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Lian Li PC - A77 Aluminum Computer Case

Author:	Artiom Bell
Date:	2008.10.28
Topic:	Cases
Provider:	Lian Li
Manufacturer:	Lian Li

Lian Li PC - A77 Aluminum Computer Case

Introduction

Have you managed to cram as much hardware as possible into your rig? Need a crane to lift your case? Why not shed a few unwanted pounds from your machine by transferring it into a new aluminum home. Switching to aluminum chassis not only makes your machine lighter but will also carry with it additional benefits we will talk about later. Lian Li, one of the lead manufacturers of aluminum cases pretty much invented the aluminum case market. Sadly though, many of the all-aluminum cases come with a bit of a premium. For a case that retails for over $200 you get no side windows, no outrageous fan designs in weird locations, or sliding action removable hard drive cages, but you do get a sturdy aluminum frame and side panels an LCD readout, and much lower case temperatures. It means that you’ll get a case that you will be able carry without breaking your back and that is also quite functional. PC - A77 Computer Case is one of such aluminum monsters that challenges your preconceptions about cases and redefines your parameters regarding quality.

Specifications

With nine total 3.5" bays and six 5.25" bays you wont be worrying about expandability any time soon. On the cooling front we have two 120mm variable speed fans located at the front and read of the chassis to facilitate airflow, not to mention the fact that since the case is aluminum it acts as one giant heatsink and will result in a few degrees cooler temps overall. The PC-A77 allows for installation of M-ATX all the way through E-ATX motherboards in addition to having enough I/O ports to keep most users happy. While we have the black anodized chassis in this review the PC-A77 is also available in classic silver (brushed aluminum) look as well.

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Lian Li PC - A77 Aluminum Computer Case

Gallery

As you can see the PC-A77 comes with a laundry list of extra features that are not common to standard "run of the mill" cases. These include:

• Liquid Cooling Holes with rubber fittings
• Anti-vibration kit for hard drives
• A removable motherboard tray for easy installation of your system
• Allowance for up to FIVE 120mm Fans
• Support for Dual PSU's
• Vented bay covers
• LCD Fan Speed Controller
• Top removable cover

While some of these features might leave you scratching your head and wondering when you will use them let me assure you that all of these features will make your system easier to use and more importantly much more functional to you. For example lets take the top removable cover. When installing a system you will often find yourself in the uncomfortable situation of trying to make electrical connections in places where normal hand were never meant to fit. Try routing a SATA or IDE cable to the pesky tight space of the optical drives when you have more than one and you know what I mean. A removable top cover not only makes installation easier it also makes what you are working on much easier to see.

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Lian Li PC - A77 Aluminum Computer Case

Packaging

Looking at the pictures below you can see that box the case came in is a little beat up; maybe someone “accidentally” dropped it off a truck somewhere. No one knows what really goes on behind the friendly smile of the UPS or FedEx guy. The PC-A77, however, arrived in perfect condition, which is generally due to excellent protection that kept the case a good couple of inches away form the box that was getting destroyed.

A Closer Look

Looking at the case from afar gave me the impression of a very simplistic, conservative design. The inside of this case, though, is far from conservative. Inside you will find a hard drive anti-vibration design, space for an extended ATX (E-ATX) motherboard and two power supplies.

The “feel of the A77” is where the quality of this $200+ price tag shines. There are absolutely no plastic components on the exterior or in the interior of the case which gives the case a very sturdy feel, not to mention brushed aluminum looks absolutely stunning. At the front of the you will find 12 5.25” drive bays, of which, the bottom 6 are occupied by a hard drive cage that can be slid up or down depending on you how you want to position the hard drives inside the Lian Li's PC-A77. The hard drive cage can also be removed to make room for all 12 5.25” drives. Additionally you are also presented with the option to install another hard drive cage to have a total of 12 hard drives in the front and an additional 3 hard drives in for a grand total of 15 hard drive bays.

The 3 rear hard drive slots compose another cage which is also substitutable for a power supply, though removing that cage will require some disassembly which is time consuming. To remove the smaller rear hard drive cage, a total of 8 screws have to be removed. Firstly the screws holding the back panel followed by the 4 that secure the cage to the rails. The motherboard tray is removable and can be easily taken out by removing 2 screws in the back of the case that hold the motherboard in place. Keep in mind that in order to completely remove the motherboard tray, you will first have to remove the back panel thereby adding an additional 3 screws that would require removal.

The case came with all the standard accessories that you will find with any other case. In the picture above you can find standard motherboard mounting screws and 5.25” drive screws. The included manual is extremely easy to understand and shows detailed pictures describing exactly which screws have to be removed in order to expose a particular part of the case's assembly. The plates on the upper right hand corner are to be used with the installation of the second power supply, or relocation of the original power supply. Also in the picture is the LCD fan speed controller.

