Cooler Xtreme : Coolers
: Casing : Lian Li PC-60 Aluminium ATX Computer Case
Lian Li PC-60 Aluminium ATX Computer
Case
The Lian Li PC-60 is, like their
other current cases, made of aluminium. Unlike the others, though, it's
got a plain brushed silver finish.
It's 210 by 440 by 485mm (8.25
by 17.75 by 19.25 inches), which puts it in the "big midi-tower" size category.
Most midi-tower cases are smaller than the PC-60, but not by all that much.
It's a long way from full tower size.
Take the case out of its box
and it weighs only 5.9 kilograms.
That's without a Power Supply
Unit, though. Most cases have a PSU included as standard.
This one just has a gaping hole
in the back by default, which could explain why we're seeing it in Australia.
With a PSU, the average decent midi-tower case weighs about 8.5kg. Full
towers are more like 13kg.
The PC-60 may be midi-tower
sized, but it's got an impressive number of drive bays. There are four 5.25
inch bays, all of which have a front panel cutout (they're "external" bays),
and there are six 3.5 inch bays, three external, three internal.
Internal bays are only good
for hard drives; external bays can be used for anything, as you just pop
the cutout cover off if you need access to the drive, or leave it on if
you don't.
This compares well with many
full tower cases, which commonly have something like eight 3.5 inch bays
and five 5.25 inch ones, with various combinations of internal and external.
Most midi-tower cases only offer
something like four 3.5 inch bays and three 5.25 inch. This is OK for most
computers, but no good for power users with drives out what, I am reliably
informed, is correctly referred to as "the wazooty".
Lots of Taiwanese cases seem
to have been designed by people who felt compelled to Make A Statement with
whatever bits of case didn't have their shape dictated by budget and function.
So they've got huge plastic light spreaders in front of their LEDs, giant
squishy buttons, and big chunky mouldings all over the front panel.
The PC-60 has simple round silver
buttons, the reset button is not prominent enough to be accidentally pressed
by a toe, and the power and hard drive LEDs are decently small.
Instead of the standard combination
hex/Phillips head screws that hold most cases together, the PC-60 has these
Phillips-slotted thumbscrews all over the place. You still need a screwdriver
to work on it properly, but not for simple jobs like taking off the side
panels.
The side panels have an unremarkable
slide-off design; the top panel's fixed in place. Slide off the sides...
...and the shiny interior of
the case is revealed.
The PC-60 isn't completely without
sharp-ish edges inside, but it's got none of the knife-like nastiness of
many cheap cases. This possibly-hazardous curved edge at the top of the
case is covered with plastic bushing strip.
