Lian Li Release PC-V358 Chassis for Micro-ATX Builds
by Ian Cutress on December 18, 2013 9:21 AM EST- Posted in
- Cases/Cooling/PSUs
- MicroATX
- Lian Li
A lot of shiny cases come out of Lian Li, best known for their use of aluminum with an element of style. Chassis like the mini-ITX based TU-200 with a carry handle, the PC-90 and the curved PC-Q30 have come through AnandTech. Today Lian Li is releasing their next micro-ATX chassis, the PC-V358.
If I remember correctly, this was one of the chassis that Lian Li had on display at Computex, but where still in the planning stages of design. The PC-V358, available in black and silver, is designed around easy access, such that the case lid can rotate away from the components, the CPU cooler fans can be rotated away to work on the motherboard and so on.
The case/cube (324 mm x 286 mm x 390 mm) will support power supplies up to 200mm, CPU coolers up to 130mm in height and PCIe devices such as GPUs up to 330mm in length. Due to the hinge mechanisms, Lian Li is aiming the case at users who want to use integrated liquid cooling, as shown by the press release images.
The PC-V358 will support six 3.5” HDDs and an additional two 2.5” SSDs, with four expansion slots for GPUs. The system uses two 120mm fans included, as well as another included 120mm fan at the rear. IO on the case is solely for audio and two USB 3.0 ports.
The system attempts to emulate many of the new chassis that have recently come onto the market by creating ‘zones’ of hardware – we have seen cases like the Carbine Air 540 split the system into regions with the CPU/GPUs on one side and the PSU/HDDs and other hardware away from the heat generating parts of the system. The PC-V358 does this, albeit in a top/bottom paradigm.
The PC-V358 should be available by the end of the year in North America with a MSRP of $179.
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antef - Thursday, December 19, 2013 - link
Lian Li is simply overpriced, and the quality isn't always up to par. I don't see anything "cleaner" about the look of this than something simple like the Line-M, except for material choice.creed3020 - Wednesday, December 18, 2013 - link
I used to own a PC-V354B and it didn't work out for my build in the end at the Z-height of my GPU could not fit into the lower zone. I have an ASUS Radeon 6850 and the heatpipes stick above the PCB so cases like this are quite limiting to your compatibility with large GPU coolers. Lian-Li made amazing progress with this case:-No more 80mm fans
-More drive bays than ever before (8 in total)
-Easy case access, previously removing side panels required 6 small screws to be removed per side
-AIO cooler space for a rad
I'm pretty well settled on Silverstone cases but if Lian-Li can keep on this course they might win me back
rUmX - Thursday, December 19, 2013 - link
I currently own a v354b and its one of the best cases ive ever built. When building something small like it you really have to plan ahead. I also have a Asus direct cu 6850 and it fits perfectly.jigglywiggly - Wednesday, December 18, 2013 - link
$180loel.
fokka - Wednesday, December 18, 2013 - link
not a fan. i'd rather have a normal standing case, or a flat HTPC-style one. this just uses tons of space and still is much too tall for my taste.happy with my PC 9FB though.
TridenT - Wednesday, December 18, 2013 - link
Nice case, but I am not paying $180.etamin - Thursday, December 19, 2013 - link
i like the look, but $180 and no fan filters...JBVertexx - Thursday, December 19, 2013 - link
I'm not sure what's going on in Lian-Li land, but their latest cases are just missing the mark IMO.Coming in at 36L volume, this thing is just huge. And I find it quite ugly as well, looking like some sort of Minecraft block-head sitting on your desk, taking up most of the space on your desk as well.
If you want this for HTPC, it just doesn't cut it. Silverstone GD08 is gigantic, with EATX capability, and it comes in at 33L in a much better form factor for HTPC. There are many many much better options for HTPC.
For a desktop, again, this is just going to take up too much real estate. You have the Silverstone SG10 available at 23L and a much better desktop form factor.
Sure, this one has the double-deck design with built-in water-cooling capability, but IMO the trade-off in size is not worth it. A much better executed design with this approach is this one by Abee of Japan (http://www.abee.co.jp/Product/CASE/AS_Enclosure/W5... - wish these were available in the states.
Overall, I've been disappointed with Lian-Li's latest. This year's PC-Q27 and 28 were just too big. And the latest cases on their website (this one plus two more out there now - the PC-Q33 and PC-Q35) all have at least one major fatal flaw that would prevent me from buying.
In my view, their best cases to date have been the generation that produced PC-Q12, PC-Q18, PC-Q25, and PC-V354. I own a PC-Q25 for a home server and love it. Unfortunately, the latest generation is just not up to snuff.
It's very disappointing, because building with a Lian-Li case is always a pleasure, but they need to tighten up their form factor designs if they're going to continue to win my business.
CrimsonFury - Wednesday, January 1, 2014 - link
V358 fills a completely different category to those Silverstone cases. The GD08 is a desktop case with a huge foot print. The SG10 only has 2x 3.5" bays and smaller intake fakes. Neither of the silverstone cases support large radiators and both are far more difficult to work on than the hinged design of the V358The V358 isn't perfect but it fills a niche that doesn't have many comparible options at the moment. If Lian-Li follow release a follow up model with a few minor tweaks this case could be awesome. Personally I would like to see the front fans positioned higher, so most of the intake goes to the top zone instead of the bottom zone. Also move\modifty the HDD cages to allow for longer PSUs (the 200mm claim is misleading) and a PSU intake vent with filter on the bottom.
pierrot - Thursday, January 2, 2014 - link
I have a LL tower and the materials are really nice, but their designs lately are ridiculous. Jonsbo ITX on Newegg as "DIYPC" or "Rosewill Legacy" are the future IMO