Which of these Lian-Li cases should I get?

[Civic2oo1x]

I'm torn between the Lian-Li PC65B (top blowhole) PC65 or the Lian-Li PC75. PC75
Both are great cases according to many reviews. I like the look of the side window, so I'm going to get one of these two. I want my system to remain cool though. Right now using my PC10 I'm getting temps of 50c for the CPU and 34 or so for the system. The side of my case is warm and the fans are pretty loud. I'm thinking some of the heat has to do with my PSU being mounted upside down. There is a grill on the top of the PSU that doesn't allow for me to mount it straight. The fan is pushing out warm air, directly above my CPU. Could this be causing the heat? Looking at the PC65, it looks like it suffers from the same design flaw, while the PC75 has room about the PSU for 2 more fans to be placed.

I'm going to running
DVD-Rom
DVD-RW
CD-RW
3-4 hard drives.

Which of these cases do you suggest for me? Thanks

 

[chizow]

Any particular reason you have your PSU mounted like that? Is it possible for you to remove the grill if it is screwed on, or if it has a "built-in" grille, using snips to cut it out?

The PC75 gives you more room, probably somewhere between the Antec/Chieftech/Chenming towers and your standard mid-towers. If you are considering water cooling, I'd go with the PC-75. It would be hard for me to mount a reservoir, pump and radiator in my PC-65 b/c its so loaded out. Downside is the PC-75 is still very expensive.

I went with the PC-65 and its been great. I posted this deal on the PC-65 at PCMods for $109.99. There are some after-market mods with the case, as well as the option for 2 additional blowholes for $9.99. Shipping for me was $15 or so from FL to DC. Great company great case, but you can read thru the comments to get a better idea. The extra holes will give you more airflow as well.

Chiz

 

[Civic2oo1x]

That is a really nice price, and I'm thinking about ordering it tonight. The reason I have the PSU mounted like that is because of the grill. I can remove it, but then the fan would be pressing up right against the top of the case.

Now to decide whether to get it standard or get it with the two additional fans. Hmm.. That would cool the case inside, what another degree or so?

 

[chizow]

Originally posted by: Civic2oo1x
That is a really nice price, and I'm thinking about ordering it tonight. The reason I have the PSU mounted like that is because of the grill. I can remove it, but then the fan would be pressing up right against the top of the case.

Now to decide whether to get it standard or get it with the two additional fans. Hmm.. That would cool the case inside, what another degree or so?

Its considerably more than a few degrees, varying on the type of fans used and the ambient room temperature. Its like running your system with the side panel off vs. leaving it on. System temps will probably fall in the middle somewhere. Also, the placement of the fans blows cool air onto your PCI components and the top one blows in the gap between the AGP card and PCI 2, which is really nice. The front fans don't do a real good job of bringing in cool air, b/c they are pretty weak to begin with, and the air they bring in pushes past your toasty HDDs.

Chiz

 

[Civic2oo1x]

Decisions, decisions. What do you suggest? I'm going to be running an XP2100+, 512 of XMS ram, and maybe in the summer drop a AIW9700 in there. Should I get the fans on the side?

+Keeps the components cooler
-Is in the way of the components, so the inside doesn't look as pretty.

 

[chizow]

Originally posted by: Civic2oo1x
Decisions, decisions. What do you suggest? I'm going to be running an XP2100+, 512 of XMS ram, and maybe in the summer drop a AIW9700 in there. Should I get the fans on the side?

+Keeps the components cooler
-Is in the way of the components, so the inside doesn't look as pretty.

Well, I got them sight-unseen b/c I've modded my previous cases with blowholes and know how much of a difference they make in case temps and overrall system temps (more well-placed fans pushes the same air as fewer louder fans). I would've put a few in regardless, but it just so happened there was a nice option that saved me time and did it professionally If you have doubts, you may want to do it now, rather than regret it later. You can always mask the holes with some stylish fan grilles or whatever later, but risking the damage of modding later has its own inherent risks. Also, the PCI area of my board is nothing spectacular. You only see the rather ununinspiring profiles of your PCI/AGP components, and nothing looks that cool for me anyways (Audigy 2, RAID card, 9700pro, tv tuner and some header plates). My old GF4 Ti4200 turbo woulda looked cool, but it was so big it woulda been noticeable anyways. The most accented areas are the CPU (TT Coolmod looks AWESOME) and memory banks (corsair heat spreaders would be great), as well as the NB fan area (chipset cooler??? ). Also, you can put some grilles on the blowholes that look much better than the PCI cards with some CC backlighting and LED fans I guess its up to you, but the only things obstructed within the case are the PCI slots and half of the AGP, and I can still see their silhouette b/c I have clear LED fans on the side panel.

Chiz

 

[Civic2oo1x]

Ahh, so I could just get them to cut it and I could add this in there if I wanted right?

 

[CaptnKirk]

The KR7-133R is a nice board - but the KX7-333R is basically the same board, features match down the line =
until you get to the 5:1 divider which pumps the DDR to 333 keping the system in sync.
PC2700 is now about the same as PC2100, and quicker.
Lian-Li is a great case, but I see no reason for the Blowhole on top.
I push my XP2100+ and pump my DDR and temps are: Sys = 26C, CPU = 45C
Alpha PAL8045 in Lian-Li PC-7.

Simular to yours = (3) Optical & Zip on Promise ATA133 PCI card, (4) 120GB HDD's - pair on RAID,
same sound, Radeon A-I-W 8500DV, & NEC 17" LCD.

Stays cool - no blowhole.

Go with the KX7 if you go Abit - You'll never regret it.
Might go with the Y.S. Tech adjustable fan though, best of all ranges for flow and sound.

 

[Civic2oo1x]

Bah, I couldn't decide so I just ordered it without the side fans. I'm not one that needs ultimate performance so the temperature difference probably won't bother me. Now time to go and order some colored cables and a CC light.