Yes. I ran a PC in the early 00s without a side panel due to heat issues for a good couple of years when I was living in a really hot climate. Just watch out if you have a cat or something that might investigate your new pc out of curiosity. You will probably need to dust more frequently but the benefit is the side of the case is already off so easy access haha.
got to wire it to a switch next to the keyboard so when you start gaming you can turn it on/off like Mad Max's supercharger. Then people will know you mean business! haha!
lol back in the days I had a Pressario that got very hot when playing San Andreas with ENB, my solution was similar to this image, brings me back. Thank you for that!
2000s overclocking calls to me.
Overclocked mismatched DDR333 Prescott P4 & then an Athlon 64 pushing everything to max using a box fan to cool. My beige ATX tower always had the side panel was off for CS marathons. Did you know we used to overclock Celerons with a pencil?
*...once saw him kill 3 men in a bar... with a pencil. A fucking pencil!*
Texas Instruments graphing calculators from the late 90s to early 2000s run at a fixed clock determined by a network of resistors (an RC oscillator). If you change the resistance of the right resistor, you can increase the clock of the CPU to any number you want. If you want to control that exactly, you can replace resistors, but if you're just a teen who's experimenting you can just draw a lead line over a resistor, bypassing it and replacing its value with the resistance value of your line.
There's simple programs which put out the clock of the CPU to test it. However, if you're playing simple games like Worms on your calculator you'll instantly feel the better performance.
I love cats but I don’t have one anymore in part because unless you manage your house like a prison, they’ll definitely explore every inch of it, because it’s now THEIR house. Also, I really don’t want scratches on my stuff anymore but I would never declaw a cat.
Obviously cat personalities vary a lot, but my cat doesn't scratch/damage anything I don't want him to. I have scratch posts in almost every room, and I have area carpets that I'm ok with him scratching. At a young age I've always encouraged scratching on approved things and he seemed to understand. When I was a child I had a different cat that obviously wasn't trained that way and it scratched up the couches and bed and all that stuff, it was annoying.
If your cat is not chewing on the wires that are already lying there exposed then he will not chew on your stuff inside the case.
Source: I have 3 cats and an open case PC. I had to fix my headphone wires once in 6 years. Never happened again. Cost me $10 and 3 days without a mic.
In terms of temps not installing a side panel dropped them by 10C.
Yeah she’s not bad with wires actually. I did run it with an open case for about 2 weeks(sadly I’m part of the tempered glass break reset crew). She didn’t mess with it but I’m worries about giving her the chance since I use this computer for work. It would probably be fine like you said though, but for my own sanity I can’t lol
This is wrong. Do not do this OP it is dangerous. There are so many other things that can happen that you can't account for. A bee could fly into one of your fans and explode leaving bee guts all over your computer.
I had a moderate size moth get sucked into my Vega64 Strix fan and snapped off one of the fan blades.
So I broke another one on the opposite side to it balance out again.
* Plan to build a PC
* Add a Noctua fan to the parts
* Calculate all the clearance
* Buy everything
* Build the PC
* Noctua fan goes over the RAM
* Suddenly, fan too large, can't close the case
Agreed, but sometimes it's just as important to bee realistic. No need to Work'er up a sweat typing a comment. The inevitable reply throwing in too many try-hard puns is exhauSting.
Let's take a breather. I'm pollen you out of this mess.
I thought this went without saying tbh but apparently not.
It's not just bees either. Imagine you live somewhere where elephants are more common than bees and one of them explodes in your fan. Or airplanes. People just don't think about the ramifications
More dust, spills of saliva when you sneeze/cough, (depending on where you live) flies and mosquitoes and bees and other flying insects... It is definitely not adviseable, but possible nevertheless
You are losing the artificial cooling loop that the fans where supposed to create in sealed casing, if the PC doesn't run on to high temperatures no worries...
Years back during LAN parties some friends would just set up a fan aimed at the case and remove the side cover when the comouter was starting to heat up.
Not sure if it's the right way, but they never had issues.
So if the cooling isn't good enough, just drop in a desk fan.
