Maingear Vybe Desktop Review
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Gaming Benchmarks
Alien: Isolation
The Maingear Vybe manages to upend the Velox in Alien: Isolation at 1920 x 1080, where the average framerate is limited by CPU performance. The same slight (nearly negligible) performance lead we saw in the 3DMark Fire Strike Physics tests carries the Vybe to the narrow 1080p win, but once the graphics start to play a larger role at higher resolutions, we see the Digital Storm system outperform the Vybe by a small fraction, thanks to its higher GPU overclock.
Ashes of the Singularity
The Vybe scores a surprise win in the DX12 version of the Ashes of the Singularity tests, besting its similarly equipped competition by a few FPS at all tested resolutions. The CPU-intensive benchmark puts a spotlight on the same performance advantage we saw in the 3DMark Fire Strike and Alien: Isolation tests, where the Vybe comes out on top with its ever-so-slightly higher CPU clock rate.
Bioshock Infinite
All of the SLI configurations in the field experienced high frame time variances in the Bioshock Infinite benchmarks, evidenced by the similarly low minimum framerate shared by the Vybe, Velox, and Z270 test rig at all tested resolutions. The Avatar trails behind the pack in average framerate with its single GTX 1080 Ti, but it nets much better minimum framerates than the dual-GPU setups. The Vybe can’t keep up with the Velox’s higher-clocked GPU, but by the time you turn the resolution up to 4K, the performance difference is negligible, and none of the tested SLI systems have issues keeping average framerate in the triple digits at 3840 x 2160.
DiRT Rally
The Maingear Vybe falls in where you’d expect it to amongst the other dual-GPU PCs in the field, besting our Z270 test rig (at stock clock speeds) and falling slightly behind the Velox and its higher-clocked GPU. However, SLI scaling is not as advantageous in DiRT Rally as it has been in other games, and the Avatar pulls out the win in this particular title when you turn up the resolution. A single GTX 1080 Ti Founder’s edition narrowly bests our GTX 1080 SLI test rig and comes within a .02 FPS average of the Vybe at 2560 x 1440. At 4K, the Avatar steals the win from the Velox by a few FPS.
Grand Theft Auto V
GTAV gives us more predictable results, with the Maingear Vybe regaining its second-place position and the Avatar sinking back down the stack. The Vybe crushes the most demanding settings the game has to offer at 1920 x 1080 and 2560 x 1440, but at 4K, all of the systems in the field dip below 60 FPS. However, the GTX 1080 SLI systems still see a sizable lead in average framerates over the Avatar’s GTX 1080 Ti at 3840 x 2160, with all three dual-GPU PCs floating around a comfortable 45 FPS.
GRID Autosport
The Maingear Vybe clings to its second-place finish in the GRID Autosport benchmarks, lagging behind the Digital Storm Velox by a small, negligible margin. None of the PCs in the field have any issue averaging above 115 FPS at 3840 x 2160, and GRID doesn’t push the graphics workload as heavily as other games in our suite. The Avatar’s win over our stock-clocked Z270 test system also suggests that performance is most correlated with CPU clock rates than GPU performance in this particular game.
Hitman
When we first benchmarked Hitman using DX12 and multiple GPUs (when we reviewed the Velox), we encountered some stability issues, so we resorted to testing the rig with multi-graphics support disabled. Although subsequent driver updates and game patches have alleviated much of these issues, we wanted to keep our data sets for this round of desktop reviews comparable, so we tested the Maingear Vybe in the same manner.
As such, the AVADirect Avatar handily beats the GTX 1080-equipped systems with its GTX 1080 Ti. The SLI rigs line up in the usual arrangement, with the Vybe netting better average framerates than our Z270 test bench and sitting hot on the heels of the Velox.
Metro: Last Light Redux
The GPU-intensive and SLI-accommodating Metro: Last Light Redux benchmark returns us to the natural order of things, with the Maingear Vybe trailing the first-place Velox in average framerates by a narrow margin at all tested resolutions. The Avatar also returns the bottom of the chart by a considerable margin. SMAA plays a role in the Vybe’s (and the other systems’) less-than-savory average framerate at 3840 x 2160, but you can dial back a few details or turn off the AA to push it well above 60 FPS.
Rise of the Tomb Raider
We recently went back to using DX11 in the Rise of the Tomb Raider benchmarks, a change we made after our review of the Digital Storm Velox. To keep data sets comparable, we included a DX11 and DX12 chart, comparing the applicable systems in each version of the test.