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Lian Li PC - A77 Aluminum Computer Case

Motherboard Installation

With the removable motherboard tray, installing the motherboard was a piece of cake. After taking the motherboard tray out, all I had to left to do was just to plop the motherboard into place and secure it. Unlike in other cases which have the removable motherboard tray that is permanently attached to the slots and and the whole module detaching from the case, the PC-A77's motherboard tray comes completely detached from anything else in the case. Lian Li's design makes it easier to install the motherboard by completely isolating it from all the other components in the PC. Once the motherboard is mounted onto the tray and the tray loaded back into the chassis and secured, anything else can be installed.

Lian Li also conveniently outfit the motherboard tray with holes for the cables. The holes help avoid unnecessary clutter from having the cables go all the way across the motherboard.

Hard Drives

Almost all companies out there try to make their cases as quiet as possible without sacrificing performance. While most of them include some form of rail/sliding action tool-free design, I really have to question their anti-vibrational characteristics. When it came to hard drives, though, it seems that Lian Li was right on. Instead of going with the whole rail system and compromising the anti-vibrational qualities of the case, PC-A77 is equipped with a fool-proof age old system: rubber. Rubber has superior absorption and dampening properties than plastic thereby making a better choice for a silent case design.

As you can see from the pictures, the hard drive mounting system in the PC-A77 is also a tool-free design. All you have to do is take the thumbscrew, screw it into the appropriate holes and the hard drive just slides into the guides that already in place. At this point no more action is required as the hard drives are fairly secure in their respective places, but if you intend on moving the case around Lian Li recommends that you place an extra thumb screw to permanently attach the hard drive to the the hard drive cage.

I would recommend to install all the hard drives while the motherboard tray, the power supply, and the graphics card are detached from the chassis. As you can see from the pictures, the because of all the power cables as well as the location of the card, it is not easy to install the hard drives. It could have been better for Lian Li to design a hard drive cage that would face towards the user, however, that would greatly interfere with the airflow and the 12 5.25" bay design.

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Lian Li PC - A77 Aluminum Computer Case

Power Supply

This was by far one of the easiest power supply installations I have performed. You don't have to twist, turn, or grow a new set of hands to be able to install the power supply. The installation was just as the pictures suggested, all I had to do was plop the power supply on the rubber supports of the PC-A77 and secure it with screws in the back of the case. One thing to be noted here is that the ATX motherboards are designed for the power supply to sit above them not below. If you take a closer look at the picture below, you will see that if the power supply were to sit on top where the third HDD cage is located the CPU power cable that is stretching across the entire case could be easily hidden away. This situation of course will depend on the location of the main power supply connector for your motherboard.

Graphics Card Installation and Support

After the motherboard has been installed and the power supply situated, I decided to install the graphics card. The installation did not go as smoothly as I had hoped, mainly due to the fact that I tried installing the card with the graphics card support bar in place. The bar is attached to the mainframe with 2 screws which are easily accessible and can be removed in order to facilitate the graphics card installation process. As can be seen in the pictures, instead of going with the clip design like many other cases offer, PC-A77 provides thumbscrews that can be easily removed without the use of any tool thus making it a tool-free installation. While using thumbscrews rather than the clips does take more time, the thumbscrews provide support for larger cards such as the nVidia 200 series or Radeon 4800 series where as clips can not secure these cards at hand.

The card support bar in the middle of the case is extremely useful if you are planning on transporting the case as it offers excellent support for larger cards such the 4870 I have in the pictures. If you don't plan on transporting the case in the near future, removing the bar would be optimal. With the bar removed there will obviously be more space for wiring as well as for the liquid cooling system.

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Lian Li PC - A77 Aluminum Computer Case

Conclusion

As I mentioned in the beginning, aluminum cases come with a premium. I would say that buying this case is like buying a Mercedes Benz or a BMW. You pay for the brand, you pay for the premium, you pay for the features that are generally available in regular cars at a lower price. If you get the base BMW, you won't get all the nicer features (much like with Lian Li where you do not get a 5.25" to 3.5" conversion bezel that is sold separately). Despite the price, and despite the premium, we all still desire the luxury cars. The basic functions of a luxury car remain the same as those of any cheaper car - all of them will get you from where you are, to where you need to go. The difference is how you get there. The same concept can be applied to cases in that all of them can house your rig; but not all of them will do it with the kind of style and finesse that the PC-A77 from Lian Li can. If you feel like rolling deep on 22"s, then the $259.99 price tag from Sundial Micro doesn't seem as steep as it once was.

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