Evolution of Lian Li's SOHO Server Cases
by Joshua Buss on May 16, 2006 8:00 AM EST- Posted in
- Cases/Cooling/PSUs
PC-V2000 - Interior
Both the V1000 and V2000 allow you to open up both sides of the case with identical ease for very unrestricted access to the internals. |
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With the reversed motherboard orientation, the main side for getting at internals is the right side of the case. Right away we can recognize typical server-style design choices. Perhaps the most prominent is the expansion card support bar, which of course is removable.
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After removing the few screws holding it in place, the bar slides easily out. There are two main sections to the inside of the V2000: the upper portion for the motherboard, expansion cards, and 5.25" drives; and the lower portion for the hard drives and power supply. Large cutouts sit between the various areas for cable management.
Here's the support bar from the other side. The plastic clips can individually swing into place to help hold the far end of longer expansion cards firmly in place during transport.
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The rear of the case pretty much offers everything expected from seeing it from the outside. A 120mm fan takes on the bulk of the cooling duty, pulling air through the ventilated front top part of the case, and the bottom portion relies on the power supply and the 120mm fan mounted in the front, unless a user installs additional 80mm fans over the two grills. Extra holes are punched in the visible plate in the above picture, most likely to keep airflow restrictions and overall weight as low as possible.
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Turning our attention back to the front, one can get a better sense of how these hard drive holders actually work. Four special screws go into each drive and serve as 'pegs' for the drive to slide along these plastic rails. Once slid into place horizontally, two plastic clips slide down vertically behind the peg to hold the drive in all the way. It's easy and secure, and doesn't take very long either.
Also notice how in this picture air is discouraged from leaking around the fan from the backside - the fan shroud keeps entry air coming primarily through the front bezel. The fan can be pulled out to clean it and the filter as well.
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Overall, the horizontal slide-in hard drive design works very well, and there's enough space between drives for adequate airflow even if the case is completely filled. It takes a lot of cabling to connect 12 hard drives, but thankfully Lian Li has already planned for the potentially extreme cabling accommodation needs.
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The large cutout is big enough for several IDE cables of course, but more importantly it's big enough to make the actual act of routing cables through it painless. The smaller cutout is for the motherboard power connector, and is just big enough to pass that through.
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mkruer - Tuesday, May 16, 2006 - link
There are really only two options to fight the reverb. One is to get a heavier case, (steel works the best, on in the case of the Lian Li, a nice heavy brick on top will cut the amount of reverb) or you can isolate the devices that are causing the issue, namely the hard drives. All that it takes to isolate the drives (providing you have the space) is some heavy nylon string. Sling up the drive and vole, reverb cut down drastically.JoshuaBuss - Tuesday, May 16, 2006 - link
Perhaps I should've elaborated.. my subjective sound scoring makes 0 the best (silent).. 10 would mean it's making so much noise it's absolutely unusable.mkruer - Tuesday, May 16, 2006 - link
Did I miss that or did you just add it. But my point still stands that by moving to a better 120mm fan, and suspending the drives to remove the reverb, you can get that to a 1.5 -2.Actually the reverb is the most annoying aspect IMO. I can deal will constant noise, it’s the constant loudening and quieting that drives me nuts.
JoshuaBuss - Tuesday, May 16, 2006 - link
I added it. You know, I think I'm starting to hear what you're talking about now in the PC-201B.. weird, 'cause I didn't hear it in the PC-V2000... :|mkruer - Tuesday, May 16, 2006 - link
Give it a few nights, and you will start to notice it more. This not just a problem with Lian Li cases but all “light weight” designed cases. They are more susceptible to vibration. I wish that Lian Li offered a drive suspension kit, instead of jury rigging one, but hey it works, and its not like I take the drives out every day.JoshuaBuss - Wednesday, May 17, 2006 - link
Update on the 'reverb' issue: I found that the case was 'stressed'. One corner was slightly higher than the other three and as soon as I supported it better my extra vibration noise went away.Perhaps there's a similar problem with your guys' setups?
mkruer - Wednesday, May 17, 2006 - link
Perhaps we are not talking about the same thing. The reverb I am talking about is a extremely low pinched hum. And the only time you might notice it is when its dead quiet. You can check over at silent pc review. They can explain it much better then I can.GrammatonJP - Tuesday, May 16, 2006 - link
I had all drive filled and put in a 4 drive hot swap bay... it was sweeetWileCoyote - Tuesday, May 16, 2006 - link
Tempting case but I can't find the right power supplies for the dual power supply setup. Anyone know a website that sells them?punko - Tuesday, May 16, 2006 - link
A bit of a strange concept, but could you mount a 15" or 17" LCD monitor over the window on the side of the case?