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CHASSIS INTERIOR
Here we can see that the interior of the Spike “appears” to be quite roomy for a microATX minitower. The absence of a lower drive cage is what creates the space for graphics cards up to 330 mm long. We can also see all of the front panel wiring connectors and rear fan connection harness.
This next image shows the tool-less latching mechanisms for the upper 5.25″ bays and the 3.5″ HDD bays. Bear in mind that 3.5″ HDDs mounted in the HDD cage may extend out over the motherboard’s memory slots and interfere with DIMMs with taller heat risers. Standard size or low profile DIMM modules make this a non-issue.
Next we have a view into the back side of all the drive bays. You can clearly see the tray for the 3.5″ front bay, which is not tool-less. Corresponding holes on the sides of the drive cage allow screwdriver access to the 3.5″ bay’s screw holes.
Now we see the power supply mounting area, which accepts either standard ATX or PS2 power supplies. Lack of any type of a top panel vent limits mounting the power supply to a fan-downward orientation.
With no labeling on the fan itself, nor specs supplied by Cougar, we can only assume that the pre-installed rear 120 mm fan is not of the same quality as Cougar’s Vortex line, nor their new Dual-X line. Some compromises are to be expected in order to achieve the Spike’s low price point.
With the right side panel removed, we can see that there is zero cable management space behind the motherboard tray. All wiring will reside on the interior of the case. There is also no cutout in the motherboard tray for installing aftermarket coolers. Changing to an aftermarket cooler would require removing the motherboard, so if you are doing a new build be sure and install the cooler prior to mounting the motherboard in the case.
