Cougar Spike review

At around £27, the Cougar Spike is a case that might appeal to PC builders on a modest budget. In truth, the low price is a fair reflection of its build materials, which feel cheap. It does mean the case itself is very light for its dimensions, at just 4.2kg.

The Spike might not appeal to those who appreciate a clean, uncluttered design, but we rather liked its aggressive styling. The vents at the front are hidden behind a geometric pattern, and the Cougar badge in the middle looks like a homage to the front end of an Italian supercar.

Cougar describes the Spike as a gaming tower, and this seems apt as the case can accommodate a graphics card up to 330mm long. This is enough room for the most powerful models, and not something we always expect to see on a low-priced case. The chassis will take both microATX and Mini-ITX motherboards, and motherboard stand-offs are pre-installed.

Without any cable management features or space behind the motherboard tray to stow your PSU’s leads, it’s difficult to build a particularly neat system, which is our main complaint with the Spike’s design. This does at least mean builds aren’t complicated, and you can have a system built very quickly without much fuss.

You access the inside of the case via two thumb screws, so you can open up the case without a screwdriver for easy upgrades. Similarly, you can install two 3.5in hard disks easily using the screw-less mounting mechanisms, and you don’t need any tools to fit optical drives in the two 5 1/4in external bays. There’s also an external 3.5 bay, which is useful for a memory card reader, and you can install a 2.5in drive, most likely an SSD, in the bottom of the case.

The Spike has four mounting points in total. The front of the case can take an 80, 90 or 120mm fan, the side has mounts for two 120mm fans and the rear can take an 80 or 120mm model. The only included fan is a 120mm one at the rear, however.

The Cougar Spike is a budget case but it does have some nice flourishes for the price, such as tool-less drive installation. It’s a fair budget buy if you want a compact microATX chassis, but if you have room for an ATX model the SilverStone Quiet Precision PS11 is worth the extra cash.