Performance Analysis

We've seen some cases beat our open test bench result in the past, so the fact the Gamer Storm Macube 550 is significantly warmer means it's not a great result here for Deepcool in terms of out-of-the-box air cooling. The solo fan seemed to shift a reasonable amount of air, and this stopped the CPU result from spiralling too far, but with nothing at the front of the case and a restrictive front panel, we'd have been surprised to see anything much better than this really.

The GPU delta T result was a little closer to the open test bench temperature (50°C) at 54°C but still decidedly average. Again, though, this is with no intake fans, which are typically of more use to GPUs, so what we have in the Gamer Storm Macube 550 is more of a blank canvas rather than an out-of-the-box performer.

Removing the front panel isn't very reflective of home use, but it is a good way of assessing how badly it's impeding airflow. As with the MSI MPG Sekira 500G, it's certainly a significant limiting factor for both key components. While we still maintain that Deepcool is using the optimal fan position for a single-fan setup, the negative pressure it creates is far more effective with the panel gone and allows cool air to be pulled straight through the front, reducing the CPU and GPU delta T results by 7­°C and 3°C respectively and achieving better-than or equivalent-to open bench testing. We therefore feel Deepcool has been a little too conservative when it comes to front ventilation, and this will also limit the effectiveness of fans placed here. That said, it's definitely not as bad as the MSI MPG Sekira 500G, a case with two front 200mm intakes (!) as well as a 120mm rear exhaust that has even worse out-of-box cooling.

Overall, the Macube 550 is nothing special in the cooling department, but it does an okay job in terms of temperatures and noise given its use of a single fan that's not even that loud. It's a shame this isn't a 140mm model, and some intake fans and/or improved front ventilation also wouldn't go amiss, but there's ample room to add your own fans.

Conclusion

Deepcool has an affordable, stylish, and reasonably well-featured case on its hands with the Gamer Storm Macube 550. It's clearly not great in the out-of-box airflow department and requires additional fans and maybe an AIO liquid-cooler or, best of all, custom liquid-cooling to really make use of the internal layout.

Sadly for Deepcool, this 'blank canvas' status coupled with the side-mounted radiator makes it a very appropriate case to compare to the Lian Li PC O11-Dynamic. Lian Li loses out on price, but the £20 premium is honestly worth it once you factor in the superior radiator/fan support, the full coverage from dust filters, and the presence of USB 3.1 Gen 2 Type-C on the front panel. Deepcool can accommodate twice the number of 3.5" HDDs (four versus two), so that might swing it for some, but most users will be better served now and in the future by the Lian Li.

The Macube 550 is suitably well built given its price tag and easy to work into, but its feature list isn't quite where it needs to be relative to competition, and this coupled with its unexciting out-of-box thermal performance means it misses out on a recommendation.