Chillblast Fusion Spectrum Ryzen 7 Gaming PC review

The Chillblast Fusion Spectrum Ryzen 7 is the first desktop gaming PC that runs on AMD’s recent high-end CPU that we’ve properly reviewed at TechRadar, so we were eager to see how the eight-core processor would perform in our benchmark and real-world tests.

AMD’s top-of-the-line CPU, combined with a mighty Nvidia GTX 1080 Ti graphics card, meant our expectations were sky-high.

As you can see from the benchmarks, in the CPU-intensive Total War: Warhammer, there was surprisingly little difference between the results for the ultra or low graphical settings. This is because, even on ultra, the game rarely challenges the powerful GTX 1080 Ti graphics card.

With the more graphically-demanding Deus Ex: Mankind Divided game, the difference between performance on ultra and low settings is starker. The PC breezes through the benchmark on low settings, hitting a huge 127.8 frames per second.

On ultra settings the Fusion Spectrum Ryzen 7 struggled a bit, but still scored 44fps. With a few tweaks to the graphics settings this will easily reach 60 frames per second, while maintaining levels of graphical quality that the PS4 and Xbox One could only dream of, even at 30fps.

In the Cinebench CPU benchmark, you can see just how powerful the Ryzen 7 1800X is, with a score that zooms past more expensive Intel processors. 

While it may not have the most powerful single-core performance (as shown in the GeekBench tests), it more than makes up for it in the multi-core tests – so any task that uses multiple cores is going to benefit. While games don’t usually benefit as much from very high core counts, that could always change in the future.

We should also note that the Corsair Hydro Series H110i all-in-one liquid CPU cooler did an excellent job of keeping the Ryzen 7 chip cool while also running quietly. 

In fact, the Chillblast Fusion Spectrum Ryzen 7 was an impressively quiet PC even when running intensive games – the only time we really heard the fans was when we booted up the PC. If you're broadcasting your gameplay, having a PC that doesn’t chuck out a load of noise while you’re recording with your mic is a godsend.

Streaming pile of… Win

For day to day use, the Chillblast Fusion Spectrum Ryzen 7 is a fast and accomplished machine, with Windows 10 running smoothly on it, even when running a number of applications at the same time. It's arguably here, when multi-tasking, where the high core count of the Ryzen CPU and 16GB of RAM becomes worthwhile – especially if you’re streaming gameplay, video and audio at the same time.

To see just how good it is at streaming and multitasking, we ran a few benchmarks, and played a few games, while simultaneously running intensive streaming applications in the background. The results were fantastic, with just single digit drops in frame rates. What this means is that you can stream your gameplay without worrying about the performance of your game deteriorating noticeably.

The Chillblast Fusion Spectrum Ryzen 7 is also mercifully free from bloatware, with only a couple of apps – such as Nvidia GeForce Experience – coming preinstalled.

We liked

The Chillblast Fusion Spectrum Ryzen 7 Gaming PC has been beautifully put together, and the Corsair Crystal 460X RGB Tempered Glass case shows off the powerful components – and the care with which they've been installed – brilliantly.

It’s also full of some of the best components money can buy, including the excellent AMD Ryzen 7 1800X eight-core CPU and Nvidia GTX 1080 Ti graphics card, which means you can play the latest games at ultra (or very high) graphical settings while maintaining high frame rates.

We didn’t like

There really isn’t much to dislike here. The only slight niggle we have is the price; at £2,160.88 / $2,668 / AU$3,475) this is a pricey machine, especially when you take into account that it doesn’t come with a monitor, keyboard or mouse – and if you’re not in the UK you'll need to add shipping costs as well.

Final verdict

Overall, the Chillblast Fusion Spectrum Ryzen 7 is an excellent gaming PC, with impressive cutting-edge components ensuring it can handle pretty much any modern game with ease.

Also, thanks to a case that's spacious (yet not overly large), it’s easy to upgrade in the future – though it's unlikely that you'll need to do that for a good while.

Thanks to the high core count of the AMD Ryzen 7 1800X CPU, this is also a great machine for multitasking – such as live-streaming your gameplay on services such as Twitch.

It’s an expensive machine, but if you have the budget, and you're a budding live-streamer, you definitely won’t be disappointed with this gaming PC.

• Here's our list of the best gaming PCs