Lian Li Lancool 217 Mid-Tower Chassis Review

TweakTown Rating: 99%

Our Verdict

Lian Li has created something special with the Lancool 217 by introducing wood accents, mesh, and, overall, an excellent implementation of what a PC case should be in 2025.

Pros

• Top-notch build quality and tasteful wood accents
• Excellent front airflow and five PWM fans pre-installed
• BTF motherboard compatible and practical GPU support
• Insane MSRP of $119.99
• Extensive water-cooling support, dual power buttons, and flexible PSU mounting

Cons

• Fans are loud at full tilt

Should you buy it?

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Buy at Amazon for $119.99 USD

Buy at PC Case Gear for $179

Introduction, Specifications, and Pricing

Lian Li is a company known for producing high-quality cases, AIOs, and fans. Today is just another day, as Lian Li has released another ATX mid-tower case and sent us one to take a closer look at. What model do you ask? It's none other than the Lancool 217. Priced at an astonishingly low price of $119.99 MSRP, Lian Li is going to disrupt the ATX case market even more so than it already has.

What makes the Lancool 217 so special? Having a full mesh front panel, five included fans, and wood accents helps a lot. So, let's see what all the fuss is about - let's go!

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Packaging

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Lian Li ships out the Lancool 217 in a standard brown cardboard box, just like the rest of the industry; I know, shocker. An image of the Lancool 217, as well as a statement that genuine wood is used.

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On the side of the cardboard box, Lian Li illustrated the dimensions.

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The backside of the cardboard box displays the two modes in which the Lancool 217 can be configured: CPU or GPU modes. The CPU mode features two 170mm fans positioned directly over the CPU section of the motherboard. The GPU mode shifts the 170mm fan down lower to allow the GPU to draw in fresh intake air, resulting in lower temperatures.

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Now, looking at the shipping materials used, Lian Li has opted to use two pieces of closed-cell foam on the top and bottom, as well as a plastic bag to keep any debris away. Also, an accessory box protects the front mesh from any damage.

Outside the Lian Li Lancool 217 Mid-Tower ATX Case

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Now, with all the shipping materials removed from the Lancool 217, we can get a better look at the signature genuine wood that Lian Li has used on the edges. The Lancool 217 is made from materials including wood, steel, and tempered glass. Lian Li has also placed their name tastefully on the bottom of the front panel.

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Now, looking at the front panel of the Lancool 217, we see a full mesh panel flanked by a lot of wood. Two custom 170mm PWM fans are also lurking behind the mesh.

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The backside panel is pretty plain, except for the bottom section, which features mesh ventilation.

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The rear of the Lancool 217 features the traditional 7-slot ATX layout. What differs is the PSU mount, which can be installed facing the rear or rotated 90 degrees to allow all the cabling to face the rear side panel, allowing for easier and cleaner cable management. A PSU extension is used in this configuration. Three cable tie points are also located along the left-hand side, helping to improve your exterior cabling.

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Now, getting to the good part: all the wood surrounding the full mesh top panel. This panel is held in place via two POGO pin-style connectors. A second power button is also located towards the front of the Lancool 217.

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The wood extends to the underside of the Lancool 217; however, the only other feature here is the rear removable dust filter for the PSU. Four rubber feet are located in each corner, which could have been larger to keep the Lancool 217 in place more securely.

Inside the Lian Li Lancool 217 Mid-Tower ATX Case

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Removing both side panels, we can now see the internals of the Lancool 217 better. Right off the cuff, we can see support for BTF motherboards, which is a definite plus. Also in view are two 120mm reverse-bladed PWM fans mounted in front of the PSU and, if desired, can be installed inside the PSU compartment for a cleaner presentation. The rear fan, a 140mm PWM fan, is set up as an exhaust.

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From the other side, we can see a few rubber cable grommets, as well as those two front 170mm PWM fans.

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Returning to the front 170mm PWM fans that Lian Li has chosen for the Lancool 217, which can be configured for either CPU or GPU mode, depending on where the user prefers the airflow to be directed. Currently, this sample of the Lancool 217 is in the GPU mode. Also in full view here is the front I/O, which consists of a square power button, a combo 3.5mm headset/mic jack, two USB 3.0 Type-A ports, and a USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C port.

