Grab our LIMITED EDITION Foil CyberSkeleton t-shirt on the GN store! Once these sell out, we will not make more! This helps us fund our testing: store.gamersnexus.net/products/limited-edition-foil-skeletal-cotton-t-shirt-with-pc-component-design Watch our case reviews playlist here: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-c2QPTcRIipk.html
The sliding panel serves more than convenience, it allows for different motherboard form factors (for those that use them) and keeping your wiring tight.
I wanted to thank the team at GN for single-handedly reviving the airflow-focused case market. Thanks in large part to your exceptional case reviews, I'm the happy owner of the best case I've ever owned, the Lancool II mesh. While I won't be upgrading to the third gen, it's nice to see all of the attention to detail and quality of life improvements Lian Li is committed to providing in future iterations of their cases. It shows they care, and that there's always room for improvement in a very crowded market with lots of competition.
Agreed! I bought the Lancool 215 Mesh based on GN thermal figures and it’s been amazing. It’s not the best looking or flashiest case, but thermally it’s incredible. It’s damn near silent, and when I first bought it I thought my CPU temps were being misreported because they were so low. The two front 200mm fans are so good at drawing in fresh air, and because they’re 200mm they’re not very fast so they’re inaudible.
+1 on this sentiment, have been with the lancool ii mesh for almost 2 years or so now, love it to death. only gripe is the backbreaking weight and size once its fully kitted with full atx system + full gpu lol otherwise 10/10 case.
@@dil6969 sturdy besides the glass on BOTH sides lmao. about the only major gripe weight aside is their mind numbing decision to glass the backside. If there was an option to buy with a standard vented metal back i wouldve chosen that.
I know the video is old BUT, for *anyone out there* watching this and *thinks about picking this case up* - then here's my *1 year* in review: PROS: - Super *modular* (like a lot) - Everything runs *super cool* and *quiet* at stock, but I recommend *adding* 1-2 140mm fans in the bottom - Don't worry about if stuff fits, *stuff will fit no matter what* (and then more stuff can fit) - Verrrry *easy to clean* and maintain - So much fun to mess around with and tinker with CONS: - It. Is. Heavy. Do not buy this if you *move around a lot* or include you lifting the thing - It's *bigger* than you think, make sure to do a double and see if it fits your office / gaming area - Kinda don't like the *glass panel* on the "cable" side of the pc, just adds more to the weight and more to worry about And to add to *Steve's question about all of the mechanical parts and hinges* = after 1 year they still work like day one, and I use them a lot (I clean and tinker a lot with it)
I have the Fractal Design Meshify 2 Compact. First thing I did was pull out a tape measure to compare the size and holy moly the Lian Li Lancool III is huge by comparison. Good that all the doors work, seems over the top though.
@@trythis2821 It is on the bigger side for sure, I started oud with a Antec 1200 which is even bigger in comparison, then moved to a NZXT N5 (first edition), afterwards a Fractal Define R5 and now comfortable with the Lancool 3 :) I'm a total sucker for modularity and mechanical parts haha
How do you find the noise level? I have my computer in the living room and it is on most of the time when i'm home. I don't mind that it's a bit noisy when it's under load, but when i'm just doing some surfing or some other office work I want it to be pretty quiet.
I bought this case. Years on, I'm glad to say everything is STILL working great. I love this case. It was one of the easiest I've ever built a system in. It looks classy and keeps everything super cool.
hello, are you using stock power curve or did you change it? is it really loud stock? does it come with rgb controller? p.s i bought the black non-rgb version today and im documenting myself before it arrives
@@Liberty46 I have the argb model and I'm using a ROG Ryujin with Chromax fans, which those fans can be loud full tilt at 5ghz on my 5900x. The case itself is pretty quiet and does have a built in controller.
I love how dynamic this video is! Showing different angles and rooms, seeing Steve walking around instead of standing stationary behind the desk, and even the camera being handheld, all gave this video a really nice and very warm feel. Props to Andrew for the excellent filming and editing, and to the entire team for creating such great content! ♥ It's also an awesome change to have Patrick doing part of the review! I hope that becomes a constant for future case reviews. It's great to hear more thoughts on the case directly from the other tester, and it's just great to see more of Patrick in general. 🙂
@@AceStrife I think that's just a cameraman moving the angle, zoom, and focus. Point of origin has rarely moved in most GN videos that aren't live streams.
I pre-orded this case two weeks ago and I should be receiving it before the end of the week. I'm an owner of the Lancool II, and although I liked it, I decided to upgrade to the Lancool III once I saw that Lian Li addressed all the things I found annoying/disappointing about it's predecessor. Thank you for doing such a great review on this case, Steve. You are my "goto" guy for comprehensive reviews/testing of products. Keep up the stellar work.
@@matthewf9909 finally we will be able to Mount a 360 radiator at the top! Another thing I like about the III is that you can now open the side panel by pulling on the front release latch. On the II, I had to slightly or lift or tilt my rig since it’s on a caddy on the floor which has short walls that prevent opening the lower doors.
@@htr5372 doubling the price? When I bought my Lancool II it was $149. The Lancool III I just bought was $149. Sure, the Lancool II is $89-$109 now, but that’s because it’s considered an older model and retailers are trying to get rid of stock.
