Building a Eurorack Case

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Building your own case is one of the most rewarding (and money-saving) parts of getting into Eurorack. Here's what to think about before you start, plus videos of people building theirs.

Illustration: module height (3U) and width (1 HP = 5.08 mm).

1. Plan your case

Width: choose a row width in HP. 84 HP and 104 HP are common sizes. Add a few millimetres of tolerance.
Rows: one row (a skiff) is a great start; you can build two or three rows for a larger system.
Depth: check the depth of the modules you want. Deeper cases fit more modules but are less portable.
Power: plan where the power supply and bus boards will sit. As a rule, use 1–2 bus boards per Mean Well RT-65B (see our power guide). Our Case Power Kit bundles the power supply, bus boards, wiring and mounting hardware for 1, 2 or 3 supplies.

2. Materials

Wood (plywood or MDF) is easy to work with and the most popular DIY choice.
Eurorack rails with threaded strips or sliding nuts to screw your modules into (see the comparison below).
M3 screws to mount modules (check your modules – a few use M2.5).
Mounting hardware: M5 hex bolts to fasten the rails to the side panels, and for the bus boards wood screws and spacers for wooden cases, or adhesive standoffs for plastic or metal.

Find everything in our Case & Power Supplies collection.

Sliding nuts for Eurorack rails — Sliding nuts: loose nuts that slide anywhere along the rail

Threaded strips for Eurorack rails — Threaded strips: a fixed row of M3 threads every 5.08 mm (1 HP)

Sliding nuts or threaded strips?

Both go inside your Eurorack rails and give your M3 screws something to screw into. The difference is in price, ease of use and how closely your modules line up.

Sliding nuts are the most cost-efficient option. Because each nut moves freely, you can put it exactly where a module’s mounting hole is. Your modules line up perfectly, right next to each other, without any gaps. The downside: fitting modules is more of a chore. Before every screw goes in, you have to slide a nut into exactly the right spot under the hole, and nuts like to move while you hold the module in place.

Threaded strips are much easier to work with. The threads sit in a fixed row, so you just place a module and screw it in, and you can swap modules in seconds. Because the holes follow a fixed 1 HP grid, a module whose holes don’t fall exactly on that grid can leave a small gap next to its neighbour. Threaded strips also cost more than sliding nuts.

	Sliding nuts	Threaded strips
Price	Cheapest	More expensive
Fitting modules	More work: line up a nut for every screw	Easy: place the module and screw it in
Module spacing	Modules line up perfectly, no gaps	Fixed grid, can leave small gaps
Best for	A tight, budget-friendly build you rarely change	A system you often rearrange

Tip for sliding nuts: always put enough sliding nuts in each rail, at least one for every module screw plus a few spares. With too few nuts, you end up sliding a whole row of them back and forth to line each one up under the right module, and that can be a very lengthy process. With plenty of nuts in the rail, there’s always one close to where you need it.

Bus board spacers lift the board off a wooden case floor

3. Build tips

Measure rail spacing carefully before cutting – modules must line up with the mounting holes.
Leave room behind the modules for ribbon cables and airflow; cable ties keep things tidy.
Ground the case properly using an earth connector.
Test the power system before installing any modules.

4. Depth, rails and HP

How deep should the case be?

Module depth is measured from the back of the front panel to the deepest part behind it, including the power header. Add 10–20 mm for the ribbon cable to bend, plus the height of the bus board on its spacers if it sits on the case floor.

Case type	Usable depth	What fits
Skiff (shallow, portable)	about 40–50 mm	Only "skiff-friendly" modules; many analog modules will not fit
Standard case	about 80–100 mm	The large majority of modules
Full depth	120 mm or more	Almost everything, including deep vintage-style modules

Check the depth of every module you plan to use; ModularGrid lists it, and our rack planning guide explains how.

Rail length and HP

One HP is 5.08 mm, so the inside width of each row is the number of HP × 5.08 mm. Each row needs two rails and two threaded strips (or a set of sliding nuts).

Row width	Module space (HP × 5.08 mm)	Our rail (per piece)	Fits
84 HP	426.7 mm	84 HP rail	The most common size; also fits a 19" rack
104 HP	528.3 mm	104 HP rail	Popular for a larger first case
114 HP	579.1 mm	114 HP rail
126 HP	640.1 mm	126 HP rail	Wide desktop cases
168 HP	853.4 mm	168 HP rail	Two 84 HP systems side by side
196 HP	995.7 mm	196 HP rail	Large studio cases

Module panels are made slightly narrower than their nominal width (a 4 HP panel is about 20 mm, not 20.32 mm), so an inside width of exactly HP × 5.08 mm already leaves a little play. Add up to 1 mm if your woodwork is not perfectly square.

Tilted, flat or on the road?

Flat (desktop): simple to build and easy to reach, but the top row is at a low angle when you sit.
Tilted or stepped: each row angled towards you, so knobs and labels are easy to read. Takes more woodwork.
Portable: add a lid that clears your tallest knobs and patch cables (allow 30–40 mm), sturdy handles and corner protectors. A lid with a little foam keeps modules safe when travelling.
Old hard-shell suitcase: see the suitcase build below; check the inside depth first.
1U rows: some cases add a thin row for utilities. There are two 1U formats (Intellijel and Pulp Logic tiles) with different heights, and they are not interchangeable, so check which one your modules use before building.

inneryard: “My DIY Eurorack Suitcase build”

Building a case from wood

Wood is the classic material for a DIY Eurorack case. Plywood (about 12–18 mm) or MDF is cheap, easy to cut and drill with basic tools, and looks great with a bit of oil or paint. A typical wooden case is a simple box: two side panels that set the angle and depth, a bottom and back panel, and the Eurorack rails screwed between the side panels.

In this video, inneryard shows his own DIY wooden case build from start to finish, a great example of what you can make with basic tools.

Tips for wooden cases:

Cut both side panels together so they are exactly the same shape.
Check the distance between the rails with a real module (3U = 128.5 mm panel height) before you screw everything tight.
Pre-drill the holes to stop plywood and MDF from splitting.
Mount the bus boards on the bottom or back panel with wood screws and spacers, or get everything at once with the Case Power Kit.

Synthrotek: “How to build your own DIY Eurorack Modular Synthesizer case”

Building a case in an old hard-shell (suit)case

Want a portable system that's protected on the road? Build your modular into an old hard-shell suitcase, briefcase or instrument case. The shell protects your modules, the lid closes over them, and you get a handle for free. And they're easy to find: second-hand shops, flea markets and online marketplaces often have sturdy old hard cases for a few euros.

In this video, Synthrotek shows how to build your own Eurorack case with rails and mounting brackets. Brackets like these make it easy to fit rails into an existing shell. The method is the same with our rails, threaded strips or sliding nuts.

What to look for:

Depth: the lower half must fit your modules plus the power supply and cables. Measure the inside depth before you buy.
Stiffness: a hard shell (wood, ABS or aluminium) is best. Soft or thin shells flex and can loosen your rails.
Width: make sure the inside width fits at least an 84 HP row (about 427 mm plus the rail ends).
Lid clearance: leave space for knobs and patch cables when the lid is closed.
Mounting: in a plastic or metal shell, use adhesive bus board standoffs or build a small wooden frame inside to screw everything onto.