Lian Li Lancool 217 Case Evaluation: Thermal Benchmarks, Noise, & Cable Administration
The Lancool 217 ships with 5 followers: two 170mm entrance consumption, two 120mm shroud-top consumption with reversed blades, and one acts as rear exhaust. The shroud-top followers might be moved right down to the within floor of the shroud, which reduces area accessible for drives, cables, and the PSU, however clears the way in which for a vertical GPU mount. There is a third fan mount on the shroud that is blocked off by the PSU; its solely goal appears to be compatibility with 3×120 UNI fan kits.
4 of the 5 case followers are mounted tool-lessly, and the entrance followers particularly might be rearranged into “CPU Mode” or “GPU Mode” with plastic spacers in between.
Lian Li additionally included a full set of longer screws to make the tool-less mounting system work particularly with the 28mm-thick UNI followers.
Lian Li’s Lancool 215 launched 5 years in the past. It was groundbreaking on the time because of the two 200mm consumption followers, usually solely discovered on massive, costly circumstances, however with a brutally low MSRP of $70 achieved by contracting out case manufacturing and that put quite a lot of strain on the business.
The $120-$125 worth for the 217 is not as unbelievably low because the 215’s was, however Lian Li has preserved a number of options of the 21X sequence.
The case additionally has a 90-degree rotated PSU mount and an elaborate vertical GPU mount that is appropriate with shroud-top followers for as soon as, though it requires a separately-purchased riser cable to make use of.
Lian Li Lancool 217 Overview
Lian Li says that the self-described “Up to date Wooden Accent” requires significantly tight manufacturing tolerances. Different circumstances just like the Fractal North (learn our evaluation) go for remoted strips that needn’t completely line up, however the wooden parts in our 217 all sit flush with one another, and the entrance mesh really seats into the wooden on the backside. On our pattern, it finally ends up wanting fairly good with no large gaps.
We normally solely see wooden used as ornament, and we have seen the dangers of utilizing it as a useful factor with the cracked panel on our Fractal Period 2 (learn our evaluation).
The association of the trim reminds us of the Antec Flux and Flux Professional (learn our evaluation) circumstances, which Lian Li could also be concentrating on with the discharge of the 217.
Lian Li Lancool 217 Specs
| COLOR | White or Black |
| DIMENSION | (D)482mm x (W)238mm x (H)503mm |
| MATERIAL | Metal / 4.0mm Tempered Glass / Wooden |
| MOTHERBOARD SUPPORT | SSI-EEB(Width Max 330mm) / E-ATX（Width Max 280mm）ATX / Micro-ATX/Mini-ITX |
| BACK CONNECT MOTHERBOARD SUPPORT | ATX / Micro-ATX |
| PSU SUPPORT LENGTH | Normal Mode：ATX（Beneath 220mm）Rotated Mode：ATX（Beneath 180mm） |
| FAN SUPPORT | Entrance: 170mm x 2 (Included) / 140mm x 3 / 120mm x 3Top: 3 x 120mm / 2 x 140mmAbove PSU Shroud: 3 x 120mm (2 Included)Beneath the PSU shroud: 2 x 120mmRear: 1x 140mm(Included) / 1x 120mm |
| RADIATOR SUPPORT | High: 360 / 280 / 240mm |
| DRIVE SUPPORT | Again Join Motherboard: 2 x 2.5″ SSD / 1 x 2.5″ SSD(behind MB)2 x Drive Cage: 1 x 3.5″HDD+1 x 2.5″ SSD+(1 x 3.5″ HDD or 1 x 2.5″ SSD)PSU Shroud: 1 x 2.5″ SSD |
| GPU LENGTH CLEARANCE | 380mm (Max.) |
| CPU HEIGHT CLEARANCE | 180mm (Max.) |
| EXPANSION SLOT | 7 |
| I/O PORTS | 2 x Energy Button2 x USB 3.01 x USB Sort-C1 x Audio |
| DUST FILTER | 1 x Backside, 1 x Entrance |
| Hub | ARGB / FAN Hub：6 x PWM FAN port4 x 5V ARGB port |
| WARRANTY | 1 12 months(Fan: 3 years) |
*Specs copied from producer supplies, please learn evaluation for our personal measurements and opinions
The Construct
Let’s begin with “CPU Mode” and “GPU Mode.” That is one thing Lian Li has accomplished prior to now however have modified their execution this time. The 2 entrance 170mm followers are connected tool-lessly by screwing rubber washers onto the followers after which sliding them into place, a typical methodology for putting in storage drives. Between these followers, two plastic blanks might be inserted like old-school 5.25″ covers. The blanks additionally assist to information circulation and stop re-circulation.