I ended up getting this case partly due to this review. Had it about 7 months now and every time I have to work in this thing it's just a wonderful experience. Coming from an older case, using this one just feels like they thought of everything. As an example today, I had to replace my radiator fans and it was a breeze - you can tilt up the radiator mounting plate to easily get at the back of the fans or the headers on the motherboard. For someone with big clumsy ham hands I'll take every convenience I can get.
That curly haired young Steve is cool. Giving a hands on "how heavy is it fully assebled" is a nice addition when concidering a new case. Not many reviews look at how it flex when carrying around. 10/10
Not a stat that is commonly mentioned in reviews, it does seem ridiculously heavy. Patrick says 15:50 this weighs 14.9kg. By comparison the very similarly sized Be Quiet silent base 601 window weighs 11.22kg and the slightly larger Fractal Torrent apparently only weighs 11.1kg.
@@Desalater2 The extra glass panel would be a big addition to the weight, the excessive doors and mechanisms would add a bit of extra weight too. But in general, more weight should = better quality ie: thicker metal, less plastic, more bracing etc. I would always choose a predominantly metal case and don't really have much issue with the weight, although I was surprised to hear that the Lancool III weighs nearly 15kg!
"It's not abnormal to remove the front panel that wayl But for a case this advanced, with all the different levers, springs and gadgets, that might be winning our "Best Mechanical Design of the Year" award; they haven't done anything to advance the removal of the front panel." This actually applies to basically every Lian Li case ever. This problem is so widespread that there's a cottage industry of people 3D-printing replacements for those plastic clips that they have been using since 1993.
@@GamersNexus Can we get a review of the P600S? There aren't any proper thermal tests of its fabric mesh front panel. It's a little bit older now, but the build quality & features are great for its price. And the front panel fabric is really unique and pretty much no other case has it.
As a p600s owner myself, I wish Steve would review it also. I think it fits the price range among the competition with much more headroom to build in and without gimmicks to make it appealing.
As a first time builder, I chose this case for the extra helping hand it gives to people who are less savvy. It seems more beginner friendly with its organization and less screws needed. Thank you for the review!
I feel confident saying that this is the most well shot case review on the channel. Love the direction you guys are taking right now, great job to all involved. Also. 30 lbs. empty! The next iteration needs to work towards reducing the weight imo.
It is just way to hilarious listening to cake making and at the end add some "price" into it. Anyways point is that the camera work is good but out of mind at the same time not overdone. But if it all was recorded vertical on a phone no editing just raw cuts between any talking point or whatever. I really do believe people had still stayed around. ;) As long as we get the points across in audio and some footage to view we are staying for this top tier coverage!
I''m honestly shocked they've managed to cram that much (apparently functional) mechanical complexity into a case for this price point, especially while retaining pretty favourable thermals. Overall I think Lian-Li has done a pretty great job here.
Out of all the cases that I've ever built in, had the most fun and overall a pleasant experience with the Lancool III. And she's runs veerry cold. Love it!
Lian Li always takes me back. They were ahead of the curve with their case designs. The squared off full glass aesthetic was basically perfected by them.
@@ligmanewtons2523 lol ok fair hit. A long time ago for me was trying to convince a janky Apple 2ci to print my homework....I feel like I just aged my self.
Becuase of you, Nexus, I decided to go with the Lancool 2 Mesh and I couldn’t be happier. The cooling on it is insane and I just wanna say thank you for going out of your way to do this for us!
I got the lancool 2 mesh when GN originally criticized the original case and the thing is an absolute beast. Love these in depth reviews and the comparison charts are very helpful!
Patrick doing his section is the best thing ever. He seems really passionate and this is a good change with building concerns and aesthetics being shown
Quick comment/critique for Patrick as I always appreciate his input and reviews. He is always hard for me to hear in the audio [partially cause I have lost part of gearing due to military service]. This may be just a me problem but if it is possible to get a bit more volume to match Steve [I understand different pitch & tone] but in post edit, it would be greatly appreciated. If it is just me, no worries. Can't wait for my skele shirt! Keep up the great work folks!
I've used your mesh II video to decide I want that case, then heard yesterday you were going to review this. I think I'm going to get this over the mesh II just because it can hold so many fans and storage lads. Also, I love the dual/split drive cages, as I don't need both of them. Edit: oh wow its a heavy case
i got the ll as well. its a alright case. airflow is great. almost all of my games run pretty much idle fanspeed. my only complaint so far is that one of the front case fans has developed a light ticking noise when revved up. other than that, yup its heavy. especially when its loaded with beefy components, so moving that thing 💦
I'm impressed. Lian Li keeps getting better and so do these case reviews. We're really spoilt for choice with some absolutely amazing cases these days.
I've had a Lian Li mesh 2 case mostly because of GNs favourable review as well as following an aesthetics style that I wanted. My only minor complains is that it's so heavy and that the io is on the top meaning my kitties could step on the power buttons as they love to enjoy the warmth in winter. This new case has definitely solved the 2nd issue. Would be great if there was an option that didn't have the tempered glass panel on the back side to reduce weight slightly. Anyhows! kudos to Lian Li for improving an already decent case even further and to GN for their amazing work
@@Fruchti I suffer the same problem with my Pure Base 500DX, I've shut my PC down just from unplugging a USB. :) The button is far too touch sensitive.
