Lian Li's PC-A05FN: Alternative Thinking at a $99 Price Point
by Dustin Sklavos on December 7, 2011 10:15 PM EST- Posted in
- Cases/Cooling/PSUs
- mid-tower
- Lian Li
Noise and Thermal Testing, Overclocked
Given the emphasis on processor cooling in Lian Li's PC-A05FN, hopefully the enclosure's unusual design will pay off with the substantially increased thermal load that the overclocked processor and RAM bring. That said, we can expect increased ambient heat in the process and with no directed airflow going towards the GeForce GTX 580, I'm at least a little concerned about the heat and noise that card may put out.
Processor temperatures wind up being excellent, and the chipset and DIMM results are also excellent, but sacrifices are made. The SSD runs hotter than almost any other enclosure we've tested (not really a concern for an SSD, but we'd be wary of using a 2.5" HDD), and the GeForce's cooler is definitely being taxed more than usual. That idle temperature is pretty much the worst we've seen, and the load temperature is mighty close.
Unfortunately, while noise in the PC-A05FN is good, it's not great. While the processor stays cool enough, that GTX 580 is roasting. It's among the quieter enclosures we've tested under load, but at idle the GTX 580's fan is already working harder than we'd like.
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ArteTetra - Thursday, December 8, 2011 - link
I think this case was designed to be put in a piece of furniture. Hot air is expelled from the front because furniture is usually closed on the back. The compact size also fits this role.I guess there are people who could be very interested in this.
Death666Angel - Thursday, December 8, 2011 - link
If the back is closed, where would the case get the cool air it needed? You need 2 sides to be relatively unobstructed in order to ensure good temperatures and noise. It really doesn't matter if it's front to back or vice versa if the rest is similar. :-)geniekid - Thursday, December 8, 2011 - link
"the overarching theme is that people want an enclosure that reminds them of the monolith from 2001: A Space Odyssey."Lol! So true. Myself included.
NINaudio - Thursday, December 8, 2011 - link
we could get a review of the lancool PC-K9? That looks like a very interesting case and I'd love to see how it stacks up.bji - Thursday, December 8, 2011 - link
This case is not for everyone. It is smaller and has weaker cooling characteristics than other cases. It works perfectly for my setup, which is a Phenom II 1075T, SSD drives, a high-end aftermarket heatsink and 120mm fan CPU cooler, a singe low-speed quiet 120 mm case fan at the back, motherboard, and nothing else (no dedicated GPU, I just use the crappy one on the motherboard, I don't do any gaming whatsoever). My whole system stays as cool as I could want.So if your cooling needs are moderate, this case is fine.
I personally appreciate the fact that it doesn't look like a big plastic piece of crap with weird angles, holes, and plastic extrusions everywhere. It looks classy and understated. The aluminum is thin like someone said but I find it to be strong and durable enough.
The *only* quibble I have is that the lid for the top USB ports/audio ports is kind of cheaply made. It has sharp edges and the hinge protrudes out of the top surface. It would be nicer if it was flush somehow, it would fit the smooth surfaces of the case better.
8steve8 - Thursday, December 8, 2011 - link
who needs a full size atx motherboard anymore???... and by that, almost no one needs a full size atx case.
this case might be worth looking at if it was microatx
Death666Angel - Thursday, December 8, 2011 - link
Pretty much my thoughts these days. Only reason to go full ATX these days is insane enthusiast builds or shaving off a few bucks.zhadlp - Thursday, December 8, 2011 - link
for that size, its more suited for an matx build... and I'd still prefer my A04 compared to this one, they both have belong to the same price point I think.easy to mod too... :)
http://www.techpowerup.com/gallery/2983.html
CZroe - Thursday, December 8, 2011 - link
Not one single shot of the front with a PSU installed with the faceplate removed? I was curious about how far the thing protruded and wondered if the PSU was inset a bit to compensate for that.shakyone - Thursday, December 8, 2011 - link
I purchased the original one of these, four years ago. It has been sitting in my kitchen, quietly humming away, always on.The beauty of this thing is that it just looks "classy" and simple. It is very tiny, yet it fits a full size ATX motherboard! Seriously people, this baby can fit a fully loaded system, and look petite doing it. If you want to put a PC out where it doesn't need to draw attention, this is the case to do it. It doesn't draw any attention to itself in the process, that was the goal.
As reported, yes it runs hot. I scaled back from a high end graphics card for a Radeon 5770, that ran cool. I also have to be careful when picking parts, because it is small.
I'm waiting for the price to drop on this version, and I'm pulling the trigger, as an upgrade. The Lian-Li quality, really closed the deal. I was able to get all matching Lian-Li accessories, and it keeps it diminutive appearance. I get that they are not the best of the best, but they work very well, and look like the belonged there all along. They have more matching case accessories than I think any other manufacturer, and it is worth it, for me.
You can do a lot with this one, that is its secret!