The Maingear Vybe predictably outperforms our Z270 GTX 1080 SLI test bench and the Avatar using DX11, taking a first-place win in the absence of the Digital Storm Velox. Putting the two custom-shop SLI rigs head to head in the DX12 version of the test puts things in perspective, with the Velox edging out the Vybe by less than 1.5 FPS at all tested resolutions.
The Division
Similar to Hitman, multi-GPU DX12 support in The Division was shoddy when we first tested the Velox, so we resorted to testing the game with a single GPU enabled. This puts the Avatar and its GTX 1080 Ti in the lead against the GTX 1080 SLI-equipped systems, which fall into line in their usual formation (with the Velox leading the Vybe by a small margin).
Thief
As an older game, Thief sees significant performance gains with higher clock rates, with the Maingear Vybe and Velox pushing far past our Z270 test rig and the Avatar. Although the Vybe again trails the Velox in average framerates by 5-6 FPS at all tested resolutions, it has no issues averaging above 90 FPS at 3840 x 2160.
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nitrium Not wanting to be cynical, but this looks like a thinly veiled advertisement for Maingear. I do understand that Tom's needs to get money from somewhere to continue to do the generally excellent work you do, but it is what it is.Reply -
Gam3r01 20236838 said:Not wanting to be cynical, but this looks like a thinly veiled advertisement for Maingear. I do understand that Tom's needs to get money from somewhere to continue to do the generally excellent work you do, but it is what it is.
If someone sends in something for free for review I dont see an issue in doing so. If some other company wants theirs reviewed then send in a unit.
On a side note, would it kill these boutique builders to put in some cable combs for their custom cables? -
redgarl Gimme your money... basically what the company cry out loud. This is overpriced by almost 75% of the retail price of the components.Reply -
redgarl I thought there was no good or bad components, only bad price... obviously they didn't put that perspective in their OBJECTIVE review...Reply -
Karadjgne You get what you pay for. In this, the price point is about right. Straight up retail prices are one thing, a fully furnished, oc'd pc with all the little details like led, really nice wiring job, plug n play extreme gamer is another. Considering the amount of cpus you gave to have on hand to get a stable 5.0GHz OC on a 7700k and not get smacked with a high voltage lemon, somebody had to take the time to actually OC that beast and run all the stability/longetivity testing, swap out dud cpus, wire it patiently, etc etc etc, sure there are some builders who can do all that themselves, but it's a guaranteed fact that the majority of ppl asking questions here cannot.Reply
I personally could build and furbish that pc much cheaper, just retail pricing, but if I put that kind of work into a $2000 pc, I'd be charging roughly the same, that's not a 30 minute slapper together pc.
This would make a perfect Graduation present from parents vrs buying all the parts separately and praying their kid doesn't blow up the pc or buy parts that make no sense. -
cknobman Looks like an awesome machine.Reply
Personally I'd choose a single 1080TI custom board that overclocks to 2+ghz over the 1080SLI.
Less money, more reliable performance. -
hendrickhere Honestly, I have a single 1080Ti and an overclocked FX8370 (yes, I know I get bottlenecks) and I get about the same gaming performance @4k. So a build that is 3+ years old with (essentially) the best graphics card at the current moment can complete with a $3,800 rig (no matter how beautiful it is).Reply -
g-unit1111 $3800 for Founder's Edition cards? No thanks! I can build my own for $2500 and get MSI or Asus cards and save the other $1300.Reply -
Karadjgne Right. You can build. I can build. Gam3r01 can build. And have it look, perform similar if not the same or with some different choices in cards, better. But we do this for real, pro and amateur, hobbyist etc. Average Joe off the street doesn't know he's took when the salesperson says "this here FX is 8 cores at 3.5GHz, that crappy Intel is just 4 cores at 3.5GHz, save a few $ and get the amd cuz it's better! ". So buying retail to save $ isn't always the smart investment for everyone.Reply
You can buy everything you need to build a Mustang for less than $30k, but you'll find me at a dealership paying $40k cuz I'm not even close to being proficient enough a mechanic to build one myself. -
mlee 2500 About four years ago I bought a Maingear PC, partly to see what if anything I was missing by not using a Boutique Builder.Reply
Over the past 30 years I've built hundreds of PC's and servers, both professionally and for myself, and I have to say the Maingear was not only among the best PC's I've ever had, but also worth every penny I paid to have someone else do it.
To the inevitable cacophony of folks pointing out how "they could build it cheaper" I will point out why that is: It is because YOU'RE CHEAP. It's because your time isn't worth anything to anyone, not even yourself.
I'll still occasionally build my own machine because I love doing it. But I'll never second guess the value of someone else expertly doing it for me.