It does my heart good to see the 215 still hanging with the newcomers near the top of the chart. I bought mine back when it was still near it's original MSRP of $70, partially as a result of your review, and it's been fantastic. Great review as always, and this looks like another great effort from Lian Li with some nice design elements for more complex builds.
I also got my 215 last year at msrp and it's such a great case! Sure it doesn't have all these gimmicks but as far as looks, price and cooling goes there isn't anything better imo.
When I got my Lancool Mesh 2, I was one of those customers who received their case with the SUPER tight screws. They were nice enough to send me another, free of charge. They mistakenly sent me a white version, which I really disliked. I contacted them and they sent me yet another replacement, free of charge and with express shipping paid. They also told me to keep the white one and the one with the tight screws, which I gave away on Twitter. I rarely come across customer support like this. They won a customer for life, for sure.
I bought a Lancool II Mesh Performance a while back based on the GN review and I am thrilled with it. GN had the best review on the Lancool II and this review is every bit as good.. this case isn't for me, but it was a great job showing all the positives and negatives of this case. At this point, I wouldn't buy any case until I watched a GN review first.. you guys are THE authority on case reviews. Please keep it up.. it's really appreciated.
A new case to check out. Thank you for in depth coverage of products we can use. You guys are just keeping the quality high, and the community couldn't appreciate it more.
I got this case as soon as it became available in my region. Till now, I am loving this very much. The temps have been good. It looks great. I have added 360mm radiator on top, stock 140mm fans on front and back and 3 120mm fans below the GPU. The only thing which I have a gripe about is the magnetic mechanism for securing the back panels. For someone who is not good at cable management, it just takes additional effort to route the cables through specific cutout marked on the panels. Also, one thing to note, if the bottom fans are RGB, the shoddy cable management at the bottom is very much visible.
There's a special kind of absurdity about replacing the solid panel on the back with tempered glass so you can see through it, and then implementing solid panels to hide what the glass lets you see through to.
I personally really like that. Using the normal Lancool 2 right now and I can't go back to steel-back cases anymore. Just makes both sides of the case interesting and if you were to put RGB SSDs there, it would become a feature of itself. Not everyone puts their case with the back to the wall. :)
One thing that's missing from this review is dust management, and ease of removal and ease of cleaning of the filters. This case even has an optional dust filter kit, which you didn't even mention. Please add the dust subject to future reviews. Everything else was super in-detail. Thanks a lot!
Came from a lancool 2 mesh. Really wanted to run a 420 rad for my 13900k and was looking for options. Loved the torrent but I just found it to be a little restrictive in case layout. You basically have to run it as is otherwise you are throwing away money on those fancy shrouded 180s in the front. So, I opted for another lancool. 1. 420 rads fit pretty easily, you have to ditch some aux fans but it's not a big issue. 2. Major point they miss is cleanability. These lancool cases are so easy to keep clean. No screws no clips, not fixed psu covers... And now with the panel openers you don't even have to touch the glass. 3. Front panel removal is the 1 major letdown, really with lian LI could have figured something out even just making the mesh section clip in would have been a big improvement. The front panel is so tight it is really sketchy pulling it off. Saving grace is that my build weighs 50lbs so pulling it off the desk isn't a concern.
Another Lancool Mesh 2 owner here. Love it and not ready to upgrade! I do like some of the new fiddly bits in the LC 3, but don't love the magnetic cable covers in back. I say leave them as thumbscrews. Thanks Steve! 🍺😁
It's fantastic how Lian Li improved on some of the shortcomings of the Lancool II Mesh, a couple of which I gave them feedback about after I built my PC. Looks like the cable covers no longer interfere with routing around the edge of the case, and I kind of want to put one of those new HDD trays in my system. I also told them they could hide the front I/O better, but the new reversible panel is probably the most useless new gimmick of them all.
I can definitely see the improvements in the video's layout. From the Case Hallway to Patrick's take on Case details, this video's structure is a definite improvement 👌 One of my favourite channels around that lets us pc nerds embrace being pc nerds
@@yoyigu The review said the 5000D airflow performs worse than the Lancool 3 - but the Lancool has many more future failure points and is super heavy. It kind of just comes down to what you like the look of more and what supports the fan sizes you want.
@@OntarioGuy430 The 5000D also comes with a criminal lack of fans pre-installed, with only 2 basic 120mm non-RGB fans. If you fill all 10 fan slots, the 5000D's performance increases significantly.
honestly what this shows me is just how damn good the lancool II mesh was/is. Honestly if it can be had cheaper than this new one i'd say it is the best competitor if you don't need the new fan flexibility
Even Lian Li knows it. They recently increased the price of the Mesh II because it was undercutting the competition by 50 bucks or so. I got mine for 80€ now it's selling for more than 120€... The III feels a bit over the top with too many niche features.
