Arc Raiders loot guide: Three raiders standing shoulder to shoulder in Buried City. The one of the left is reaching for something in their pocket, the character in the middle, wearing an astronaut helmet, is casually looking up, while the one on the right in cowboy attire is aiming their pistol.
Arc Raiders' basic weapons are way too strong, and it's starting to overshadow even its legendary guns
 
 
  1. MSI and Asus gaming monitors on a green background with the PC Gamer recommended logo in the top right
    1
    Best gaming monitors in 2025: the pixel-perfect panels I'd buy myself
  2. 2
    The best fish tank PC case in 2025: I've tested heaps of stylish chassis but only a few have earned my recommendation
  3. 3
    Best gaming laptop 2025: I've tested the best laptops for gaming of this generation and here are the ones I recommend
  4. 4
    Best Hall effect keyboards in 2025: the fastest, most customizable keyboards for competitive gaming
  5. 5
    Best PCIe 5.0 SSD for gaming in 2025: the only Gen 5 drives I will allow in my PC
  1. Lenovo Legion 9i Gen 10 gaming laptop
    1
    Lenovo Legion 9i Gen 10 gaming laptop review
  2. 2
    Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 review – CoD at its most obnoxious
  3. 3
    LG UltraGear 27GX790A OLED gaming monitor review
  4. 4
    Thermal Grizzly Der8enchtable review
  5. 5
    Thermaltake View 390 Air review

PC Gamer is part of Future US Inc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Visit our corporate site.

Add as a preferred source on Google
  • About Us
  • Contact Future's experts
  • Terms and conditions
  • Privacy policy
  • Cookies policy
  • Advertise with us
  • Accessibility Statement
  • Careers

© Future US, Inc. Full 7th Floor, 130 West 42nd Street, New York, NY 10036.

Please login or signup to comment

Please wait...