mATX Cases will Never Be the Same

The Lian Li A3 has everything you could possibly want in an mATX case. Good airflow, amazing build quality, space for huge GPUs, 360mm AIO compatibility and a really good overall build experience. But we also need to consider price and when it comes to mATX PC cases, a competitive price means more than features.

Buy items in this video from Amazon at the links below:
Lian Li A3 (Wood) - Coming in a few weeks

Timestamps:
0:00 - Is this the mini NORTH?
0:27 - A3 WOOD price vs A3
1:09 - Is the wood THAT different?
2:00 - A3 size is BRILLIANT!
2:43 - CAREFUL with your choice of components
3:13 - PSU choice is EVERYTHING!
3:28 - Sponsor Spot
3:58 - PSU mounting options are plenty!
7:05 - SFX/L mounting
7:40 - Assembly / Installation
9:17 - Vertical GPU in an mATX case!?
9:56 - A3 Wood is Awesome?

Review unit provided free of charge by Lian Li. This video is sponsored by Montech. As per Hardware Canucks guidelines, no review direction was received from manufacturer. As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.

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#hardwarecanucks

[A_GWAKwork_Orange]

the fractal north was a perfectly executed homage to mid century modern design. all these other "wood" cases just seems like cargo culting imo.

[vric]

The one from Etsy are quite good quality if you are interested. It's expensive, but it's low scale product. And it's real wood

[ChillBuilds]

I had some of the same complaints when I built in this, but I think you went a little bit overboard on the nitpicking. I'm surprised though; you thought the full-tower length with a shorter height was a positive, but I think for most people it's unnecessary to shrink the height.

[kettusnuhveli]

Was never big on to the whole wood trend and all these cheap feeling marked trend chasing copycats aren’t helping it…

[apricanephoto]

Ugh, right now I'm upset: I bought the A3 just a week or so ago because I just gave up on waiting for Lian Li to go forward to confirm a wood panel of some sort. I would definitely paid extra for the wood panel version. I may still go with one from Etsy, though I think they don't have mesh? And yes, it would be best if it were higher quality, but the fact of the matter is I don't pet my computer case so much, I already have a cat ;) Seriously though, my A3 is for HTPC, so it's not that close to me, so tiny small imperfections, especially at that price point, remain acceptable.

As for the similarity with the North, yeah maybe, normally I'd denounce that as anti-consumer behaviour to copy something that closely, but right now I'd say it's all on FD for not having come up with an mATX case for that long, despite the many calls in the community for one. Instead they went for an FD XL? WTF.

[mrjonlor]

I just bought an A3 yesterday. Definitely more challenging to build in than a full ATX case, but very well built and flexible. Used an Arctic Liquid Freezer III 360 which was challenging as it has a particularly thick rad. Was able to get it to fit by mounting it on the side.

Considering that I also have a TUF 3060Ti, which is quite a long card (301mm) and several drives, I’m super impressed that I was able to shoehorn it all in.

[trollerbladdering]

This case feels like it was almost a masterpiece but they gave up seconds away from the finish line.

[jetercre]

Why not to install AIO with the tubes to the left?

[Thatswutshesaid]

I just built in one of these last week and it was one of the easiest and most straight forward micro atx builds I have done. I love this case very much

[WayStedYou]

What if you put the AIO tubes on the left instead

[watercannonscollaboration]

The extra cost for a little bit of wood at the front doesn’t feel worth it, despite the A3 being a very competitive case for the price and compatibility. If compatibility isn’t a big deal though, the SAMA IM01 Pro really gives the A3 a run for its money

[GatorShawn]

Hah, I had just ordered a wooden insert panel from Etsy.

[robertmorrison]

I'd splurge for a carbon fiber front. Jus t like I'd pay extra for a carbon fiber top on the fractal era. Wood is cool and all but carbon fiber is what does it for me.

[FGBFGB-vttc]

Better "A3 got wood" than "A3 got beef"

[retrin]

I love this case and the small mATX design. It just needs a bit more quality and compatibility improvements and a nicer io panel at the bottom.

[avirtualworldU]

Now that was a review held my attention fully. Wow your going to have a few design engineers knochen im thinking.

[SilentRito]

did you try to flip the radiator mounting so that the tubes are on the mobo side instead of being on top of the PSU?

[gammafilter]

Move your aio tube's to the other

[MrEcksDeah]

so mad! I just bought a new SFF case, wanted the A3 mATX but hated the front panel and aesthetics! Oh well, if I hate my 2000D maybe I'll swap it for this one.

[JackTotGaming]

I am also not big on wood front trend. I have built in the A3 twice now and it’s great for a budget case but with the Ncase M2 offering MATX support I can’t recommend the A3 to anyone wanting true SFF. The M2 is not only much smaller but also much more premium in regard to build quality. That front panel on the A3 really cheapens the entire case.