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Before we take a look at the interior of the Lian Li PC-Q17, it is worth noting how we actually gain access to the insides of the case.
Rather than a conventional ‘sliders and rails' system for the side panels, they use small push pins which lock into corresponding holes on the chassis itself. Essentially, the panels clip on and clip off – just give them a small tug and they will pop free. It makes accessing the interior of the case very easy, and there is no faffing about trying to align the side panel correctly as with more standard cases.
Turning to the top of the case, there is a removable mesh panel. This can fit 2x 120mm fans, or even house a radiator up to 240mm in size. Anything you fit here will sit outside of the chassis, but it does give extra options for fan mounting. On the next page, we demonstrate installing a 240mm radiator so you can see exactly how it works.
Under the removable panel is the only included fan. A 120mm unit, it connects with a 3-pin header, though a 3-pin-to-Molex power adaptor is included.
While on the subject of fans, 2x 80mm fans can be installed in the rear of the case – however, none are included.
Turning to the front of the PC-Q17, the front panel pops off to reveal a small mounting bay. This can hold one of a 2.5-in drive, a 3.5-in drive or even a slot-in, slim ODD.
Storage options are certainly prevalent throughout the PC-Q17. The key-shaped holes you see in the above images are all for mounting 2.5 or 3.5-in drives. The holes are designed to work with the rubber anti-vibration mounts that come included with the PC-Q17. Simply slot them in place and then screw in your disk drive as normal.
In total, the PC-Q17 can hold 3x 3.5-in drives (two in the bottom of the case, and one in the front panel bracket) or 5x 2.5-in drives. This is certainly a lot of potential storage in such a small case, although if you include a graphics card the mounts in the floor of the case are inaccessible.
On that note, I would have liked to see a removable dust filter in the bottom of the case. It is a large, ventilated section of the case and a graphics card will pull a fair amount of dust through the gaps into the case, should you install one (as I imagine most people would.) It is also worth pointing out video cards up to 270mm can be used in the PC-Q17.
The above left picture shows the PSU mounting bracket. PSUs sit vertically in the mount, and they can be up to 150mm in length.
A power extension cable connects to your PSU, which allows you to still plug the PC to power from the rear.
The image on the right also gives a good indication of the space behind the motherboard tray – and there is a good inch of space. This is good to see, especially in such a small chassis, as it makes cable management much easier when cables can be routed behind the motherboard tray.
The PC-Q17 also features lots of cut-outs for cable routing, as well as a large cut-out behind the motherboard socket – allowing you easy access to your CPU cooler.
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