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Specs: CPU: Intel Core 2 Extreme QX9770 @ 4GHz: Motherboard: Nvidia nForce 790i Ultra; RAM: 4GB Kingston Hyper-X DDR3-1600MHz; GPU: Nvidia GeForce 9800 GX2 (3-Way SLI); HDD: 150GB Western Digital Raptor X (2x; RAID 0), 750GB Western Digital Caviar SE16 (2x; RAID 0); PSU: Cooler Master Real Power Pro 1250W; Windows Vista Home Premium (32-bit)
If the Force Recon QXN is any kind of example, Vigor Gaming is a believer that if one is good, two is better. And with an Intel Core 2 Extreme QX9770, three Nvidia GeForce 9800 GTX video cards in a 3-Way SLI configuration, 4GB of Kinston Hyper-X DDR-3-1,600MHz RAM, two 150GB Western Digital Raptor X drives, and two 750GB Western Digital Caviar SE16 drives, the Force Recon QXN offers the kind of ˇ§more is betterˇ¨ attitude we can get behind.
The QXN houses its components inside the Tagan CS-EL Diablo BM case, which typically includes a 360mm side-panel fan. But Vigor Gaming removed the inch-thick fan because it prevented the use of high-end CPU coolers. The builder did a nice job on the custom paint job?/font>a two-tone color that shifts between purple and green?/font>as well as on the Vigor Gaming logo on the side of the system. There are bright blue LEDs in the vents on both sides of the case, as well as on the 250mm fan in front of the lower drive cage. The visible glow from the 250mm fan gives the appearance of a jet engine's air intake. The interior also features a few blue LEDs, but because most of the components are stacked at the bottom of the case, the interior LED drew our attention to the case's empty space, rather than the top-shelf components.
In terms of airflow, the 250mm fan moves air over the four hard drives and three video cards, and you can control the fan speed from thumb-wheel controls on the side of the case. To cool the processor, Vigor Gaming installed a Cooler Master Hyper 212 heatpipe air-cooler, which wicks the heat out to a 120mm fan that pushes air directly out to the rear chassis' 120mm fan. Even with the 250mm fan set to maximize speed, the system ran quiet.
As of press time, Nvidia had yet to release the 9800 GTX, and we tested the QXN with Nvidia's ForceWare 174.53 evaluation driver. The QXN's scores were impressive but sometimes inconsistent when compared to other systems we've seen recently. Vigor Gaming had Nvidia mod the 174.53 9800 GX2 Quad SLI driver to make 3-Way SLI work and says the inconsistent results could be chalked up to the evaluation driver. For example, the 3-Way SLI graphics power of the GeForce 9800 GTX shined on our Crysis (7fps) and PCMark Vantage Pro (6503 Gaming score) benchmarks. However, the 15fps in World of Conflict, 31fps in Company of Heroes, and 20,442 score in 3DMark06 were lower than systems we've seen with comparable hardware.
Everything considered, the high-end components and artistry of the Force Recon QXN show that Vigor Gaming knows how to design a system for the power user. Vigor Gaming indicates that customers will be able to configure the QXN with the 9800 GTX and 790i by the time you read this. The boutique PC builder offers a 30-day money-back guarantee and a three-year parts and labor warranty on all systems (which also covers any overclocks Vigor Gaming performs at the customer's request).
by Nathan Lake
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