lianli PC7 PLUS design issue

quantumisation · 11 Mar 2007 at 16:58

ive got all my new system working fine and this case is quite nice but theres 1 or 2 things that dont seem fantastic

1 - the drive plates dont allow you to put an additional hard drive in the internal 3.5 bay properly because of their clips that stick out. You can still fit a drive in there but its sort of hanging out

2 - the removable hard drive cage has 2 problems as far as i can see. Firstly you cant possibly access all the screws on the other side due to the motherboard not having a tray. secondly if you take the cage out and put the drives in, you cant screw the cage back in because of drive overhang?

3 - fans dont have LEDs like i expected, no big deal but would have been nice.

4 - had to pay an extra £15-20 or something to get the window which i realise you have to do on some other cases, just seems a bit pointless in not giving you the option of buying 1 with it already on instead of having a spare side panel

Its not a complaint thread everything apart from those is great but i just wanted to see if others experienced the same issues with the case

InvaderGIR · 11 Mar 2007 at 17:08

1 - I'm sorry but that is quite a petty issue, it's not a big deal to have the HDD sticking out further than it could be. - Also the way the front is designed to be removable that's about the only sensible way to do the drive covers.

2 - I found it easy to install the HDDs in there, with all four screws in them, I'm sure I did it from the side.

3 - It doesn't say anywhere that they would be LED, and Lian-Li is not a gamer's enthusiast case maker, they make subtley styled cases, so they wouldn't include LED fans.

4 - Same as 3

I know you are saying it's not a complaint's thread, but they were if you are totaly honest, it's due to different markets really to be honest, Lian-Li is aimed more at the serious side of computer enthusiasts, hence the way they style the cases.

I admit I did get confused as to how was best to install the HDDs, as I have two in the cage and it took me a little while to work out the best way. I also have to admit that the front drive covers is a little irritating, but I don't find it to be a big deal as the case just looks so damn amazing and it's really robust too.

InvG

quantumisation · 11 Mar 2007 at 18:51

it really isnt a complaint, i think its the best case ive owned yet especially for the price. I was only really making a point about the HDD cage and just added those other things in. Its the first case thats had a removeable HDD cage for me and i thought the whole point in a removeable HDD cage is that you can remove the cage easily, install/uninstall drives from it, then put the cage back in. This way there is minimal fuss in that you dont need to remove both side covers and go around the machine etc. For e.g the P180 removable cages seem well designed in that regard. If you could remove this cage with the drives still in i would probably give the case 10/10 but because you cant its 9/10 if im rating it.

The only other thing i was thinking of is thumbscrews but i dont know how well that would work and would be curious as to why lian-li wouldnt put them in already if it were a good idea

InvaderGIR · 11 Mar 2007 at 19:28

quantumisation said:
The only other thing i was thinking of is thumbscrews but i dont know how well that would work and would be curious as to why lian-li wouldnt put them in already if it were a good idea

Thumbscrews where? Mine came with them on the side pannels and on the PSU backplate, where else would they be used? *Is intreeged as to other uses of thumbscrews* Suppose for the HDDs they could be usefull, if you like to swap drives around a lot.

I do get where you are coming from though about not being complaint.

Looking at the inside of my case it seems that I installed the cage and then the drives, can't see the 'backside' of the case as it's all done up and against a wall, so unsure as to how many screws are in the drives.

InvG

quantumisation · 11 Mar 2007 at 19:53

no for the cage i mean, its screwed on with a star shaped screw just now which means you need a screwdriver to get the cage out, and the problem is that you cant fit a screwdriver into the screw if you have any hard drives in.

i dont swap hard drives all the time but i do every now and then, not enough to warrent an external drive but enough to prefer the cage comes out without having to remove all the drives. Can you class it as a removable cage if you have to take all the drives out first?

WJA96 · 11 Mar 2007 at 20:07

quantumisation said:
no for the cage i mean, its screwed on with a star shaped screw just now which means you need a screwdriver to get the cage out, and the problem is that you cant fit a screwdriver into the screw if you have any hard drives in.

i dont swap hard drives all the time but i do every now and then, not enough to warrent an external drive but enough to prefer the cage comes out without having to remove all the drives. Can you class it as a removable cage if you have to take all the drives out first?

Isn't it a 3mm allen/hex nut? In that case the Allen key will be between 5 and 10cm long and right-angled so access shouldn't be a problem.

quantumisation · 11 Mar 2007 at 20:35

nope, allen key screws are hexagonal, this is a star

WJA96 · 11 Mar 2007 at 20:45

quantumisation said:
nope, allen key screws are hexagonal, this is a star

Mine are definitely allen key bolts

but they could have been changed as mine was modified (turned through 90°) to take a 120.1 radiator behind the front intake fan

quantumisation · 11 Mar 2007 at 20:48

yes those screws are not the same as mine, ive had the cage out and only with a screwdriver. I need all 3 bays so theres no chance of fitting a screwdriver in there. Also i did try putting it that way but didnt have holes matching on the case so just left it going head on with the intake fan. Hopefully theres enough air going through to do the 3 drives and rest of the system without it being blocked

WJA96 · 11 Mar 2007 at 20:53

This is my sixth or seventh Lian Li case (my second PC7) and, other than the Akasa Eclipse (which I love with a vengeance and I have bought/authorised purchase of close to 50 of) they are my favourite cases.

They're not perfect, and they are bloomin' expensive, but they are pretty darn good.