Lian Li PC-Q12 (-only one note)

been thinking bout that mod. looks like you did a great job!
What video card did you use there?
 
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Nice work!

...why LL does it make us sweat so much? :(
Agreed. I've had to cut metal on every Lian Li case I've owned (3 cases in 7 years) for one reason or another, most recently I cut the drive cage in half in my PC-V354.
 
After a first quick test to see the possibilities here is the final version which should be (at least for a while...)
CPU i5 -2400 but above ...Sapphire HD6670





To insert the video card I have also performed a small incision on the front because the PCB of the card is flush with the cover and those 2 mm aluminum edge were a hindrance.



I redid a hard disk basket to have freedom of the cables of the same, originally cables should be placed at the top but having put the video there was more space...

From the point of view of the mounting all perfect, will soon stress for temperatures ...but I think I'll have to find a better heatsink (old Xigmatek Durin+120 slimfan) ;)

 
When this case was first announced I made a comment that the motherboard position and the PSU should be swapped to allow for the room of a single slot half height card. Glad to see you were able to mod it in such away to get this done. Great Job!
 
Very neat mod! Thanks for sharing the news about the low profile 7750 too, very intersting.
 
Great little case there (and a great work from you sir, kudos :))...

I'm thinking of building a tiny little machine for grind work and I want to use the smallest case possible... This one seems perfect (ample PSU, tiny dimensions) but I'm afraid the quad core I'm thinking of putting into it won't be properly cooled. So I was thinking of drilling a second set of holes (of 80mm) near the ones that already exist so that to put a dual 80mm radiator in there and somehow a fit a mini water cooling setup.

However a) I have absolutely no idea how I will be able to drill such holes, nor am I that skilled with handywork and (b) I may have a problem to fit in there even the tiniest water cooling setup.

I mean I have already built a tiny water cooled setup but I used -there- an 120mm radiator, here the issues seem to be more complicated... Any ideas would be welcome.
 
very well done was considering buying this case and doing the same mod. glad to see it is possible to do it

Jen
 
Great little case there (and a great work from you sir, kudos :))...

I'm thinking of building a tiny little machine for grind work and I want to use the smallest case possible... This one seems perfect (ample PSU, tiny dimensions) but I'm afraid the quad core I'm thinking of putting into it won't be properly cooled. So I was thinking of drilling a second set of holes (of 80mm) near the ones that already exist so that to put a dual 80mm radiator in there and somehow a fit a mini water cooling setup.

However a) I have absolutely no idea how I will be able to drill such holes, nor am I that skilled with handywork and (b) I may have a problem to fit in there even the tiniest water cooling setup.

I mean I have already built a tiny water cooled setup but I used -there- an 120mm radiator, here the issues seem to be more complicated... Any ideas would be welcome.

Why not use a normal CPU cooler and just open the sidepanel over the cooler for cold air intake to the CPU?
 
Why not use a normal CPU cooler and just open the sidepanel over the cooler for cold air intake to the CPU?

Because it would defeat the purpose of having a small case as the cooler would have to protrude out of the case so that to effectively cool the quad core. Also it will completely destroy the aesthetics of the case.

The water-cooling setup I'm using (in my other tiny setup) with the 120mm rad actually cools my CPU better than the best air-coolers, so it is possible to create tiny water cooling rigs that put air cooler to shame. All I'm asking is whether *that* would be possible in the above case...
 
Because it would defeat the purpose of having a small case as the cooler would have to protrude out of the case so that to effectively cool the quad core. Also it will completely destroy the aesthetics of the case.

The water-cooling setup I'm using (in my other tiny setup) with the 120mm rad actually cools my CPU better than the best air-coolers, so it is possible to create tiny water cooling rigs that put air cooler to shame. All I'm asking is whether *that* would be possible in the above case...

I dont mean have the cooler poke out of the case. And by normal I mean a low profile with a fan that just reaches the side panel. Then install grill, or drill a hole pattern to allow cold air directly into the CPU fan.
 
I dont mean have the cooler poke out of the case. And by normal I mean a low profile with a fan that just reaches the side panel. Then install grill, or drill a hole pattern to allow cold air directly into the CPU fan.

I'm not aware of any low profile cooler which can cool a quad core silently. I do know of some Scythe coolers but those are barely good enough for dual cores, that's why I wondered "how can a protruding Heatsink be of any help at all".
Also a water cooling setup, even a tiny one (to my experience) is better than air cooling. If I'm to drill any holes why shan't I do that for water cooling instead of air cooling.

BTW my initial question was (and is) how can I drill those holes in the first place. I'm not very handy with tools and I'm not even sure what kind of tool must I use to have that done well...
 
The cpu cooler issue is interesting to me because I'm considering getting this case myself.

Any idea if the heatsink on something like a Shuriken could be put on the cpu and, with a sufficiently powerful 80mm fan, keep the chip cool?

I mean, you'd need quite an 80mm fan, but it's possible in theory. The only other cooler that I can find that would even be slightly reasonable would be a Kozuti, and I don't think those have enough cooling power for a high wattage chip.
 
What is the limit on CPU cooler height in this case? The Lian Li web page for this case says 55mm; but is there any wiggle room there?
 
Thanks for posting the screenshots of your mod. I passed on this case originally for the very reason of your mod...I might take a second look.

Best,

LC
 
Thanks to all.

Quick test with i5-3750k @3ghz and -0.16 vcore after about 20 min. of Prime95, fan@1450rpm



probably with a better cooling would be perfect at normal clock even without further mods...
 
Just a heads-up that Newegg is offering 20% off this case (and a few others) with code LLcase2.
 
Whout it be posibile to instal a self contained watercooler in it with a bit af modding like they did by the falkon northwest tiki i am thinking about instaling a corsair h55 inside it
Thanks, styno
 
Sorry to bump this a little, but this is exactly the case I was looking at myself for building a modest, small form factor gaming machine.

I'm considering the Sapphire Low Profile Radeon HD 7750 for myself, has anyone confirmed that this will fit with the same cut made to the case?


Also, since the GPU fan is aimed down, I'm curious to know what others are doing for cooling? I was thinking what I would do is get the biggest CPU cooler I can fit, and drill a bunch of holes in the side of the case over that to let air flow through. I'll only be using a single 2.5" drive, so I was thinking I would this to somewhere in the upper section of the case to free up space under the GPU fan.

I'm not sure what to do from there though, will that be enough for the GPU, or should I try to install a fan; could anything larger than an 80mm fit?

Also, are people keeping the included 80mm fan? I'm thinking that with a good enough CPU cooler I might be able to get rid of the 80mm fan and just use the vent; I generally don't like 80mm fans due to noise, but would one huge cooler be enough?
 
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