Virtual-Hideout.Net | Reviews | Lian Li PC-767 Chassis Review

Lian Li PC-767 Chassis Review

Date Published:
09-01-2005

Written By:
Joel Hughey

Sponsored By:
Lian Li , Hampton Technologies

Pages: 1 2 3

Introduction:

Among the new collection of chassis offered by Lian Li, the PC-767 is arguably the most striking and undeniably elegant design. The PC-767 has set the bar far above and beyond previous standards for aesthetic appeal and simple elegance in chassis design. The PC-767 is a rather large midtower sizing in at 220x490x615mm (W,H,D) case that features a front bay door and is packed full of considerate design features.

Lian Li placed the PC-767 in their "classical silent" category along with it's sister case the PC-6070 Plus. The tower can accommodate up to seven 5.25" devices in addition to the HDD rack which will hold up to four HDD units. Included is a 5.25" floppy drive adapter which also provides a black anodized aluminum faceplate and can be used in any open bay.

The unit comes with twin 120mm fans which operate off of a manually controlled fanbus, accessible from the front of the case - and conforms to EXT ATX motherboard standards. Lian Li offers an optional back plate for the case which will accommodate BTX motherboards and is easily installed by the customer. The case is completed by USB 2.0, IEEE1394, and audio breakouts accessible on the front right side of the case.

Examination:

The PC-767 is constructed entirely of aluminum. The case has a very striking design which contrasts the naturally brushed aluminum on the left side of the case against the black anodized aluminum on the right side of the case. The two sides on the top are actually made of two entirely separate pieces of aluminum fitted together absolutely flawlessly. The door opens to the left as shown in the picture and has a fabulous action to it. There are rubber stops located at the top and bottom of the case itself to buffer the door when it is closed - and the door has somewhat of a self-closing spring like closing action when it is almost closed.

In the left picture you can see the floppy drive adapter/faceplate combination unit installed in the top bay. The drive cage is shown in the middle picture installed in the bottom-most three bays. The USB, firewire, and audio breakouts are available on the front right side of the case as shown left.

Here you can see the space between the door and front of the chassis bezel - which allows for airflow intake. Leftmost you can see how spacious the case is along with the rear 120mm fan and the assorted breakout cabling. The power supply unit is installed into a shrouded bay which I will cover in more detail later.

The left side panel is constructed identically to the main access panel on the right - aside from being mirrored. The PC-767 is designed as an "inverse ATX" form factor with the default motherboard back-plate installed. The stock back-plate accommodates any standard ATX motherboard layout but utilized a mounting which is upside-down from the standard ATX style. Left you can see the meshing used on the rear 120mm exhaust fan in greater detail.

The back of the case is fairly straight forward - and to my delight we find it does not utilize a motherboard tray. I see so many consumers today knocking chassis designs that do not utilize a removable motherboard tray and I really fail to see any logical use for one. I have never liked them as they are a waste of space and contribute to the clutter of a chassis design. I realize many people swear by mobo trays up and down and sideways but will never see any real need for them. I liken arguments citing mounting and ease-of-use arguments to training wheels on a sport bike. Left we see the PSU backplate for mounting to the chassis.

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