Lian Li PC-TU200: On the Road With Lian Li
by Dustin Sklavos on October 31, 2011 12:45 AM EST- Posted in
- Cases/Cooling/PSUs
- Mini ITX
- Lian Li
Noise and Thermal Testing, IGP
You've probably figured out by now from the assembly chapter of this review that our noise and thermal testing with the Lian Li PC-TU200 didn't go as well as we'd hoped. Actually it gets worse: it was surprisingly difficult to keep the power cables from even blocking off the fan in our heatsink. The Intel Core i3 actually can idle with the CPU fan off, but that's not really where we want to be running it. But we did eventually sort things out to come up with the following results.
You can see that thermals aren't terrible in the TU200, but they're not great either. The CPU hits the highest temperatures we've yet tested it at, and this is before adding the GeForce to the enclosure. While our testbed feels generally adequate for getting an overall idea of enclosure performance, the TU200 seems particularly hamstrung by the questionable drive cage design and the resulting poor airflow.
Meanwhile, noise levels are essentially comparable with the other enclosures, none of which have much (or really anything) in the way of sound dampening characteristics. SilverStone's FT03 remains a particularly bad citizen, though it's also working with more fans. Meanwhile, SilverStone's TJ08-E benefits a bit from having fan control included for its single front intake fan.
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ronmccord - Sunday, February 2, 2014 - link
What a shame this review. Anyone serious about this case will do research first. "I'll admit I don't think our testbed represents a particularly good combination of components for a unique specimen like the TU200, " No one will try and run this case in the style of the author. If you read new egg reviews no one uses the drive cage and will find the right power supply and combinations of components. This review is certainly good info of what not to do. I am confident with the right power supply, drive cage removed and modern gpu installed this case will perform as well in general as other itx machines out there with a unique look and quality unmatched. This is one of the few cases you could have at home and then bring to work easily. Ditch the dvd drive and add a fan controller for example from Lian Li, they have one with one fan control know and adds a 2.5 cage! In aluminum or black color. Or an aluminum ventilation screen and other options. Get longer case feet, a sff modular power supply. In other words do everything right instead of wrong like in this review and you could have one special case!NA1NSXR - Friday, April 24, 2015 - link
You are right, I just did a paper build of this case and did all the research. You can kill two birds with one stone by using a SFX PSU and adapter bracket, which will free up space for air/cables and also get you some additional CPU heatsink clearance. In fact, you get enough additional clearance to go one step up on Noctua's offerings, to a L12, which definitely means extra clockspeed from OC headroom - maybe not up to 1.3V but definitely 1.2V in the 80C range. Also, a powerful 140mm like Noctua Industrial PPC 3000rpm can really be quite sufficient, even if GPU placement is somewhat cramped for breathing room.It's definitely a workable case. In fact I am pretty tempted by my paper build since I live overseas for work. This thing would work as a carryon easily.
n13L5 - Sunday, October 18, 2015 - link
I could actually make this thing smaller and achieve the goal of a portable Lan party box.Lian Li's problem here is not the size but the layout. Fortunately, their recent PC-Q10 is a good indicator that they have finally understood - after leaving the field pretty much to Silverstone & Co uncontested.