LANCOOL Metal Boned K7

Overview cont.

Internal

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After removing the thumbscrews from the rear you can have a look at the internal steel chassis. Unlike other Lian Li cases the inside isn’tshiny aluminium and it’s a drab metal grey instead.

Drive bays

At the front of the case, you’ll find – from the top down – three 5.25” bays which all have tool-less clips, a standard screw mounting external 3.5” bay and at the bottom five HDD bays. The 5.25” bays have a clip first seen on the PC-B20 which – while only on one side – allow for simple mounting on your drives. All you do is slot your drive in from the front which pushes the clip out, and when the mounting holes line up, the clip slots in and holds your drive in place. To release you just pull the tab and push your drive out again. If you decide that this method isn’t secure enough, the standard screw holes are available.

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The HDD bays use the same system as every other Lian Li case which involves rubber vibration-killing grommets. While the rubber grommet method reduces vibration, its not the most secure, and so you can fasten a screw into the drive and keep it mechanically safe.

Power supply

The power supply slot is an interesting affair, as instead of a normal bracket sprouting from the side, it’s a full basket which cradles your power supply. As nearly every power supply has a bottom mounted fan, the bracket has holes cut into it allowing for the air to flow. Unfortunately, it will raise air turbulence which in turn will create more noise than normal.

There is a hole in the metal further along allowing you to route cables behind the motherboard tray and then out of the cut holes in the tray itself. Obviously LANCO… Lian Li have decided that cable management is a key point to this case.

Fans

The internal air is refreshed with two front 120mm fans and then another fan at the rear exhausting out the rear. As the front two fans are filtered, your PC components should stay nice and clean rather than looking like a desert scene from Laurence of Arabia.

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The fans themselves have finally overcome the molex or 3 pin issue. Instead of just having one plug, there are two in a daisy-chain allowing you to pick either. Once you’ve chosen your preferred connection type, you can trim the other off and reduce cable bulk. This will also prevent you from connecting both and possibly blowing up the fan or worse, shorting your motherboard.

The fans are 53CFM producing 25.6dBA of noise which isn’t quite silent but the case should be by no means loud.

Front IO

The front IO cables sprout from the top of the case and are the thick grey type but you can easily route them round the back of the motherboard tray and all you’ll see is the plug stuck on your motherboard. The front LED’s however are routed down the far side of the case and are just the right length to connect with your mobo.

Cases