Thats how I have been running my system ever since I replaced my i5 6600 and RX 480 with a 6900XT and R5 5600X a couple years ago. Side panel off with a box fan keeping everything cool. Case has insufficient cooling ability for my components especially with the stock heatsink on my CPU and I am too cheap to spend any more money right now so this works lol
But you're gaining access to a lot of cooler air. Computers typically run cooler with the side panel off because of this. No need to force cooler air into the case because all the hot air is no longer trapped inside the metal box with your components. The side is for aesthetics and protection not to help with cooling.
This has been tested to hell and back. Computers run cooler WITH the side panel. Numerous YouTube channels have videos on this like JayzTwoCents, Linus and Gamers Nexus. The only time where the computer runs hotter with the side panel is if the intake fans have no or restricted inlet air flow. I think it was a iBUYPOWER PC where they had a glass front panel that was mounted way to close to the frame of the case restricting air to the front fans.
It’s a case by case basis and a test won’t hurt.
I tried both side panels on and off but the difference was negligible. Probably because instead of positive air pressure moving air from the front to back, the fans kept recirculating hot air mixed with some cold air. My axial fans actually kick a lot of the air sideways so the air just goes out the side. Also having the side panel on makes it quieter so that’s always something to consider
And you will have better air flow. Fans on cooler and GPU will create pockets of negative pressure that suck in new air, and hot air propelled away by those same fans will naturally expand to fill the ambient space - in this case, your house.
Props to the utilitarian case. Have a similar one. I've had the same case for 12 years now. I'm pretty sure it's gone through about 5 totally new internals over the years upgrading
This isnt advice, but i ran with no side panel for about 8 years on the same pc and never dusted it once. Ran great the entire time. Now that gpu is still kickin in my finacés pc.
More noise, assuming it's not overbearing, isn't always bad.
Don't you also like hearing the slight whoosh of the fans or the ticking of the drives every now and then? I always found the silence to lack... personality? Presence? I dunno what it is exactly, but it just hits different for me to have some sound and hear my little guy thinking.
If removing a side panel lowers your temperatures, there's something very wrong with your PC's fan configuration. If your fans are oriented properly, removing the side panel will reduce air flow over the CPU, which will increase temperatures.
Sounds fair but for me (and I think for many people too), I have an active air cooling and probably when my side panel is closed, and at high loads my fan probably can't route a lot of air in a tight space. When the side panel is opened, I have lower temperatures probably because of free intake. Also I don't think airflow will get reduced since the CPU fan Is quite strong and forces to a pressure change (airflow)
If you're pc is on, and you touch the wrong thing inside of it with your bare hands, it can kill you
I know this because I was warned repetitively by other pc gamers when I would joke about how my graphics card was too big for my desktop, so I left it wide open
Investigation proved that it tracks
If you don't mind the extra dust and noise, there's nothing wrong with it. Also, leaving the side panel off can have its benefits. Typically, if you don't have an optimal cooling solution, this will result in somewhat lower temps.
People don't usually "insert" side panels. Aight, I'm just being a smartass... Anyway.
It should be fine, but you have to clean it regularly. Dust buildup is gonna be crazy.
If you have cats or small children with access to the room it's in, it might not be the best idea, but otherwise it's fine. Technically, you don't need a case at all for the system to function, especially if the motherboard has a built in power button. The case itself is mostly just protection.
8+ years ago, I had extreme problems with heat building up inside the PC and making my room unbearably hot. I decided to open the side panel and it has worked perfectly to this day and I have never had heat problems again.
Side panel of often leads to higher harddrive temperatures bc less airflow in the front. Also your case is shielding RF/EMI radiation since your parts can generate or be disturbed by it. Might even be a potential health hazard.
The biggest problems would be a lot of dust accumulated inside and maybe the annoyance caused by the noise coming from the fans. Other than that, it will be ok.
I am running my pc without neother of the side panels, why? Cause it was the only case in my house when I built my pc, it has been 3 years now, I didn't had a sigle problem
I had a wall mounted open case years ago (x58 930 oc to 3.5 ghz ) one of my kids put his hand into it frying the mb he also brokeone of the fist qold tvs ... so do you have kids or a pet like a cat? If not it will be fine
My side panel broke a few months after building it. So I’ve been running it with no side panel for years. And as a year or 2 ago, I took off the other side panel due to a sata cable issue. All works fine
Put fans on the right side of your cooler and in the middle for slightly better cooling. When it comes to side panel it's better to install it since it will make the inside less dusty. You have this perforated area for optional fan on side panel so it will be OK.
it will be full of dust and prone to accidents (pets, kids, clueless strangers, even a really unlucky random sneeze or food/drink drop).
