Fractal Design Era 2 / Lian Li A3-mATX

Fractal Design Era 2: Era 2 Mini-ITX case; Silver (FD-C-ERA2N-01), Midnight Blue and Charcoal Gray. The original Era is a separate model.

Lian Li A3-mATX: A3-mATX steel case in black or white (A3-mATX BLACK / WHITE). The Wood Edition with a wooden front (A3-mATX-WD) and the Glass Edition with 3 mm tempered glass (A3-mATX-WDG) share the interior layout but differ in materials and dust filter arrangement; the later B4-mATX is a separate case.

SpecificationFractal Design Era 2Lian Li A3-mATX
Release year20242024
Motherboard and form factorMini-ITX; 18.97 L volume

A small-form-factor case that accepts only Mini-ITX motherboards.

Fractal Design		—
Graphics cardUp to 326 mm long, 137 mm tall, 48 mm thick; 3 expansion slots; pre-installed PCIe 4.0 riser cable

Fractal says the slidable central wall gives 15 mm of internal flexibility. GamersNexus notes that in wall position 3 GPU thickness rises to 63 mm (3.1 slots) while the CPU cooler limit drops to 55 mm.

Fractal Design		Up to 415 mm long, 4 slots thick

According to Lian Li, a 25 mm bottom fan limits card thickness to 61 mm (3 slots); a bottom radiator plus fan leaves no room for a graphics card. An anti-sag GPU bracket is included; vertical mounting needs a separately sold kit.

Lian Li
CPU cooler and radiatorAir cooler up to 70 mm; 120, 140, 240 or 280 mm radiator on top

The 70 mm limit means low-profile coolers; for more powerful CPUs a 240/280 mm liquid cooler on top is more suitable.

Fractal Design		—
Fans2 × Aspect 12 PWM installed at the bottom; mounts for 2 × 120/140 mm on top and 2 × 120 mm at the bottom Fractal Design—
Power supplySFX or SFX-L

GamersNexus says SFX-L significantly reduces cable space and recommends standard SFX.

Fractal Design		ATX / SFX / SFX-L up to 220 mm; side or front mounting

The relocatable bracket lets the power supply move to suit graphics card length; an ATX unit can also be mounted at the front on the SSD bracket.

Lian Li
Storage4 × 2.5-inch drive mounts

There is no 3.5-inch hard drive support.

Fractal Design		—
Front I/O2 × USB-A (5 Gbps); 1 × USB-C (20 Gbps); combo audio/mic jack; illuminated power button

The 20 Gbps USB-C runs at full speed only if the motherboard has a USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 header.

Fractal Design		Power button, 2 × USB 3.0 Type-A, 1 × USB 3.1 Type-C, mic, HD audio Lian Li
MaterialsAnodised aluminium exterior and side panels; FSC-certified walnut top panel; bottom dust filter Fractal Design—
Size and weight366 × 165 × 314 mm; 4.6 kg net Fractal Design—
Colours and warrantySilver, Midnight Blue and Charcoal Gray; 2-year warranty Fractal Design—
Case type and volume—MFF (Micro Form Factor); 26.3 L Lian Li
Dimensions—443 × 194 × 321.5 mm (D × W × H); 306 mm tall without feet Lian Li
Material—Steel; side and top panels in steel mesh

The Wood Edition has a wooden front panel, and the Glass Edition adds 3 mm tempered glass.

Lian Li
Motherboard—M-ATX and ITX; 4 expansion slots Lian Li
CPU cooler—Up to 165 mm tall Lian Li
Fan support—Top: 3 × 120 mm; side: 3 × 120 mm or 2 × 140 mm; bottom: 3 × 120 mm; rear: 1 × 120 mm

The case ships without fans; they must be bought separately.

Lian Li
Radiator support—Top: 360/240 mm; side: 360/280/240 mm; bottom: 240 mm (360 mm with fan at the bottom) Lian Li
Drive support—Tray: 2 × 2.5" SSD; bottom: 1 × 2.5" SSD or 1 × 3.5" HDD Lian Li
Dust filter and warranty—Removable bottom dust filter; 1-year warranty Lian Li