I got mine for like 100 euros and its the best case ever, stock fans are good but pretty noisy and you can fit the arctic 360 in the front, the finish and quality overall is unbeatable at the price :)
@@Shadow2311 Everything except the plastic hard drive things feels so high quality and is actually useful. I have a 280 and it didn't quite fit op mounted, so it had to be used as intake as well. I even use one of those metal phone holding rings as an door handle and it looks like it was part of it all along. Best case I ever owned for sure!
I just brought my roommate this case as a thak you for helping me build my first gaming pc. He never asked for a dime and I felt bad for not being able to show my thanks. He's been talking about this case a lot.
I would buy this but I absolutely *hate* glass panels, especially im the back where cable management needs to be on point and mine is definitely not. If they offered a no glass alternative with room for messy cables? I'm down every time.
@@AryaStarky same -100% and this case has the doors to hide all the wiring. So the argument that @redteamreview does not like the glass because it shows the cable management or that it has to be on point....not true on this type of case ;)
Pro tip, cable management is all about being patient. Don't be afraid to walk away after its built then come back later to fix the cabling with some zip ties. Goes a long way!
@@ratboyiscool and also, don't expect to get it perfect the first time. Sometimes you learn from the first cable management exercise and have to do a second or third pass to get it really clean.
The glass side panel behind the MB is probably the most pointless thing I've seen on a PC case. All you can really do with it is put some LED strips back there to make it glow and/or show off your almost out of date SATA SSDs. Other than that, a solid panel would serve the purpose just fine.
A solid panel wouldn't just be "just fine", it would be better because one could lose the internal case covers and thus lose weight. The solid panel itself would also weigh and cost less than a glass panel, so overall, there would be a good reduction in weight and cost. I would even like the option of a solid panel on the left hand side as well because I would place the case on the floor, so don't need to be able to look inside, plus one could cut out a side exhaust for the GPU.
Excellent job, gentlemen! Couple of points: - I think you forgot to add the GPU thermals for the PSU shroud mounted fans - I'd appreciate it for future reviews if Patrick would mention if the case comes with an HDD LED, as sometimes the power LED can have a dual purpose of being a power and HDD indicator, or just include some footage of the internal connectors - At the risk of sounding ancient, but here goes: does the case come with a beeper? I still use mine which I cannibalized from my previous Thermaltake Chaser I bought back in 2014 as my Aorus B550 did not come with a seven segment display, so I use the beeper for diagnosis... Thank you for your hard work. Review was great and definitely like the new style of videos.
The last time I've seen a beeper was in my very first PC, an IBM think center. I ripped it out as soon as kid me understood enough about computers to do so. I didn't even know modern motherboards still supported them!
Proud owner of the Lancool II Mesh. Bought based on your excellent review. Glad to see Lian Li fine tuning the design. The only thing I really dislike about the III is the covers for the wires. I like being able to take them off and then securing them with a screw. Not everything needs a magnet. Shame about the HDD backplate. I actually use that. Anyways, can't wait to see the Lancool IV!
I may be alone here but having a little note on the graphs saying whether a high number is desirable or not ("lower is better" or something to that end) would really help. I know it's obvious once you realize what's being measured, but when a lot of graphs are flying by it helps get me acclimated to what sort of data I'm looking at so I can better comprehend the visualisation without being distracted from the narration. Anyone else feel the same way or is this just a me thing?
I bought the Lancool II Mesh based on your review last year. Its the one case I have purchased were I did not regret buying due to something prettier or newer coming out. I think in some ways the Lancool III is a step backwards, specifically in gpu thermals for example, which lets face is the most important thermal testing as it is the hottest component in the system. I love what they have improved upon over the Lancool II mesh, however I would still buy 2 over 3 purely based on your gpu thermal testing. Lian Li I feel, is really competing with itself here, the Lancool III Is interesting sure, but it is not as compelling as the Lancool II Mesh, especially when considering the high price increase.
Agreed. I think GN should have discussed the worse GPU temperatures more. What is causing this degradation? Who should be getting the III vs the II Mesh, etc.?
I agree, I think the III's biggest competition is the II Mesh, and was hoping Steve would cover more comparisons between the two. Looking at the thermal results (including noise normalized), it seemed as if the II Mesh was actually better overall. I was intrigued by the III coming with 3x 140mm stock, but it seems as if those larger fans only contributed to noise, and not so much performance. I'm currently using the II Mesh and I feel that was money well spent (thanks to GN's review). Still, appreciate Lian Li for continuing to trying to improve based on feedback, and appreciate GN for providing tons of info.
@@coolcat23 Yeah, I'm surprised they didn't harp on that more. The III looks like it mostly just hangs with the II Mesh (never really pulling ahead or falling way behind), making that massive GPU temp difference stand out. Then factor in the price difference, and I can't really see a reason to recommend the III over the II Mesh. In any case, I definitely won't be replacing my II Mesh with the III, nor am I planning to change my recommendation of the II Mesh to new PC builders.
