Lian Li's PC-90: The Hammer Strikes Hard
by Dustin Sklavos on February 21, 2012 12:00 AM EST- Posted in
- Cases/Cooling/PSUs
- mid-tower
- Lian Li
Conclusion: Workstation Class
If you're after pure performance from an enclosure, Lian Li's PC-90 is an excellent place to start looking. Despite quibbles with the assembly, the PC-90 is able to achieve in a smaller space and with less resources and weight what larger enclosures like the Cooler Master Cosmos II and Thermaltake Level 10 GT can do. Lian Li's enclosure almost makes competing cases feel over-engineered by comparison. Yet if we look closer at all of these designs, it becomes fairly clear who each of these cases is designed to cater to.
Lian Li's enclosure has the performance to appeal to enthusiasts, but virtually no allowances are made for liquid cooling of any kind. Certainly the enterprising user could install a 280mm radiator in the front, but similar to the brackets included with the SilverStone FT02, this is something an individual could but probably shouldn't do. The PC-90 is an air-cooling case first and foremost. Once you take into account the incredibly minimalistic exterior and the slightly more involved assembly, it seems clear Lian Li is gunning for the PC-90 to be used as a workstation enclosure as opposed to a high-end gaming system. Certainly it can handle either and the performance is definitely there, but it's a lot easier to see the PC-90 under a desk in an office than, say, a Level 10 GT.
With all that said, I still waffle on some of Lian Li's design decisions. I feel like their mounting system for storage drives at least make more sense here, but the optical drive mounting system, and particularly the drive fascia, needs to be revised. There's no shame in needing to use tools to assemble a desktop; toolless allowances are nice, but sometimes it's better to just go back to basics. I expect some users will probably worry about hot air flowing from the interior of the enclosure up through the power supply's fan, while others will be concerned about outward-mounted hard drives passing vibrations through the side panel and thus amplifying access noise. These aren't invalid concerns, but I wouldn't let either one stop me from using the PC-90. Hot air going through the power supply might very well wind up being a serious issue, but mechanical hard disks can always be mounted on the interior sides of the drive plates to help alleviate vibration.
There is, of course, also the price tag. At $199 the PC-90 is an expensive piece of kit, but at the same time I do find myself having difficulty recommending alternatives. This is a situation that may very well come down to personal preference. End users looking to save some dosh can always pick up Rosewill's Thor v2, while users looking for a little more flash are going to have access to the Cosmos II and Level 10 GT. There are good options for each user willing to invest in a quality case, but $199 feels too steep for the PC-90. The performance absolutely matches the price tag, but the materials and overall build quality don't quite line up. At $149 it would be much easier to recommend. As I've said on other expensive parts and peripherals, I wouldn't fault anyone for buying the PC-90, but it could (and should) be less costly.
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lucky9 - Tuesday, February 21, 2012 - link
The noise and heat figures are compelling. Agreed the price is at least $50 high.Personally I have no use for this design but it seems to be a great one for those that need a large motherboard it a smaller space.
But I wouldn't trade my K-62 for anything I've ever seen in the same size/price range.
Veroxious - Tuesday, February 21, 2012 - link
It certainly is a matter of personal taste but as previous posters have pointed out at the price tag money can be better spent elsewhere like on a more powerful GPU / additional GPU.I for one would not be able to live with the drives hanging on the side and having cables all over the place. Also the PSU arrangement is less than ideal and a step backwards IMO.
The main reason I would not buy most Lian Li cases is the absence of a side window. I for one like the ability to the see the hard work I put in putting together my rig and the non-standard accessories in it. While not to everyone's liking I simply love my HAF.
kevith - Tuesday, February 21, 2012 - link
Great review. I would say, that I don´t find the looks of this cabinet neither pretty nor the opposite. And I don´t think looks are a big deal, if it is not one of the above.But performance wise I find it even very interesting. I think the results points towards very good thermal capabilities with more than one video card and/or a SNB-E processor.
Do you think the thermal performance has a lot to do with the case being made from aluminum? Does the case itself heat up during load?
Because if it doesn´t, I´d think this could be a very good platform for a cool and quiet case, if one were to add more fans and sound dampening applications to the panels and internal surfaces.
cyabud - Tuesday, February 21, 2012 - link
I have a PC-9 made of the same materials and it gets slightly warm on the top and side of the case around the CPU. The case has some great features but - like the PC-90 - cable management's a complete joke. Can anyone recommend a stylish and well-designed case that does the job but doesn't look like a spaceship?Observist - Tuesday, February 21, 2012 - link
I also have a PC-9F... with 2 GPU's and 4HDD's and a top-mounted ventilation fan, and I think the cable management is fine. There's not a lot of room behind the MB tray, but aside from that it's the same layout as a Corsair 650D and a bunch of other cases. Not sure what non-joke cable management would look like by your criteria. Cables need to go where they need to go.What the PC-90 lacks in cable management, it makes up by getting the HDD's out of the way of the front ventilation fans. Cables impede airflow, but not as much a big HDD cage like in the PC-9F.
That said, most of the nicer, well-designed, non-spaceship cases are included in this comparison - Silverstone FT02, Antec P280, Corsair 650D. Fractal Design and BitFenix also make some clean-looking cases. Maybe a Corsair 600T... looks slightly obese, but that leaves a lot of room for cabling. CoolerMaster CM690 II isn't too bad either, for an older, less expensive case.
cyabud - Tuesday, February 21, 2012 - link
I just find it very difficult to get it looking tidy. That said I have a lot of drives in there and a MB with very awkwardly positioned SATA ports, which clearly doesn't help.Thanks for the non-spaceship case suggestions. Currently salivating over the Antec P280.
TerdFerguson - Tuesday, February 21, 2012 - link
An overly kind review, to be sure. I understand that you want to keep those review samples coming in, but this case isn't worth $50.rscoot - Tuesday, February 21, 2012 - link
Hammer Time.(can't touch this post)
burntham77 - Tuesday, February 21, 2012 - link
I am so conflicted when it comes to choosing my next case. I love the elegance of a case like the PC-90, and yet I also crave a case with a side-window so I can see all of my hardware (and the neat cabling job). I yearn for understated, but I also year for gaudiness.Observist - Tuesday, February 21, 2012 - link
Corsair 650D is your answer! It's basically a Lian-Li with a side window.