A Closer Look - Outside

The chassis makes a really cool impression. It is a bit wider than most mid tower cases, but is just as tall. It will be interesting to see how Lian Li has managed to squeeze an HTPX mainboard into something as compact as this. There are no crazy design elements, instead the chassis features only straight lines. The only detail is the air vent in the front, which has been created using two different type of holes.


Taking a look at the front, there is also a drive bay cover for the top optical drive and Lian Li has done away with USB 2.0 connectors completely. Turning the case around, it gives away the interior layout somewhat, as the PSU is located above the HPTX board as it seems.


Both side panels are completely solid and as you can see, Lian Li has constructed a special top cover for added interior space. This is necessary to fit an HPTX board in the first place.


Taking a closer look at the front, it becomes apparent that the bottom area, roughly 2/3 of the entire area is taken by an air vent which gives way to two 140 mm intake fans. Above that are the two USB 3.0, audio connectors and a single eSATA plug. The two LEDs also act as buttons, with the smaller being HDD LED & reset and the bigger for power light and button. This is a pretty cool approach as it does away with buttons. I hope Lian Li incorporates this in future cases. The two drive bays are intended for 5.25" devices and there is no 3.5 inch bracket present.


In the rear, things are quite simple but seem to get the job done. First you have the ten motherboard expansion slots. Due to the holes to the right you may install one of PCI-01 "PCI Tool-Less Card Holder" here, but the chassis ships with traditional thumb screws initially. Above that is a 120 mm fan which pulls air out the back of the chassis and the power supply bay. Due to the internal design, this is one of the few modern cases with this bay on the top of the chassis.