LIAN LI PC-90 The Hammer Review
Up Close: Stripped down
Published: 24th April 2012 | Source: LIAN LI | Price: £155.76 |
Up Close: Stripped down
The PC-90 comes apart really very easily. The removal of the front panel is one of the slickest I've come across, dispensing with the feeling as with many cases that you're about to break something as you tug away, the Lian Li simply un-clips gently, with no trailing wires to cope with. The top of the case is secured via 4 small screws at the front and rear. Once undone the roof section simply lifts off.
With the case "au-natural" we again get to see Lian Li's attention to detail and high quality. Each of the front intake fans has removable washable filters. Above them we see the small PCB for the power and HDD switches and lights as well as the front I/O assembly. The 5.25 bays are of the tool-less type, with the blanking plate simply pulling away and unclipping with a small amount of force.
Those of you who are averse to the naked Aluminium interior and who like myself simply can't resist getting the rattle cans out and changing the appearance of a case will be pleased to know that the rest of the case comes apart as easily as the parts I've shown. Most parts are either screwed in place, but the odd structural strut or brace is riveted.
Most Recent Comments
I think you've been more than generous giving it a silver. I wouldn't pay that kind of money for a case, knowing that no matter how much effort I went to that the cabling is still gonna look like a dogs breakfast. Lian-Li need to take their quality and get more innovative the way Silverstone have.
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Originally Posted by sheroo
I think you've been more than generous giving it a silver. I wouldn't pay that kind of money for a case, knowing that no matter how much effort I went to that the cabling is still gonna look like a dogs breakfast. Lian-Li need to take their quality and get more innovative the way Silverstone have. |
It fits HTPX and EBB boards (dual socket) and yet its still midtower!
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Originally Posted by tinytomlogan
Think you are missing the point of this case though fella, its deffo not a show off case, more a compact but still get a huge rig inside kinda case. It fits HTPX and EBB boards (dual socket) and yet its still midtower! |
If they had left sufficient space behind the motherboard tray, and even mounted the hard drives behind it as well - then it'd be a different story.
Agree with u sheroo,
but if u can look at the results u will see that exactly the price range take the all thing down, ok the performance also.
And yeah, ill still buy the Silverstone Raven 02 (wich i have) 100x more.
Tom u r right with motherboard sizes, the raven does not suport this ones... but hey, for Ivy Bridge its TOP.
10x for a super review again !
but if u can look at the results u will see that exactly the price range take the all thing down, ok the performance also.
And yeah, ill still buy the Silverstone Raven 02 (wich i have) 100x more.
Tom u r right with motherboard sizes, the raven does not suport this ones... but hey, for Ivy Bridge its TOP.
10x for a super review again !
F*#$ sake boys its a case for proffessional use!!
How can you not see that FFS?
How can you not see that FFS?
If the "professional" cared enough to build a tower as apposed to buy one from say dell then they would more than likely want it to be at least semi tidy. or are you implying most professionals who TAKE THE TIME to build there own tower dont care about the inside aslong as it looks sleek on the outside??
EDIT: i like the drive mounting personally but how hard would it be to put in some space behind the mobo tray so you can keep the wires for the mobo and stuff AWAY from the cables for the HDD's with them being in that position to make things easyer to swap in/out if something dies.
EDIT: i like the drive mounting personally but how hard would it be to put in some space behind the mobo tray so you can keep the wires for the mobo and stuff AWAY from the cables for the HDD's with them being in that position to make things easyer to swap in/out if something dies.
i think that is a stunning case, full of features, and lian li's usual attention to detail, its smart, but understated, its sleak, but not flashy, its, in my eyes, damn-neer perfect.
instead of naming it "the hammer",,,, maybe they should'of given it "the axe"
Functionality is what this case aims for guys.
This is obviously 100% driven towards the workstation side of computing, the big hdd columns are a dead giveaway lmao.
If lian li intend to release a case what should look good then they would include a nice side window with pre drilled cable routing holes.
It's a practical workstation case that is actually executed fairly well.
This is obviously 100% driven towards the workstation side of computing, the big hdd columns are a dead giveaway lmao.
If lian li intend to release a case what should look good then they would include a nice side window with pre drilled cable routing holes.
It's a practical workstation case that is actually executed fairly well.
Professional use or not it still could have been executed better. If you were to take the Lian Li name off it and it was made out of steel we wouldn't even be having this conversation - as you wouldn't even bother to review it - because it'd just look like any other oem carcass out there that by chance happened to fit a dual socket board.
Solid ready to mod case, fits crazy big form factors out of the box.
overall 6.5/10 pre modded.
could be cheaper though...
overall 6.5/10 pre modded.
could be cheaper though...
Lian Li cases are expensive. It's well known. But you buy quality. It's not like other Aluminium cases are particularly cheap...
