Lian-Li PC-T60 Case Review

[nextpage title=”Introduction”]
The Lian-Li PC-T60 is an aluminum “test bench” style computer case, focused on enthusiasts and overclockers, where the PC components are exposed, with easy access to the motherboard. Let’s check this unusual case.
The PC-T60 is available in three colors: black (PC-T60B), silver (PC-T60A), and red (PC-T60R). We analyzed the silver version, where the case is simply not painted, with the natural aluminum color.
An amazing detail of the PC-T60 is that is comes entirely unassembled, and you must assemble it yourself. The parts come individually packed to avoid scratches. The problem is the assembling is a real puzzle, since the manual is confused, it small, low-quality, black-and-white photos of the steps. If you have never seen the case assembled, you will have to build it based on try-and-fail method. Some screws are common Phillips ones, and some are thumbscrews.
Figure 1 shows the PC-T60 assembled. You can see the big motherboard tray an, below it, the room for the power supply and storage units. On the top, there is a big aluminum handle.

Figure 1: the Lian-Li PC-T60 case

As you see in Figure 1, there is no room for fans or radiators. According to the manufacturer website, you can buy a fan support, but we were not able to find it to sell.
Let’s take a closer look at the case in the next pages.
[nextpage title=”General View”]
Looking the Lian-Li PC-T60 from the front, we see it is entirely open. There is no where to install fans on it.

Figure 2: front view

There is a small panel on the front of the motherboard tray, with the power and reset buttons at the left. The power and disk activity LEDs are located inside these buttons.
At the right side of this panel, there is room for one eSATA port, two USB ports, and headset connectors, but the case doesn’t come with these connectors.

Figure 3: front panel

Figure 4 shows the side of the PC-T60.

Figure 4: left panel

[nextpage title=”The Bottom and Rear Panels”]
At the back of the case, there is only the frame with the expansion slots. There are eight slots. On the PC-T60 you don’t use the rear motherboard frame. Under the motherboard tray there is a stand that helps the case balance.

Figure 5: rear panel

At the bottom of the case there are four rubber feet that must be sticked to the bottom plate.

Figure 6: bottom view

Let’s now take a look inside the case.
[nextpage title=”Inside the Lian-Li PC-T60″]
Figure 7 shows the motherboard tray, that is actually the main area of the case. There is a big opening to access the backplate of the CPU cooler, but there are not holes to pass the cables to the motherboard. The eight slots at the rear frame are covered by removable covers, and the expansion cards are held in place using thumbscrews.
The PC-T60 supports CPU coolers up to 5.9 inches (150 mm) tall with the handle in place, but has no limit if you remove this handle. Due to the open design, there is no limit for the video card length.

Figure 7: motherboard tray

In Figure 8 you see the room for the power supply. It can be installed with its fan facing up or down, and lies over two rubber stripes.

Figure 8: power supply compartement

Figure 9 shows one of out test systems built on the PC-T60. Notice that, as there are no holes on the motherboard tray, the power and SATA cables pass outside of the case, which brings it a messy aspect.

Figure 9: mounted system

[nextpage title=”The Disk Drive Bays”]
The PC-T60 supports two 5.25 inches units, three 3.5 inches hard disk drives, and three 2.5 inches storage units.
The bays for the 5.25 inches units are under the motherboard tray, and the units must be fixed with common screws. At the side of the power supply there is a cage that holds three 3.5″ and one 2.5″ drives.

Figure 10: external 5.25″ bays

Figure 11 unveils this cage. The 3.5″ units must be installed using special thumbscrews that come with the case, trough rubber washers that absorb vibration. The 2.5″ unit must be attached to the top of the cage using common screws.

Figure 11: cage with HDD bays

Figure 12 shows the two 2.5″ bays that stay under the motherboard tray. Here, the units are held by common screws.

Figure 12: 2.5″ bays

Figure 13 shows a Blu-Ray burner, an HDD and an SSD installed on the bays of the case.

Figure 13: storage units installed

[nextpage title=”Main Specifications”]
The main specifications for the Lian-Li PC-T60 include:

• Style: test bench
• Application: ATX and smaller form factors
• Material: aluminum
• Power supply: does not come with the product
• Available colors: black, red, and silver
• Side panel: not appliable
• Dimensions (H x W x D): 15.7 x 13.8 x 13.0 inches (400 x 351 x 330 mm)
• Net weight: 4.0 lbs (1.8 kg)
• Bays: three 3.5” bays, three 2.5” bays, and two 5.25” bays
• Expansion slots: eight
• Maximum video card length: no limit
• Maximum CPU cooler height: 5.9” (150 mm) with the handle installed
• Fans: none
• Optional fans: none
• Extra features: none
• More information: https://www.lian-li.com/
• Average price in the U.S.*: $80 USD

* Researched at Newegg.com on the day we published this review.
[nextpage title=”Conclusions”]
The Lian-Li PC-T60 is an interesting case for anyone who needs to acess the motherboard often, replacing memory modules, expansion cards, video cards, or CPU, and for overclocking enthusiasts that need to change motherboard or cooler adjusts.
Besides this, it is very light, which is excellent. The motherboard horizontal position can avoid problems with heavy CPU coolers and video cards.
On the other hand, the case has some problems. First, it lacks of orifices on the motherboard tray do route the cables, which means the cables must pass outside the case.
It also doesn’t support liquid cooling radiators; if you want to use a watercooler, must modify the case some way. It is also a shame the case come without the USB and audio connectors.
Anyway, if you are looking for a “test bench” case, it can be a good choice.
Strong Points

• Easy access to motherboard and other parts
• Lightweight
• Supports video cards of any lenght
• Reasonable storage bay count
• Eight expansion slots
• Good quality of construction

Weak Points

• Confusing manual, which makes the assembly a puzzle
• No support for case fans
• No support for liquid cooling
• Doesn’t come with USB ports and audio connectors
• No openings to pass the cables to the motherboard