Lian-Li PC-A05B

BlizzardX · 25 Jun 2007 at 10:31

Hey

I've been reading a few posts on this case using the search function but I was curious as to the owners reactions now having used the case for a while. I don't have much in my pc apart from 2 HDD's, x1950 Pro AGP, NIC card and 2 dvd drives, of which only the DVD-RW would be put in to the case.. With an AMD Athlon 64 3200 I presume the case won't run hot and i do not overclock at all.

Any body got any decent pics of the case too?

Raikiri · 25 Jun 2007 at 10:44

Somebody has a brilliant looking one over at [H] in the Lian Li thread there, not sure if I can link you there though.

Not used one myself but there's no reason people shouldn't be happy with it, I was going to buy one until a v1200+ popped up for £70.

BennyC · 25 Jun 2007 at 11:03

Mines arriving today as soon as the damn city link van decides to show up! Ive only got a e6300, DS3, X1800 and wifi card and dvd drive going into it, so should be quite roomy. Will take some pics and put them up here soon providing it arrives!

BlizzardX · 25 Jun 2007 at 11:10

Benny06 I'd be interested in some shots of it empty from various angles plus your first impressions if you'd be so kind.

BennyC · 25 Jun 2007 at 11:13

BlizzardX said:
Benny06 I'd be interested in some shots of it empty from various angles plus your first impressions if you'd be so kind.

Not a problem mate. Ive finished my exams so ive got nothing to do today so i'd be happy to. I'll try and do a mini review if i can too

alexakasloth · 25 Jun 2007 at 11:26

Looks like a good case, very nice looking (brushed aluminium!) and can take 2 * 120mm fans.

BennyC · 25 Jun 2007 at 16:16

finished my build inside

Uploading photo's as we speak.

Very light case, with a great finish. The PSU at the front works brilliantley. It pushes hot air out the front of the case, and then the 120 mm fan above it disperses it out of the side 'sills' so you get a gentle breeze out the sides. The cpu cooler is bang on par with the rear intake fan so gets great cooling.

Also the rubber mounts for the hard drive cages and the way the drive slots in is an excellent touch, minimising resonation and noise. theres also a gentle breeze that blows out the top/back of the case so great cooling all round.

A very small case and accomodated my components easily. Would definatley recommend. Photos to follow

BennyC · 25 Jun 2007 at 16:36

Nullvoid · 25 Jun 2007 at 16:51

Cheers for the photos man. You've really convinced me that this is the case I want

BennyC · 25 Jun 2007 at 17:00

Nullvoid said:
Cheers for the photos man. You've really convinced me that this is the case I want

your welcome. You wont regret it providing you can fit all your hardware in. Cable management is really easy with this case. Comes with an extra clip and a few cable ties too, along with lots of screws etc etc. The surface of the case scratched very easily, so be careful when putting sidepanels on and off. The front pulls off very easily too so make adding drives or cleaning fans a peice of cake.

The thing i like best is the hard drive rubber mount system. Until you actually put a hard drive in you wont quite appreciate its simplicty but effectivness.

BlizzardX · 25 Jun 2007 at 17:50

Thanks Benny great photos. I just love its size. I'm sick and tired of big cases and want something smaller and with only a few items in the PC at the moment it would certainly fit inside, espcially with a modular PSU mounted at the front, makes for easy cabling. I'd be interested to know what your spec is and its temperatures in the thing when you have it up and running properly?

BennyC · 25 Jun 2007 at 18:27

I have some cable management to do, but have been busy today!

Atm im running a e6300 at stock, DS3, ATI X1800XT, Artic cooling freezer seven pro, Maxtor 200Gb sata drive, Samsung Dual-layer DVD-RW, Netgear Wi-fi card and a Hyper Type R modular PSU.

Just installed speed fan and i have temps of...

HDD= 36 Degrees
CPU=45 Degrees(need to reaply thernal paste as was unable to find any during the rubuild plus its about a year old! and heatsink has been removed several times) That will probaly drop to low 30's
Case=29 Degrees.

Hopefully ill find where i put my thermal paste! Hope this helps BlizzardX

Edit: also brought the ROM drive bezel to add a nice finishing touch and keep iit looking simple. A Sata optical drive helps with wriring issues too.

matthew2456 · 25 Jun 2007 at 22:04

check your psu temperature, is it warm/hot to the touch?

BennyC · 25 Jun 2007 at 22:20

matthew2456 said:
check your psu temperature, is it warm/hot to the touch?

Its always been warm, nothing unusual at current.

jaykay · 26 Jun 2007 at 09:10

IS your cpu cooler bending, it looks really close to the back fan to a point that it looks like its touching.

richieboy · 26 Jun 2007 at 09:44

That should have been mine!

Was going to order one this weekend, but you must have just bought the last one (if you got it from OcUK)...as they had 1 and now they're out of stock, can't find them in stock anywhere and OcUK say there is no ETA of when they're going to be in stock...i want to cry

BennyC · 26 Jun 2007 at 11:24

richieboy said:
That should have been mine!

Was going to order one this weekend, but you must have just bought the last one (if you got it from OcUK)...as they had 1 and now they're out of stock, can't find them in stock anywhere and OcUK say there is no ETA of when they're going to be in stock...i want to cry

i ordered mine last friday

And no the coolers not bending its about half a cm off the rear fan, looks like it is in that photo though.

-Nick- · 26 Jun 2007 at 12:21

is that the psu at the front? god that's a bit weird, it not run a bit hotter then?

Nullvoid · 26 Jun 2007 at 12:24

It's fun trying to post here without mentioning competitor names

Let's see, of the places that I know of who sell the Lian-Li pc-a05b:

There's good old OCUK who as you say are giving no indication of when they expect to have more in stock.

One place seems a bit shady in that they don't give any indication of stock before you place your order and the only reviews I can find of their service are along the lines of 'very dissatisfied'.

One of them is a europe-wide store, possibly related to the american term used to describe indie music (is that too much of a hint?

). Anyway, they have it in stock but will only accept payment in the form of a bank transfer, with the item not shipping till the money clears in their accounts.

Lastly is another UK site who are expecting some stock in but won't allow you to pre-order so it's gonna be a case of first come first serve when they finally appear in stock on the webby. With only 4 units arriving that could prove to be quite disappointing

BennyC · 26 Jun 2007 at 12:32

-Nick- said:
is that the psu at the front? god that's a bit weird, it not run a bit hotter then?

nope, runs cooler as all the hot air comes out the front(as opposed to staying behind the case), and cold air goes right to the cpu(rear intake)