Corsair SPEC-01 is an affordable gaming case for those who are looking for not much costly but an attractive gaming pc to build. SPEC-01 falls under the carbide series that is known for affordable and attractive mid-tower cases. It targets entry level gaming cases which are designed with an approach for building mid range gaming pc. All cases under the series have a premium design with advance cooling potential. Without having proper cooling support it is really hard to choose a gaming case. Many gamers prefer to go with portable liquid cooling kits that require an extra space and valid mounts. Fitting is not complicated when you have a well designed case. And if you go with the regular one, then it is complicated to fit the hardware. Corsair SPEC-01 is capable of fulfilling your entire gaming requirement. It is not a very high end case, but good enough to make a decent gaming machine. The internal structure consist features that you can see in costly cases. This mid tower case comes for Rs.3800. Try to check the price on different vendors. There is a fluctuation or rate for this case.
Being a mid tower case, it is capable of consuming less space on or below your desk. Compared to the regular mid-tower case, SPEC-01 is a little bit larger. And it is very light. As the case does not come with a PSU, an additional cost implies on custom build. Looks wise it is nice. From any angle it looks like to be build from cheap material. It looks durable but I do not really think it can handle scratches. There is a transparent window on the left side. If you are using LED fans then it will look more attractive. It looks like Corsair already knows what a gamer needs. Even after adding multiple drives, a regular size graphics card and a liquid cooler can be added. But this will make the internal space less. And thanks to cable management that makes the internal look less cluttered. I am quite satisfied with stuff it offers. Corsair SPEC-01 is designed on the basis of requirements of a mid range gaming pc only. You can also upgrade your existing case to Corsair SPEC-01 for long lasting solution.
Features:
- Affordable Mid Tower Gaming PC
- 120mm LED Lit Front Intake Fan.
- Transparent Side Panel
- Tool less Multiple Drive Bays
- Cable Routing Cutouts
- USB 3.0 Front ports
- Space for dual 140mm fan
- Flexible Cooling Support
- Dust Filters
Specification:
- Warranty – Two years
- Weight – 4.8kg
- Color – Black
- Case Form Factor – Mid-tower
- Dimensions – 479mm x 200mm x 430mm
- Case Motherboard Support – Mini ITX, Micro ATX, ATX
- Maximum GPU Length – 414mm
- Maximum CPU Cooler Height – 150mm
- Maximum PSU Length – 230mm
- Case Expansion Slots – 7
- Case Drive Bays – (x2) 5.25in. (x4) Combo 3.5in/ 2.5in
- Case Material – Steel
- Case Power Supply – ATX (not included)
- External Connections – (x1) USB 2.0. (x1) USB 3.0. (x1) Headphone Port. (x1) Microphone Port
- Fan Mount Locations – Front: (x2) 120/140mm. Top: (x2) 120mm. Rear: (x1) 120mm.
- Fans Included – Front: (x1) 120mm
- Radiator Mount Locations – Rear: 120mm
- Compatible Corsair Liquid Coolers
Design:
Corsair SPEC-01 comes in complete black color. At the front there is an RED Led fan. It is quite light in weight when you pick it up. The case has a perfect size that will help you to place it anywhere you want. It is designed to give you maximum comfort. The panels can easily open through thumbnail screws and sliding it a bit. Design point of view, Corsair SPEC-01 is a good mid tower case. It does not look like traditional cases. In the pictures below you can see the front side.
Front:
In the front side there is a 120mm fan with red led. There is a dust filter that is fixed on the front and a space for additional 120mm fan which is also available. You can fix two fans here.
Over the top there is space for two optical drives and a front panel that is placed at the extreme top side. This consist of a power button with single usb 2.0 and a single usb 3.0 port. At the center there is a 3.5mm audio panel with led light. And the restart button is placed at the extreme right. This panel is quite easy to access. But the usage gets limited due to single usb ports.
Back: The backside looks common. There are openings for 7 card slots placed above the psu and at the top left you get opening for motherboard connectivity. The psu is placed at the bottom.
Left Side:
The left side has a panel with a big window in between. This is covered with transparent plastic element. If you are having a liquid cooler and led setup inside, this looks more amazing from outside. You can just showoff your system to your friends. Most of the cases are packed with no interior. This makes the system look dull. Through this you can also keep checking the dust accumulation inside. The panel is easy to remove and is locked with thumbscrews. The transparent part is made from thick plastic.
Right: There is nothing on the right side. It is plain dark side panel. After removing it, you can see the cable management setup. This is very impressive part of Corsair SPEC-01. Without this the case would not had been so much effective. All cables are nicely tied up. This makes fitting very easy. You can use cable ties to hang cables together.
Top: There are two supported mounts available for adding a liquid cooler or additional 120mm fans. You can also add a 120mm radiator to this part.
Bottom: There is a dust filter provided at the bottom. It is easy to remove and clean the system. This dust filter is placed directly below the psu.
Inside: Corsair SPEC-01 brings tool less drive bays. You can hook upto 4 drives with 2 optical drives. To provide support for big size graphics card, the center part is kept empty. So that it does not get blocked by the hard drive mount panel. In the bay you can add around 2 drive of 5.2inch or around 4 drives of 3.5inch or 2.5inch. It helps you to remove and replace the drives quite easily. This is a removable panel. You can remove the entire panel if you want. The good part is that there is ample of space left in the center part, between the optical drive block and hard drive block. This does not cause issue with placing a motherboard and a graphics card. Some new graphics cards are big in size and they get obstructed with the drive panel. In Corsair SPEC-01 this thing is removed.
Setup:
For custom build PC, Corsair SPEC-01 is a good choice. It has a good build material; it has smart cable management, and mounts to place additional fans. For mid range gaming pc you either choose to go with different fans or a single liquid cooler kit. Still after adding a full size radiator there is an additional space provided on front to add one more fan. Being a mid tower case still there are things limited due to the size issue. For cpu cooler a fan above 150mm height will not fit. This case is designed with a point of comfort and easy upgrades. You can see how clean the internal structures are. You can just add and remove drives quite easily on the same. The psu sits at the bottom which does not interfere with other components. With proper cable management you can try having maximum ventilation in the system that will boost up the cpu cooling. Corsair SPEC-01 is great for adding multiple fans to keep good air flow inside. But the radiator must be around 120mm. Larger than this will not fit.
Conclusion:
Corsair SPEC-01 is a nice mid tower case that can help you to make a decent gaming build. It brings all latest features on your pc like tool less drive bays, cable management, multiple fan mount, etc. All this features are hard to find in regular tower. The cost also remains reasonable around Rs.3800. I found this a bit pricy because there is no psu in the same. If Corsair can add a regular 250w psu in it, then it will help the buyers to choose it more effectively. It comes with a single 120mm fan on the front with red led on it. That makes the look more amazing when it is turned on. Transparent side panel helps you to have a look on the internal component. The case shines with led components. Being a mid tower case, it is not good to expect much from the same. I just want to have a few more usb ports on the front. Two ports are very common and are found in all traditional cases.
Pros:
- Good Design and lightweight
- Cable Management
- Tool Less Drive Bays
Cons:
- Not so durable
- No Back Exhaust fan
