decisions, sonata vs. lian li

[jlin453]

So my quest for a classy yet functional case has come down to the Lian Li PC-60 and the Antec Sonata. I plan on watercooling and will most likely mount the heater core at the top since the front isn't very accessible for such a huge hc.

I like the removeable motherboard try on the lian li, but I can live without it I guess. I never was too big of a fan of the antec drive door cases, but the sonata I will make an exception since it looks nicer than the rest

Both to me look very good and each has its own style. Anyone want to convince me which ones better?

 

[9mmCensor]

You will need a mighty small HC to go on the top of the case if you plan on using the 5 1/4 bays. Although a big advantage of the Sonata is the fact that it uses 120mm fans which are nice and quite and 120mm HCs/Rads are availivle.

 

[jlin453]

I have a chevette heatercore...so it's pretty big I have two cd drives

 

[9mmCensor]

Yeah probably wont work. Later I will get you some specs if you want.

 

[jlin453]

Won't work on the sonata or both? Looking at the dimensions, the Lian Li is wider and longer by a little. If the Sonata can't fit the heatercore up top I'm sure the Lian Li could right? I've seen a couple of pics from guys on here who did it. Not quite sure if they had the chevette heatercore though...

 

[glock19owner]

I doubt it will work...I have the PC-65B Lian Li which is slightly taller then the PC-60 and I seriously doubt it would fit at the top of the case...I have a pretty small PSU...length wise...Tt 420W PSU and I still can not use the top bay because all of the wiring from the PSU and Rom gets in the way...so I doubt your could get a radiator and PSU both at the top...

 

[jlin453]

I was thinking of putting the heatercore width-wise to try to save more space. (length of heatercore = width of case) Still don't think it can work?

 

[glock19owner]

might be able to do that...install it width way...it would probably take out the top bay...but if you only are running 2 ROMS then that shouldnt be a problem...just making sure they both match up width wise might be

 

[Top Hat Theater]

I have owned both cases and I wouldn't try watercooling with either as it's just too much of a hassle. I went up to the PC71 when I went water.

~THT

 

[glock19owner]

good advice THT...

 

[jlin453]

ok, so putting the heatercore at the top probably wouldn't be a good idea. How about putting it at the bottom? I'm thinking of removing that bottom 5 slot tray and putting the heatercore there facing up.

I guess I'm just trying hard to make it work. I like the looks (and SIZE) of the pc-60. I don't really want to move up to a full tower case.

(btw, I've had experience with watercooling)


or something like this:

 

[Top Hat Theater]

jlin, that's the arrangement that I pursued. However, the cooling potential of your system will be compromised as the intake fans are only 80mm whereas your heatercore will be larger. You may have to bend/remove the rails for the drive cage though. Again, what I had to do.

Another option is to have the radiator/heatercore mounted directly to the top of the case by cutting an 80mm hole in the case and have a fan pull air through the core. I think my PC61 had a fan pre-mounted in this fashion however I never took advantage of it for watercooling purposes.

~THT

 

[jlin453]

jlin, that's the arrangement that I pursued. However, the cooling potential of your system will be compromised as the intake fans are only 80mm whereas your heatercore will be larger. You may have to bend/remove the rails for the drive cage though. Again, what I had to do.

Another option is to have the radiator/heatercore mounted directly to the top of the case by cutting an 80mm hole in the case and have a fan pull air through the core. I think my PC61 had a fan pre-mounted in this fashion however I never took advantage of it for watercooling purposes.

~THT

my concerns:

first of all, if I did exactly that of the picture I would need two hard drive slots (for the two I have in raid). I am VERY hesistant about putting two drives that cloestly together. I've had my raid setup die from heat before so not too sure about this. I might just put the two hard drives at the bottom near the middle in its own cage and secure it down.

Second, mounting at the top was my original idea a couple of posts up (unless your suggestion was to mount the heatercore outside of the case, which I don't want to do). I was thinking of cutting a hole the area of the heatercore's surface, then --> heatercore --> shroud --> 120mm fan. The concern here is that the space between the power supply and the cd drive bays won't be enough.

I think I'll be going to compusa when I have the time to further plan what I want to do. I really (really) like the PC-60. I'll probably end up putting the heatercore on its side like pictured above or maybe at the bottom facing up (having an intake at the very bottom of the case)

 

[Deathknight]

Personally I don't think either of those 2 cases are very well suited for water cooling, I would opt for the Lian-Li out of those 2 however.

 

[Speed_Mechanic2]

If your interested in an entirely self-contained wc-rig, you may want to look at the AOpen H700B steel case. It costs about $20 more then a Lian-Li PC-60/Antec Sonata, but is a full-sized tower steel case. Has slidable motherboard tray, and comes with a nice FSP Group 350W PSU (which you could use as a secondary PSU if you already have one).

 

[Deathknight]

you may want to look at the AOpen H700B steel case.

That certainly would be my recommandation. Save yourself alot of trouble worrying about how you are going to fit everything. Best part is that the lower front of the case is totaly free for a heatercore, pump etc.

 

[FIZZ3]

I'm not sure I agree with the concerns voiced here about watercooling that 3700 case. It seems pretty much OK to me. The 120mm front intake is ideal to place a heatercore behind. You'll lose a few 3.5" bays, but you've got a couple 5.25" for spare- two brackets and those HD's are mounted in those 5.25"s with sufficient breathing room in between.

I set out on the 'performance H2O in a stylish midtower' path myself, and I'm very happy with my system as it is. Sure, I had to plan and measure everything with more than a second of thought, but it wasn't unpleasant. The end result is very pleasing IMHO.

 

[Deathknight]

The 2 cases being considered were the sonata and a Lian-Li, the 3700 was not under consideration (I think the 3700 has a more optimal layout than the sonata does, much less modding required to remove the HD cage and mount a fan).

 

[jlin453]

No offense to anyone with a 3700 or the Aopen case, but I personally do not like how they look. The only reason why I'm even considering a case with a door covering the drive area is because I really like the Sonata finish and overall look. I also wanted to stick with a mid tower case because to me they look a lot better than a taller case.

Anyways, thanks for all the opinions guys

 

[felinusz]

Of the two that you have narrowed down to The Lian-Li is probably the better choice.

Neither case is ideal for watercooling, and you are going to have a hard time fitting everything in there.

Have you considered switching your Heatercore to a Black Ice Extreme Radiator? They are 120mm in size, and will fit that Sonata perfectly.

Drive bays are hassle, and something that needs to be dealt with - I had to remove both the 3.5" Bay racks from my Dragon full-tower to fit my parallel radator setup - and as such I am forced to use the 5.25" Bays for my harddrives - space waster. You want to keep your bays, and as such a roof mount or a side mount would be your best bet (space pending) - so long as you got the HeaterCore on the floor of the case, and managed to fit it in there under the 5.25" bays a side-mount would work, and look, great.

I think you should take a serious look at some of the Full-Towers that are available on the market, and try for one of them. The full-tower Lian'Lis still look attractive, and are more than roomy enough.

I know that every next person has a Dragon, but there is a reson for it - they are well-designed cases - and very inexpensive - and ideal for water . I figure that if you have a good idea of how you are planning to mod, then your work will make your rig unique, not your case

Just my 2 cents