The case ships in GPU mode, which means (from prime to backside) spacer/fan/spacer/fan with a bias in direction of airflow decrease within the case.
It may be reconfigured to CPU mode, which means fan/fan/spacer/spacer with the followers greater up. That is related in spirit to the “air cooling mode” and “water cooling mode” configurations of the Lancool 216 (watch our evaluation), however extra streamlined, sensible, and lots simpler to make use of.
Alternatively, regular fan rails might be put in on the entrance with 120mm or 140mm spacing, however that may be a waste for the reason that 170mm followers cannot be relocated to some other a part of the case. The followers are factored into the case’s worth, and every belongs to a clearly designated space, so it makes essentially the most sense to purchase the 217 when you’re planning to depart the inventory followers alone.
Making a vertical mount that is appropriate with shroud-mounted followers is difficult, and Lian Li completed it with an elaborate assortment of {hardware}: a tiny shroud extension on the entrance so the followers might be shifted forwards, one other barely bigger extension on the again to mount a standoff to, then the standoffs. With all that within the accent package, it’s not usable for a vertical GPU and not using a riser cable, which they don’t embrace, however it’d additionally closely impression the value.
The detachable prime radiator bracket is a welcome return from the 216; it will probably help as much as a 360mm radiator with out difficulty, however different mounting areas would require transferring the inventory followers. We discovered ourselves eradicating the highest bracket and popping the tool-less entrance followers off to work contained in the case, which makes parts accessible from a number of angles.
PSUs might be mounted in both “Normal Mode” for as much as 220mm size or “Rotated Mode” (the default) for as much as 180mm size. As with the Lancool 207 (learn our evaluation), we recommend sticking to shorter (~150mm) PSUs in rotated mode to permit additional room for cable bends.
For those who use certainly one of Lian Li’s Edge PSUs, it should be mounted fan-side-up and can compete with the GPU for air.
A fan and RGB hub is included, which can be one other characteristic supposed for UNI fan compatibility on condition that the case would not ship with any RGB LEDs. The hub splits SATA energy, a 5V ARGB enter, and a 4-pin PWM fan enter throughout 4 ARGB outputs and 6 fan outputs.
The handbook specifies which followers ought to be linked to every port, however we confirmed (with a tachometer) that followers run on the similar velocity no matter which port is used.
There are two energy buttons. There’s the apparent one on the prime of the case, however there’s one other tucked away with the remainder of the I/O on the aspect of the case. This can be a continuation of the 216 (watch our evaluation), which allowed swapping your complete I/O meeting between the 2 areas. It’s a compromise as in comparison with the 216’s swappable choices. The buttons are hardwired to a unified entrance panel connector, to allow them to solely be used for energy.
Lian Li has already responded to consumer criticism of the shortage of help for transferring the I/O by saying that its 217 Infinity (which we noticed at Computex) will permit I/O top-mounted as effectively.
There are two different options from the 216 that have been dropped. First, the bizarre fan bracket that may very well be caught over the rear growth slots is gone, however our authentic testing did not present any vital profit to putting in a fan there. Secondly, Lian Li has dropped the screw from the glass panel, which is a nitpick we’ll all the time convey up: glass panels ought to have a solution to be fixed down securely for transit.
The drive help is tough to summarize on a spec sheet. There are two 2.5″ mounts behind the motherboard tray, however solely certainly one of them can be utilized if an mATX back-connect board is put in. There’s one other 2.5″ mounting location on prime of the PSU shroud (if the rearmost fan slot is not used). Lastly, there are two conventional HDD cages within the accent package that match beneath the PSU shroud, every of which inserts two drives in any mixture of three.5″ and a pair of.5.” That is unusually beneficiant for a contemporary case, however take into account that just one drive cage will match with the PSU in customary mode.
The 217 contains the identical flip-able cable grommet bar that the 216 did. Rotating the bar offers clearance and exposes standoffs for SSI-EEB boards as much as 330mm in width.
