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Instead of the usual high-end AMD Radeon graphics cards we’ve come to expect, Wired2Fire has opted for MSI’s overclocked version of the Nvidia GeForce GTX 670 graphics card with 2GB of memory. It puts in an impressive performance, giving us frame rates of 112fps in Dirt 3 and 55fps in Crysis 2, making this system’s gaming performance among the fastest we’ve seen. The GTX 670 can also output 3D graphics if you have an appropriate display and compatible glasses. It also supports triple-monitor gaming.
The Diablo GTX‘s processor is an Intel Core i5-3570K, overclocked to a speedy 4.6GHz. In our benchmark tests, it achieved an overall score of 148. That’s good by any standard and it’ll easily run all the latest software and handle challenging, processor-intensive tasks such as compressing and encoding data. There’s 8GB of 1,600MHz RAM in the system. That’s plenty for almost any user, but there are two free memory slots for you to add more RAM.
The Asus P8Z77-V LX motherboard also has three vacant PCI expansions slots, two PCI-E x1 slots (one of them blocked by the graphics card), and a spare PCI-E x16 that actually runs at x4. That gives you plenty of scope for upgrades.
The motherboard has two SATA3 ports and four SATA2 ports. A 1TB HDD and a DVD-RW drive are connected to SATA2 ports, while one of the SATA3 ports is hooked up to the PC’s main system disk, a 120GB SSD that provides fast boot speeds and still leaves you enough room to install programs. The 1TB HDD gives you plenty of room for less critical applications and other data. If you need to increase capacity at a later point, there are four vacant 31/2in bays, including an external bay.
We particularly like the rotating, screw-free drive clips that come with this case, although the case’s overall build quality isn’t as sturdy as we’d like. The top, bottom and sides flex easily, and the large vent holes in the side panel do little to prevent dust getting in to the system. Fortunately, sound-proofing isn’t a major issue, as the Diablo emits remarkably little noise thanks to a very quiet Arctic Cooling CPU cooler and a single rear outflow fan. Surprisingly, the case didn’t get too warm during testing, either.
The PC’s front panel has two USB ports and the usual 3.5mm headphone and microphone ports. You don’t get many ports at the back, either. There are six USB ports, of which only two are USB3. There’s also one PS/2 port, an optical S/PDIF output, 5.1 analogue surround sound outputs and a Gigabit Ethernet port.
The wired keyboard and mouse aren’t very exciting either, but they’re functional and comfortable to use, as is generally the case with Logitech’s budget sets. The keyboard’s a little rattley and the texture of its keys is a little rough, but otherwise there’s little to complain about. The supplied 23.6in Asus VS247H monitor is excellent, and has DVI, VGA and HDMI inputs.
This is an outstanding PC and, thanks to its massively powerful Nvidia GTX670 graphics card, a brilliant buy for gamers. If you’re into producing your own multimedia content or watching High Definition movies then the Chillblast Fusion Vantage is a better all-rounder. a BD-RE drive and 16GB of memory compensate for the Fusion Vantage’s slightly less powerful graphics card.
