Lian Li PC-TU200: On the Road With Lian Li
by Dustin Sklavos on October 31, 2011 12:45 AM EST- Posted in
- Cases/Cooling/PSUs
- Mini ITX
- Lian Li
Noise and Thermal Testing, GeForce GTX 580
I actually tested the Lian Li PC-TU200 with the GTX 580 installed first (it's easier to remove a component than add one), but the results on the previous page should have given you some pause about adding another 244 watts of heat to the mix. The TU200 does cope with the increased thermal load, but we're really starting to push the limits of what it can handle here.
Outside of the odd chipset temperature results, the TU200 suffers for the inclusion of the GTX 580 across the board. The case has a tremendously hard time coping with the resulting heat radiating off of the 580, and this is the first time I've seen the heat coming off the back of a video card do this much damage to a case's thermals. Look at the temperatures of the SSD sitting close to the back of the GTX 580: a load temperature of 46C on an SSD is insane.
It gets worse, too: the Core i3 is now getting perilously close to the max spec for load temperatures. The questionable airflow design plays hell on the processor, and while it never crashed I wouldn't be comfortable running my system at these temperatures.
The increased thermal load and difficulty dissipating it plays out in the noise levels. The GTX 580's fan has to run much higher just to keep the idle temperature at the target, while the similar (but cleaner) airflow design of the TJ08-E allows everything to get fed with cool air to the point where the whole system runs quieter to begin with. SilverStone's enclosure may be a sight bigger than the TU200, but it gets an awful lot of mileage out of it. Whether at load or idle, the case fan is basically maxed out and we get 49dB of noise.
To put it bluntly, while you can fit a GTX 580 into the TU200, you really shouldn't. The case is made for lesser configurations, and really even lesser GPUs are going to cause some problems. You'll probably want to stick with GPUs that don't require any PCIe power connectors in this case.
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Iketh - Monday, October 31, 2011 - link
I too would love to see a case like this without an optical drive bay, or even a 3.5" cage. Look at all that unsused room behind the optical bay! At least one 3.5" drive could be screwed to the top of the case in that area. A 2.5" SSD can practically be placed ANYWHERE in a case, they're so small!Imagine the size of the case if the optical drive bay and the 3.5" cage is removed, and how much better airflow would be. One spot for a 2.5" and one for a 3.5", that's all I'd need in a case in this segment.
Oh and if I gave you any ideas for your case design in this post, be sure to stamp a "by IkethTech (tm)" next to it in inside the case :)
rbsc - Monday, October 31, 2011 - link
Excellent Points.May I also suggest the following:
*Mount the hard drives (2 max) to the doors.
*Add 4x USB to the back.
*Refine the handle to be removable. Grommets could be placed there if not needed.
*Specify the TDP limits on both CPU and GPU.
Also it is unclear if the tolerances for CPU cooler height were specified in the documentation, but that would've been useful when I was building my PC31. Luckily I took a guess and the cooler but barely fit the enclosure.
n13L5 - Friday, September 7, 2012 - link
on the TU200, you can't mount drives to the doors, cause the doors are just snap-on.. if you add any weight, they might just pop off during transport and dangle on the hard drive cable (shudder)nubie - Monday, October 31, 2011 - link
Yep, I agree on most of these points.I wonder if you could take this case and disassemble it and trim it down to the size you would like?
I don't know if I am a fan of full-size power supplies in an ITX case, but if you are using a dual-slot GPU anyway, why not.
Perhaps flipping the case upside-down so the GPU gets a decent intake would be a good idea too. Of course then you may hear the fan if it is annoying.
I just realized the problem with removing the front bays and the CD. The GPU is likely to be the deciding factor in the depth of the box anyway, although you will lose some height be getting rid of the 5.25 bay.
As always, there is never a perfect pre-manufactured case for every person, this one gets mighty close though.
gaiden2k7 - Monday, October 31, 2011 - link
hey guys i just wanna post my old project w/ a Lian Li Q07 that was modded to be a homeserver, it needs to be updated b/c i recently remodded again but i was able to make some use of that optical drive bay and everything else.http://www.overclock.net/case-mod-work-logs/566798...
with some research you can fit alot of components inside a case like this :)
jebo - Monday, October 31, 2011 - link
"Imagine the size of the case if the optical drive bay and the 3.5" cage is removed, and how much better airflow would be. One spot for a 2.5" and one for a 3.5", that's all I'd need in a case in this segment."*Exactly*. Somebody with a GTX580 probably doesn't want 5 hard drives in their system. You have two market segments for these cases. Small servers and LAN/gaming boxes. It seems trying to serve both with one case doesn't work.
Remove the ODD, put space for one 3.5" drive and one 2.5" drive and we'll be set.
Mr Perfect - Monday, October 31, 2011 - link
Or just make it a slim line optical drive bay, like the Silverstone cases. Most people don't use the drive enough to need a full size monster, but it's still useful.On the drive bay side, just gimme two 2.5" mounts. One for a SSD, and one for a travel rated spinner. This case is clearly targeted at mobile lan systems, not file servers. Who would put four 3.5' drives in a road warrior?
At any rate, glad to see performance mITX parts one way or the other.
lapinou - Tuesday, November 1, 2011 - link
Hi,If I may chime in.
Did you see the SilverStone Sugo SG05? I'd say it's less voluminous.
I got myself one of them with their 450W PSU (unfortunately you can't use a standard one, it's a way for them to make more money I guess) and their is room for a double slot 9.5'' graphic card. Instead of a - almost - useless 3.5'' ODD bay it has a slim drive bay.
At the time I was considering a Lian Li Q07, like the one modded by gaiden2k7.
But case's "weird" form factor detered me. Question of price I guess too... but at the end I cost me an arm cause I bought the Sugo SG05 with the regular 300W and was dumfound when I cound't plug the extra alim cable for the GTX 460 - ended up buying this 450W. I believe a year ago or so SIlverStone started shipping some SG05 with the 450W.
So it could be a good bet.
The SG06 already existed but some reviews shown it was apparently not as good as the SG05.
I was happy with the temperatures, air flow and - no - noise.
I'm using a i5 760 with stock rad (but no OC).
Hope that's bringing some interesting info to the lads looking to build an ITX gaming rig.
The Sugo SG05 home: http://www.silverstonetek.com/product.php?pid=210
PS: note sure you'll still easily find this model though cause it's quiet "old" according to the IT world.
lapinou - Tuesday, November 1, 2011 - link
*useless 3.5'' ODD*I meant 5.25''!!!
lapinou - Tuesday, November 1, 2011 - link
One review of the good old SG05 http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/article/758