10" Rack LED Matrix with Game of Life

Who doesn't need more useless lights blinking at them? 

This project is a single-piece, print-in-place 1U faceplate for 10-inch homelab racks. It mounts a 4-in-1 MAX7219 8×32 LED matrix and a round display/arcade button side by side, with an integrated rear shelf that holds a Raspberry Pi Pico W — no separate bracket needed.

Drive it with the Pico running MicroPython to scroll Conway's Game of Life (or text, GitHub contributions, a clock…) and control it from Home Assistant over MQTT — it shows up as a switch automatically.

Highlights

• 1U compliant (EIA-310), 250 × 43.6 × 3 mm, rounded corners
• Slotted M6 rack holes with ±2 mm travel for ~234–238 mm rails (236 mm centres)
• Round-display cutout with a reinforcement collar
• Rear Pico W shelf with 4× M2 self-tap standoffs

Print settings

• Orientation: face-down (no supports)
• Material: PETG recommended

Firmware, wiring diagram, BOM, assembly notes & full docs (MIT licensed):
👉 https://github.com/markszulc/matrix-panel

This is my first true publicly posted project, so give me some love (and be kind in the comments)