Cable administration area relies on the PSU orientation and drive cages, however the cable cutouts are massive and are not compromised on account of back-connect compatibility. Eradicating the small GPU help opens up one other massive cutout, though it lacks a rubber grommet. The plastic clips on the rear of the case from the 216 are again, making EPS12V cable routing particularly simple.
When our pattern shipped, the mesh part under the glass aspect panel had deformed barely, in all probability throughout transport. We have been in a position to bend it again, however the metallic on this space is skinny and laborious to completely flatten.
Lian Li Lancool 217 Thermals
Lian Li features a entrance filter within the accent package, with a word within the handbook that states “when you want higher efficiency, please don’t set up this filter.” Primarily based on this, we handled the filter-less case as inventory and ran one take a look at with it put in. We ran CPU mode, GPU mode, and a take a look at with the GPU put in vertically in GPU mode, though (as we defined earlier) we have been compelled to put in the GPU one slot nearer to the glass than we wished to due to the size of the PCIe riser cable that we had.
Fractal’s current Meshify 3 (learn our evaluation) is an apparent level of comparability for the Lancool 217 with costs as little as $140; our charted outcomes are for the costlier RGB variant, however efficiency ought to be related between the Meshify 3 SKUs. Antec’s Flux and Flux Professional would be the closest circumstances in the marketplace when it comes to each worth and look, to the purpose that it looks like an intentional technique from Lian Li, however for now we solely have the Flux Professional on our charts. The Professional has a pair options that extra carefully match the 217, just like the three accessible shroud-top fan mounts and rotatable PSU, however the non-Professional is the one which matches the 217’s worth. Montech’s HS01 Professional (learn our evaluation) is one other case with a mesh entrance and a excessive inventory fan depend that is launched just lately; we usually most well-liked the glass-fronted HS02, however the HS01 Professional immediately competes for the 217’s market.
CPU Full Load Thermals – Noise-Normalized
We’ll begin with noise-normalized thermals, the place we use our hemi-anechoic chamber to measure the general SPL of the case after which decrease fan speeds in tandem till it hits our threshold of 27 dBA.
Noise ranges have been barely completely different within the 217’s CPU mode and GPU mode (as we’ll element afterward), so that they required barely completely different fan settings as a way to hit the edge. With these changes, each configurations averaged 41 levels Celsius above ambient throughout all cores and 45 levels throughout the P-cores. That is additionally precisely why we’ve got the acoustic chamber — we wouldn’t be capable of choose up such small variations in noise earlier than, and that slight adjustment exhibits that they’re about the identical for the CPU as soon as we alter for RPM.
The Meshify 3 positioned greater on the chart than the 217, however its outcomes have been shut sufficient to be mainly equal at 40 levels all-core and 44 P-core. Montech’s HS01 Professional makes use of a bottom-intake configuration and subsequently has comparatively weak CPU thermals with our take a look at {hardware}, averaging 49 all-core. In the meantime, the Antec Flux Professional matches the Lancool 217’s thermal efficiency right here nearly precisely, though once more the non-Professional variant is a more in-depth match in worth.
Lian Li’s older Lancool 216 additionally stays unbeaten right here, with thermals that carefully match the Meshify 3 and are subsequently fairly near the 217 as effectively. The 216 had extremely uncommon 160mm consumption followers, particularly for the time, with extra-wide frames to forestall air re-circulation, and we discovered them efficient in our evaluation and that also holds up at present.
GPU Full Load Thermals – Noise-Normalized
Wanting on the GPU thermal knowledge for a similar set of noise-normalized outcomes reveals a extra vital hole between the case configurations. CPU mode is at 44 levels above ambient for the common GPU temperature and 48 levels for GPU reminiscence, whereas GPU mode dropped that to 42 and 45 levels, respectively. Provided that the earlier chart confirmed CPU temperatures have been unaffected, that makes GPU mode the higher configuration general for our take a look at {hardware}. Though there are two consumption followers immediately under the GPU, biasing the entrance consumption followers decrease within the case has an opportunity to enhance thermals even additional. That strains up with what we usually discovered even with the earlier iteration of our take a look at bench, the place GPU thermals usually had extra room for enchancment than CPU in high-airflow circumstances.
GPU mode gave the 217 a slight benefit over the Meshify 3, though the delta was lower than one diploma with the Meshify 3 averaging 43 levels above ambient. The HS01 Professional ran equally to the Meshify 3, and the Flux Professional landed on prime at 41 levels.
