Mesh Matrix Xtreme PCW

Mesh's Matrix Xtreme PCW uses two of the newly released Geforce 7800 GT graphics cards, slightly cut-down versions of Nvidia's flagship 7800 GTX.

Although there's no denying the superior gaming performance of PCs using two graphics cards simultaneously, the almost prohibitive price of such systems makes them enthusiast-only territory.

The 7800 GT has a lot in common with its bigger brother, but a number of concessions have been made to help ensure a lower price. Most notably, the graphics processing unit is clocked at 400MHz, 30MHz lower than the GTX, and its 256MB of DDR 3 memory runs at 1GHz instead of 1.2GHz.

It also has 20 pixel pipelines instead of 24, and seven vertex units (used when processing 3D polygons) instead of eight. Despite this, the 7800 GT is still very powerful. Mesh harnesses this power by using two of these cards in a Scalable Link Interface (SLI) configuration.

Our benchmarks confirmed the graphics prowess of this PC. In 3Dmark05, it achieved a score of 11,846 (just 427 points shy of the Evesham Decimator 78FX we reviewed last month).

This performance was helped in no small part by Mesh's decision to use an Athlon FX-57 processor and 2GB of DDR400 memory. This single-core CPU is designed specifically for single-threaded applications, such as the majority of games.

It's still effective in multitasking environments though, as illustrated by the solid Sysmark 2004 SE score of 232 - the highest we've seen from any PC using a single-core CPU.

In an effort to further boost the gaming appeal of the Matrix Xtreme PCW, Mesh has enclosed it in a brand new Cooler Master case. It looks impressive, has some interesting features, such as the Musketeer 1 display dials (although they're mainly just for show) and is a definite improvement on Mesh's older-style cases.

However, with the power and reset buttons protruding from the top of the chassis, it's all too easy to accidentally activate them by placing an object on the case. If they were sunk further into the case, this wouldn't be an issue.

Sadly, the hyper-quick gaming performance offered by this PC suffers an enormous bottleneck due to Mesh's choice of monitor. We've said it before and will continue to do so: supplying a 19in screen (even if it is the excellent Viewsonic VX912) with a high-performance gaming PC is ill-advised.

Its native resolution of 1,280 x 1,024 is simply not high enough to show the two graphics cards in their best light. A 20in display with a resolution of 1,600 x 1,200 would have been infinitely preferable, even if it meant sacrificing other components or pushing up the price.

Other features worth highlighting include a pair of 250GB hard drives, and the Audigy 2 ZS soundcard and 7.1 surround-sound speakers, both courtesy of sound experts Creative. You also get a Force Feedback Saitek Cyborg Evo joystick, although no games are included to get you started.

The Matrix Xtreme PCW is reasonably priced and performs well, but the 19in monitor Mesh has supplied means you won't see what the twin 7800 GTs are really capable of doing. An SLI PC such as this is surely aimed at gamers and deserves a 20in screen.