Help me make a Lian Li / Silverstone decision

DayTrader

DayTrader

Weaksauce
Joined
Feb 13, 2008
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I'm having one helluva time making a decision so..... maybe someone would like to sway (or just shove) me in one direction.

It's time for my first "luxury" case and I can't make my mind up. Any input / pros / cons would be appreciated.

Lian Li V1000 (silver or black....window for sure)
Lian Li V1200 (silver or black....window?? - I've onlyu found a "bolt-on" at performance but not sure how "good" it looks)
Silverstone TJ07 (silver or black...window for sure)
Silverstone TJ09 (silver or black....window for sure)

You'd think I could at least settle on a finish (silver vs. black) but noooooo, I just can't make my mind up. I like the idea of silver just because I like to be a little different but it does make my optical drive selection a little harder (performance-pcs does have some though).

Initially I'll be air-cooling but want to keep the option of water cooling down the road open (which, I'd guess, would make the the larger V1200 or TJ07 better choices), right?

As for a decent store, performance-pcs seems to have the best prices (in general). Are there any other dealers I shoud shop?

thanks a lot guys. ;)
 
Heh..... no clue. Haven't used liquid before. I'm just thinking that, if I'm going to spend $200 to $300 on a case, I want to keep as many options open as I can.

For now, I'm not looking to be Johnny-overclocker with the latest greatest gear all pushed to the max but I will be oc-ing the system

(for example, I'll be putting a Maximus Formula / Q6600 / DDR2-800 system into it for now and air cool it)
 
Personally I think the TJ07 is one of the best cases for water cooling. It can fit a 4 x 120mm rad in with no problems.
 
Of those options listed, the TJ07 (though not my favorite of the group) would be best for you if you plan to go watercooling down the line.

Your other components will also help determine which way you should go. The Lian Li's both have the upside down motherboard layout and if you have, say, the EVGA/XFX 680i or 780i mobo's, you will be very limited in which larger CPU HSF you can use. On my either my 680i/780i board w/ a v1000b plus II, the TRUE 120, Tuniq 120, SI-120 or 9700 NT fit properly. I had to get rid of the case altogether. The v1200 is basically the same as the v1000 but is longer in depth. Also keep in mind that the v1000 is very cramped in the PSU compartment so you'll likely have to remove one of the lower HDD cages if you have a larger PSU.

As for color, if this case, you'll be safe with either black or silver. I say this because I've had cases (like the Stacker 830's) in black that show every bit of dust and even dead skin cell with every touch. I hated it. One the Lian Li's and Silverstones, the problem isn't nearly as bad but still present. What WILL show up is anything oily/greasy (like putting lotion on your hands and then touching the case) and that's a real pain to clean up. So silver would be the safer choice here.

I went with the TJ09-BW and really like it. I don't think I've really helped you make your decision at all - possibly confused you more. You might want to look at one of the larger full tower LL's like the v2000/v2100 plus II also.
 
I love the elegance of the mac pro from apple, so thus, I went with a v1200 silver listed in my sig. Your config is almost identical to mine. I can fit the TRUE 120 no problem facing the rear exhust. A lot also depends on the mobo because the placement of the cpu socket could be different. I wish the v1200 came with a window just like the v1000, but I definitely don't mind the less flashy look. I installed 2 blue LED fans for the front and the side panel and it looks great. The PSU compartment in the v1000 is a bit cramped depending on what kind of PSU you're using, but i would recommend going with a modular PSU regardless just to get rid of cable cluter. I have the thermaltake 1200w which is longer than average and isn't modular and it fits just fine in the v1200.

I wanted to get away from the black case where dust and whatnot shows up a lot more than the silver. You don't have to worry about the color of the DVD drive if you go silver. This case comes with a stealth cover door. Check out the Lian-li gallery for more pics.
 
yenniedn said:
I don't think I've really helped you make your decision at all - possibly confused you more.
Click to expand...

Not at all. I hadn't thought about the fingerprint / dust problems...and stuff like that is exactly what I was looking for.

I'm actually still working on my den/computer room and haven't even decided if I'm going to go with an in-the-room desk and have the pc case on the floor or a built-in room-length desk that'll allow me to "display" my rig.

That being said, I think I'll be tossing the TJ09 and V1000 in favor of their bigger brothers...and I guess I'll look at some of each company's bigger cases as well. I do, however, like the shorter yet deeper Lian Li design.

Keep 'em coming guys..... greatly appreciate your insights.
 
As stated by Yennie, the TJ09 is a pretty nice case. With the rad support you can run a 120.2 in the top area, then run a 120.1 off the intake fan for the GPU or the 120mm fan at the back of the case. One downside though is that you can't run anything larger than that single 120.2 or run more than one 120.2 internally. To me both the TJ07 and the TJ09 are ideal choices, but the way you set up your WC is going to be the deciding factor most likely. The TJ07 is just a beast and is perfect for 120.3 and larger radiators in the bottom compartment.
 
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