O11D EVO XL

Gavster said:
Yes, it's hard to believe that they bring out a brilliant cae that supports 420mm radiators and then completely ignores bringing out a reverse blade uni fan in 140mm. The uni fan sl infinity is a great looking fan that just adds that extra touch to the finished look, without a reverse blade option then you have to have exhaust to and bottom with the side and rear intake but this isn't ideal as you have six fans as exhaust and four intake which is the opposite of what you want.
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I wouldnt even have 4 intake as i plan to get the EK distro plate, which goes in the 3rd rad/upright GPU spot. It looks like you can put fans behind it, but unless you can use standoffs then presumably the air is just being pushed into the back of the distro plate. Annoyingly this spot is the best location of all entries for fresh air to enter as its right next to a window thats open >90% of the year. I also REALLY wanted to do the vertical GPU too, but it'll have to go vertical instead.

srekal34 said:
If you are doing fully watercooled build you are better off doing them all exhaust - tested all configs in original evo with 3x360. 9x exhaust was the best.
Now I have 3x420 all exhaust in evo xl and barely doing more than 6 degree delta below 1000rpm(4090+13900k)
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Thats interesting, ive never really paid much attention to fan configuration and typically just gone with an equal amount blowing in as out. However i have read bits and this is a negative pressure setup, right? So air gets forced into the case at fanless vent locations, and presumably combined with that fresh air to the fans blowing out gives better results than when you're immediately warming up fresh air and feeding it to another radiator etc?

Gavster said:
Yes, I'm gutted myself as it restricts options, if you really want to use reverse blade fans then you're stuck with the 120mm fans and 360mm radiators, and then there's no need for the Evo XL, you could just stick with the regular Evo.
I think Lian Li missed a trick here.
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I edited out pretty much the same sentiment from my post. One of the reasons i waited was because i fancied going with 420 rads, and having that extra cooling capacity if it was ever needed. If im now contemplating 360 rads all because i cant get the perfect 140s, purely for aesthetics, then i feel like i might as well have got the regular Evo. Saving £50 there, and another £40 on the fans. However apparently the EK distro plate has issue with a top 360 rad for reasons i dont think anyone understands. It just seems like a really petty reason to change the plan, which has its own flaws, because i dont want to see the fan frame - something ive genuinely never cared about until RGB fans came along.
When you see Thermaltake solved the problem by creating a 2nd fan blade, and including it as a USP, it shows how its hardly a case of Lian Li needing to create a new product, its purely a new blade - one slightly bigger than the 120 reversed they've already managed to figure out and start selling. I can only assume they dont see a big enough market for it, yet they create a (2nd) bigger case ideal for 140mm fans.

I guess if all exhaust works well, then i'll go with that. I think as long as it wasnt meaningfully worse performing then i'd probably still lean towards aesthetics, so if its equal or better - great.
 
PaulC2K said:
I wouldnt even have 4 intake as i plan to get the EK distro plate, which goes in the 3rd rad/upright GPU spot. It looks like you can put fans behind it, but unless you can use standoffs then presumably the air is just being pushed into the back of the distro plate. Annoyingly this spot is the best location of all entries for fresh air to enter as its right next to a window thats open >90% of the year. I also REALLY wanted to do the vertical GPU too, but it'll have to go vertical instead.


Thats interesting, ive never really paid much attention to fan configuration and typically just gone with an equal amount blowing in as out. However i have read bits and this is a negative pressure setup, right? So air gets forced into the case at fanless vent locations, and presumably combined with that fresh air to the fans blowing out gives better results than when you're immediately warming up fresh air and feeding it to another radiator etc?


I edited out pretty much the same sentiment from my post. One of the reasons i waited was because i fancied going with 420 rads, and having that extra cooling capacity if it was ever needed. If im now contemplating 360 rads all because i cant get the perfect 140s, purely for aesthetics, then i feel like i might as well have got the regular Evo. Saving £50 there, and another £40 on the fans. However apparently the EK distro plate has issue with a top 360 rad for reasons i dont think anyone understands. It just seems like a really petty reason to change the plan, which has its own flaws, because i dont want to see the fan frame - something ive genuinely never cared about until RGB fans came along.
When you see Thermaltake solved the problem by creating a 2nd fan blade, and including it as a USP, it shows how its hardly a case of Lian Li needing to create a new product, its purely a new blade - one slightly bigger than the 120 reversed they've already managed to figure out and start selling. I can only assume they dont see a big enough market for it, yet they create a (2nd) bigger case ideal for 140mm fans.

I guess if all exhaust works well, then i'll go with that. I think as long as it wasnt meaningfully worse performing then i'd probably still lean towards aesthetics, so if its equal or better - great.
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There is a good video on You Tube where he give all the measurements with the radiators and upright brackets, it might help you work out what`s the best way to go with your distro plate.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-g81uxTMR0o

I`m sticking with my combo reservoir and two radiators as I want to upright mount my GPU but I`m not sure it will fit there with the ports being on the side so I might upright mount my sound card and vertical mount my GPU.

