Lian Li PC-Q37 Announced: Two-Stage Mini-ITX Chassis with Tempered Glass
by Anton Shilov on November 2, 2016 2:00 PM EST- Posted in
- Cases/Cooling/PSUs
- Mini ITX
- Lian Li
- SFX
On Tuesday Lian Li introduced its PC-Q37 mini-ITX chassis designed for performance and modding enthusiasts based around small-form factor systems. The miniature PC case can accommodate high-end hardware and has two windows to show off custom liquid cooling and lighting effects.
The Lian Li PC-Q37 chassis uses a two-compartment design that allows maximizing cooling and storage capabilities of the system. One of the chambers houses the power supply along with HDDs and/or SSDs, whereas another chamber accommodates the motherboard, graphics card, memory and cooling. In total, the PC-Q37 can fit in three storage devices into a special rack featuring rubber vibration-dampening pads. The case is compatible only with mini-ITX motehrboards but can easily house a high-performance video card that up to 320 mm long (which is slightly longer than contemporary dual-GPU graphics boards) as well as a fairly powerful SFX PSU that is up to 220 mm long and capable of handling high-end hardware.
As for cooling, the Lian Li PC-Q37 supports two 120-mm optional air intake fans on the bottom (or one 140-mm fan), two optional 120-mm exhaust fans on the top as well as two optional 80-mm exhaust fans on the back panel (or you can attach a fourth 2.5” storage device). To protect against dust, the case uses special filters that can be easily removed and cleaned up. The CPU cooler cannot be higher than 130 mm (including fan), but there is plenty of space on top of the chassis to install a radiator of a closed-loop liquid cooling system.
| Lian Li PC-Q37 | ||
| Motherboard Size | Mini-ITX | |
| Drive Bays | External | - |
| Internal | Chamber 1: 1 × 2.5" (only if no 80-mm fans are installed) Chamber 2: 2 × 3.5" and 1 × 2.5" |
|
| Cooling | Front | - |
| Rear | 2 × 80 mm | |
| Top | 2 × 120 mm | |
| HDD/Side | - | |
| Bottom | 2 × 120 mm/1 × 140 mm | |
| Radiator Support | Front | - |
| Rear | - | |
| Top | 2 × 120 mm | |
| Side | - | |
| Bottom | - | |
| I/O Port | 2 × USB 3.0, 1 × Headphone, 1 × Mic | |
| Power Supply Size | SFX | |
| Dimensions | W: 237 mm × H: 345 mm × D: 346 mm | |
| Colors | Grey | |
| Features | Glass front and side panels | |
| Price | $229 | |
On the I/O front, everything is fairly typical for an SFF PC case: the PC-Q37 has two USB 3.0 Type-A as well as two 3.5 mm audio jacks on the front panel.
The Lian Li PC-Q37 should be available shortly at Newegg.com for $229, the company has announced. The price of the chassis is relatively high, but since this is one of a few SFF PC cases designed for performance and modding enthusiasts, its MSRP is not surprising.
Related Reading
- Enermax SteelWing Small Form Factor PC Chassis: Aluminum and Glass, $160
- Cryorig Unveils Mac Pro-Like PC Case for Gaming PCs, Ultra-Slim Desktop Chassis
- Lian Li Launches the PC-A51 ATX Mid-Tower Reverse Air-Flow Chassis
Source: Lian Li
Facebook
Twitter
RSS
20 Comments
View All Comments
Drumsticks - Wednesday, November 2, 2016 - link
I actually really like the look of this case, but I wonder how it compares to the similarly sized (volumetrically) Obsidian 250D, which has space for some enthusiast specs and a full size PSU, but costs $85.dsumanik - Thursday, November 3, 2016 - link
Not my cup of tea, looks like a late 80's early 90's 'entertainment center' from the brick.WinterCharm - Thursday, November 3, 2016 - link
It looks nice and clean, albeit a tad blocky.They could have rounded the corners a bit to soften the shape.
zodiacsoulmate - Wednesday, November 2, 2016 - link
i used to be all over mITX for two years, now Im all mATXCygni - Wednesday, November 2, 2016 - link
okrascalion - Wednesday, November 2, 2016 - link
The first images in the article show two circular grommets that I would assume would be used for liquid cooling tubing. In all other images these grommets are absent. What gives? If they are present, why would you want to run tubing into the HDD/PS/Cable space?PCTC2 - Wednesday, November 2, 2016 - link
In a two-chamber chassis, people often run the pump and/or reservoir in the secondary size due to space constraints.Impulses - Wednesday, November 2, 2016 - link
Looks like a Corsair Air 540 (or whatever the ITX version of it is called) with less optimal cooling but better overall use of internal space. I'm still using a 540, just wish the right side was better designed...JoeyJoJo123 - Wednesday, November 2, 2016 - link
Corsair Air 240 is the MicroATX version.That being said, the Air 240 is very flimsy and has a mostly plastic design, but is relatively small (volumetrically) for a microATX case. Although, the right side compartment is even more barren than the Air 540, and is a pretty big letdown given the flimsy plastic build quality. (HardwareCanucks and LinusTechTips have both reviewed the Air240 and both commented that the side panels flex a LOT.)
The CaseLabs Bullet series is very compelling to me. It makes even better usage of space, is mostly made from aluminum, has options for handles, and acrylic panels if you're into that. The ATX version comes in at 1 cubic foot volume! No joke! 13.38" x 10.50" x 13.0" = 1.06 ft cubed, at 8.8 lbs due to the lightweight aluminum.
It's smaller volumetrically than compact microATX cases on the market like the Fractal Core 1500. 7.6" x 15.1" x 18.1" = 1.20 ft cubed, 11.4 lbs. It's even more compact than the Air 240 (again, a two-compartment MicroATX case) too. 12.60" x 10.20" x 15.60" = 1.16 ft cubed, 12.35 lbs.
Crazy engineering that they were able to make a design that fits a full-size ATX PSU + ATX motherboard, and two mounting locations for 240mm rads, and a bottom compartment that houses up to 6x 3.5" drives and the PSU + cables, at a lighter weight and at a smaller volume than many competing cases.
The caveat?
Cost. It's really expensive for a case (up to $300 , which invariably doesn't necessarily add to the PC's performance at all. (Open air systems don't have to try to push air through fan mount locations, etc.)
Hxx - Thursday, November 3, 2016 - link
If Corsair adds some tempered glass panels and extends the first chamber just slightly (1 -2 inches) so as to fit a 120mm fan as opposed to an 80mm fan then the Corsair air 240 becomes ideal IMO. I use the second chamber for the GPU liquid cooler rad+fan in push pull and the width makes it ideal for that. This case just needs a "2016/17 revision" and when that happens Ill be the first one preordering it. I love the air 240