I might be wrong. But lancool 2 mesh released in July 2020. He probably did the review of the case before the release date. RTX 3XXX released September 2020. So assuming his using the latest hardware to test thermals he would have been using a RTX 2080ti. So there's your temperature diference 3000 series draws like a extra 100 - 200 watts. Would be more beneficial if they also listed the hardware that was tested with
I’ve got the Lian Li Cool 2 Mesh, and built my own pc with it. I found it to be a very easy unit to build in ( I’ve built four pc’s so far, and this was the easiest case to build in). I actually think the older unit looks better than this new one. I also wonder if the new side panel latches that run all the way down both sides of the front of the case are actually slightly blocking airflow compared to the older case which doesn’t have these latches on it? The older design that required the bottom doors to be open before the glass panels could be opened was perfectly fine in my opinion, and adding these massive latches on the new case is a step backwards as they are potentially a fail point with over usage. Also, the two solid metal doors on the back side that cover all the cables for neatness are far better on the older model as they can be screwed shut rather than using magnets. From personal experience, I struggled to get all the cables bolted behind the doors, and the magnet version would have been a giant pain to have to deal with. I can also verify that, once you get all you components in this case and it’s ready to turn on, it’s a VERY heavy boy! I built my son’s gaming pc using another case (admittedly with a smaller GPU) and my pc is probably three times heavier than his. Another improvement that could be made to both the older and newer case would be to use the Lian Li SL120 Uni Fan Infinity ARGB PWM 120mm at the front of the case. It would increase the price, but these fans look far better, and with their interlocking system you would only have one cable to deal with rather than each fan having its own cables.
While watching the review I also thought it to be an ~$250 case--Seeing the list price at $150-170 is surprising and refreshing. To me, it looks like a killer case at this price point.
Honestly this would look great with a storm trooper style to it and I would love to see a model like that, white case with black front mesh and black interior/pcie covers/PSU filter vents, heck make fans with a white frame and black fans. Also am I the only one who misses gunmetal colored cases?
The overall quality of GN is truly unrivaled. Thank you and team so so so much for not giving in to trashy tech trends and staying real. Don't ever change, you guys are amazing!
Fantastic review, I think this one beats the previous Lancool in looks (II & II Mesh) and I love the amount of fan/rad mounting options and the fact both PSU shroud doors are mesh but we'd need a follow-up on this case to really know how useful shroud mounted fans and rads would be (it was mentioned talking about shroud mounting in the thermal section but I didn't hear anything about it there). A follow-up video could also perhaps show the results of a bit of torture testing of all the door mechanisms, nothing extreme but enough to show how well the mechanisms hold up through a number of uses Last thing, wish they didn't have glass on both sides, it really doesn't add much to the look having glass on the side behind the motherboard tray, would rather it be a metal panel and reduce the cost a little bit (but I will say those cable covers do make the glass there viable as an attractive option for anyone that does like it)
I've been looking at Lian Li cases for the last few months as I consider building a new PC over time, they looks good, sound like they're solidly constructed and have space inside with some interesting features many cases don't use. Thanks for reviewing these GN! You guys give people the information they need most!
You won't be disappointed. I love my Lancool II Mesh. I couldn't be happier with the functionality, the room, cable management, and air flow that surpassed my Cooler Master case I had for years.
I am really glad to see my Lian Li Lancool II Mesh is STILL a top charter especially when comparing to the Lancool III. I absolutely love my Lancool II Mesh, and it was all thanks to you guys at Gamers Nexus to help me find one of the best upgrades I could have done for my system. However, I will say, the little things that Lian Li did to improve the design, speaks volumes for me. They actually care about the products they are pushing out.
@@zoppletee5400 based strictly off the video and not actually owning the lancool 3. I would personally go with the 2. Few reasons. 1. The 3 is quite a lot larger than the lancool 2 and the 2 is already quite large although I will state I have a 3070ti ( it is a very large card. About 13 inches in length) and it's pretty close to the fans length wise. Which is fine just can't go much bigger. 2. On the inside the sliding cable managing thing I'm not a fan of because personally I had to straight up remove mine to get all my cables to fit properly albeit my cables are old and terrible. Other than those tbh not a lot has changed really between the 2 to warrant getting the 3 over the 2. I got my lancool 2 for 120 USD from microcenter. I DO have the lancool 2 performance though all that changes is instead of 3 front fans I get 2 bigger front fans. (,fans are non RGB although there is a performance RGB version) Really honestly I think either case is fine I don't know the price of the lancool 3 currently but if it's anything more than like 10 or 20 USD more than the lancool 2 It's probably not that worth it unless h really want the extra space
@@codlogic7060 since your responses are quick, I'm planning on running a i9 or i7 depending on which one is better performance/easier to cool with a 3070ti or 3080ti but have to decide on a CPU cooler before I decide anything for sure
@@zoppletee5400 I don't know a ton about cooling but I asked my friend since he takes cooling his pc very seriously. It depends on what generation of I 9 you would get but if you get a 12th Gen you need a 360mm AIO. He said phantek and ek make good aios for the price he would personally stay away from msi. Nzxt makes good Aios but they are way more expensive. If you are getting an I 9 11th Gen or below a 240 mm Aio would work or you if you wanna do air cooling you could use a nhd15 air cooler. Although be did say it's quite large. He also said that should work on the I9 11th Gen or lower but he's not 100% sure. Would work on the I7 though as a good air cooler. I hope that helps
I'm just not a fan of having a glass panel on my cable management side of my case, and yes I do manage my cables as neat as I can. Especially if they're just going to cover all the cable management shit with panels??? Like just make it metal....
