Coolermaster or Lian-li

[1nteger]

Full tower alunimium cases:
Coolermaster ATC101 or Lian-Li PC70?

The Coolermaster has five 5.5'' exposed bays and one 3.5'' (but floppies are on the way out, I reckon!). It has a pull out mobo tray (but some people hate 'em!) and three case fans including an intake at the base of the front that is adjustable to point at any angle. It looks fantastic but costs almost £200!!

The Lian Li has six 5.5'' exposed bays and three 3.5''. It has no mobo tray (but it's so big you don't need one). It has four case fans (2 intake with dust filters) and 2 exhaust. The front fans are 3-speed adjustable. It also looks fantastic and costs as little as £128 (Aria.com current price) and as much as £160.

Which would you buy if you had the cash?

Vote in my poll!:spin:

 

[muckshifter]

My favourite ... are

http://www.chieftec.com/products/products.htm

 

[1nteger]

Nice cases...and as a current Antec user (basically the same case as chieftec) I can see some of the advantages that Chieftec have to offer...particularly their addition of thumbscrews and extra case cooling...Do they do an aluminium full tower, which is what I'm after...I need the size, without too much weight?

Closest thing I've seen is the Thermaltake Xaser series...(based on the Chieftec/Antec chassis)...and if they didn't look so garish, I might have gone for one...far too flashy when 'stealth' is more appealing8)

 

[muckshifter]

Yep!

Here is a taste ... they do plain as well.

http://www.overclock.co.uk/customer/product.php?productid=16253&cat=288

 

[Ian]

Re: Yep!

Hmmmmm!!! These news Chieftec cases are better than I thought I still love my Lian-Li though - (In this instance, the Coolermaster looks better)

Originally posted by muckshifter
Here is a taste ... they do plain as well.

http://www.overclock.co.uk/customer/product.php?productid=16253&cat=288

 

[1nteger]

The aluminium chieftec's look good...(Thanks for the link for a supplier, Mucks!)...now you've really made me think. The Lian Li and Coolermaster's in the poll are both what i'd consider to be real full towers...each has more than 4 exposed 5.25'' bays and are truly enormous in terms of space, The chieftecs are the same size as my current case, so they don't meet my needs there, but I like the drive cages and the way everything fits.

By the way, I have found that i can't shut the door on my Antec 1040 if I put an optical drive into the top bay...using the proper slide-in mounts, all the drives fit flush when installed, but the top one doesn't allow room for the top edge of the door to close :crazy: This was another reason for looking at different cases. Is this a 'feature' of these cases?...

Anyway, it seems that everyone in the poll so far is going for the coolermaster...pity I don't have the extra £70...but can they really be worth it over the Lian-LI??

 

[Eric Portelance]

Go with the Lian-Li. Trust me, you won't be dissapointed. It's just a larger version of the case I have now. Anything more seems overkill. I don't see what advantages the Coolermaster has that would justify such a large price difference.

Trust me on this one.

 

[1nteger]

Thanks for that Eric! Just before I read your post i had already in fact decided to go with the Lian Li!

As well as the poll here, i also set one up in another forum that was specifically focused on cases, and in that one the vote went strongly in favour of the Coolermaster...but the thing is that no one gave a good reason why other than 'it's just better'.

Just in case anyone else has a similar dilemma, here's my comparison (u never know, others might find this useful in itself:spin: )

They're both top notch cases, both with advantages and disadvantages, similarities and differences. My main need is not for modding...I simply want a big, roomy, cool aluminium case with loads of exposed drive bays and no flashy see-through door panels and the like.

The pros and cons seem to be:

I can get the PC70 for £128 (including VAT) but the ATC101 is almost £200...no competition there then.

PC70 has no mobo draw, while the ATC101 does...but the PC70's supposed to be so big you don't need one, and reviews of the ATC101 suggest that it sticks (a common problem with mobo draws)...anyone had experience of this in the 101??

PC70 has 6 exposed 5.25'' bays (plenty for my 3 optical drives, Audigy Platinum box, fan controls etc) but the ATC101 has 5...still plenty.

PC70 has three 3.5'' bays...compared to only one inthe ATC101, but, hey, floppies are on their way out (hello bootable USB pen drives!)

The ATC101 looks absolutely fantastic...it's a shame to spoil it by putting drives in anyway...while the PC70...is, well, just big and silver.

The PC70 has four 80mm case fans installed (with room for 1 or 2 more 80mm fans at the top I believe), the front intakes are 3-speed adjustable and have dust filters; while the ATC101 has three...including an angle-adjustable front intake and a top exhaust (arguably better placed for cooling).

There was some issue over the PC70's PSU mounting rack that, as I understand it, had a plate that blocked airflow from a dual fan PSU unless it was fitted differently or the plate itself is modded (dremel time?)...but my supplier has assured me (today) that Lian Li have picked up on this and now include a slotted plate to allow for dual fan PSU's 8) ...while any PSU fits with no problem in the ATC101. All square on that issue then.

Both the PC70 and ATC101 come with thumbscrew fitment throughout.

On balance, I decided that the ATC101 might look a little better, but once I get a few beige drives in that won't make much difference, and the box will sit under a desk anyway. All in all, the ATC101 simply doesn't offer enough extra to justify an additional £70, while the Lian Li has some benfits over it.

But you know what, Eric? It's just bloody good to hear someone sound so certain about the PC70 over the Coolermaster as you...I'm definitely ordering it for this weekend. Cheers m8

 

[Eric Portelance]

Thanks. The PC-70 is just a larger version of the case I have and I'm very happy with mine. It looks much better in person, btw. Does the PC-70 come with a window pre-modded on the side?

 

[1nteger]

Nope...I believe that's the PC75. You can buy the window seperately of course, but I'm not really into that myself. I read somewhere (maybe it was something from you) that cases with pre-modded windows arrive with a metal plate covering the window itself in order that they can still be classified as fully emi shielded. Once the metal is removed to expose the glass/perspex, you lose the shielding...most people assume the metal plate is to protect the glass.