Lian Li PC-Q28 Review

Lian Li PC-Q28 Review - Internals

We're never been massively keen on the way the PSU is mounted in these kinds of cases. Lian Li recommends having the fan facing inwards - a wise move given there's just a few millimetres between it and the side panel, which would massively hinder the airflow to the PSU fan. However, pointing the fan internally means it will compete for airflow with any top-down CPU cooler, such as we use in our test kit.

It's a compromise for aesthetics - a vent in the side panel would clearly impact on the super-sleek looks - but we're not sure it's a worthwhile one as a simple bit of venting would alleviate both the above problems. Given Lian Li's ability to produce impressively tidy flush-fitting fan grilles, we do wonder why it didn't attempt this here, particularly given that the clean look is already broken by the fan on the roof.


That aside, there's plenty of flexibility with the layout, depending on the hardware you intend to install. By default, there are six 3.5in mounts and three 2.5in mounts, but filling all of them would limit you to single-slot graphics cards because of the proximity of the lower hard disk mount. Dual-slot graphics card owners will be limited to using the main hard disk case, necessitating the removal of the lower mount that is held in place by a few screws, but this arrangement still has room for four hard disks with an SSD mount located underneath.


Thankfully, GPU length is pretty much uninhibited at 300mm but PSU's are limited to 150mm if you want to keep the hard disk cage. You'll also have to think carefully about your choice of CPU cooler, though, as there's just 100mm of space. There's less than 36mm of clearance between the top 120mm fan and the PSU too, meaning installing even slim radiators will be pretty tight. The front fan mount will be a much better option if you're keen on using an all-in-one water-cooling kit - you'll have a hard time installing anything more elaborate without reaching for a Dremel.


Thankfully nearly the entire case is held together with screws, so removing things such as the 5.25in bay mount and hard disk cages is dead easy, as would be dismantling the case for a coat of paint. While deconstruction might be easy, construction - namely building a system into the PC-Q28 - isn't quite as pain-free. It's extremely cramped, made even more so by the PSU, which restricts access severely once you've mounted it.


We also found it extremely difficult to remove the graphics card afterwards due to the fact it rests barely an inch above the base of the case. In addition, the USB 3.0 cable was only just long enough to reach the header on our motherboard, with a fair bit of wrenching required to slot it in place. Installing hard disks and SSDs is, thankfully, much easier, with Lian Li including anti-vibration mounts that just slip into place.