LIAN LI PC-A77F Computer Case/Chassis

 

Introduction:

Over the years Lian Li has developed unique features and a high quality that is unmatched by other manufactures on the market, this has set them apart from many other companies. Some of the unique features currently include USB 3.0, the choice to use aluminum over plastic which breaks or falls apart after light use, and engineering some of the most unique chassis to hit an actual production line.

Today TechwareLabs is reviewing the PC-A77F case, which is the largest of their fleet and by far has space to spare inside. Join us in taking a closer look at the PC-A77F case.

LIAN LI PC-A77F	Available anodized in black, silver or red.

Features:

Model	PC-A77F
Case Type	Full Tower
Dimensions	(W) 220mm x (H) 585mm x (D) 590mm
Front bezel Material	Aluminum
Color	Black / Silver / Red
Side Panel	Aluminum
Body Material	Aluminum
Net Weight	9.2KG
5.25″ drive bay (External)	12
3.5" drive bay (External)	N/A
3.5″ drive bay (Internal)	9 (Use 5.25 x 6 Bays)
Expansion Slot	8
Motherboard	E-ATX / ATX / M-ATX/ CEB
System Fan (Front)	120mm Blue LED Fan x 3
System Fan (Top)	140mm Blue LED Fan x 2
System Fan (Rear)	120mm Fan x 1
I/O Ports	USB3.0 x 4 / e-SATA x1 / HD Audio

Close up look at the case:

A quick look at the specs and an overview of the case shows that Lian Li has once again designed a case stacked with features.  Several of our staff had the reaction “Wow, now that is cool, why hasn’t someone thought of that sooner?” Well let’s take a look at a few photos of the case to get an idea of what we are talking about. The PC-A77F is large giving you a lot of options to route cables and cut down on clutter, but the number of slots and access areas for cable routing is what sets the PC-A77F apart from other cases of this size.

Quick run around the outside:

Just a few pictures of the outside of the PC-A77F doesn’t reveal many differences from other cases on the market today. All Lian Li cases are anodized and not painted which is the most durable finish next to powder coating. The front bezel is made of aluminum and not plastic like the remaining 90%+ of the computer cases on the market today.

The bottom of the case has a vent for the power supply with a dust shield to assist in the prevention of particles being sucked into your power supply (more on this later in the review). The PC-A77F is not shy on fans and air flow either. The PC-A77F is decked out with 6 X 120mm Fans to pull/push air through the case and with their super quiet blade design you are not disturbed by the hum of a motor, but rather you hear the sound of air moving through the case.

A look inside:

The internal construction of the PC-A77F is revealed in all of its glory once we take the side panels off the case and look inside. Let’s dive into some of these unique features to show you what the PC-A77F is really made of and why it is set apart from other cases on the market today.

Left Side view with rail support installed.	Left Side with Rail support removed.

The PC-A77F is cavernous with the left side panel moved. With so much space to spare inside there is plenty of room for air to flow through the case and with proper cable management there is for sure plenty of  unobstructed space for the air to flow. One feature that we didn’t notice till sometime later was the lack of a window on the left panel or even a fan, but we didn’t think the window was necessary, however, having it as an option may be desired by many enthusiasts to show off the inside of their case.

For gamers the PC-A77F grants enough room for that array of 5870’s or a series of GTX480’s without worrying about the length of the card or the amount of heat generated. In general practice the larger cases allow for greater air flow, especially around heat generating components. This means that with the array of 120mm fans at the front of the case, you can be assured that your game critical video card(s) will be kept cool.

Power Supply in-place on mount.	Tool-less installation of the power supply

The unique feature for the power supply is the elevated bracket which allows for the power supply to be installed right side up. Additionally the bracket allows for less cavitation and a positive airflow being spaced from the intake surface. Our concern here is that the power supply is sucking in cold air and not recirculating hot air from both the power supply itself and from within the case.

We installed our Tuniq 1200Watt power supply within seconds using the the Lian Li tool-less design and supplied bracket hooks, it snaps right into place. The elevated bracket of the power supply allows for the fan power supply to be face towards the floor of the case eliminating the need to remove the power supply’s fan grill which often sits higher than the rest of the PSU surface. This in turn has prevented proper installation on several other cases we have reviewed in the past. Having the Power Supply mounted correctly allows cool air to be pulled from the bottom and also also prevents loose screws from be dropped into the power supply if it were installed upside down which has resulted in failure of at least one power supply here at TechwareLabs.

The PC-A77F comes with a set of three 3.5″ drive modules.	Removed one module to demonstrate its construction.

The front of the PC-A77F comes with three removable modules which holds up to three 3.5″ HDD’s or like bay devices. Each module comes with a 120mm fan attached to the front. The modules are attached to the case by thumb screws to continue with the tool-less concept.

HDD module from the front.	The PC-A77F came with a supply of vibration elimination grommets and thumb screws.