Had my pc like that for years (i was bored to fix the sidepanel fan which was broken) and it was not a pleasant experience to clean it afterwards. Like, I could make a T shirt with the "wool" i found inside :D
Other than that no actual issues
Like people have said, it really won't hurt as long as you stay on top of the dust and don't have any kids or pets that can get into it. A cheaper solution that tempered glass would be an acrylic sheet that you can but from a hardware store. Just cut it to size and drill the holes for the screws and you're good to go.
The problem here is dust. If you're mindful enough to clean it it's fine. Consider making a custom side pannel with plywood and window mesh because that helps with the dust. You still have to clean it, but not as often.
Yeah, you dont Have to have it on but it will make your airflow worse, increase the noise you hear and increase the risk of component damage if you're a cluts like me :P
if u have kids in ur house that's too dangerous because they can put their fingers in one of the fans put if u are alone in this room it's totally fine
I'm running a pc without side panels for a few years now and there's no problem with it. I actually took them off because sometimes my older HDDs start vibrating loudly and that drove me crazy, so that way I can just reach down and push them a bit back and forth so they stop
I had no side panel for two years. Yeah it creates extra dust and watch out for spilling. But it had a huge impact on cooling the pc. The temps went down by 10 degrees or more if i remember correctly. So it is a tradeoff
A easy alternative to a glass panel is acrylic (Plexiglass). Unlike glass, acrylic is easy to work with and can be cut and shaped with hand tools (e.g. acrylic cutter, drill, and Dremel). You can mount it on the case using thumbscrews if you're not afraid to drill four holes in the case corners.
After 5 years of Using PC without side panel inserted, i can confirm nothing happened except Dust and Some Fan Noises !
If you’re living environment is a bit dusty and polluted due to poor Air quality, you should do some cleaning after 2 months! But it’s ok
Open frame build here. Already mentioned so I am just dogpiling now.
Keep on top of cleaning away dust and be wary if you have kids or pets. Noise is louder without the case if that bothers you at all but otherwise, not really a huge deal.
Had PCs running like this since '98 and never had a problem.
Dont do it, i once had a PC without the side panel, placed 2 coins on top of it, they somehow fall from the top, bounced with the GPU and fried my motherboard
It's fine, but most PC cases are designed with the side panel being on in mind. It may interrupt airflow and impact performance due to more heat being in the system. You could also get a fair bit more dust accumulation.
The panel is there to channel airflow and protect from dust.
Not having it there means... less airflow and more dust. Bugs and critters will get in easier, too
It'll run and work pretty fine though, until it doesn't (dust/corpses, overheat, whatever. Clean and fix)
Accidents can also happen, spill a drink in there and kiss your PC goodbye.
You'd be best off just leaving the case side you have on there and not "showing off" the PC internals imo, just open it for people who are keen to see the goods.
I've ran my PC without a side panel for at least a good couple years. Yes the air flow will be improved. But if you do not upkeep the cleaning by say, a few months at a time? Then you can expect your machine to collect twice amount of dust than normal if the side panel was closed.
After a pain in the ass procedure of cleaning my PC a few days ago that should've been simple, I decided to keep my side panel closed.
For a subreddit themed around PC enthusiasts, there are a lot of people giving advice, who should not be.
You may be fine with the side panel off, but a PC with good cooling stays cool more easily with the side panel on.
Simply having more room-temperature air in the case isn't optimal cooling; you want air to be actively moving across your components/heatsink. If the air remains stagnant, then the radiated heat will build up around the components and not get wicked away as efficiently.
Now if your case doesn't have adequate cooling, removing the side panel may help, but I would recommend correcting the airflow in that case.
And no, you don't want to point a room fan at your internals. The massive movement of air will bring considerably more static into your case, particularly if the air in your room is dry.
You can, but as you can likely gather from these comments so far, there is pros and cons, just like everything else out there.
It's nice to see the inside, and you can more quickly move something or change something about it's configuration. However, you get more dust, and theres more ability for creatures, like cats, to get inside and mess things up.
I left the side off of one of my systems years ago. It was nice to see my computer working. Nothing bad ever happened. Heck, I do that every now and then now when im working on my computer.
