Mesh Elite 3570K-W8CS review
Even though it doesn’t have an unlocked processor, this is still a powerful, well-built PC with an excellent monitor
Specifications
3.8GHz Intel Core i5-3570K, 8GB RAM, 23.6in 1,920×1,080 display, Windows 8
Mesh has overclocked the 3570K-W8CS’s Intel Core i5-3570K processor to 3.8GHz, which gives it the boost it needs to achieve an overall score of 118 in our benchmark tests. We’ve seen other PC manufacturers squeeze a lot more speed out of the same processor, but this is still a useful speed boost and means Mesh hasn’t had to fit a custom processor cooler.
The motherboard, an MSI Z77A-G43, provides plenty of scope for expansion with its three PCI slots, a PCI-E x1 slot and two PCI-E x16 slots. The second PCI Express x16 slot runs at x4 speed. The motherboard’s clever design means no slots are blocked by the dual-slot graphics card. This is an EVGA Nvidia GeForce GTX 660 Ti with 2GB of memory, and is a proper enthusiast card. In our challenging Crysis 2 test, we saw an average frame rate of 30.8fps at 1,920×1,080 and Ultra quality. It’s safe to say that you needn’t anticipate any problems playing the latest games at high detail levels.
The Cooler Master Elite 430 case seems to be almost ubiquitous among PCs of a certain price range, but this is by no means a bad thing, as it has a well-finished interior, decent sound proofing and fine mesh covers over most of the air vents that serve to keep most ambient dust and fluff out of your PC. The PC has a generic 650W power supply, but this should be sufficient for all but a top-of-the-range graphics card.
Basic Specifications | |
---|---|
Rating | *** |
Processor | Intel Core i5-3570K |
Processor external bus | 100MHz (DMI) |
Processor multiplier | x38 |
Processor clock speed | 3.8GHz |
Processor socket | LGA1155 |
Memory | 8 |
Memory type | PC3-12800 |
Maximum memory | 32GB |
Motherboard | MSI Z77A-G43 |
Motherboard chipset | Intel Z77 |
Ports | |
USB2 ports (front/rear) | 2/8 |
Firewire ports (front/rear) | 0/0 |
eSATA ports (front/rear) | 0/0 |
Wired network ports | 1x 10/100/1000 |
Wireless networking support | none |
Internal Expansion | |
Case | midi tower |
PCI-E x1 slots (free) | 1 (1) |
PCI-E x16 slots (free) | 2 (1) |
Free Serial ATA ports | 4 |
Free memory slots | 2 |
Free 3.5in drive bays | 3 |
Hard Disk | |
Hard disk model(s) | Seagate Barracuda (ST2000DM001-9YN164) |
Interface | SATA2 |
Total storage capacity | 2,000GB |
Graphics | |
Graphics card(s) | 2GB Nvidia GeForce GTX 660 Ti |
Graphics/video ports | 2x DVI, 1x mini HDMI, 1x DisplayPort |
Sound | |
Sound | Realtek ALC892 |
Sound outputs | 7.1 line out, stereo line out, mic in |
Speakers | none |
Removable Drives | |
Supported memory cards | none |
Optical drive type(s) | DVD+/-RW +/-DL |
Display | |
Viewable size | 23.6 in |
Screen model | Hanns.G HL249 |
Native resolution | 1,920×1,080 |
Screen inputs | DVI, VGA |
Other Hardware | |
Keyboard | Logitech K260 |
Mouse | Logitech M210 |
Software | |
Software included | none |
Operating system | Windows 8 |
Operating system restore option | Windows disc |
Buying Information | |
Warranty | three years RTB (three years labour, two years parts, three months free collect & return) |
Price | £786 |
Details | www.meshcomputers.com |