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Getting back to the motherboard side of the Lancool 217, we can see all the cutouts for the BTF support. Of course, you don't have to use a BTF motherboard, but it's nice to see it anyway. Please note that BTF support is currently limited to ATX and mATX motherboards.

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Two 120mm reverse-bladed PWM fans sit on top of the PSU shroud, which also features a removable mesh plate for optimal ventilation.

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The top of the Lancool 217 is, in fact, removable via 2 screws, allowing for the installation of AIOs and water-cooling radiators that are much easier. Please note that Lian Li recommends a maximum thickness of 60 mm for 280 mm radiators and up to 85mm for 360mm radiators. Keeping within these limits ensures compatibility with other system components.

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Going around to the cable side of the Lancool 217, we spy several points of interest. First up is the attention to detail, with cable management points spotted along the center and right-hand sides. Next up is the fan/ARGB controller, which features six PWM fan slots and five 3-pin ARGB slots for any of those unicorn vomit-emitting devices you may want to install. Then, there are two spots to install 2.5" HDD/SSDs, just below the CPU cutout, which are held in place with thumbscrews. Finally, we have two spots in the basement for 3.5" drive cages to be installed by simply sliding them into place.

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And finally, we come to the included accessories, which it looks like Lian Li has not held back on.

• Two 3.5" Dual Drive Bays
• Box of screws, zip ties, and other hardware
• User manual
• Front snap in fine mesh dust filter
• 120/140mm front fan mounting brackets
• GPU mounting brackets

Now, let's get on with the build and testing.

Test System, Installation, and Finished Product

Case Test System Reverse Motherboard

Final Thoughts

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Building in the Lancool 217 was, quite simply put, extremely easy. Of course, having a BTF motherboard eliminates 90% of the cabling issues. Then add in all the extras that Lian Li has thought of, such as the fan/ARGB hub, excellent cable management points, and incredible drive support. I could go on for a while, but I think you get the point.

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For testing, I used Intel's Core i5-12600 K CPU on an MSI Z790 Project Zero motherboard to evaluate Lian Li's Lancool 217 ATX mid-tower case. Two sticks of Corsair's Dominator Platinum DDR5-7200 RAM were run at DDR5-4800 M/T for memory stability. Zotac's NVIDIA RTX 3090 Trinity GPU was run at its stock power limits and clocks via MSI's Afterburner GPU Overclocking and Monitoring utility for the test GPU. The Intel Core i5-12600 K CPU is cooled by the Pure Rock Pro 3 heatsink from be quiet!, which features two 120mm fans in a dual-tower configuration for optimal cooling performance.

For the fan configuration, Lian Li has equipped the Lancool 217 with two 170mm PWM fans mounted as the front air intake and an additional 140mm PWM fan at the rear fan location. Two additional 120mm PWM reverse-blade fans are installed on top of the PSU shroud to aid in case airflow. This type of fan configuration creates a positive pressure scenario, although the front is not particularly restrictive.

Temperatures for the Intel Core i5-12600 K rose to a maximum of 68 °C but averaged 60 °C while maintaining a boost clock of around 4.5 GHz. Zotac's NVIDIA RTX 3090 Trinity reached a maximum temperature of 77.8 °C but only lowered the average temperature to 76.2 °C. Overall, the temperatures were suitable for both the CPU and GPU, thanks to the sufficient cool air provided by the two 170mm front intake fans.

All testing was completed using Aida64 Engineer's System Stability Test version 7.60.7300 for over 1 hour at an ambient temperature of 19 °C. Other monitoring software used was HWiNFO64 v8.07-5515, TechPowerUp GPU-Z v2.66, and CPU-Z 2.15.0.x64.

Coming to a conclusion for the Lancool 217 from Lian Li. Overall, I am pretty pleased with the build quality, cable management, and other features that Lian Li has implemented. What is truly remarkable here is that Lian Li was able to include five PWM fans, wood accents, and all this while maintaining an MSRP of only $119.99. Simply just a fantastic value. So, if anyone you know or yourself is looking for a great, easy-to-build-in ATX mid-tower case, the Lancool 217 should be at the top of your list.