The PC Customiser Venom VR Review

Performance Analysis

As ever, performance is fairly predictable. The single GTX 1070 means this system is slower than the GTX 1080 and CrossFire RX 480 Z270 systems we've seen so far, but then it's also considerably less expensive. While a little slower than we expected based on the GTX 1070 results from our own GPU testing, performance generally was right where you'd imagine. The Venom VR proves itself capable of 1440p gameplay at maximum settings in both DirectX 11 and DirectX 12 titles, but 4K is just a stretch too far. That's said, it's strong in VR workloads, outpacing the dual RX 480 rig and living up to its name.


The 4.8GHz Core i5-7600K will take care of everyday and even more demanding computing needs easily. In virtually all CPU-bound workloads, it performs the same as a Core i5-6600K at 4.8GHz, which is no surprise as there's no difference in instructions per clock between Skylake and Kaby Lake. The only exception is a slightly slower result in PCMark 8's Photo Editing workload. Performance in rendering workloads is okay, but you'll want a hyper-threaded CPU or an X99 system with more cores if this is your main gig.

The SM961 delivers really good performance across the board. You won't be left wanting for responsiveness or speed here, although as we said 256GB isn't much these days.

The efficiency of the latest hardware comes through in our power consumption tests, with the entire system drawing less than 350W. Clearly, an SLI upgrade will not be an issue.

During stress testing, we found temperatures were healthy: 76°C on the CPU and 66°C for the GPU, which maintained a boost speed of 1,962MHz. The noise from the GPU and CPU coolers couldn't be heard, but that's mainly because the noise from the six case fans was drowning them out. It's not stupidly loud, and it's clearly a case and system designed for performance, but there's no need for things to be as loud as they are at all times. A more sensible approach to fan control is required, we think.

Conclusion

Tallying up the components and accessories here (excluding the cable braiding, which was only for the review and isn't included in the price), we arrived at a figure of about £1,470. As such, The PC Customiser is asking for an extra £70 over the cost of building it yourself. To our eyes, this isn't a bad trade-off. Of course, most of us enjoy the build process, but if you're short on time it's a reasonable route to take, especially as The PC Customiser does a decent job building the system and routing cables, even if it's not an especially complex system. We also really appreciate the attention to detail and commitment to a colour scheme, even if it's likely to prove divisive. Shipping is included in the price too, but it's the warranty terms that are the real bonus, as full three-year coverage (carriage, parts, and labour) is very rare. As such, we're satisfied the system delivers on value for money despite hardware generally being rather expensive at the moment, though sub-£1,500 would be even more attractive.

£1,500 is pretty hefty sum to spend on a PC, but this is a fast all-rounder that blasts through games at 1440p and is sure to last a rather long while. The CPU, GPU, and SSD are all up to scratch, but The PC Customiser has a powerful and intuitive customiser on its website too in case you're not satisfied with a certain aspect of it. It's a shame we didn't see a bit more attention to detail in the EFI, as this could have resulted in a more efficient overclock and improved fan control (and thus lower noise output). This is our only criticism, however, and it's one that can be easily remedied in the future. As such, we're happy to bestow our Recommended award – it's a promising start for The PC Customiser.