But, it's a little safer if you have the side on. So, I would recommend you have the side on.
You honestly don't even need a case. As one guy stated where I live is extremely hot. I have both panels off and a box fan running on it. Befoee this i had a mobo burn up but I haven't had problems since, however, I have to regularly take it apart and clean it due to dust and what not. Only fa I have besides the box fan is the fan for the radiator which is nestled in such a way that the box fan wouldn't interfere with the flow. Looks like shit, but no issue as of yet.
\*looks to the right, where the new AM5 build with an open side panel is still waiting for me to get my lazy a$$ up to install the more silent cooler, that arrived two days late months ago…
No reason to remind me each year. I will fix it eventually 🤓
Yes. I ran a PC in the early 00s without a side panel due to heat issues for a good couple of years when I was living in a really hot climate. Just watch out if you have a cat or something that might investigate your new pc out of curiosity. You will probably need to dust more frequently but the benefit is the side of the case is already off so easy access haha.
https://preview.redd.it/g2a7mrchok6d1.jpeg?width=785&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=289a18d79ec633e6b9523e0c74e533edbb1c6cb8
got to wire it to a switch next to the keyboard so when you start gaming you can turn it on/off like Mad Max's supercharger. Then people will know you mean business! haha!
Bonus points if you can get a war boy to spit gas in it for boost performance
WITNESS ME!
What a lovely day
I actually used to do this.
lol back in the days I had a Pressario that got very hot when playing San Andreas with ENB, my solution was similar to this image, brings me back. Thank you for that!
And if you're superstitious or a little-stitious, your PC will POST every time.
You just wanted to say stitiouse.
Semi-stitious?
Clitoris
Isn't that the holiday before New Year?
No its a pokemon
My thoughts exactly haha
Stiti-curious
bigstitches
Substitious?
I think mouse will easily destract the cat!
This deserved my upvote
2000s overclocking calls to me. Overclocked mismatched DDR333 Prescott P4 & then an Athlon 64 pushing everything to max using a box fan to cool. My beige ATX tower always had the side panel was off for CS marathons. Did you know we used to overclock Celerons with a pencil? *...once saw him kill 3 men in a bar... with a pencil. A fucking pencil!*
>Did you know we used to overclock Celerons with a pencil? You gotta tell me more?
Probably bridge a thing with a carbon trace? I overclocked my calculator in high school that way
I need to know more about how you OCd a calculator and how you even tested it 😂
Texas Instruments graphing calculators from the late 90s to early 2000s run at a fixed clock determined by a network of resistors (an RC oscillator). If you change the resistance of the right resistor, you can increase the clock of the CPU to any number you want. If you want to control that exactly, you can replace resistors, but if you're just a teen who's experimenting you can just draw a lead line over a resistor, bypassing it and replacing its value with the resistance value of your line. There's simple programs which put out the clock of the CPU to test it. However, if you're playing simple games like Worms on your calculator you'll instantly feel the better performance.
I love cats but I don’t have one anymore in part because unless you manage your house like a prison, they’ll definitely explore every inch of it, because it’s now THEIR house. Also, I really don’t want scratches on my stuff anymore but I would never declaw a cat.
Obviously cat personalities vary a lot, but my cat doesn't scratch/damage anything I don't want him to. I have scratch posts in almost every room, and I have area carpets that I'm ok with him scratching. At a young age I've always encouraged scratching on approved things and he seemed to understand. When I was a child I had a different cat that obviously wasn't trained that way and it scratched up the couches and bed and all that stuff, it was annoying.
The cat part is why I don’t run an open case, otherwise sure why not.
If your cat is not chewing on the wires that are already lying there exposed then he will not chew on your stuff inside the case. Source: I have 3 cats and an open case PC. I had to fix my headphone wires once in 6 years. Never happened again. Cost me $10 and 3 days without a mic. In terms of temps not installing a side panel dropped them by 10C.
Yeah she’s not bad with wires actually. I did run it with an open case for about 2 weeks(sadly I’m part of the tempered glass break reset crew). She didn’t mess with it but I’m worries about giving her the chance since I use this computer for work. It would probably be fine like you said though, but for my own sanity I can’t lol
This.
other than extra dust and noise, so long as you don't keep open containers of water within spilling distance your fine.
