The Scout is a tough case to judge because, while it has its undeniable flaws, it also packs enough major positives to set itself out from the myriad of similar "gamer" cases. For one, the LAN party features of a sturdy, strong case handle and securable peripherals make it an ideal choice for the hardened LAN attendee, and those who frequently pack up their PC and kart it around the country will doubtless see these as major advantages.
Innovation is a rare trait when it comes to cases, and it’s good to see Cooler Master still looking for ways to make its cases unique, rather than rehashing parts from other products.
The chassis build quality is also commendable and once again Cooler Master has shown us it really knows how to put cases together. The whole thing feels tough, hardwearing and sturdy, with no noticeable gaps between panels and fascias, be they plastic or steel.
However, the solid build quality isn’t an ever present in the Scout, with the dreadful expansion slot toolless fittings becoming an easy annoyance that we eventually abandoned for the spare thumbscrews that Cooler Master mercifully includes. The 5.25in drive bay toolless fittings are also cheap and flimsy compared to what we’d usually expect from Cooler Master and while ultimately functional, they weren’t great.
Cooler Master Scout Final Thoughts Cooler Master Scout Final Thoughts
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Finally the lack of any real space to stash unwanted PSU cables is also a notable gripe, although this is lessened by the brilliant pre-tidied front panel cabling that runs down behind the motherboard tray.
For all its flaws and qualities though, it’s performance and price by which the Scout will be judged by many, and unfortunately it doesn’t come up too well on either front. While commendably quiet, out the box the Scout’s cooling is hit and miss (hit for the CPU, miss for the GPU) and would really have benefited from a fourth 120mm cooling fan fitted into the side panel. Of course, you can easily add this yourself (Cooler Master even includes the self tapping screws), but it’d be unfair of us to judge a product based on what you can do with it rather than what it does, even if 120mm fans can cost very little (or a lot if you buy a Noctua).
It’s the price that’s a real concern though. At £104 it’s currently more expensive than the Cooler Master HAF 932, which can be just as quiet, and cools much better, and its main competition, the Antec Nine Hundred Two, which while louder, offers brilliant cooling and better all-round build quality. It’s a shame as, for £70 or £80, the Scout could have been seen as a cheaper yet almost as capable version of these two very popular cases with some distinctive genuine gamer-centric features, but instead struggles to justify its high price, despite its unique selling points.
, it has option for further cooling and is very similar to the Scout and also much cheaper.
