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Area-51 R3, motherboard swap to Aurora R13
Got a Alienware Area-51 R3 and love the case. I was wondering if I could swap the motherboard to a new Aurora R13 13 and if it work or not?
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Got a Alienware Area-51 R3 and love the case. I was wondering if I could swap the motherboard to a new Aurora R13 13 and if it work or not?
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redxps630
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November 27th, 2021 16:00
then that is okay. R3 case uses same design as A51 R2 case which is one of the best case for swap motherboard.
redxps630
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November 26th, 2021 19:00
Re: if I could swap the motherboard to a new aurora 13 and if it work or not.
you want to swap a Ryzen area 51 board to R13 case. It would not work.
But the R13 case is designed specifically for the odd shaped R13 oem board. The Ryzen board is full ATX. R13 case does not accommodate the full height ATX board.
In addition,
You will lose all AlienFX light control which is done by the oem R13 board through proprietary cable. You will also lose all front IO ports which protrude through front bezel opening specifically for the odd R13 board.
A13 mobo is Dell proprietary odd shaped board which is neither ATX nor microATX.
redxps630
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November 26th, 2021 21:00
R13 psu is also highly proprietary form factor ATX12VO. A51 R3 psu or standard ATX psu would not fit inside R13 case.
Rabbitdude
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November 26th, 2021 22:00
By proprietary do you mean the form factor or It being ATX12VO because 12VO itself isn't proprietary
MessyHarbor3
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November 27th, 2021 09:00
So that being said would a gigabyte Z690 Mobo fit and work in there instead.
redxps630
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November 27th, 2021 09:00
If it is a microATX board, maybe but you may need to drill custom motherboard mounting holes in R13 case. We would need measurements of R13 OEM motherboard to confirm its height is at least equal or greater than mATX board. By the look at R13, it is quite possible that a mATX board can fit in terms of vertical dimension inside chassis.
We are not even sure whether Dell OEM board follows a vestige of ATX standard of physical spacing between back IO window and PCIe slot window. I would hope they do, but if not, it becomes nearly impossible to swap a board.
You also need to figure out pinout of AlienFX led wiring so you may have a chance to hijack Dell led control and use standard RGB app to control lights.
There are 4-5 proprietary led connectors on OEM board: side lights, sys fan 1-2-3, front ambient light (integrated w power sw). This is a daunting task but I am sure some day some one curious will crack this puzzle.
And no front IO. We also need dimensions of Dell thin psu to know whether a standard SFX psu may have a chance to fit in case, or it is obligatory to have psu sit outside case.
redxps630
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November 27th, 2021 09:00
Form factor. A standard ATX psu has no physical space to fit inside R13 case designed to house a thin small psu. If OP wants, psu would have to sit outside case.
ATX12VO is new industry standard(correct, not proprietary) but has not caught up w motherboard makers yet (only a very small number of third party board offer 12VO).
MessyHarbor3
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November 27th, 2021 12:00
It wouldn't be in a R13 case it be in a Area 51 r3 case
MessyHarbor3
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November 27th, 2021 17:00
Fantastic then thankyou
Gilly22
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December 19th, 2021 16:00
where did you find an r13 motherboard?
MessyHarbor3
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December 19th, 2021 19:00
Found a bare bones one on eBay with just case and mobo.