The older 216 carried out equally to the HS01 Professional with a 43 diploma common, which is to say it additionally carried out equally to the 217. All the outcomes we’ve got recorded for the 216 this time round are within the inventory configuration; in our authentic evaluation, we discovered that the alternate air-cooling mode barely improved GPU thermals and barely worsened CPU thermals with an previous bench.
GPU Full Load Thermals – Full Pace
Transferring to the complete velocity assessments, the Lancool 217 is now the loudest case on this chart aside from the Fractal North XL, measuring in at 44.8 dBA with all 5 followers operating at their most velocity (44.3 in CPU mode). We’ll skip proper to GPU thermals right here, since CPU thermals have been the identical in all 4 examined configurations. As anticipated, the vertically mounted GPU take a look at had the worst common at 47 levels above ambient, adopted by CPU mode at 43 levels, then GPU mode at 40 levels. This may enhance with a GPU within the slot nearer to the board.
Putting in the entrance filter had no vital impact on thermals or noise on this take a look at, which is not one thing we see usually, so Lian Li deserves some credit score. Technically the end result with the filter put in had a barely cooler common than with out, however inside our one diploma margin for take a look at variance, and the GPU reminiscence temperature stayed at 41 levels for each assessments. That is inside error. That implies that the filter has minimal impression on GPU thermals in our take a look at, so it isn’t that obstructive. That’s good for Lian Li.
The GPU Mode 217 outperformed the Meshify 3 and HS01 Professional by about one diploma, however it’s additionally audibly louder than both of these circumstances, whereas the Flux Professional manages to be each cooler at 38 levels and quieter at 39.7 dBA compared to the 217.
That is the primary take a look at we have seen up to now the place the 217 places a niche between itself and the 216, with the older 216 averaging 43 levels above ambient.
VRM & RAM Full Load Thermals – Full Pace
We’d usually study the VRM and RAM thermals from the noise-normalized outcomes, however sticking with the complete velocity chart as a substitute permits us to see how the assorted configurations affected motherboard temperatures. All 4 of the VR VCC sensor outcomes recorded for the 217 rank among the many greatest we have seen, with the CPU mode end result at 20 levels above ambient, each GPU mode outcomes at 19, and the vertical GPU end result at 17 levels. Mounting the GPU vertically would not do the GPU itself any favors, however within the 217 it permits the underside consumption followers to blow immediately up by the case with out being blocked by the horizontal GPU cooler.
SPD Hub temperatures from the RAM have been equally wonderful, with the vertical GPU end result additionally on prime at 10 levels above ambient. GPU temperatures are the next precedence, however motherboard temperatures are value making an allowance for when evaluating vertical GPU mounts, which we’re doing right here.
Lian Li Lancool 217 Conclusion
The Lancool 217 is not leaps and bounds forward of the earlier Lancool 216, however it contains some logical adjustments and enhancements based mostly on case tendencies (wooden, again join motherboard help) in addition to Lian Li’s personal merchandise (EDGE PSUs, STRIMER cables, UNI followers).
The picket ornament on the entrance panel is essentially the most vital change, adopted by the tool-less followers which make reconfiguration simpler than it was within the 216. The 216 already had wonderful thermal efficiency, and for essentially the most half the 217 merely matches it, solely actually pulling forward when the case followers are all pushed to max velocity (which is impractical because of noise).
At $120, the 217 competes favorably with the similarly-performing however costlier $140+ Meshify 3, though Fractal has choices for RGB lighting. The followers and efficiency you get for the cash push the 217 previous Montech’s HS01 Professional, leaving the $120 Antec Flux non-Professional because the strongest contender.
The 217 appears to be Lian Li’s try and match the Flux Professional in efficiency and options whereas matching the scale and worth of the non-Professional, and it is a success in these elements. That mentioned, the Flux non-Professional is just like the 217, and the comparability between the 2 comes right down to some very particular objects.
The 217 has wonderful inventory followers, extra spare connections on its built-in fan hub, help for rotated PSUs, it suits SSI-EEB motherboards, it will probably match a higher variety of drives, and it has some out-of-the-box help for vertical GPU mounting (though it would not embrace a riser cable). The Flux has probably higher airflow on the backside of the case because of its ventilated flooring, and its fan format is extra reconfigurable since all of the inventory followers are both 120s or 140s. A few of us at GN favor the 217, however it’s a good race.