A Closer Look - Inside

To gain access to the case, simply unscrew a single, spring loaded thumb screw and pull the locking mechanism out. That releases the top of the panels, which can then be lifted up and away from the X2000. The interior of the enclosure can certainly be called absolutely unique. The side panels are covered in dampening materials, to keep any noise locked within the case. This should come in handy, when using the X2000 in your living room, where silence is key.


As the case is put together by hand, the fact that the two pairs of USB 2.0 cables are crossed can be forgiven. Nonetheless, all the cables are of the standard variety to ensure maximum compatibility to the many mainboards out there.


The two external drive bays look identical on both sides. Not much to say in this regard. The number of bays should be sufficient for most users. The fan controller PCB is located in the front, right under these drive bays. Even though you have space on the circuit board for four fan headers, only three are installed, and Lian-Li has included a splitter on one of these, so you can still connect four of them to the device.


There is also a vertical bar in the middle of the mainboard compartment. It is intended to fix any expansion card within the case. While not using this feature is certainly not a drawback, it does help a bit. To remove the mainboard, you need to unscrew two thumb screws and pull the tray out by pushing it sideways and then letting it drop gently.


The upper compartment of the case is intended for the previously mentioned external drive bays and the power supply. There is some foam lining to eliminate any vibration of the unit and large PSUs should fit fine as well. Above this bay is a lot of space. You can hide any unused power cables here or install a reservoir in this location.


There are two hard drive bays in the bottom section of the case. Each of these takes three drives and Lian-Li has included SATA backplates on each of these. This means that you only need a single Molex power cable and also enables hot swap. Considering the price of aftermarket SATA backplates, which usually sell for around $100 US Dollars each, this is an awesome feature. The three 140 mm fans are covered by black grills as well and come with mainboard headers. Lian-Li has also supplied Molex adapters if you choose to connect the unit directly to the power supply. Keeping count, we are up to five fans, but the included fan controller can only connect four of them at once, leaving one to be connected to the mainboard or power supply.