Lian Li PC-Q07 mini-itx-case review

This blog has been moved to http://doityourselfhtpc.com/.

Today I'll be reviewing the Lian Li PC-Q07 mini-ITX case. I picked it up this week to install my Core i3 CPU, but unfortunately, the Gigabyte H55 mini-ITX motherboard that I ordered turned out to be a micro-ATX board (wanted the GigaByte GA-H55N-USB3 but received the GA-H55M-USB3 - bummer).

Anywayz, the only mini-ITX board I had lying around was the Asus AT3IONT-I (Deluxe version), so we'll be using that board to test the case.



The case itself came in the following little box.

The case takes up the entire box, and the few accessories that comes with the case are included in the case itself.

 

After opening it up, we get to see the beautifull Lian Li PC-Q07 in the flesh. A friend of mine remarked that it resembled of a post office box. It's a tall cube-like case, but very small, and very nice looking.

One of the first things I noticed about the case is how light it is. It's made out of aluminum, and is probably one of the lightest cases I ever worked with. It feels very sturdy however, and you can see a lot of work has gone into the design and finishing of the case.

The main entry-point into the case is the right-hand panel. Removing the 6 screws allows you to remove the right panel, where a mini-ITX board can be fitted.

Looking from the rear, we see sufficient ventillation holes, and a spare for the motherboard I/O panel, and the ATX size PSU.

On the top you can also see the 5.25inch drive bay where we'll be installing a blu-ray player. (the only component that will actually make some noise in the case).

A view from the right shows the 5.25 optical drive bay. There is a 3 inch drive bay located at the bottom of the case, that also accepts 2.5inch drives.

Here's a closer look at the drive bay located at the bottom of the case. I've fitted it here with a Kingston SSD.

Fitting the hard drive was done by using 4 screws at the bottom of the case.

Removing the 5.25 cover involved pushing in the sides from the insides, and sliding it out.
The motherboard is fitted onto the side panel. Just fasten it with 4 screws and your good to go.

 Attaching the side panel (with the motherboard attached) was done with little effort. Obviously, as I'm not using an internal PSU in this case, this leaves me with a gaping whole at the back of the case.

All that's left now is closing off the case completely.

Plenty of room left in the case for air flow :)

Conclusion

I was surprised by the quality and lightness of the case, especially given its pricing ... For my particular purpose, building a passively cooled HTCP, the case did it's job. The cube shaped box can be put somewhere where people actually see it. (my previous cube case was an Antec ISK 1300 that wouldn't win a lot of beauty contests.).