Closer Look Continued:

The modules can be removed at anytime even after the motherboard and video card have been installed. This is possible through the front of the case. Simply remove the thumb screws holding the module in the case and then remove the front gates on the case and slide the module out the front. This process took all of five minutes once we figured it out, but it is another excellent feature Lian Li has integrated into this case.

The 5.25” drive bays are equipped with a quick release lever to allow for a tool-less quick install or removal.	The front of the case is outfitted with 5.25” gates which can be removed for installation of up to three 5.25” devices.

Continuing with the tool-less design, the 5.25 bays of the PC-A77F are outfitted with a quick-release lever.  Simple design and function, the concept and function is flawless. This makes installation, maintenance, and cabling of your 5.25 inch devices much more convenient.

IO ports on top of the case are hidden by a thin access door.	Inside the case the IO port can appear a little intimidating.

The IO panel is something to take note of as you have four USB ports of which all four are capable of USB 3.0, if your motherboard has enough USB3.0 ports to plug into.  The other ports that are also behind this access door are audio ports for a MIC and head phones and an E-SATA port. On the inside of the case the IO panel has a molex connector to power the IO panel and the plugs for the case fans, along with four USB 3.0 cables. The interesting design for these USB 3.0 cables is the cables have a standard USB plug that you would find on a USB mouse or Keyboard. These cables are designed to be long enough to be routed out the back of the PC-A77F case and plug into your motherboard’s USB ports on the IO panel of the motherboard. These USB cables are designed with a thick coating to reduce interference and keep as much speed as you would get if they had connected the USB 3.0 device directly to the motherboard’s USB 3.0 port.

Inside View of Top of the Case	Inside View of Top of the Case

The PC-A77F comes with two 120mm fans mounted to the top of the case which pull the hot air out the case. Due to the size of the fans and slow RPM, they do not make any noise. The black PC-A77F we reviewed had blue LED fans, we are not sure if this would be the same color scheme for the other two PC-A77F cases which are the very desirable Red and the Silver ionized painted cases.

Lever Releases for the Rear Brackets	Lever Releases for the Rear Bracket Covers

The PC-A77F is designed with a clean look and simple design all around. The back of the case is also equipped with a  fan as well as two ports for optional water cooling and an ingenious PCI/PCI-E bracket locking system.

Lian Li’s Take:

The PC-A77F is a Full-tower case, which is ideal for the latest graphics cards in combination with the best thermal dynamics. All the internal installation can be done without tools, and is easily adjustable to optimize your hardware setup. Especially in the advent of adding in new graphics cards, equipped with 8 PCI slots, can hold three or more graphics cards, supports CrossfireX™ and 3-way SLI™.

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Motherboard Installation:

The PC-A77F as mentioned earlier has an enough room and PCI/PCI-E brackets to accommodate even the most elite Crossfire X or SLI enthusiast. The latch which is used to hold down your PCI card is just a beautiful piece of engineering alone and allows for easy installation of your cards. In this Lian Li has demonstrated its ability to create a durable and yet functional device even in something so small.

Motherboard mounting screws designed to be tool-less install.	Some areas may be a little tight for those of us who have big hands.

The tool-less design of the PC-A77F includes thumbscrews which can be a little difficult to install in tight areas, but we were able to install them without too much of a problem. Thumbscrews as mounting screws is something new to us and we didn’t have any issues with the install of the motherboard or the case grounding out, but we were surprised that there were no washers included which would help prevent the thumbscrews from grounding out the motherboard to the case. Likely these washers will be included with the case in the future.

The back of the CPU with a heat sink installed.	The cutout of access to the back of the CPU.

The access hole for the back of the processor is pretty large and doesn’t weaken the mounting plate for the motherboard, but appears to be designed with Intel processor motherboard more than our AMD processor motherboard as shown in the left photo above the mounting nut is just barely missing the edge of the motherboard mounting plate. This wasn’t a real problem though as we were able to mount the heat sink without binding or cross threading the nut.

Conclusion:

The LIAN LI PC-A77F is a full tower case which towers over other cases we have reviewed in the past in height, features and quality. With upgrading ones PC over time there is two components that are worth spending the extra money on, one being a good monitor and the other being a computer case that has room for the next BIG thing.

After reviewing the LIAN LI PC-A77F case I can honestly say this case has it all and is big enough to handle that next BIG peripheral that isn’t out yet. The tool-less design and very durable will stand up to countless upgrades. Since you won’t be using tools to install screws, it is unlikely your will cross thread or over-tighten a screw which would ruin any case.

The PC-A77F is packed full with unique features and being of a fully aluminum design is relatively light. The price may be a little more than what the one would be willing to spend, but with this many features and construction engineered into the case you won’t be looking to replace it anytime soon. TechwareLabs is honored to award the PC-A77F the Awesome Hardware award.