Thanks for those in-depth professional reviews! You are the reason I bought the Fractal Meshify 2 Compact and did not cheap out on a case for the very first time. I also got a case for my girlfriend because you recommended it. We are both pretty happy and I personally cannot believe how much easier it is to upgrade and service your PC with a case that is designed to make it so simple. Love you and the team, keep it up!
I understand the longevity concerns over the features (aka 'gimmicks') but it seems like a cool case at the price point. Nothing wrong with the Fractal Design either, but it's functional without much interesting design.
I honestly dont see the longevity thing as a concern at all for 99.99% of people. Most people install their stuff in the PC, then clean it like twice a year. Throw in a new part maybe every 2 years and you keep the thing for lets say 6 years. 6x2= 12 cleanings, 3 times for new parts...you're looking at opening it 15 times. It's honestly not a problem at all.
I got this one for the kid I volunteer with, and she loves the case. It was a little complicated, but the case itself looks amazing, and the build looks clean AF because of all the little areas you can shove cables or pull cables through.
Damn, this case beats the original Torrent in noise normalized? Lian Li is out for blood, becoming one of the best case manufacturers IMO (even if this case is a tad strange)
Coming stock with ***4 140 millimeter fans*** is also just great. Of which, the non RGB ones are even better. Then you've still got plenty of room for a 360 millimeter radiator up top if you want. The thing can stay frosty
@@devaxionrl8189 regardless, this case rates well thermally all around, even with all of the excess junk on it... or perhaps some of that is working as a heatsink
@@devaxionrl8189 the Lancool is also a little bit cheaper, when comparing the non RGB versions. And the gap gets a lot bigger when comparing the RGB versions
Even using this case 10 years and passing it on to someone else, I seriously can’t imagine any of the spring things or latches breaking. They’re so much more durable than plastic clips and whatnot, you’d have to be opening it multiple times a day every day for years to start wearing stuff that durable out. But that’s just my opinion
Why are the GPU temperatures on the Lancool III worse than on the Lancool II Mesh? Wouldn't that be interesting to investigate? Are the Lancool II Mesh GPU temperatures really better than those of the Fractal Torrent? Either something went wrong during testing or there are some really interesting lessons to be learned about how hot air can be efficiently removed from the GPU (e.g., through an optimal distance between GPU side and case (glass) cover.
Sadly they're testing it stock and without fans on the GPU shroud. With up to 3 fans installed on the shroud pulling in air, the temperatures will definitely drop.
@@jakechuaweipeng I agree it is sad, that they are not trying a few more fan configurations that make a lot of sense. Their current approach lets a case with a bottom GPU cooling option look the same as one which does not have such an option. Regarding the comparison to the Lancool II Mesh, though, the latter has the same option and they did not use it to obtain their GPU measurements either. There must be some reason (distance from front fans, gap to side panel, measurement error for the Lancool II Mesh, etc.) that explains the worse performance of the Lancool III. I don't understand why some people are raving about GN so much, given that they don't really put in more effort into case testing than other channels. The only advantage GN has, is their standardised testing methodology, but they do very little to nothing to find out how to best cool a case. From a top notch channel that deserves the raving praise GN already receives, I would expect that they try different top fan setups, for instance, and not just speculate that one might be better than the other.
I really like the dynamic way this video was shot! It felt fresh and less tense than standing there with a fixed camera angle. Please note that 'tense' really doesn't mean unpleasant! A computer case isn't rocket science by any means, and in my opinion a review of such a thing doesn't need to take itself too serious (like in this video). Just keep experimenting with that, you've already nailed the technical review part anyway. My take on the case: Every time a manufacturer tries to implement rather complicated mechanical designs for parts that, under normal operation, almost never get used, it feels a bit wasteful in my mind. They could have left out half of the panels, magnets and springs and that case would still be a top performer on noise and airflow with an easy building experience.
Still loving my lancool ii. However, I really do wish they would ditch the dual tempered glass side panels. There is no need for it on the cable management side of the case. It only adds weight and fragility. Getting rid of the glass side panel would also eliminate the need for the somewhat annoying cable panels.
So true. I would even ask for a steel side panel for the other side, so that I could cut a exhaust ventilation cut-out into it for the GPU to directly exhaust its hot air to the side, out of the case.
I bought the Lancool II after watching your review despite the mild concerns you had then. I enjoyed building in it and my thermals have been fine after all this time. Full disclosure, I don't over-clock thus it's not being stress tested. That said, my take away here is that your concerns are mostly around some minor engineering quirks and potential long term effectiveness which for my use case would probably be fine. Plus doors man...it's got doors!
Thanks for the review, guys! I was looking into this case to potentially replace my Lancool II Mesh, but I think I'm going to stick with what I have. It was routinely losing to the LC2 Mesh in your tests, and its dramatic increase in size, weight and price over my case dissuaded me further. I agree that things like the spring loaded latches, side panel release mechanism, etc... all look like stuff primed to fail. I'm not sure if Lian Li will be providing replacement parts for this case 5-6 years from now.