I agree with you that I don`t want to see the fan frame if I reverse the fans, I`m going to build mine over the Christmas period so it gives me time to work things out, I`ve always believed that positive pressure gives the best results but srekal says he found all exhaust works best for him so this is something I will look into before I decide which way to go.
 
@PaulC2K yes its a negative pressure setup and works really well - this way all radiators have fresh air and operate at optimal cooling capacity. Equal amount of air blowing in and out is a myth. Negative pressure is the way to go in o11.
 
Just a heads up guys, I have a few quality issues with mine, posted here https://www.reddit.com/r/lianli/comments/16ntt62/evo_xl_quality_issues/

But also just discovered OCUK some how got given the old cases that were given to influencers. The commercial ones have slight revisions, such as holes in the back for easy release of the side panels. It's an easy way to check if you have a revised case or not. Unfortunately mine is the old one...

Here is what it's meant to look like;

 
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Hostile_18 said:
Just a heads up guys, I have a few quality issues with mine, posted here https://www.reddit.com/r/lianli/comments/16ntt62/evo_xl_quality_issues/

But also just discovered OCUK some how got given the old cases that were given to influencers. The commercial ones have slight revisions, such as holes in the back for easy release of the side panels. It's an easy way to check if you have a revised case or not. Unfortunately mine is the old one...

Here is what it's meant to look like;

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Thats not true. I have an "influencer edition" provided directly by LL long before the release and have those holes/handles
 
Hostile_18 said:
Well I've heard it from two different sources, so didn't have reason to question it. Mine definitely doesn't have those holes, so at one point it was 100% a thing.
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Its certainly an interesting launch. I am not at freedom to disclose what was revised in the final design, but not those holes :) there might be different "revisions" in different colours as the design was quite fluid up until the very end.
 
Mine doesnt have those indentations either. Wasnt bought from OCUK as i had credit with the big warehouse place.

Cant say ive had issues pulling the front panel off, but i can certainly see it'd be easier with the gap. Theres just enough space at the top rear corner of the panel to get your fingers behind it and pop it off.
The back panel i found a little trickier, but i think part of it is because its soft aluminium, not glass, so i was rather apprehensive being too aggressive with it in case there was a latch or screw i hadnt removed and actually bent it.

fwiw, the only thing about the case i didnt like was the pcie blanks and the group clamp. When the case is upright the blanks just fall out too easily, and when fitting the 4090 it wanted slots 3-5, and the clamp covers 1-4 & 5-8, so i had to have both undone in order to plug the GPU in, so the blanks I wanted to keep in place would just fall out very easily because nothing holds them in place. Usually they'd all have a screw, and while the clamp seems like nice idea, unless you put the case on its side, its horrible.
 
srekal34 said:
@PaulC2K yes its a negative pressure setup and works really well - this way all radiators have fresh air and operate at optimal cooling capacity. Equal amount of air blowing in and out is a myth. Negative pressure is the way to go in o11.
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Sorry but I have to disagree. Every O11 and its variants, bottom and side intake, top and rear exhaust worked best for me and many others. Also, the radiator after the GPU, or GPU/CPU, should be the top exhaust. After that, both radiators will work with room temperature air, even if the air crossing the radiator still a bit over room temperature, that won’t impact any radiator’s performance as, by the time the coolant reaches the last radiator (usually the bottom one) before reaching the GPU and CPU, the coolant will be as close to room temperature as it will ever be.
Also, as relatively cool air goes through bottom and side radiator, the airflow will follow the ideal path, towards the top and rear, cooling everything on the way.
All exhaust, hot air from bottom radiator will be sucker up by side intake and possibly by top fans too. Plenty of opportunities for dead spots.
The only O11 I haven’t owned is the Mini and the new O11D Evo XL. Every other one, similar results, be it water cooled or aircooled.
When you have one radiator, ideally you want it to be exhaust. Just check how hot the air crossing the radiator after the GPU or the GPU/CPU is. You don’t want that blowing inside your case. After the first radiator, which deals with the brunt of the heat, all other radiators can be intake, no issues.
I was able to have a nearly silent build, a 8C delta for my coolant, a 3090 with active backplate, a 3900x using a motherboard monoblock. Was quite a lot of heat added to the loop from the VRM and backplate. That was before the T30 was available.
 
srekal34 said:
Because they would require bends - the inlets of distro are designed for 420.
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Not that it matters to me, but i still dont get it :D I cant understand which axis would be compromised.

The width of the rad shouldnt make any difference, so can rule that out. (it is the issue, it turns out)
The thickness doesnt change between 360 & 420, and if it was it'd state that instead.
Which leaves the length. If theres part of the 420 which can be placed in-line with a specific point on the distro plate, what stops the 360 being aligned in the same way, even if it means its off-center which might look naff, it doesnt make it 'incompatible'.