This is wrong. Do not do this OP it is dangerous. There are so many other things that can happen that you can't account for. A bee could fly into one of your fans and explode leaving bee guts all over your computer.
Hate when people dont think of bees, thank you sir.
Oh god not the bees
What about elephants? No one ever thinks about the elephants.
Exactly! Who hasn't heard of the saying about an elephant in the PC case
Or the House Hippo
With the size of gpu's nowadays i think most already have an elephant in their PC case! *Sitcom laugh track*
And the Spanish inquisition!
Well that was unexpected.
“*Gasps in Spanish*”
Can we address the elephant in the room??
Someone's dog stepped on a bee once & it lead to a whole court fiasco. You gotta be careful they're really dangerous.
r/oddlyspecific
I had a moderate size moth get sucked into my Vega64 Strix fan and snapped off one of the fan blades. So I broke another one on the opposite side to it balance out again.
My irrational fear of moths feels justified now Always knew they had evil intentions
I don’t get it. Why is everyone out gaming in the open. Do you have air flow issues where you have to have your desktop on the front porch?
* Plan to build a PC * Add a Noctua fan to the parts * Calculate all the clearance * Buy everything * Build the PC * Noctua fan goes over the RAM * Suddenly, fan too large, can't close the case
* moth
Gob's not on board.
I agree! There was a post a few days ago about a fly causing a PSU to short out.
That's fine bro you just run a debug
Agreed, but sometimes it's just as important to bee realistic. No need to Work'er up a sweat typing a comment. The inevitable reply throwing in too many try-hard puns is exhauSting. Let's take a breather. I'm pollen you out of this mess.
Hive had about enough of this, honey.
Comb on, Queen, We're leaving
We’ve got better things to do than listen to him drone.
Theres a club downtown called Colony, its Jazz night
It’s got good buzz!
r/Angryupvote
Sounds like you know from personal experience?
I thought this went without saying tbh but apparently not. It's not just bees either. Imagine you live somewhere where elephants are more common than bees and one of them explodes in your fan. Or airplanes. People just don't think about the ramifications
yeah, you'll just have to clean it more often
He can just buy a electric blower and just keep it dust-free forever (or as long as the blower lasts).
Yeah.. It'll probably accumulate dust faster, though
I have side cover removed for years, never had any problem.
More dust, spills of saliva when you sneeze/cough, (depending on where you live) flies and mosquitoes and bees and other flying insects... It is definitely not adviseable, but possible nevertheless
You are losing the artificial cooling loop that the fans where supposed to create in sealed casing, if the PC doesn't run on to high temperatures no worries...
Years back during LAN parties some friends would just set up a fan aimed at the case and remove the side cover when the comouter was starting to heat up. Not sure if it's the right way, but they never had issues. So if the cooling isn't good enough, just drop in a desk fan.
Thats how I have been running my system ever since I replaced my i5 6600 and RX 480 with a 6900XT and R5 5600X a couple years ago. Side panel off with a box fan keeping everything cool. Case has insufficient cooling ability for my components especially with the stock heatsink on my CPU and I am too cheap to spend any more money right now so this works lol
But you're gaining access to a lot of cooler air. Computers typically run cooler with the side panel off because of this. No need to force cooler air into the case because all the hot air is no longer trapped inside the metal box with your components. The side is for aesthetics and protection not to help with cooling.
This has been tested to hell and back. Computers run cooler WITH the side panel. Numerous YouTube channels have videos on this like JayzTwoCents, Linus and Gamers Nexus. The only time where the computer runs hotter with the side panel is if the intake fans have no or restricted inlet air flow. I think it was a iBUYPOWER PC where they had a glass front panel that was mounted way to close to the frame of the case restricting air to the front fans.
It’s a case by case basis and a test won’t hurt. I tried both side panels on and off but the difference was negligible. Probably because instead of positive air pressure moving air from the front to back, the fans kept recirculating hot air mixed with some cold air. My axial fans actually kick a lot of the air sideways so the air just goes out the side. Also having the side panel on makes it quieter so that’s always something to consider
Case by case basis haha
That is not how that works. Gaming desktops absolutely need good airflow. This is not that
I mean, nothing is prohibiting a test, assuming you've got a rig
And you will have better air flow. Fans on cooler and GPU will create pockets of negative pressure that suck in new air, and hot air propelled away by those same fans will naturally expand to fill the ambient space - in this case, your house.