Same think I will stick to the Mesh II, love that case but it would have been nice if they had a usb c already to go in it. But other than that it was fun to build in and easy to work on.
The LanCool 3 lose to the LC2 in those particular tests, but is still a better case in term of cooling capapcity. GN standardised configuration (4x120 mm fans + 1 CPU aircooler) does not take advantage af this case stronger suit : his capacity for more and bigger fans/radiatiors than his competition.
@@Blafard666 As Steve said, if a case loses in specific categories and loses in their standardized configuration, it means the case is brute forcing cooling with its fans. What this shows is that the Lancool 2 Mesh has better airflow dynamics as a case than the LC3, and that its stock fans are more than enough to sit at or near the top of the charts consistently. It seems the increased volume of the case may be working against it here.
@@RicochetForce I totally agree, especially with your last sentence. But isn't that proof that such a modest test-configuration will always cripple the bigger cases ? 20:05 On the standardized fans test, is it a coincidence that all of the 5 cases beating the LC3 are compact/smaller cases ? I believe GN testing format misrepresent the compared performances of larger cases at the benefit of smaller volume ones.
@@Blafard666 I do agree that GN will eventually have to bite the bullet and move on to more modern, intensely hot components to provide more representative results. It reminds me of how Noctua's large coolers like the NH-U12A, U14S, NHD15/S seem to perform no better than bog standard heatsinks on low thermal loads. But when you force a massive amount of heat on them, the smaller units quickly get overwhelmed and the actual performance of the large towers becomes obvious (cooler + quieter while providing that cooling).
I just completed a 13700KF/Z790 build with this case. Very happy with it. One gripe is the needlessly overengineered drive cages that are an absolute pain to fit unless you are demoing an empty case. The two cages mount differently just so that one of them can slide. They should have just provided several locating hole options for two identical cages. Getting them both into and out of their offset locating holes mid build was a total pain in the arse. I'll overlook the pointless right side glass panel (why?!), but otherwise was a pleasure to build into and is very well made, particularly for the price.
i wonder if adding 2 fans at the bottom would help with gpu thermals, or maybe its best to buy the regular non rgb version and then just swapping out the fans for better fans. For optimal air cooling.
I remember when Lian Li was mainly an expensive, definitely not mainstream, PC case manufacturer. The OG O11 Dynamic and Air, along with the Bora fans, really opened the floodgates for an entirely different market for them. The O11 Dynamic itself has had several spin-offs. The O11 Air has had a few modified follow ups. The Bora fans led to the UNI fans, probably some of the most popular fans sets on the market. The Lancool line has been introduced and exploded with many models. Most importantly, most of their products fall into an affordable price point and get better with each new model. Hats off to Lian Li! They really do seem to listen to reviewer and customer feedback and make better products as they grow in the market.
Lian Li making an unpainted aluminum case with good airflow be a dream come true for me. I miss the look of their old school lineup, looked for the Max Pro looking one on eBay a dozen times.
It made me laugh to watch the front panel get yanked off after all those fancy mechanisms, and then Steve said exactly what I was thinking. Hiliarious.
Curious, that Lian Li have listened to yourselves and others and made improvements, and yet you still can't quite like it. It performs, well. Yes it is a bit pricey, but not too much. Having just added 140 SL fans to my old Lancool 2, I am astounded at how much quieter it is. If I were able, I would buy the basic Lancool 3, replace the fans with UNI fans and be delighted. The one feature that I really love is the hinged doors. Being older and since I am loosing muscle strength by the day, unscrewing and then lifting off glass doors would only end in one way. Having hinges is just so user friendly. Thanks Lian Li.
If you remove the rear single fan, and rotate the front fan mount so that they're closer to the mesh, and do not use any front radiator, and use low profile ram (up to 43mm high)... then you can squeeze a 420mm AiO rad in it. And I do mean squeeze, and I should probably add a "usually". It's the smallest case I think you can shove a 420mm into. It's a pretty cool case really. 3x120mm fans on bottom (iCUE), and 3x140mm (420mm iCUE rad) at the top, looks cool, though it won't sync with the lian li front fans so I set those to a static color. I got the black case, have the 3 lian li front fans on solid red, and the 6 icue fans (120's and 140's) on "breathing" red. It suits a high end AMD build nicely.
I just ordered the Lancool III ARGB and i have 6 Corsair HD120 RGB Fans, you just installed the fans to your motherboard i guess and controll them via icue software, so no fan/rgbhub or something like that right?
