Corsair Carbide SPEC-05 (CC-9011138-WW)
A roomy budget case held back by weak stock airflow, now discontinued.
The short version
- Someone who already owns one or finds it cheap, building a basic gaming PC
- Builders who want a large window and room for a long graphics card on a tight budget
- You want strong airflow without buying extra fans
- You want a tempered glass panel
- You need a full manufacturer warranty, since much remaining stock is open-box
What owners like
- Simple layout with enough routing holes and tie points for a tidy build
- Fits full size graphics cards and a 240 mm radiator up front
- Low price for an ATX case with a full window when it was sold new
Common complaints
- Front panel restricts airflow, so builders add fans and pull the drive cage to help
- Only one fan in the box, so good cooling needs extra spending
- Side window is acrylic rather than tempered glass
Based on a Tom's Hardware forum thread on SPEC-05 cooling, Hexus launch coverage, and the Corsair, PCPartPicker and Newegg product pages.
Research scores
Scored from the maker's specs and what owners report. Drew's own notes and photos will refine these.
Ownership
Drew's hands-on notes for this product are on the way. Long-term updates will be added to this timeline.
What it does
A budget ATX mid-tower PC case with a full acrylic side window and one red LED fan, now discontinued and found mostly as leftover or open-box stock.
- Asymmetric front with a slash that shows the lit intake fan
- Edge to edge side window
- Cable routing cutouts and tie downs behind the motherboard tray
- Removable dust filters
- Room for graphics cards up to 370 mm long
A plain, roomy budget case for a first gaming build, with space for long graphics cards and decent cable routing. The trade-offs are a restrictive front panel with only one fan included and an acrylic window instead of glass, and since it is discontinued, a current airflow case is the easier buy.
How it compares
Specs
- Type
- ATX mid-tower
- Motherboards
- ATX, Micro ATX, Mini ITX
- Dimensions
- 483 x 199 x 433 mm
- Side panel
- Clear acrylic, full side
- Included fans
- One 120 mm red LED front intake fan
- Fan support
- Up to six 120 mm: 3 front (or 2 x 140 mm), 2 top, 1 rear
- Radiator support
- Up to 240 mm front, 120 mm rear
- Clearance
- GPU 370 mm, CPU cooler 150 mm, PSU 180 mm
- Drive mounts
- 3 hard drive, 2 SSD
- Expansion slots
- 7
- Front I/O
- 1 x USB 3.0, 1 x USB 2.0, headphone and mic jacks
- Warranty
- 2 years
Worth knowing
- Open-box units sold by Newegg are final sale, may lack accessories, and may not carry the manufacturer warranty.
Questions
Is the Corsair SPEC-05 discontinued?
Yes, in practice. Corsair's product page shows no price or buy option, and Newegg lists only out-of-stock open-box units that may not be restocked.
Is the SPEC-05 side panel tempered glass?
No. It is clear acrylic that covers the whole side, styled to look like glass.
How many fans does the Corsair SPEC-05 come with?
One 120 mm red LED fan at the front. It has room for up to six 120 mm fans in total.
What is the best fan setup for the SPEC-05?
Forum advice favors three front intake fans with one top and one rear exhaust, and removing the drive cage if you do not need it, to help air get past the front panel.
Sources
- Corsair: Carbide Series SPEC-05 Mid-Tower Gaming Case, Black
- PCPartPicker: Corsair SPEC-05 ATX Mid Tower Case
- Hexus: Corsair Carbide SPEC-05 mid-tower release imminent
- Newegg: Open Box Corsair Carbide Series SPEC-05
- Tom's Hardware forum: Best cooling configuration for Corsair SPEC-05
Researched 2026-10-02. We bought this product; our page is built from the maker's details and what owners report across reviews and forums. We never copy Amazon customer reviews.
