When I say the Cougar Dust 2 is the company’s most modern case, I don’t mean its ability to brew coffee, shine RGB light, or hold a B with a gun on its own against three global elites. The Dust 2 is modern because it’s pushing very correct trends and doesn’t pass the buck to the user, which most similar cases always do.
Yes, I’m talking about the included raiser, or PCIe 3.0 extension for the video card. Yes, unlike ALL previous cases in this format, it comes with the Dust 2. So it is part of the case and is covered under warranty. And the funniest thing is that this case was announced in 2021, and only now has reached us. However, considering that the video reviews of it are quite fresh – who knows.
Cougar Dust 2 video review
Market positioning
The price of Cougar Dust 2 is high – $160 for the Desert Sand version. There are also Grey and Silver versions, but the price there is similar, and it is more difficult to find them in our country. I’m not even sure if they are even on sale.
This, however, is no great loss to me, because it is Desert Sand that looks the best.
Package contents
The case comes with screws for HDD, motherboard, fans and power supply, as well as rubber spacers for disks, cable ties and a hexagonal screwdriver. On the plus side, there’s a raiser. It is PCIe 3.0, so you may have to replace it with a more advanced one if you want to use modern video cards directly.
Risers in general are in big trouble right now, as many manufacturers have released PCIe 4.0 models, but they came out with a lot of problems. Sometimes with signal stability, sometimes with incorrectly fixed fasteners, sometimes with insufficient shielding. In Ukraine, in general, it is extremely difficult to find PCIe 4.0 raisers.
Video card compatibility
So I’d recommend that you consider what kind of graphics card you have, and whether you’re willing to sacrifice its performance if you can’t find another raiser. Because – ahead of time – I’ll tell you that Cougar Dust 2 accommodates absolutely gigantic models, up to 330 mm in length. The height of the graphics card, on the other hand, should be less than 60mm.
And this is an additional reason to choose a video card that will suffer minimally from PCIe 3.0 limitations. That’s because, say, the RTX 4090 is just over 70mm tall, and the case supports models up to and including 60mm. And that’s assuming you don’t decide to install liquid cooling, as Cougar Dust 2 supports radiators up to 280mm.
External appearance
You can see for yourself – the case is opaque, there is no glass here. However, there are plenty of ventilation holes. They are at the top, on the sides, and closer to the edges. However, the handles for transportation are immediately noticeable. They are NOT decorative, it is really convenient to transport the case with them. And it will be really useful.
At the bottom we have legs in the form of curved metal plates with a rubberized base. This solution has an extremely industrial flavor – as well as almost all the others. The screws, front panel, perforations, even the clamping handles are made ultra-reliable. But reliable, there’s nothing you can do about it.
Technical specifications
The dimensions of the Cougar Dust 2 are 175×335×403 mm and its weight is 6 kg. The latter is not surprising, as the case is steel. Compatible with coolers up to 70 mm in height, power supply length – up to 160 mm.
Power supplies are suitable for ATX, but motherboards are only mini-ITX. There are two PCIe expansion slots and support for two 2.5-inch drives.
You can also install a 3.5-inch drive, but at the cost of a liquid-cooled radiator. Fans, you understand, are supported up to 140mm, with a pair of 120mm Cougar Vortex JB120 models included. They are three-pin, but I won’t say anything about top speed.
Peripherals and compatibility
It’s hard to call them noisy – but I always recommend replacing 120mm models with 140mm models whenever possible. They are both quieter and more efficient. As for peripherals, we have one USB Type-C 5Gbit, one USB Type-A 5Gbit, a 4-pin mini-jack and power and reboot buttons.
Inside the case is divided into two parts. The first contains the area for the motherboard and power supply, the other is completely dedicated to the graphics card. From the motherboard there is a raiser at the bottom.
This solution, plus the perforation of the side panels, allows plenty of space for each heating element. The hot air is blown out at the top. The dust filter, by the way, is present, and it is also magnetic.
Personal Impressions
Overall, the case looks lively and interesting. The company recommends it for gamers who often travel and occasionally go to networking parties. For all these tasks Dust 2 fits perfectly. In the case you can easily build a machine with AMD Ryzen X3D processors, for which 280 mm of cooling will be enough. As for video cards – ASUS 4080 ProArt OC fits without any problems…..
In theory, RTX 4090 with liquid cooling may be suitable, but then you will have to put low-profile coolers like be quiet! Straight Rock LP on the processor. They can handle the cooling, but they can be noisy. That’s why I would recommend to take, at most, a combination of RTX 4070 and Ryzen 7 7800X3D. For gaming, it will be just fine.
Summary
This case sets a trend that I want to see in all future models from the company. Yes, we’re talking about raisers. But even without them, Cougar Dust 2 is a cool, monolithic, modern and attractive case that will fit almost any combination of CPU and graphics card. Even with the cost, I recommend it!
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