iBUYPOWER Unit Review
iBUYPOWER System Review
This is a sponsored review posted on 2021-09-25 (see details below)
This is a review of a pre-built rig by iBUYPOWER. In fact, not only is this my first review of an iBUYPOWER system, it’s my first review of a pre-built rig!
The goal of this system is to handle what I do day-to-day: streaming, pretty heavy photo and video editing, and a little light (scary) gaming.
I’m going to break down the review in four sections:
- Unboxing
- Build quality
- Inside
- Performance
What's inside my rig?
Here is a full list of specs in case the image above doesn’t work for you
- Case: iBUYPOWER Lian Li LANCOOL ONE Tempered Glass RGB Gaming Case
- Case Fans: 3x [ARGB] In Win Sirius Loop 120mm Addressable RGB Fan
- Processor: AMD Ryzen 9 5950X Processor (16X 3.4GHz/64MB L3 Cache)
- Processor Cooling: iBUYPOWER 360mm RGB Liquid Cooling System
- Display Memory: 32 GB [8 GB X4] DDR4-3600 Memory Module – G.SKILL Trident Z Neo (RGB LED) CL14
- Video Card: AMD Radeon RX 6900 XT – 16GB (VR-Ready)
- Motherboard: GIGABYTE X570 AORUS ELITE WIFI – WiFi , ARGB Header (2), USB 3.2 Ports (6 Type-A), M.2 Slot (2)
- Power Supply: 850 Watt – CORSAIR RM850 – 80 PLUS Gold, Full Modular Primary
- Storage: 2TB WD Black 3D Series SN850 M.2 PCIe Gen 4 NVMe SSD — Read: 7000 MB/s, Write: 5300 MB/s / Gen 3 – Read 3600 MB/s, Write 3300 MB/s Secondary
- Storage: 4TB Samsung 870 QVO SSD — Read: 560MB/s, Write: 530MB/s – Single Drive
It’s a pretty powerful little rig. The goal was to create something that could handle streaming, heavy photo and video editing, and some light gaming. The 5950x was really important to me, and I really want to push what I do to the extreme.
Shipping & Unboxing
Before I dive into the unboxing, I want to make it clear there are a lot of firsts here for me. As I mentioned above, this is not only my first pre-built rig, it’s also the first time I’ve had something this significant (just in size, all keyboards are significant to me) shipped to me over the border into Canada. Not only was the rig packaged in its own box, that box was in another box with its own packing material. Despite my worry, it arrived safe and sound. Both sets of packing held up really well. Obviously if you have a carrier known for tossing packages around your mileage may vary, but it seems like iBuyPower does all it can to minimize any carrier carelessness.
After all that, the unboxing was pretty unremarkable (which might sound like a downer, but it’s the rig we’re after, not the packaging). Oh, all the extra accessories came in their own little bag leaving all for me to do was simply plug in my cables (including the power cable) and turn it on.
Build Quality
It’s arguable whether build quality or performance is more important, but we can set aside any fears about build quality: I was (and still am) impressed. There wasn’t a single loose bit anywhere, nothing arrived damaged, and not a single item was out of place.
Over the years I’ve built my own systems and have sometimes struggled with making a neatly organized cooling system. I really liked the cable routing for the AIO cooler, but I do think the system would have performed even better if the cooler was at the top of the case. As built, the radiator is mounted vertically with the pump at the top (and I don’t think that’s ideal). In fact, of the whole system, this is all I would have designed differently, although maybe that’s why my rigs never look as good.
How does it hold to my work load?
The bottom line really is performance, isn’t it? It doesn’t matter what the shipping was like or the packaging if the system ends up being not what you need. To make sure it could meet my needs (and maybe yours) I’ve been throwing my normal workload at it along with some 4k gaming. You know what I do (I’m assuming you’ve watched a stream or two) and here’s my summary after using the system as I would any system I built: I am blown away. The AMD 5950x and 6900xt are handling everything I throw at it. Each piece of the system is knocking every task right out of the park. In fact, the temps of the system have remained in check as I put the system through my paces. Even idle it’s quite low at 40 degrees Celsius. Oh, here’s a bonus for me (again, it might be a bonus for you, too): More USB ports on the motherboard. I didn’t need to use any USB hubs. I might even have room on my desk now for another keyboard.
In the NUMBER OF WEEKS I’ve been using this system I’ve had zero issues. I’ve not changed a single component and I’ve not even poked around inside the rig (aside from a light dusting). Seriously, I’m over the moon with my first experience of a pre-built computer.
Disclaimer
This computer was sent to me as part of the iBUYPOWER x AMD Ambassador Program. As always, it doesn’t affect my opinion of the system and iBUYPOWER had no input on this review. If you are interested in configuring your own rig from iBUYPOWER consider using code ALEXOTOS for 5% off.
Part 2
Keyboard - iBUYPOWER x AMD Collab
After seeing me build many keyboards, AMD and iBUYPOWER commissioned and tasked me to set out to build a set of boards for them in a theme to match both brands. I did just that.
Sourcing parts was not easy. The boards we decided on had already run on group buy and I needed to figure out how to get them without breaking the budget. I did turn to mechmarket for one of the boards but the other, Cannon Keys supplied. The boards we went with were the Jelly Epoch in Ruby Red / Black and the Chimera in Red / Black. Perfect to match the AMD branding and it matches the iBUYPOWER logo theme. We were set. Sourcing the rest of the parts was a breeze. We went with Gateron inks, durock stabilizers, and FFFF switches. These were all fully modded and customized and ready to be built. I broadcasted them live as well as some PC art on Twitch. The results turned out great and I have a gallery of photos I can’t wait to show you all.