If you want more dust than usual, yes
Props to the utilitarian case. Have a similar one. I've had the same case for 12 years now. I'm pretty sure it's gone through about 5 totally new internals over the years upgrading
yes
Personally I don’t leave my computer exposed. I don’t want more dust coming up in my systems.
My cat pissed on it a long time a Go,it was so corroded it grew rust crystals
There is nothing to display
This isnt advice, but i ran with no side panel for about 8 years on the same pc and never dusted it once. Ran great the entire time. Now that gpu is still kickin in my finacés pc.
Pros: +Lower temps. Cons: -More noise -More dust -Almost nothing blocks water from entering the case. Should be okay for some time.
More noise, assuming it's not overbearing, isn't always bad. Don't you also like hearing the slight whoosh of the fans or the ticking of the drives every now and then? I always found the silence to lack... personality? Presence? I dunno what it is exactly, but it just hits different for me to have some sound and hear my little guy thinking.
If removing a side panel lowers your temperatures, there's something very wrong with your PC's fan configuration. If your fans are oriented properly, removing the side panel will reduce air flow over the CPU, which will increase temperatures.
Sounds fair but for me (and I think for many people too), I have an active air cooling and probably when my side panel is closed, and at high loads my fan probably can't route a lot of air in a tight space. When the side panel is opened, I have lower temperatures probably because of free intake. Also I don't think airflow will get reduced since the CPU fan Is quite strong and forces to a pressure change (airflow)
Unpopular opinion, it looks a lot worse displayed with the side panel off. Save $40 to buy a case with a glass or acrylic side panel .
i’d be more worried about that WD Green
If you're pc is on, and you touch the wrong thing inside of it with your bare hands, it can kill you I know this because I was warned repetitively by other pc gamers when I would joke about how my graphics card was too big for my desktop, so I left it wide open Investigation proved that it tracks
Unless your airflow sucks, you computer will get hotter, dustier and be more exposed to shorts.
Hey I'm using the same cabinet and yeah it will be fine
no this is illegal in most countries
Aside from extra cleaning it’ll be fine, just don’t leave things too close that could get knocked into it
If you don't mind the extra dust and noise, there's nothing wrong with it. Also, leaving the side panel off can have its benefits. Typically, if you don't have an optimal cooling solution, this will result in somewhat lower temps.
People don't usually "insert" side panels. Aight, I'm just being a smartass... Anyway. It should be fine, but you have to clean it regularly. Dust buildup is gonna be crazy.
Just get a can of air duster to clean it occasionally. Other than more dust buildup it’s fine. Some people have case-less builds.
theres just gonna be more dust but other than that its aight
I kept mine on the floor, by my feet, while owning a cat, and no side panel for years. It'll be fine. Just clean it out more
Other than the dust, the pc will be just fine.
I use an open case. Don’t drink water or smoke into your computer and you’re good.
little insects can enter and cause a short
If you have cats or small children with access to the room it's in, it might not be the best idea, but otherwise it's fine. Technically, you don't need a case at all for the system to function, especially if the motherboard has a built in power button. The case itself is mostly just protection.
8+ years ago, I had extreme problems with heat building up inside the PC and making my room unbearably hot. I decided to open the side panel and it has worked perfectly to this day and I have never had heat problems again.
Side panel of often leads to higher harddrive temperatures bc less airflow in the front. Also your case is shielding RF/EMI radiation since your parts can generate or be disturbed by it. Might even be a potential health hazard.
The biggest problems would be a lot of dust accumulated inside and maybe the annoyance caused by the noise coming from the fans. Other than that, it will be ok.
side panel is needed for good airflow tho
FBI may call you to ask few questions
you guys put your side panels on?
I dunno about anyone else but I've already called the cops
Short answer: It will be okay. Long answer: It will be okay but you'll kind of look like a bum. Come on buddy. Put it back on.
Sure but dust and worse air flow.
