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Not everyone is comfortable building a performance computer from scratch, so from time to time we ask for certain systems to be sent into our labs for analysis. One of our favourite UK system builders are Cryo Performance Computing, based in Bucks in England. When I first reviewed one of their systems years ago it was like a breath of fresh air, because I knew immediately that these guys really do know how to make a killer computer.
Today we are looking at their Nemesis PC. This is a system built around a stunning red anodised Lian Li chassis and loaded with mouth watering components, such as an Intel Core i7 2600k, Asus Maximus Extreme Motherboard, Corsair H70 cooler, Corsair AX PSU and Crucial Real SSD. This is set to be a gaming powerhouse, and at £1695 inc vat, it won't break the bank either.
Can Cryo deliver the goods again?
- Red Anodised PC-8FIR Chassis, with window side
- Asus Maximus Extreme IV P67 board
- Intel i7 2600K CPU, @ Cryo Boost 4.8GHz
- Corsair H70 cooling
- Corsair PC3-12800 RAM 2x 2GB, latency OC C7
- nVidia GTX 580 1536MB, Cryo Boost
- Corsair Pro Gold 750W PSU
- Samsung S223 22x DVD-RW
- Crucial 128GB Real SSD
- Samsung F3 1TB HDD
- Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit
- Onboard HD 7.1 sound
- Warranty 3 years RTB as standard across the range, with options to extend to 5 years
- Upgrade Assurance free for 3 years
- For a limited period we will be throwing in a FREE Corsair HS1 headset
Total cost £1,695 inc vat and operating system.
Very nice indeed, im impressed. the 3 year RTB option is worth a few quid too.
Now thats what im talking about. that case is lovely. what a great pic on the interior build page at teh top. that pink/red is amazing
shame they didnt use the Antec Kuhler, its better.
It’s not really better long term. Antec use tubes that can cause more evaporation, long term.
Excellent, I like the choice of hardware, most companies use something I dont like somewhere in the mix
Nice build, never heard of them but their site has some good pcs. My cousin might like this system as he normally buys that dell xps crap.
The case is nice lookin but I’ve seen them, they are very small, the x2000 is much nicer but would probably add 200 quid to the price
How long have cryo been in operation? Never heard of them, although I’ve seen the ads here
Thats a hell of a pc build. couldnt do better myself.
Some thoughts on the system and review!
– Why not run the USB 3.0 headder cables round the back of the H70 Considering it’s got a side window? Cable management in general is good, not great.
– The spec page says that the GTX 580 has “Cryo boost”, however GPU-Z screenshots in the review show it is running at stock speeds
– “Cryo have explained that other system builders have copied their BIOS settings” – they may have said that but it has to be nonsense. Any experienced amateur builder would be able to match and surpass this and guides are available on the internet. There simply isn’t a need for any other system builders to copy CryoPCs BIOS settings as they aren’t doing anything extraordinary.
– The Cryo Boost profile is in the BIOS as profile 1, however there really should be a stock factory profile too. Small point but important.
– Game benchmarks. I feel that if you have and can afford a monitor capable of displaying 2560×1600 then you will go for a GPU setup which can flatter the resolution. It would have been more informative to run the benchmarks with the single GTX 580 at 1920×1080 with the settings ramped up to max.
– Thermal Performance. A 2600K will do 4.8GHz no sweat, it shouldn’t need a 1.48 vCore but it’ll cope with the speed fine. The problem is that the H70 isn’t up to the job of dissipating the heat that the CPU is pumping out at 1.48 vCore. Crysis has been used to measure the “maximum load temperature” of the CPU – 80C after 30 mins of Crysis is simply too hot. As in the recent YOYOTech Warbrd PC review and even in the Kobalt G150 lptpo review, Prime95 should have been used here. I would suggest that if the CPU hit 80C after a short gaming run then it would get very close to its thermal limit on Prime95, perhaps this is why Prime95 load
temperatures weren’t reported in the review? This is important for continuity reasons (vs other PC reviews on kitguru like the Warbird) and also because you have stated the PC would be a “rendering powerhouse and ideal for serious 3D duties”. Crysis load temps aren’t backing this statement up, Prime 95 temps and stability are needed.
– RTB warranty should really be Collect and Return – as most other companies offer, if anything goes wrong the components are covered by the component manufacturers warranty anyway but you will have to deal with and pay for all shipping costs. This doesn’t sound like much but it can add up to a lot, especially after 3 years!
– the case is certainaly an aquired taste, there are much better cases available at the moment.
– Also the component selection is reported to be “inspired” – a selection of the best performers in their relative categories perhaps but hardly inspired.
I have to disagree with your opinion that CryoPC are the finest system builder in the country. There are several other companies who have been running much longer than CryoPC and are able to consistantly produce higher quality machines. I feel myself having to say that it feels very much like their kitguru advertising has had an effect on the neutrality of the review, it is in my opinion a little too biasedand that’s why I have posted more than a short comment.
Firstly, id like to say that advertising has absolutely no effect on the outcome of the review. I have been reviewing Cryo systems long before they were advertising on this site and another, so I can assure you, regardless of your views, this has no bearing on the outcome.
In regards to the game benchmarks, people who buy a GTX580 may very well be running at 2560×1600, this is an ideal graphics card to run at this resolution. Its why we use a mixture of resolutions and not often relying entirely on 2560×1600 as only a small percentage of people will have a 30 inch panel due to the price. That said, both AMD and Nvidia sell them for high resolutions. When you consider that a card like the 6790 or 6950 is sold for 1080p support then its only fair to include some benchmarks at a higher resolution.
Cyro boost profile is set up for the speeds sold. I already mentioned the stock settings, a system sold should have this as default.
Prime 95 is a matter for some debate, I am aware other reviewers use it for some testing, but I feel that more real world testing at times is more useful to a potential customer. A person buying this system isn’t going to be running prime 95 daily and it can often create synthetic loads which arent representative of any real world usage.
I am not sure about collect and return I can discuss this with them, but I notice from your IP address that you are from the US but you seem to have some knowledge of the UK market ?
Comments on the case are irrelevant, you can change it and its personal opinion. Lian Li are considered as some of the finest on the market however.
Component selection is excellent, after all its working to a specific price point, of course there are better products on the market, but with every improvement, the price rises. I see very few coolers better than the H70 at this price point, and the same for the 80 plus gold certified power supply which we reviewed on KitGuru last year, which earned our top award, for efficiency, power regulation, cross loading and temperature management it is one of the best on the market. Sure there are better, but again more expensive, causing a price hike on the system.
Your view of disagreeing with me on the fact that I think they are one of the finest system builders in the country is just that, your view. I am quite sure a percentage will disagree with me, but who would you classify in the UK as better? Obviously your IP from Chicago might mean you are relating to system builders in the states, but its interesting to note from my point of view as I have had negative comments before from someone in Cryo reviews who actually worked for a competitor system builder in the UK. Your American IP is interesting in that why would a system builder in the UK be of such particular interest to you?
Sorry if you genuinely feel the review is biased, but I stand by the article, I think its a fantastic system and better than many of the systems we have seen for review, both now and throughout the last 10 years, which is the length of time I have been doing this.