Cougar DarkBlader X5 RGB Mid-Tower PC Case Review

Cougar is one of my favourite gaming brands, as they tend to have all the quality and features of their rivals, with their own unique twist and style thrown in. More often than not, they’re usually priced more competitively too, which certainly adds to their appeal. The new Cougar DarkBlader X5 RGB promises lots of features for a mid-tower PC case, and true to form, it does so for a very reasonable price; but is it any good?

Cougar DarkBlader X5 RGB

The first thing I like is that despite the modest mid-tower form factor, it’ll still handle up to an E-ATX motherboard. There’s also room for plenty of storage bays, a vertical expansion slot, and room for rather large graphics cards too. Plus, there’s extensive fans and radiator support throughout, so you can get crazy with air or liquid cooling as you see fit. Of course, modern luxuries like ARGB lighting, tempered glass and a PSU shroud are here too, not that we’d expect anything less in 2021.

Features

• Product Name: DarkBlader X5 RGB ( Translucent Black )
• Case Form Factor: Mid Tower
• Motherboard Type: Mini ITX / Micro ATX / ATX / CEB / E-ATX
• Dimensions (WxHxD): 220 x 486 x 468 (mm), 8.7 x 19.1 x 18.4 (in)
• I/O Panel: Type C 3.1 x 1, USB 3.0 x 2, Mic x 1 / Audio x 1, RGB Button
• 3.5″ Drive Bay: 2
• 2.5″ Drive Bay: 2+2 ( converted from 3.5″ drive bays ) / ( 2 SSD trays included )
• Expansion Slots: 7+2
• Cooling Fan Support: Front * 120mm x 3 / 140mm x 3 ( ARGB VK120 fans x 3 pre-installed ), Top 120mm x 3 / 140mm x 2, Rear 120mm x 1
• Maximum Number of Fans: 7 Max.
• Water Cooling Support: Front *360mm / 280mm / 240mm / 140mm / 120mm, Top *360mm / 280mm / 240mm / 140mm / 120mm, Rear 120mm
• Transparent Left Panel: 4mm Tempered Glass
• Onboard Lighting System: Yes
• RGB Sync with M/B: Yes
• Max. Graphics Card Length: 400 (mm) / 15.7 (in) (Horizontal graphics card slots are compatible with RTX 3090/3080/3070.)
• Max. CPU Cooler Height: 170 (mm) / 6.7 (in)
• Max. PSU length: 180 (mm) / 7.1 (in)

Trailer

What Cougar Had to Say

“The Cougar DarkBlader X5 RGB Tempered Glass Mid Tower Case features a distinctive style and dazzling RGB effects. The s front panel uses the 3 included ARGB VK120 fansʼ lighting to create a glowing effect along the matte finish. The refined wedge-form and asymmetrical design brings a unique and modern style while also allowing for sufficient airflow. An integrated lighting button and build-in LED controller allow the DarkBlade X5 RGB to displlay amazing lighting effects! With USB 3.1 Gen-2 Type-C and USB 3.0 ports, DarkBlader X5 RGB connects to the latest devices. It also brings high-speed connections to fulfill massive data transfer needs for the ultimate PC enthusiast. The case supports vertical GPU installation to bring any system’s performance to the limit.”

Fans & Radiators