If you've manged to successfully take advantage of a PS5 restock updates, you might now be deciding how to fit the hefty black-and-white PS5 into your entertainment system, especially as it's not exactly appealing when placed horizontally.
This is something DIY Perks, who is also known for DIY-ing a brass version of the PS5, must have been pondering given the YouTuber took Sony's console and reworked it into something that resembles a mid-century stereo system. It might not look futuristic but the horizontal footprint it takes up is notably smaller than the original PS5.
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Described as a "stealthy PlayStation 5," DIY Perk's new PS5 creation is rather different to his previous console modifications. This time, DIY Perks had to firstly fully disassemble the original PS5 casing and reveal its surprisingly compact core internals that "would almost be as thin as a laptop if it weren't for the very necessary cooling heatsink."
The next step was to make the core of the unit stand perfectly on a flat surface. To achieve this, the content creator leveled it off using hexagonal PCB pillar supports "along with a few washers here and there to fine-tune it."
The subsequent challenge was to create a base plate to fit the bottom of the unit, for which the YouTuber used real carbon sheeting, but also specified that anyone can opt-out to use other materials if preferred. DIY Perks said he chose carbon sheeting as it makes a perfect sturdy yet lightweight material that's often used in sports cars and "simply looks very nice."
And after some careful measuring, trimming the edges, cutting out the necessary openings, and attaching the PS5 LED board the carbon sheet was ready to be mounted to the base core of the unit.
But before constructing the side panels, the YouTuber had to engineer a proper cooling system with the help of a few foam strips to better direct the airflow (thus mimicking what's already in place in the original version of the console).
Now to the exciting part: DIY Perks opted for American dark walnut hardwood to customize the side panels for the horizontal design, which would later add that mid-century feel to the finished design. After cutting the panels with the help of "cool Japanese miter saws," the content creator then proceeded to glue the parts together and cut out a few holes for the front ports of the console.
Those ports were later covered with a piece of the same carbon sheet that acted as the bottom base for the unit to add that stylish contrast. "Thanks to a little DIY hinge, pressing the side of this cover opens it up for port access," DIY Perks explained. But this cover also acts as a power button, thanks to the mounted push switch installed earlier.
And in order to achieve those PS5-like round edges, the YouTuber had to use a rasp "to gouge off a significant amount of wood," which was then smoothed out with some sanding.
Now, with the back panel came the challenge of creating a venting pattern and a port cover, which was created using a CNC router. DIY Perks then screwed the back panel onto the unit and attached matching speaker parts to the bottom of the machine.
Last but not least came the upper part, which was once again (you guessed it) constructed from the carbon fiber material. However, in order to "make the fan vent more interesting," the YouTuber decided to add a hexagonal shaped mesh using a CNC router. And to add to the trypophobia-triggering pattern, DIY Perks added wooden inserts to match the rest of the build.
All-in-all, this design sure seems fancy, but it is highly unrealistic to attempt unless you have a spare CNC router and Japanese miter saws just lying around the house. However, it shows that there's scope for Sony to rework the PS5 into a smaller package in the future, perhaps in the form of a PS5 Pro.
