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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jjj - Tuesday, February 21, 2012 - link
too bad you aren't actually testing it with at least 2 GPUsjjj - Tuesday, February 21, 2012 - link
lol got to add some more because this review just bugs me.Sure you got your standard testing for the sake of consistency but why just stick to it when it's not appropriate for the product? With 2 sockets and/or more than one GPU you don't only have more heat but the location of the hotspots changes and that does make a difference.Ofc you also got a very different scenario for SB-E where if you push the air back from the CPU you got some RAM in the way and you don't get any air over the VRM and that's far from ideal.
Sabresiberian - Tuesday, February 21, 2012 - link
I agree here, a 10-slot case should be tested with an extended ATX mainboard and at least 2 graphics cards.Better yet, slam one of those EVGA dual-CPU bad boys in and load it up with all the GPU it can handle. If I were buying this case, it would be for that kind of setup. (Probably not dual CPU, but definitely 3 graphics cards. Overclocked CPU.) How well does everything fit, and does it stay cool in that king of setup?
I don't understand why adding pieces of plastic to support heavy graphics cards means there is too much there. Now, if they throw in a bunch of odd-looking things and don't explain what they are for, I'd sure gripe about a poor manual, but not that they supplied extra parts I didn't happen to need.
Nice article really, just would like to have seen a more stressful test.
;)
1ceTr0n - Tuesday, February 21, 2012 - link
Lian Li makes ANOTHER boring, ugly ass case and claims it to be "UNIQUE" and "DIFFERENT".Lian Li hasn't made a single case that looked halfway decent IMO since the PC-68 back late 2001. The one and only Lian Li i've ever owned.
alufan - Tuesday, February 21, 2012 - link
rubbish i got a A70 a while back and its perfect tbh choice of top or bottom psu mount, up to 10 HDs all with fan cooling built inspace and support for the largest GPU cards available and it looks so simple and fuss free and minimalist, it also has factory made top panel with rad and fan mounts built in, look back in the DNA of silverstone et al and Lian Lis ideas will all be looking back at youCloudFire - Tuesday, February 21, 2012 - link
Agreed, Lian Li makes horrible cases. There are a few exceptions but like this one, the majority of them are horrid. Money can be spent way better elsewhere. Seriously, look at the wiring done in the assembled case. No thank you. The only thing I give Lian Li is their finesse when it comes to minimalist design and elegance; case design/layout is terrible.aznofazns - Tuesday, February 21, 2012 - link
And what do you consider to be an aesthetically pleasing case? Antec 900? BARF932?Take a look at the PC-P80, PC-V2120X, and basically all of the mini-ITX/micro-ATX cases they've put out in the past 5 years. If you think those are "boring, ugly ass" cases then you must be 12 years old.
MilwaukeeMike - Tuesday, February 21, 2012 - link
BARF932... I laughed. Gonna use that if you don't mind.Yes, it's aesthetically pleasing... so are the other cases you linked. But why are the prices so high? So I can feel good making pretentious statements about being 'minimalist'? A high price for this case, and the ones you linked ($309, $469 on newegg), without knowing where my money is gonig leads me to think it's a marketing stunt and i'm paying for the priviledge of owning a Lian Li case.
Thanks, but i'll pass.
tecknurd - Tuesday, February 21, 2012 - link
I have a Lian Li case and it is probably model PC-68, but I do not remember. Besides that, Lian Li case does make plain cases, but Lian Li puts the work on the DIY for making their case their own unique case. Depending on the model, can add extras to Lian Li cases.I will own another Lian Li case because they are easy to build a computer compared to other brands. Lian Li has tight tolerances, so drive bays and expansions are with in spec. Do not have to use a rubber headed hammer to pound the drives in place or a screw driver to leverage the expansion slots in place while screwing them down. The motherboard tray from Lian Li moves out smoothly compared to their competitors.
Dustin Sklavos - Tuesday, February 21, 2012 - link
Respectfully disagree with your point that Lian Li cases are easy to build compared to other brands. The Lian Li cases I've tested have consistently been the most time-consuming and frustrating ones to build in. The PC-90 was the least offensive that way.If you want something well made and easy to build in, Corsair remains for me the gold standard for ease of assembly.