Review Lian Li Galahad II LCD 280 Review: Better, Quieter Than 360mm Options

[Admin]

Lian Li’s GA II LCD 280 shows that with the right design, you don’t need a 360mm to keep Intel’s i7-13700K under TJ Max.

Lian Li Galahad II LCD 280 Review: Better, Quieter Than 360mm Options : Read more

 

[Crazyy8]

Why does the first pic make the build look so dusty?

 

[Phaaze88]

Yes! 280mm units are underrepresented.

 

[-Fran-]

My biggest takeaway from this comes from how good the Galahad 240 is positioned against most 360 AIOs and this 280 as well. If the price difference against the Galahad 240 is not much (EDIT: if a non-LCD exists, that is!) and you can fit the 280 rad, then it's a really nice buy, but my take is if you can save the money and go for the 240, may as well. That also extends to the Arctic Freezer II 240 vs the 280 (and 360).

Nice data as always Albert, so thanks!

Regards.

 

[B4zookaw]

Why does the first pic make the build look so dusty?

The whole rig looks dirty, and not just in this review, but in others prior to it. Rear exhaust fan looks caked in dust

 

[Roland Of Gilead]

Why does the first pic make the build look so dusty?

Yeah, it does actually. And the first one in the 'LGA Cooler installation'. Maybe bad lighting!?

 

[Albert.Thomas]

Alright guys, I hear you.

I've taken a microfiber cloth with some rubbing alcohol and cleaned it out 😀

 

[GhostGreyWolf]

It’s unfortunate that Lian Li doesn’t offer the 280mm model in non-LCD.

There’s a lot to like here though. It took me significant work to get a 280mm AIO in my Lian Li O11 Air Mini when combined with a full ATX board. I would have bought this cooler for the 45-degree fittings, easy fan setup, and 30mm radiator. I like my Be Quiet! Pure Loop 2 FX 280mm, but this really looks to be the best. I might have to watch and wait for a sale price.

 

[Albert.Thomas]

It’s unfortunate that Lian Li doesn’t offer the 280mm model in non-LCD.

There’s a lot to like here though. It took me significant work to get a 280mm AIO in my Lian Li O11 Air Mini when combined with a full ATX board. I would have bought this cooler for the 45-degree fittings, easy fan setup, and 30mm radiator. I like my Be Quiet! Pure Loop 2 FX 280mm, but this really looks to be the best. I might have to watch and wait for a sale price.

You might consider the 240mm non-LCD, whose results are shown in this review, it's pretty good too. One of the only 240mm AIOs that can keep a i7-13700K under TJMax (I've tested a few more since then, only one other 240mm AIO has passed this test)

 

[GhostGreyWolf]

Despite the price, this is perhaps the first Asetek-pump-based design that I think has a lot of thought going into it in some time, no small amount of it by Lian Li.

-30mm radiator, a compromise between the massive Arctic Cooling 38mm and the common 25/27mm rads on most products
-Interlocking fans for better cable management
-45-degree fittings (I'd have killed for these building an AIO into my Lian Li O11 Air Mini this past year)
-Fans that do the job without being insanely noisy
-The pump looks decent from the cutaways
-Unlike 7th-gen designs from folks like NZXT, the cable routing off the pump is better, like my Be Quiet! is

I could take or leave the LCD for a simpler block, but I want a 280mm and they don't sell the Galahad II Trinity in a 280mm model. I like my Be Quiet! Pure Loop 2 FX 280mm, but this looks to have more potential and I'm very tempted I have to also believe they designed the 240mm and 280mm models with the O11 cases in mind; I might have to make an impulse buy.

EDIT: I gave in to impulse. I'll let everyone know what I think when I set it up.