Found object modding is the art of stealth and integration, turning every day or collectible objects into high tech gadgets. Alvin Barber (aka Mach) resurrected the 1951 Zenith H664 Cobra-matic phonograph player he found on Ebay into a Gaming PC. The Cobra-matic shell is constructed from 1/4″ thick Bakelite. Developed in 1907, by the Belgian-born chemist, Dr. Leo Hendrik Baekeland, Bakelite was the first true plastic containing no natural materials. It was nonflammable and could withstand 100,000 volts of electricity, thereby becoming the material of choice for electrical insulation, telephone, radio, and auto parts.

Even though the original components could not be repaired, Alvin wanted the rare shell kept in it’s original condition. Brass and Copper materials were wisely implemented for the internal construction.

Alvin customized a slimline DVD player to look like a vintage phonograph player.

Alvin designed a new dial face that functions as the front grill. It was laser cut by Vintage Manufacturing The finished piece looks as if it was an original part.

A Zalman VF1000 Copper heat sink gives the XFX GeForce 7950GT GPU a more retro look.

A modified Antec “Big boy” 200mm intake fan resides behind a custom made retro front bezel.

The dial face is illuminated with El Wire inside of polyethylene tubing to recreate the soft amber glow of the Era.

This is one of the finer “Found Object” case mods I’ve seen in a long time. Thank you to Alvin for sharing his project with us! You can read and learn more about Alvin’s mods in detail in his “Project Cobra-matic” Worklog on The Best Case Scenario Forums

Hardware specs:
Motherboard: Gigabyte 965PDQ6
Processor: Intel Core Duo E6600
Video Card:XFX GeForce 7950GT
Memory: Corsair XMS2 2GB
Power Supply: Seasonic S12 550
HD: WD SE16 250GB
Cooling:
Thermalright XP-90C CPU Cooler
Antec Bigboy 200mm fan
Nexus 92mm fan