Chillblast Fusion Hex (Ryzen R5 1600) System Review

All-in-all, the Chillblast Fusion Hex system is a bit of a mixed-bag.

On one hand, it offers strong multi-core performance thanks to the brand-new Ryzen 5 1600 CPU. Given the low cost of this chip, the Fusion Hex can offer this multi-core goodness for £1319.99, significantly less than what you would pay for a system based on Intel's competing 6-core i7-6800K.

The Ryzen CPU, coupled with the GTX 1070, also makes for a solid gaming PC. Taken together, the Fusion Hex is a solid bet for those who want to game as well as use multi-threaded software. For example, it would be great if you want a relatively low-cost system to get into streaming or content creation.

However, there are a few niggling issues that hold the Fusion Hex back.

For one, there are numerous examples of poor decision-making when it comes to the system's aesthetics. This is made clear by the ugly, unsleeved ketchup-and-mustard cables which are very visible, as well the motherboard's brown PCB. By far the worst decision on Chillblast's part was to use plain green DIMMs, though, which is not something an enthusiast wants to see in their rig.

You may say that system performance is more important than visuals, and that's fair enough. However, I am of the opinion that anyone spending over £1300 on a PC will at least want it to look good, and sadly, I can't say this PC is attractive at all.

Lastly, the Fusion Hex also suffers because of the Zotac Mini GTX 1070. All of the graphics benchmarks I ran show this to be a comparatively slow GTX 1070 card, as it lacks any sort of factory overclock. The smaller cooling solution also means GPU Boost 3.0 can't take the clock speed as high as other, bigger cards can manage.

As such, we would say that the Chillblast Fusion Hex is a good system for those who want to get into content creation, and are not bothered about aesthetics at all. However, many would find the system's interior very unappealing, which really is disappointing. Lastly, it is also worth mentioning that those just looking for the fastest gaming PC would still be best served by system using an overclocked Intel chip.

You can buy the Chillblast Fusion HEX for 1319.99 inc. VAT HERE.

Pros

• Ryzen 5 1600 offers strong multi-core performance at a very reasonable cost.
• Quiet.
• GTX 1070 is good for 1080p and 1440p gaming.

Cons

• The lack of thought given to the system's aesthetics is a big let-down – green RAM, unbraided cables and a motherboard with a brown PCB creates quite the colour-clash.
• Zotac Mini GTX 1070 is a comparatively slow 1070 card.
• Pure gamers are best served with an Intel-based system.
• PSU is only 80+ White certified.

KitGuru says: The Fusion Hex definitely shows promise and offers strong multi-core performance. However, the system's aesthetics need a serious revamp, while the slow GTX 1070 card is also a bit disappointing.

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