Chillblast Fusion Hubble
A desktop PC with the latest processor
For a grand, you might expect an i7 processor to be thrown into the mix. But the quad-core i5-7600k processor you’ll find in this high-performance desktop PC is from Intel’s new Kaby Lake range and is the successor to the i5-6600k, which arguably offered the best performance per pound sterling of any CPU. The 7600’s base clock speed has gone up from an already nippy 3.5GHZ to 3.8, all ready to Turbo Boost to 4.2GHZ (up from 3.9 last year) when software allows it. And, not content with this clout, Chillblast has opted for the ‘K’ version of the processor (which you can overclock if you want) and ramped it up to a 4.6GHZ base speed.
Allied with 8GB of fast DDR4 memory, this gave the Fusion Hubble something of a head start in our benchmark tests. The results beat any PC we’ve previously seen at this price, with results for image editing, video processing and multitasking pretty near to what we’d expect from an i7-6700k processor.
Chillblast has found room in its budget for a Geforce GTX 1060 graphics card. This is from near the bottom of Nvidia’s new range – it’s the 3GB version, not the slightly more powerful 6GB – but it’s still enough to play games without problems. Our less demanding 3D titles ran smoothly even at 4K resolution with Ultra graphics settings, while more demanding games had little trouble at Full HD (1920x1080) and could be coaxed higher with a few compromises on the quality settings. These are perfectly respectable results for this kind of money, and the Fusion Hubble is also ready to work with virtual-reality hardware, if that’s your thing.
The Fusion Hubble has much more going for it besides. It’s housed in a spacious, sound-dampened mid-tower case with a good mix of customisation options, including room for up to five storage drives in two 3.5in bays and three 2.5in mounting points.
The motherboard – Gigabyte’s new Ga-z270-gaming K3 – is also excellent. On the PC’S rear panel you’ll find a generous eight USB ports, including one USB 3.1, one Type-c and two USB 3.0 DAC-UP ports for high-quality audio connections. There are also rear speaker, side speaker and C/SUB connections for surround sound. On the inside are no fewer than three PCIE x16 slots, two of which are free for major upgrades, plus three PCIE x1 slots and an M.2 port for the fastest possible SSD storage. Strips of red lighting around the board’s edges add a touch of flair, but with no side window you’ll have to admire them through the mesh at the top of the case – as long as you haven’t covered it up with the optional sound-insulation panel, which is included. As standard, you get a sensible combination of a 250GB SSD and a 1TB hard drive.
The front panel is awash with easily reachable inputs and outputs, from the two USB 2.0 and two USB 3.0 ports to the integrated SD and microsd card readers. Behind the front panel door you’ll also find two 5.25in drive bays (suitable for adding DVD or Blu-ray) along with two fan-speed switches and a removable dust filter. In case you were wondering how Chillblast has prevented that speeded-up CPU from frying, it’s fitted with a closed-loop water-cooling system, which is pleasingly quiet.
The Fusion Hubble won’t be the first choice of gamers, and that’s exactly why it’ll be of such interest to everyone else. Most of your money has gone into that i5-7600k processor, which certainly earns its keep and will power through even the most ambitious tasks. The only reason not to rush out and buy this PC immediately is that we haven’t yet seen what other makers can do with this chip – but if you’re looking for a new desktop PC right now, don’t let that put you off.
This is a classy, well-connected and powerful PC that stays cool and quiet under pressure