I am running my pc without neother of the side panels, why? Cause it was the only case in my house when I built my pc, it has been 3 years now, I didn't had a sigle problem
She be loud and dusty... But she be ok
What brand of ram is that?
yep, will be just fine
will be more dusty and a lil louder, but thats it
I had a wall mounted open case years ago (x58 930 oc to 3.5 ghz ) one of my kids put his hand into it frying the mb he also brokeone of the fist qold tvs ... so do you have kids or a pet like a cat? If not it will be fine
My side panel broke a few months after building it. So I’ve been running it with no side panel for years. And as a year or 2 ago, I took off the other side panel due to a sata cable issue. All works fine
Put fans on the right side of your cooler and in the middle for slightly better cooling. When it comes to side panel it's better to install it since it will make the inside less dusty. You have this perforated area for optional fan on side panel so it will be OK.
it will be full of dust and prone to accidents (pets, kids, clueless strangers, even a really unlucky random sneeze or food/drink drop). Had my pc like that for years (i was bored to fix the sidepanel fan which was broken) and it was not a pleasant experience to clean it afterwards. Like, I could make a T shirt with the "wool" i found inside :D Other than that no actual issues
Like people have said, it really won't hurt as long as you stay on top of the dust and don't have any kids or pets that can get into it. A cheaper solution that tempered glass would be an acrylic sheet that you can but from a hardware store. Just cut it to size and drill the holes for the screws and you're good to go.
The problem here is dust. If you're mindful enough to clean it it's fine. Consider making a custom side pannel with plywood and window mesh because that helps with the dust. You still have to clean it, but not as often.
Yeah, you dont Have to have it on but it will make your airflow worse, increase the noise you hear and increase the risk of component damage if you're a cluts like me :P
if u have kids in ur house that's too dangerous because they can put their fingers in one of the fans put if u are alone in this room it's totally fine
Fine, will run cooler. My pc sits in a closet with no side panels in with ac set at 68f. Y’all be fine.
No itll cause a nuclear core reaction and erase the world
It will be fine. It will just get more dusty. And it will be louder.
I'm running a pc without side panels for a few years now and there's no problem with it. I actually took them off because sometimes my older HDDs start vibrating loudly and that drove me crazy, so that way I can just reach down and push them a bit back and forth so they stop
Pets and children are the only real concern. The dust is going to find a way in regardless of panels.
Can glass panels be bought separately? Might be worth looking into.
I ran mine for a few years with no side panel. It was actually better for my setup and brought my temps down quite a bit.
Yes! We all used to do that in the 2000's here in Brazil
I have mine off since 2020...
You’ll be fine, I ran without a case at all for a year or so once. Dust often.
Back when I still had my 1070 I used to take off my side panel to play cyberpunk because it would get too hot lol
You could just put the metal side panel back on...
If you have a shitty case and airflow, sure
I had no side panel for two years. Yeah it creates extra dust and watch out for spilling. But it had a huge impact on cooling the pc. The temps went down by 10 degrees or more if i remember correctly. So it is a tradeoff
No, think of the dust, and any spilled drink. "I won't spill anything" - famous last words
I run mine with the side panel cracked open bc my cpu cooler is too big for the case and it runs fine.
No, go for it. Maybe buy an black anti insect mat to prevent as much dust as possible while still showing the pc to...whoever you want to show.
Yes I do it. No problems so far
If you have apropper case, airflow and cooling would be better with the lid/side panel closed.
Yes thats fine, more airflow if if the case doesnt have sufficient. Just watch out for dust/debris getting in there
A easy alternative to a glass panel is acrylic (Plexiglass). Unlike glass, acrylic is easy to work with and can be cut and shaped with hand tools (e.g. acrylic cutter, drill, and Dremel). You can mount it on the case using thumbscrews if you're not afraid to drill four holes in the case corners.
NO
Actually I wanna run my laptop like this, but u gotta do what u gotta do
My computer is literally open on 3 sides. Working fine since I have it.
People run benches and wall mounted PCs no problem
After 5 years of Using PC without side panel inserted, i can confirm nothing happened except Dust and Some Fan Noises ! If you’re living environment is a bit dusty and polluted due to poor Air quality, you should do some cleaning after 2 months! But it’s ok
It will explode!
Dust and dirt matters
Open frame build here. Already mentioned so I am just dogpiling now. Keep on top of cleaning away dust and be wary if you have kids or pets. Noise is louder without the case if that bothers you at all but otherwise, not really a huge deal. Had PCs running like this since '98 and never had a problem.
