The V3 Gaming PC Avenger 3DS ($3,499 direct) is a hardcore performance gaming desktop with three high-end Nvidia GeForce GTX 580 graphics cards running in a Triple SLI configuration. What all that technobabble means is you'll be able to hook this up to a large-screen monitor and play current 3D games at full resolution with all the eye candy turned on. It doesn't quite have the dominating braggability, nor bang for the buck we look for in an Editors' Choice, but it's certainly a compelling option for the hardcore gamer who wants to spend well under $5,000 for a triple-SLI system.
Design and Features
The Avenger 3DS comes in a standard black gaming tower case. A little digging identifies it as the Antec Twelve Hundred. It's a huge chassis, standing about 23 inches tall, so space is a must. Internally-lit 120mm fans reside in the front and back, with a huge 200mm fan on the top panel. All of these fans push air through the desktop, especially over the CPU's liquid cooling radiator mounted to the back panel. However, there's a lot of extra cabling left over, connected to the three graphics cards. While not a dealbreaker, the extra looped cabling can affect airflow in the case, and is unattractive when seen through the windowed side door. (Builders of more expensive systems would have trimmed these extra cables). The fans all have manual controls, so you can slow down or silence them, but of course that would mean the desktop wouldn't get the needed cooling they provide. While running through the 3D gaming tests and benchmark tests, the graphics cards' fans added to the case fans noise. I hope you have a pair of sound-blocking headphones, because this desktop gets loud.
The Avenger 3DS's bulk translates into a lot of interior space with room for airflow, but surprisingly little usable upgrade space, thanks to the three humungous Nvidia GeForce GTX 580 graphics cards. The desktop has one set of three memory DIMM slots free (you need to populate all three since the Avenger 3DS has triple-channel memory). Aside from that, there isn't any internal space for components. The three graphics cards block the remaining PCI and PCIe slots, so you don't have space for upgrades like a gaming-optimized network card (if you believe that they help in the first place). There's physical space for up to four more hard drives and two optical drives, but you'll have to remove the graphics cards to get to the three free SATA ports on the motherboard. The 1,000W power supply will provide more than enough power to the Avenger 3DS. It comes with a lifetime labor warranty, so I'd recommend that you ship the system back to V3 Gaming for future upgrades. The system has a 3-year warranty on parts, something I'd almost mandate for overclocked systems.
There is a plethora of I/O ports, some on the top of the desktop, but most in the back. The Avenger 3DS has 6 USB 2.0 ports, 3 eSATA ports, two USB 3.0 ports, and a FireWire port. Basically, every kind of hard drive can connect to the Avernger 3DS—good thing since internal upgrades are a pain. The top of the case has a wide, shallow indentation where you can rest your digital camera, hard drives, or phone, while connected to one of the USB or eSATA ports.
The Avenger 3DS unaffected by bloatware, which is a benefit of buying from a smaller system builder. The only thing on the hard drive is Windows 7, drivers for the various hardware bits, and some software for the Blu-ray burner (including Cyberlink PowerDVD 9 BD). It comes with download codes for the games H.A.W.X. 2, Mafia II, and Napoleon Total War, courtesy of the Nvidia GTX 580 cards. It also comes with a pair of 64GB solid-state drives (SSDs) linked together in a RAID 0 array (for a total of 128GB) for the C: drive, plus a pair of 1TB 7,200 rpm SATA hard drives for storage (for a total of 2TB). The GeForce GTX 580 graphics cards are 3D Vision capable, for people who really want to be on the bleeding edge.
Performance
The V3 Gaming PC Avenger 3DS shows good bang for the buck compared to systems like the Falcon Northwest Mach V (Core i7-2600k) ($4,812.82 list, 4 stars) and Origin Genesis. The Avenger 3DS can run with these big boys on the game tests. However, the system isn't quite as nice: The Avenger's chassis is a retail design off the shelf, and the internal wiring could be a bit better in light of the windowed case. The current reigning mainstream gaming Editors' Choice winner is the Maingear F131 Super Stock ($2,300 direct, 4 stars), and while it is true that the Avenger 3DS is faster at the highest end gaming tests, the fact that the Maingear F131 is about $1,200 less expensive is a pivotal detail. The Avenger 3DS is not $1,200 faster than the Maingear F131 Super Stock, in fact the F131 is faster on two of the 3D tests and all of the multimedia tests. So, the V3 Gaming PC Avenger 3DS is a good system for hardcore gamers that want a triple SLI system for a lot less than $5,000, but it doesn't have the bang for the buck or the braggability we look for in a Editors' Choice gaming desktop.
BENCHMARK TEST RESULTS
COMPARISON TABLE
Compare the V3 Gaming PC Avenger 3DS with several other desktops side by side.
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