Upgrades on a Predator Orion 3000 i7-10700/16GB/512GB SSD + 1TB HDD/RTX3070 8GB Desktop.(PO3-620)

JanDel213

Can someone please tell me if I can upgrade to a bigger pc case? and if so, any suggestions?
reason being, I want to put a better cooling for the system overall(Case fans, CPU liquid cooling, and GPU cooler as well).
any informative and useful suggestion will be much appreciated. Thanks!

GotBanned

Sure you can, and few have done so already. Unfortunately this almost automatically means buying a new case, motherboard and PSU for your CPU, RAM, GPU and storage devices. Costly thing do do, but doable.

I am in the process of doing this for a friend. I chose Fractal Design Meshify 2 Compact case, MSI B560 Tomahawk Wifi motherboard and Corsair 650W PSU. Cooler will be Noctua NH-D14 or D15.

JanDel213

GotBanned said:

Sure you can, and few have done so already. Unfortunately this almost automatically means buying a new case, motherboard and PSU for your CPU, RAM, GPU and storage devices. Costly thing do do, but doable.

I am in the process of doing this for a friend. I chose Fractal Design Meshify 2 Compact case, MSI B560 Tomahawk Wifi motherboard and Corsair 650W PSU. Cooler will be Noctua NH-D14 or D15.

So, the motherboard that is in the system right now is not compatible with any other cases?
and same for the PSU?

GotBanned

If you buy a new case that's spacious enough, I'm pretty sure Acer's motherboard can be installed on it as the holes on the mobo should match. But how do you connect case front I/O (audio and USB) and power switch is another matter. And if the case is too big, you may have problems with original PSU's cable lengths as well.

As mentioned already few times on this forum, Acer uses "new" type of a PSU that can't be used with normal motherboards. Connectors don't match. In time there will be cable adapters, but no one knows when they will be available.

=> Easier, but costly, is just to transplant components on new case.

As for AIO, the current mobo has only three connectors for fans. Of course you can use splitter cables, but that's far from optimal. A new proper motherboard will give you more fan connectors and better control over fans and pump(s).

As an added bonus, a new mobo will support XMP profiles for RAM. As it is now, the Kingston that's rated for DDR4-3200 is running at 2666 speed because Acer doesn't support memory overclocking/XMP. Please keep in mind that not all "normal" motherboards support this feature, so you have to be careful which one you buy. I'd buy, and did, one that supports also 11th gen Intel CPUs, so at least it is possible to do some CPU upgrade later.

JanDel213

GotBanned said:

If you buy a new case that's spacious enough, I'm pretty sure Acer's motherboard can be installed on it as the holes on the mobo should match. But how do you connect case front I/O (audio and USB) and power switch is another matter. And if the case is too big, you may have problems with original PSU's cable lengths as well.

As mentioned already few times on this forum, Acer uses "new" type of a PSU that can't be used with normal motherboards. Connectors don't match. In time there will be cable adapters, but no one knows when they will be available.

=> Easier, but costly, is just to transplant components on new case.

As for AIO, the current mobo has only three connectors for fans. Of course you can use splitter cables, but that's far from optimal. A new proper motherboard will give you more fan connectors and better control over fans and pump(s).

As an added bonus, a new mobo will support XMP profiles for RAM. As it is now, the Kingston that's rated for DDR4-3200 is running at 2666 speed because Acer doesn't support memory overclocking/XMP. Please keep in mind that not all "normal" motherboards support this feature, so you have to be careful which one you buy. I'd buy, and did, one that supports also 11th gen Intel CPUs, so at least it is possible to do some CPU upgrade later.

oh ok, thank you very much, this is really useful info, so the parts that you mentioned on your first comment are the ones i should go for or at least similar?

GotBanned

What you buy is up to you. ^^ I can only tell my own reasoning for what I did.

I chose "only" a 650W quality fully modular PSU because I know that my friend and his three young daughters won't play any taxing games. If you plan on upgrading your 3070 to a 3080/90 (or later 4000-series), I'd consider at least a 750W or even 850W PSU from a good manufacturer. PSU is not the component to start penny-pinching. Seasonic, which I personally use, offers 10 year guarantee and I have been very happy with them for years.

You need to read a bit more about new chipsets and do comparisons. Most support XMP for RAM, but other specs vary. Some don't have USB-C while some don't have WiFi 6 and BT etc. I bought what I bought because it has more than one M.2 slot, 4 RAM slots, supports 11th Gen CPUs, has USB-C on the back and front, WiFi 6e... It wasn't cheap at 185€, but my friend's current computer is 10 years old. If this one lasts as long, then I think the extra money is well spent.

billsey

Be aware the PSU in a PO3-620 is an ATX12VO, so moving to one with higher power can be an issue, there aren't a lot of them available from third parties. The MB itself is a DTX with that added 'diving board' out the front for the front ports. Since most cases don't have support for the front extension you will either lose the front ports or have to come up with some creative cabling. You may find revamping the cooling on the existing case will be a better choice.