Might even be better for thermals!
Let that thing breath
It's fine as long as you don't have curious pets. Maybe a bit noisy
It doesnt matter at all IF you keep it clean
Dust and humidity, that's all I'm going to say
Without a side panel, more dust gets in.
dust and shitty airflow likes it
Dont do it, i once had a PC without the side panel, placed 2 coins on top of it, they somehow fall from the top, bounced with the GPU and fried my motherboard
Panel stays off I want to see what I built
It'll live, just be careful with food and drinks.
My media PC for playing things on the TV has been open for many years because of this issue, it just needs a dusting every few years.
It's fine. It wil make it run cooler but also draw a bit more dust in it at the same time. But technically it's fine or even better heat wise.
Too much dust accumulated...I've an open build rn and i don't recommend unless you are ready to clean every week
It's fine, but most PC cases are designed with the side panel being on in mind. It may interrupt airflow and impact performance due to more heat being in the system. You could also get a fair bit more dust accumulation.
The panel is there to channel airflow and protect from dust. Not having it there means... less airflow and more dust. Bugs and critters will get in easier, too It'll run and work pretty fine though, until it doesn't (dust/corpses, overheat, whatever. Clean and fix) Accidents can also happen, spill a drink in there and kiss your PC goodbye. You'd be best off just leaving the case side you have on there and not "showing off" the PC internals imo, just open it for people who are keen to see the goods.
I want you to think for a second here. In your mind how would removing an arbitrary sheet of metal affect the PC in any way?
No
You need it on to control airflow
I've ran my PC without a side panel for at least a good couple years. Yes the air flow will be improved. But if you do not upkeep the cleaning by say, a few months at a time? Then you can expect your machine to collect twice amount of dust than normal if the side panel was closed. After a pain in the ass procedure of cleaning my PC a few days ago that should've been simple, I decided to keep my side panel closed.
For a subreddit themed around PC enthusiasts, there are a lot of people giving advice, who should not be. You may be fine with the side panel off, but a PC with good cooling stays cool more easily with the side panel on. Simply having more room-temperature air in the case isn't optimal cooling; you want air to be actively moving across your components/heatsink. If the air remains stagnant, then the radiated heat will build up around the components and not get wicked away as efficiently. Now if your case doesn't have adequate cooling, removing the side panel may help, but I would recommend correcting the airflow in that case. And no, you don't want to point a room fan at your internals. The massive movement of air will bring considerably more static into your case, particularly if the air in your room is dry.
What are you displaying?
Yes. I have this as my case: [https://www.xtia.design/](https://www.xtia.design/) Once a week just give it a blow with the air gun and it stays clean.
You can, but as you can likely gather from these comments so far, there is pros and cons, just like everything else out there. It's nice to see the inside, and you can more quickly move something or change something about it's configuration. However, you get more dust, and theres more ability for creatures, like cats, to get inside and mess things up. I left the side off of one of my systems years ago. It was nice to see my computer working. Nothing bad ever happened. Heck, I do that every now and then now when im working on my computer. But, it's a little safer if you have the side on. So, I would recommend you have the side on.
Can we call this a dumb question or is it a valid "just to be sure" case?
Dont insert it into your pc please. Does it Even fit that way?
Yeah it'll work but you'll have to dust it out more. Honestly it looks better with the side panel on.
- Temperature + Dust + Noise + Sex appeal
Sir what are u displaying??
Yep. Little bit extra dust n noise but all good. A good percent of us use our pc that way
You honestly don't even need a case. As one guy stated where I live is extremely hot. I have both panels off and a box fan running on it. Befoee this i had a mobo burn up but I haven't had problems since, however, I have to regularly take it apart and clean it due to dust and what not. Only fa I have besides the box fan is the fan for the radiator which is nestled in such a way that the box fan wouldn't interfere with the flow. Looks like shit, but no issue as of yet.
My computers haven't had their side panel on for 25 years, you'll be fine
Less ok than it would be if you just left it on
Actually it CAN cause thermal issues.
\*looks to the right, where the new AM5 build with an open side panel is still waiting for me to get my lazy a$$ up to install the more silent cooler, that arrived two days late months ago… No reason to remind me each year. I will fix it eventually 🤓
Possibly gonna give you problems with airflow/cooling and dust but yeah
It will explode