One 90-degree bend should be fine for all of the above.

Ugh, ive just re-read the EK shop page, and didnt realise it goes in the front window spot. I thought it went in the 3rd radiator area like the Evo had (image).
That'll be why its not compatible - radiator width IS an issue.
I wanted it in the back like the Evo and didnt think they'd revert back to the XL front window version, but its pretty clear thats what its doing when it mentions its designed (able) to be used with 3 radiators, so obviously it wont be going in the 3rd rad spot.
 
srekal34 said:
@PaulC2K yes its a negative pressure setup and works really well - this way all radiators have fresh air and operate at optimal cooling capacity. Equal amount of air blowing in and out is a myth. Negative pressure is the way to go in o11.
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I may be missing something but surely if negative air pressure and all fans exhausting then its not going to be all that fresh? Would it not aslso pull in dust through all the uncovered holes?
 
PaulC2K said:
Not that it matters to me, but i still dont get it :D I cant understand which axis would be compromised.

The width of the rad shouldnt make any difference, so can rule that out. (it is the issue, it turns out)
The thickness doesnt change between 360 & 420, and if it was it'd state that instead.
Which leaves the length. If theres part of the 420 which can be placed in-line with a specific point on the distro plate, what stops the 360 being aligned in the same way, even if it means its off-center which might look naff, it doesnt make it 'incompatible'.

One 90-degree bend should be fine for all of the above.

Ugh, ive just re-read the EK shop page, and didnt realise it goes in the front window spot. I thought it went in the 3rd radiator area like the Evo had (image).
That'll be why its not compatible - radiator width IS an issue.
I wanted it in the back like the Evo and didnt think they'd revert back to the XL front window version, but its pretty clear thats what its doing when it mentions its designed (able) to be used with 3 radiators, so obviously it wont be going in the 3rd rad spot.
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I still don't get it. I already have fans and radiators. I've ordered the plate but I'll do what I have to to make it work. if its just some fiddly bends then so be it. Sure an offset fitting or two will help.
 
I think ive figured out the truth of the matter :D

What they're trying to say, badly, is that the 360mm radiator at top & bottom positions is incompatible with Matrix7. Thats it. Thats the incompatibility, not the rad & plate - its doesnt fit the M7s philosophy with 360 rads.

Presumably it wasnt possible to include 2x ports for both 360mm & 420mm radiators at top & bottom, so they opted to support 420mm (if only Lian Li would commit to 420mm like EK have!!).
You'd have no issue running a line with multiple 90-degree bends, non-parallel lines, or heck just using soft tube. However the Matrix7 line is supposed to be a problem solver for clean hardline and it cant give you that, so its 'incompatible'. Im surprised, if this is correct, that they've opted for a statement that pretty much kills sales to 360mm owners, rather than one that explains its can still be used if you're okay with minor compromises (extra bends).
 
PaulC2K said:
I think ive figured out the truth of the matter :D

What they're trying to say, badly, is that the 360mm radiator at top & bottom positions is incompatible with Matrix7. Thats it. Thats the incompatibility, not the rad & plate - its doesnt fit the M7s philosophy with 360 rads.

Presumably it wasnt possible to include 2x ports for both 360mm & 420mm radiators at top & bottom, so they opted to support 420mm (if only Lian Li would commit to 420mm like EK have!!).
You'd have no issue running a line with multiple 90-degree bends, non-parallel lines, or heck just using soft tube. However the Matrix7 line is supposed to be a problem solver for clean hardline and it cant give you that, so its 'incompatible'. Im surprised, if this is correct, that they've opted for a statement that pretty much kills sales to 360mm owners, rather than one that explains its can still be used if you're okay with minor compromises (extra bends).
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If you go hardline then you will hardly notice the bends in the lines, it only becomes obvious when you do it all with fittings .
 
PaulC2K said:
I think ive figured out the truth of the matter :D

What they're trying to say, badly, is that the 360mm radiator at top & bottom positions is incompatible with Matrix7. Thats it. Thats the incompatibility, not the rad & plate - its doesnt fit the M7s philosophy with 360 rads.

Presumably it wasnt possible to include 2x ports for both 360mm & 420mm radiators at top & bottom, so they opted to support 420mm (if only Lian Li would commit to 420mm like EK have!!).
You'd have no issue running a line with multiple 90-degree bends, non-parallel lines, or heck just using soft tube. However the Matrix7 line is supposed to be a problem solver for clean hardline and it cant give you that, so its 'incompatible'. Im surprised, if this is correct, that they've opted for a statement that pretty much kills sales to 360mm owners, rather than one that explains its can still be used if you're okay with minor compromises (extra bends).
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Hope so, because up until now I've been living without matrix 7 anyway lol. I consider a nice to have rather than a dealbreaker
 
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