I agree the cable management is a bit of a pain, however it's not the end of the world having to cut out some cable management holes, especially if you're going to spray the internals anyway (which I know plenty will)....
HDD storage is novel, and frankly it's a huge improvement for them to get so much into so little space.
Review says it scrapes a Silver, which I think is fair. It's probably at the bottom of the silver category, but probably deserves that position.
kd
I agree the cable management is a bit of a pain, however it's not the end of the world having to cut out some cable management holes, especially if you're going to spray the internals anyway (which I know plenty will)....
HDD storage is novel, and frankly it's a huge improvement for them to get so much into so little space.
Review says it scrapes a Silver, which I think is fair. It's probably at the bottom of the silver category, but probably deserves that position.
kd
@Gary, does that mobo tray come out ?
I just got this case's "little brother," the PC-100. Don't have the CPU yet, so I don't know about noise etc, but the rest of the build is in, and cable management was not a problem at all. And I don't have a modular PS.
The PC-100 has a "reversed" motherboard design, where the motherboard IO and the PCI slots lead out the front, then there's a grommeted track for passing the cables out the back, which is mostly a couple of 140mm fans.
This actually makes cable management very easy, since the 24-pin and video card cables get passed around the back of the mobo tray. All the unused cables fit behind the mobo tray, and there's a hole on the bottom where I routed all the cables for the case lights and switches, and the floor-mount SSDs.
The downside of the reversed motherboard is that centrifugal fan graphics cards blow out air that gets sucked back in. But my card has the down-fan style heat sink, so I expect it's not an issue.
The real brilliant aspect of this design is that I will never have an obsolete front IO panel. When I upgrade my motherboard, e.g. to a board with Thunderbolt, my "front" panel will have it.
I could go on. Basically, I think I got the better of the "Hammer Bros," especially on sale for $130.
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The PC-100 has a "reversed" motherboard design, where the motherboard IO and the PCI slots lead out the front, then there's a grommeted track for passing the cables out the back, which is mostly a couple of 140mm fans.
This actually makes cable management very easy, since the 24-pin and video card cables get passed around the back of the mobo tray. All the unused cables fit behind the mobo tray, and there's a hole on the bottom where I routed all the cables for the case lights and switches, and the floor-mount SSDs.
The downside of the reversed motherboard is that centrifugal fan graphics cards blow out air that gets sucked back in. But my card has the down-fan style heat sink, so I expect it's not an issue.
The real brilliant aspect of this design is that I will never have an obsolete front IO panel. When I upgrade my motherboard, e.g. to a board with Thunderbolt, my "front" panel will have it.
I could go on. Basically, I think I got the better of the "Hammer Bros," especially on sale for $130.
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@Rastalovich
No the Mobo tray isn't removable. Not without a Dremel any way
No the Mobo tray isn't removable. Not without a Dremel any way
cool review
I think it looks ok, the only weird thing is the drive mounting.
The 2x140mm radiator in front support is brilliant tho & the case looks nice from the outside.
Looks like there's loads of room in the bottom also for pump etc if you wanted to go watercooling.
The only problem I have had with lian-li brushed aluminium cases is vibration
I think it looks ok, the only weird thing is the drive mounting.
The 2x140mm radiator in front support is brilliant tho & the case looks nice from the outside.
it looks very much to me like it would be an easy job to mount a 2x140mm rad and fans in this area. enough room perhaps even for a push pull set up
Looks like there's loads of room in the bottom also for pump etc if you wanted to go watercooling.
The only problem I have had with lian-li brushed aluminium cases is vibration
Good review as usual mr Logan......... the build quality is lovely, and being a craftsman myself it makes my heart happy to see the pride they display in their quality of craftsmanship, it's a rare thing these days. The hard drive placement seems counter productive to the purpose of the case though, am i right in thinking that there's only room for 3 hard drives? A 3 drive raid system in a case that can hold a dual cpu board seems a little bit pointless
(edit) my mistake, it's 6 hard drives......... then yes i would say the case is fit for purpose and deserves its score
(edit) my mistake, it's 6 hard drives......... then yes i would say the case is fit for purpose and deserves its score
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Originally Posted by Jujumonkey
Good review as usual mr Logan......... the build quality is lovely, and being a craftsman myself it makes my heart happy to see the pride they display in their quality of craftsmanship, it's a rare thing these days. The hard drive placement seems counter productive to the purpose of the case though, am i right in thinking that there's only room for 3 hard drives? A 3 drive raid system in a case that can hold a dual cpu board seems a little bit pointless (edit) my mistake, it's 6 hard drives......... then yes i would say the case is fit for purpose and deserves its score |
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Let's take a look at one of the latest offerings from LIAN LI. The PC-90. AKA "The Hammer"
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