@@BLACKSTARBLAIRWITCH Uh, my H170 rad came with 3 140mm fans and an iCUE hub. The case has a kind of built-in hub-like thing for the front fans (inside the little pod for the front IO stuff & power button). One's lian li though, and the other corsair, so they don't communicate with each other. I have the iCUE hub to mobo to software. But because the front fans & rgb controller are lian li, I don't try to get them to do matching rainbow effects. I just set them to a closely matching static color, so they look reasonably "matched". I just went with a pale blue. The hub for the front fans are dual control. They can be connected to the mobo and tweaked with lian li software, but there is also a dedicated button next to the power button which gives some limited control options. I just used that to pick a color for the front fans, and then used iCUE to closely match it with the corsair stuff. In hindsight, if I had known how much trouble it would be to get a H170 420mm AIO into this case, I probably would have just gone with a 360mm rad. The mobo I got has fairly chunky heat sinks on it, and the upper chipset touches the fans, also the rear corner (where the IO plate of the mobo is) is too tall, so I had to saw off one of the corners of the nearby fan to make it all fit (making it a 3-screw fan). To be fair, it looks great, and there's no vibration problems with 3 screws on that rear-top radiator fan. You'd have to stick your head inside the case to see where i "customized" the back corner of the fan housing. But it was far more work than a straightforward build. Makes it a pretty unique build, but you'd have to be really "into" that kind of custom work to call it a good idea. My old computer is in a 750-D case (technically a full tower). And the lancool III case is almost as big (same width, but maybe a couple cm less long & tall). It surprises me that a 420mm rad is such a tight fit in such a big mid-tower case. But 420mm rads are _really_ big.
@@kathrynck Thx for your answer, as for your problem, you can get rubber "things" for the fans, so you dont need the screws to fix them and with the rubber things you can also slightly pull the fans downwars for easier installation fo the 420 rad. I wateched many vids for that, but i only have a 360 corsair aio. Check this out, if that was your problem, but i saw many users struggle with the 420mm rad and the fans, maybe they find it helpful ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-aitIxf_1FEU.html
@@BLACKSTARBLAIRWITCH I think even the rubber things wouldn't have made enough room to clear my mobo's IO block in that back corner. I had to remove "most" of the corner of the fan housing to get clearance. Part of it is that the mobo i got has a very bulky heat sink stuck to the inner side of the IO plate (with rgb stuff on it). It's the asus x670e 'prime pro' wifi mobo. It's tricky to get a 420 to fit well enough to even get to the fan/mobo problem hehe. There's quite a few ways to arrange the front fan bracket, and to arrange the fans on it. There's only one combination (out of many) for the front fan bracket & fans, which clears the front panel of the case, and clears the rad on the other side. Pretty much the 420 rad is only about an inch shorter across the top than the whole case :P In the lancool III here's spots to put 3 fans across the bottom too (above the psu area). But they are 120mm _only_ there. So I think a 360 rad up top would look best, could do 3 matching fans below and above (with a top mount rad). There is enough space to mount a 360 AIO rad in the front instead, if you prefer. Would mean a slightly cooler cpu, but slightly warmer gpu. I wanted the rad up top so that as it loses water with age, it should keep the cpu block fully wet 100% of the time. I actually got a 4090 TUF, (I wasn't going to spend that much, but when i went to see what I could get at microcenter, they actually had 4090 TUF cards, at retail, with microcenter msrp (no markup). So... i kinda over-spent ;) Anyway, the point being, just looking at it, I *THINK* there's enough room for a front mount rad, in front of a GiGaNTiC graphics card. Although it would probably matter how the front fan bracket is positioned. But I doubt you could do a front rad + top rad, even at 360 size. Not that it's common to find a way to use 2 rads hehe.
@@kathrynck According to the youtuber Christopher Flannigan you get the best temps for gpu and cpu if you mount a rad to the front as intake, he made all the tests possible i think with fan/rad combinations. My plan was to use the 360 as exhaust at the top and 3 bottoms fans as intake and the 4 stock fans as they are, but i dont want the rad in the front as a push pull like he tested.
I knew that the Lancool 2 is better than the Lancool 3 for many reasons. The Lancool 3 is more of an opponent for Corsair 5000D Airflow or Corsair 7000D Airflow but for the people who want the best GPU, CPU performance and that for €100 or €120 or $100 Lancool II is the way. After all, Lancool II is Born to Push Limits. And well, Lancool III is just Born to Push Microsoft Exel. ^^
Great case review. One thing I'd like to see is even when Patrick was pointing out the built in IO, the spec of the different USB ports was not mentioned. I've noticed this is a pattern not only in this review but in the majority of your case reviews. It's usually not hard to find out, but it seems like a spec worth mentioning. Especially since there are about 4 possible data transfer rates they could be in nowadays and there are more than one type of motherboard connector required. Not a big complaint, just seems like it ought to be there in so thorough a review.
Lian Li never made $35 - $75 cases as far as I remember, they've always been a premium brand, but also deliver very high quality products, so the price is warranted. As far as cases with a 5.25" slot, what about the Fractal Design Pop Air?
Lancool III would be the perfect case if it came standard with filtered intakes. Fuzzy cats and case on the floor forced me into a 4000D. They should make a "pets" variant that just comes with the filters. Lol @ the magnet talk.
tbh, with my lancool II mesh i dont have any issues with dust and cat hairs at all. Maybe thats due to positive pressure, the front panel collects a thick layer of dust and gunk over time on mine but nothing settles in the case (apart from the bottom but its neglectable)
Actual filters would annihilate the airflow and this case would be a terrible buy, though the mesh on the front panel is pretty thin, cat hair wouldn't really get through, just a tiny portion of it. Living with a cat you're good for cleaning at least the filters/front panel quite often whatever case you choose so might as well get one that cools your components well
