LIAN LI PC-V2000B

Company Website

US Distributor
 

When making a purchasing decision on PC cases, one generally considers appearance, technical specs, and price. All-aluminum PC cases first made an appearance in the late 90s, carrying price tags considerably higher than their sheet metal counterparts. However, their sleek design, light weight, and excellent thermal properties soon made them a favorite among elitist modders. Today, many manufacturers seek to combine the aesthetics of aluminum with the low-cost of sheet metal in many of their products by designing standard steel cases with aluminum exteriors. Although they look great, the weight of the steel frame is still clearly evident, and thermal dissipation is less than an all-aluminum one.

Speaking of all-aluminum cases, Lian Li is one of the market leaders, if not the inventor of this type of pc chassis. Their first all-aluminum products were recognized as haute couture, and generally still are today. Iconic designs such as the monolithic PC-70 and the very unique and organic PC-777 continue to strengthen the brand as cutting-edge, high-quality, and very aesthetically pleasing whether in an artistic or geeky way.  SilverPCs is the main importer and distributor in the USA.  Here are some photos of their offices, warehouse, and other products they carry:

Early signs of watercooling?

With a warehouse this big, SilverPCs is sure to always have product in stock.

Here, we are going to examine the Lian Li PC-V2000B. Like the PC-70, this case is a behemoth. 

Internally, this case is divided into two halves:  The top half contains the motherboard and 5.25" bays while the bottom half contains the 3.5" HDDs and power supply. 

Specifications and Measurements:

• All aluminum construction

• Full-tower form factor

• Accommodates E-ATX motherboards with 7 expansion slots

• Upside-down / reverse motherboard mounting - motherboard faces right side

• 8.3" x 24.3" x 24.6" (210mm x 617mm x 625mm)

• 7x 5.25" bays

• 12x 3.5" internal bays

• Front headphone and microphone jacks

• 2x front USB 2.0 ports

• Front 6-pin 1394 port

• 120mm front intake fan with filter

• 2x 80mm rear exhaust fans + 120mm rear exhaust fan with deflector

• Front power button + power and HDD LEDs

• Locking wheels

The PC-V2000B ships in a massive cardboard box with a nice, glossy color exterior.  Inside, the case itself is well-packed inside a polybag and supported by thick styrofoam blocks. 

Printed materials include a color catalog, instruction guide, and bill of materials, the last two being bilingual.

Much of the smaller hardware comes neatly stored in plastic baggies.

Not much assembly is actually required, as the case is already fully built.  This version we have has the optional side window. 

We see the front on the left where the top bay has the optical drive cover, and the bottom having the FDD adapter.  The rear shows the inverted motherboard layout, the two 80mm exhaust fans, and the power supply opening.  Next to the I/O shield is the 120mm exhaust fan deflector.  Note the trademark perforated design...

The bottom shows the wheels.  Although they do not swivel, they are functional forward and back.  The rear wheels have a lock to prevent movement, much like a "brake". 

The front bottom shows the two audio ports, two USB ports, and 1394 port.  Slightly above it is the power button, and the two LEDs - blue for power and red for HDD activity. 

With an optical drive in place, the universal cover swings open when the tray ejects.  On the right, we have the FDD cover and a standard black cover for empty bays.

The side panel is completely tool-less.  A clever thumbscrew and sliding latch mechanism secures the side panels to the frame.

Here is the rear 120mm exhaust fan and the removable deflector which can be oriented any direction desired. 

Inside, the bottom half toward the front of the case sits two columns of six HDD rails.  Up to 12 HDDs can be mounted here, and all are cooled by the front 120mm intake fan. 

Installing a HDD requires screwing in four dedicated HDD mounting screws, which slide into the channels of the gray plastic rails.

In the top half, 5.25" drives are mounted the old-fashioned way.  Over the motherboard is a vertical piece of metal with black plastic fingers designed to secure expansion cards in place.  This is especially useful for OEMs shipping fully built machines.

For those of us that are not OEMs, this piece can be easily removed.

This is the backside of the motherboard base.  Its front side is shown in photos above.  This base is not removable unfortunately, however it comes with dozens of threaded holes for nearly every configuration of motherboard, including chassis-mounted heatsinks such as those used on dual-Xeons!  We also see here the cables leading to the front ports, buttons and LEDs.  They are long enough to reach most motherboards' headers. 

Lastly, we have the power supply cavity.  The rear plate which secures the PSU and the two 80mm fans is removable and can be mounted upside down.  When mounted with the PSU down, there is a platform with supports the weight of the PSU.  This space is barely enough to hold the 850W PC Power & Cooling power supply. 

The PC-V2000B has more drive bays than most people would ever need.  It is large enough to accommodate most dual-socket boards, and light enough to be moved around with ease.  Aside from very few minor inconveniences, the Lian Li PC-V2000B is a case truly without equal.