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Lian Li Launches the PC-A51 Aluminum Mid-Tower PC Case

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Lian-Li Industrial Co. Ltd, today announces a new brushed aluminum mid-tower chassis with a reverse airflow design - PC-A51. Previewed to the worldwide DIY community in its prototype stage, the PC-A51 is a conglomeration of user feedback and Lian Li's time-honed expertise and engineering capabilities.

Reverse Airflow Design
This community collaborated chassis sports a reverse airflow design in which cool air is pulled into the chassis from the rear filtered 120 mm fan. The front 140mm fan above the front-mounted PSU pulls hardware-damaging hot air out of the case. An additional 120 mm or 140 mm fan can be mounted on the floor of the chassis.





Versatile HDD/SSD Mounting System
Debuting on the PC-A51 is Lian Li's new versatile HDD/SSD mounting system. This new system allows DIY builders to mount either a 3.5" or 2.5" drive on the five individually removable hard drive bays. For more versatility, if the bays are removed, up to three 2.5" drives can be mounted directly onto the tray - freeing up space and helping to increase airflow. Behind the motherboard tray an additional 2.5" can be mounted.

Compact Size / Full Hardware Compatibility
At 44L, the PC-A51 is a compact mid-tower that makes use of all available space. CPU coolers up to 175 mm (6.8") in height and power supplies up to 160 mm (6.2") are supported. VGA cards up to 400 mm (15.7") comfortably fit inside the PC-A51.

Water Cooling Support
A tool-lessly removable top panel allows for 240/280 mm radiators and AIO liquid cooling kits to be easily installed.

Convenient Connectivity
The I/O panel containing four USB 3.0 ports and HD audio connections is located on the front bezel for convenient connectivity. A stealth bay for the 5.25" drive keeps the front bezel uniform.

Price and Availability
The PC-A51 will be available in North America in four variations:
  • PC-A51A (silver) / PC-A51B (black) - USD149
  • PC-A51WX (internal black w/ window) - USD189
  • PC-A51WRX (red and black w/ window) - USD199

The first three models will ship by late February, the PC-A51WRX will follow towards the end of April.

View at TechPowerUp Main Site
 
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that black and pink will look lovely in about 2 years time....
 

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Front mounted PSU, no thanks Lian-Li...
 
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Front mounted PSU, no thanks Lian-Li...
well why not since many other manufacturer do it (inclusive my SST Sugo SG09B) if you talk about noise, well my PSU is quieter like that than when it was installed fan down in my GRone.

on a second thought ... "Reverse Flow" would mean the PSU still draw air from the inside of the case in that Lian-Li, which pretty much negate the advantage of front intake, hum ... i had 2 front mounted PSU : a Node 304 and the aforementioned SG09B the Node 304 had a bottom intake type and the sugo front intake, both were quiet under load ... i guess it is a matter of taste more than practicality
 

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I like the design of case, clean look.
 
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I'm having this crazy idea of a top mounted RAD, with all the fans (rear and front included) as intakes.

Bottom exit should keep things pretty cool and dust-free.
 
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i like it, put me down for one!!!
 
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AnandTech also wrote off the PC-A55, I fancied a challenge and bought one cheap. To be honest my temperatures have been about the same as my old CM 692. If you spend more than 3 minutes putting everything in and use the correct parts any case layout will work...

Lian Li (Silverstone and some others too) offer something different and I'm glad they do, even if that does mean you have to spend a little more time setting it up, that is the whole point of enthusiast cases.

I was hoping the PC-A51 was going to be REALLY expensive that way I could ignore it, but I really want one.
 
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Really wish they'd return to the inverted motherboard layout of the PC-A05N as far as their front-mounted PSU cases are concerned.
 
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I never understood those designs. I already have 3 3.5" HDD racks with hot swapping. How would I use those with this kind of case? I also have a fan control on a 3.5" bay.
I'm searching now for a tower that use those, also that can have enough space for a very looooooooong video card...
 
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