Cougar’s new PC case has a trick I would like everybody to steal

Typically it feels just like the PC case section strikes at a snail’s tempo. Essentially the most thrilling improvement I’ve seen in years is rear-mounted connections. However Cougar’s new MX600 MAX RGB case caught my eye as a PC builder centered on utility and efficiency. The followers are massive, and the ports are larger.

The usual ATX design bucks traits with two large 200mm followers proper on the entrance air consumption panel. That may not look like a lot, however by my calculations that’s greater than double the fan floor space of an ordinary 2x140mm fan setup, and nonetheless a 33 % improve over a 3x140mm consumption. Add in a ramped cowl for the bottom-mounted energy provide and also you’ve bought a pleasant little bit of airflow pointed straight at your GPU. Prime-mounted radiators of as much as 360mm are supported, and you’ll even double up on the underside followers above the PSU, although these shall be simply 120mm. GPU assist extends to an enormous 400mm.

However measurement isn’t all the pieces. In keeping with Cougar’s promotional website, the 200mm PWM followers every function at a most of 1,000 RPM, pushing 140.4 cubic ft per minute (CFM). Evaluate that to an ordinary 140mm fan from Corsair, which maxes out at 95.5 CFM in response to its specs. After all, there’s nothing stopping you from putting in some other 200mm fan that prioritizes velocity or quiet—these massive blades imply you possibly can decrease the RPM to maneuver the identical quantity of air at a decrease noise stage.

Elsewhere, the MX600 presents just a few different methods, although no choices for five.25-inch drives. (You possibly can’t match them round these large followers!) Storage is mounted behind the motherboard tray with room for as much as 4 2.5-inch drives or simply two 3.5-inch ones. Talking of the motherboard, sure, you possibly can match rear-facing connectors in there for ultra-sleek cable routing, although I’d double-check exactly the place these ports are in your motherboard. There’s additionally a fan controller again there.

Cougar

The within isn’t the one place the place you’ve bought movable port choices. The MX600’s entrance I/O panel options two USB-A ports, USB-C 3.2, and an audio jack. Fairly primary. However it may be moved round, swapping from the underside of the case to the highest as wanted.

Cougar

That’s. Freakin’. Big. At the very least for me, as a result of I exploit a standing desk and mount my PC beneath it, each for straightforward entry and to maintain the cables good and arranged on a shifting floor. If a case has I/O ports mounted in a non-standard place like the highest, I can’t actually use it. Issues get awkward in the event that they’re on the underside, too—I’ve to step away from my desk to plug something in. For my Fractal Design North, I’ve to awkwardly plug in a cellular dock and tape it to the underside of my desk’s floor, simply so I don’t must scrape my knuckles to get on the USB ports.

Cougar solved this downside. This case isn’t as fashionable as my North—I don’t wish to have a look at my desktop’s guts, so I want it had an ordinary metal facet choice, and I don’t want fancy RGBs. However dang, between that cooling efficiency and the choice to maneuver the entrance I/O panel round, I’d simply have to purchase it and migrate all the pieces over.

After all, I’ll have to truly discover one first. Cougar hasn’t introduced a value or launch date for this case, although it can are available black or white. Cougar’s different airflow-focused circumstances, with out fancy “fish tank” glass or screens mounted on them, price between $80 and $140.