With the Carbide SPEC series, Corsair really wants to show it can be done differently; probably main priority was to prove a low cost case can still be classy looking, heck why not even include a windowed side panel to show of the installed hardware. Secondly the massive front grill accentuates this mid tower case looks even more. This SPEC 01 blends in perfectly with its brethren in the Carbide series, all being nice looking gaming oriented chassis.

The Carbide SPEC series comprise of three different enclosures. Naturally the 01 model is the most budget friendly, thus automatically less feature rich than the two other versions. To make it easier to comprehend the minor differences we included the three versions into one chart:

• Dimension wise the 02 and 03 version are slightly wider and taller than the today reviewed SPEC 01 model.
• Mobo wise maximum support for an ATX sized motherboard, more than plenty for a normal gaming setup.
• The storage capacity of the two higher ranked versions add the inclusion for two 2.5" drives or SSDs.
• The SPEC 01 is only equipped with one front Red LED fan. The SPEC 02 sports a front and rear fan setup. The SPEC 03 even has a dual front Fan setup out of the box and one rear fan to expel the heat.
• The SPEC 02 & 03 provide two front USB3.0 ports, while the SPEC 01 has one USB2.0 and one USB3.0
• 420mm GPU support for the SPEC 02 & 03 versus 414mm for the 01 variant
• Maximum CPU cooler is 150mm for the SPEC 01 versus 157mm for the two other models.

Biggest difference for usage on day to day basis will be the enhanced airflow of the 02 and 03 versions. Most users will be contend with up to four storage devices. Yet these SPEC variants all carry a different look to distinguish them from one another.

CORSAIR proves that OEM priced cases don't have to be dull looking boxes: Checked