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Group test: Gaming <strong>PC</strong>s<br />
Evo NVMe drive holds the operating system and as many games as<br />
you can fit on it, to deliver extremely fast loading times and generally<br />
snappier performance on the desktop.<br />
Performance<br />
While the 1700X turns in some impressive results in synthetic<br />
benchmarks, the problem for Ryzen-based systems such as this<br />
one is that, at the moment, most games can’t take full advantage<br />
of those eight processor cores, favouring faster individual core<br />
speeds instead. If you’re into processing 3D graphics or bulk editing<br />
photos, then you will love the speed of the Wired2Fire Pyro Ryzen,<br />
which can wipe the smile off the face of any Intel Core i7-7700K<br />
user when it comes to multi-core tests like Cinebench R15 where<br />
the Ryzen chip is more than 50 percent faster.<br />
However, this doesn’t translate into similar improvements<br />
in those all important gaming frame rates. Of course, gaming<br />
performance at decent resolutions is dominated by the graphics<br />
card, but the Wired2Fire Pyro Ryzen comes in a hair behind a<br />
similarly specified Intel-based <strong>PC</strong> in most of our benchmark tests.<br />
The GeForce GTX 1080 delivers excellent<br />
frame rates, with 4K gaming possible at<br />
around 60fps in high quality settings<br />
Thankfully, the GeForce GTX 1080 delivers excellent frame<br />
rates for your money, with 4K gaming possible at around 60fps<br />
in High and even Ultra quality settings in some cases, although<br />
tough modern games like Deus Ex: Mankind Divided are still going<br />
to knock you back to 30fps for UltraHD play. If you’re gaming on a<br />
single <strong>PC</strong> monitor though, this is likely to be all the performance<br />
you’ll need up to 2560x1440 pixels.<br />
That’s not to say the Pyro Ryzen DG is slow, far from it, but<br />
don’t expect Ryzen to give you a better gaming experience than<br />
a high end quad-core Intel setup for now.<br />
The Pyro Ryzen DG also delivers extremely fast storage, in the<br />
form of a 250GB Samsung 960 EVO NVMe SSD. These Samsung<br />
drives are dominating <strong>PC</strong> storage performance right now with<br />
speeds far in excess of SATA drives.<br />
Warranty<br />
Wired2Fire’s three-year warranty looks good at first glance, but note<br />
that any faulty <strong>PC</strong>s must be returned at the customer’s expense and<br />
parts are only covered for the first two years.<br />
Verdict<br />
This eye-catching <strong>PC</strong> is constructed from premium components and<br />
built to a very high standard. The eight-core Ryzen 7 1700X processor<br />
delivers excellent multi-threaded performance and, combined with<br />
a GTX 1080, turns in some very impressive gaming results, however<br />
similar or better performance can be had for less money.<br />
YOYOTECH BLACKBOX SP<br />
£1,649 inc VAT • yoyo.co.uk<br />
Finished in dazzling white with bright metallic purple accents,<br />
YoyoTech’s Intel-based gaming <strong>PC</strong> certainly looks spectacular,<br />
but under that rather daring paint job we find a selection of<br />
well-chosen components pushed to the limit in the pursuit of<br />
the highest possible gaming performance.<br />
Design<br />
Whether your initial response to the appearance of the BlackBox SP<br />
is one of delight or horror, you can’t dispute the elegance and space<br />
efficiency of the NZXT S340 compact mid-tower case – which is also<br />
available in a selection of other colours, including black – boring.<br />
The NZXT doesn’t pander to the needs of legacy component<br />
like optical drives, for which no space at all has been made<br />
Build<br />
Features<br />
Performance<br />
Value<br />
Overall<br />
available. Instead, the entire front of the <strong>PC</strong> is a blank, minimalist<br />
panel of white, directly behind which sits the massive Kraken<br />
X52 High-performance 240mm liquid cooler that adds yet more<br />
razzle-dazzle to the <strong>PC</strong>’s already rave-like appearance with its own<br />
customisable RGB lighting effects.<br />
And the party doesn’t stop there: the supplied Gigabyte AORUS<br />
Z270X GAMING 7 motherboard also comes with a built-in multi-zone<br />
LED light show and even the twin DDR4 3200MHz RAM modules<br />
self-illuminate like a pair of colour-changing glow sticks. This<br />
gaming-centric board offer massive upgrade potential with support<br />
for up to three-way graphics card options and triple NVMe <strong>PC</strong>Ie SSDs<br />
in RAID 0 if you really want to push performance to the extreme.<br />
Of course, you also get comprehensive automatic and manual<br />
overclocking with smart fan controls built in. Enhanced ‘Killer’<br />
network performance and Creative Sound Core3D enhancements<br />
are also built in, along with plenty of USB 3.1 Gen 2 connectors<br />
and a Thunderbird port for high speed connectivity.<br />
The YoyoTech BlackBox SP is most certainly a <strong>PC</strong> that’s<br />
screaming out for attention, although, thankfully, all of these<br />
multicoloured lighting systems come with software controls, so<br />
you can easily turn them all off when no-one is looking and you<br />
really need to concentrate on your tax return.<br />
The front of the <strong>PC</strong> is a blank panel, directly<br />
behind which sits the massive Kraken X52<br />
High-performance 240mm liquid cooler<br />
68 www.pcadvisor.co.uk/reviews <strong>July</strong> <strong>2017</strong><br />
TEST CENTRE
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