Chillblast Fusion Flash review

Intel' Otellini showed an 80 core processor in 2004, to hit the shelves in 2010.
why are we still overclocking 2/4 cores ?

By ssafi on 9 Sep 2011

LOL

There’s a gigabyte of storage from the Samsung Spinpoint F3 hard disk, too.

A Whole Gigabyte :)

By wes_cov on 9 Sep 2011

@wes-cov

Now corrected. We've sent Mike back to 1993.

Thanks

Barry Collins
Editor

By Barry_Collins on 9 Sep 2011

Just ordered

i have just ordered one of these fusion flashes, i will update this comment
when it arrives, i do hope that they dont downgrade the fine spec like Palicomp do.

By AndyD on 10 Sep 2011

The full spec

Hi AndyD
Rest assured you will receive exactly what is described in the review:

Fractal Design R3 Case
Intel Core i7 2500K Processor at up to 4.8GHz
Asus P8Z68-V LE Motherboard
16GB PC3-10666 DDR3 Memory
Radeon 6970 2GB Graphics Card
120GB Corsair Force 3 SSD
1000GB SATA 7200rpm Hard Disk
Samsung DVD-RW/Blu-ray Reader Combo Drive
600watt Corsair PSU
Onboard High Definition Audio
Windows 7 Home Premium 64bit OEM
LG 23" LG Flatron IPS231P Monitor
Microsoft Cordless Keyboard and Mouse
Logitech S-220 Speakers

Occasionally if Microsoft keyboards are unavailable we will offer our customers a superior Logitech model at no extra charge, but that is the extent of any changed we would make to a machine like this! :-)

Thanks!

Chillblast

By Chillblast on 12 Sep 2011

wow! a Core i7 2500K processor as well!

can I order one to that spec for £999 plus vat.

By badgerb on 12 Sep 2011

Chillblast support is first class.

I bought a top of the range Chillblast Fusion Katana nearly two years ago. Having bought many PC's from various companies ranging from early great bargain Aldi Medions to over hyped Alienware pre Dell I know it's all too easy to plunge in with excitement and not thoroughly check the company out in terms of after sales support. (See my recent comment about the Lenovo Z570 PC Pro rated A List Laptop.) So it's a real pleasure to be able to say that my well used gaming Katana from Chillblast gets a 10 outa 10 for build quality. On the few occasions I have sought their support and advice I have found them to be first class. Chillblast are the best PC company I have dealt with and envy anyone getting this PC.

By wizwot on 15 Sep 2011

Will report

Just ordered one to replace ageing XPC I built 7 years ago. Upgraded graphics to NVidia as AMD has always been in the shadows in terms of drivers.

Will advise on what, as a tech head, if it can deliver work and play wise. On express order - excited ;-)

By Digital_Agency_Guru on 18 Sep 2011

Will it be delivered as per request

Paying £80 for express build - will they deliver in time? Charging extra for your goods made quickly, it's the first test to 'Twitter' Chillblast as first time customer.

By Digital_Agency_Guru on 18 Sep 2011

Order Received/ Good service/ Great PC

I received this pc 3 days ago and it truly is an awesome piece of kit, i reduced the ram to 8gb as 16 seemed a bit ott but upgraded it to 1600mhz speed.Monitor is great and very clear from all angles,very good service from Chillblast who delivered in 5 days instead of the 10 days predicted,thanks Chillblast you are a credit to the British pc industry

By AndyD on 20 Sep 2011

Noise levels

Hey people who have already have this machine, how noisy is it when idling/under stress?

By iamthevoodoomonkeyman on 26 Sep 2011

Flash bash

Ordered mine today, went with some extras such as corsair ram upgrade. Great customer service so far as I had issues buying online and one of their staff members gave me a call to sort it out! Looking forward to receiving it, I'll reply regarding noise levels once Im up n running!

By jacegrizza on 3 Oct 2011

Noise levels reply

Hi, in answer to iamthevoodoomonkeyman the noise levels are almost imperceptable at normal usage i.e web surfing, when playing high intensity games like cod black ops etc you do notice a rise in sound level, but this case is so good and the chillblast build quality superb its not something you really notice much, dont forget it has an immensely powerfull graphics card too.

By AndyD on 4 Oct 2011

Hi guys. I need a new desktop soon and this seems perfect. However, do you think it is worth upgrading to the i7 overclocked or just stick to the base spec?

By Alex8 on 6 Oct 2011

Hi guys. I need a new desktop soon and this seems perfect. However, do you think it is worth upgrading to the i7 overclocked or just stick to the base spec?

By Alex8 on 6 Oct 2011

usb3 front support

Hi, I'm seriously interested in purchasing one of these systems, but note that the spec does not yet include usb 3 on the front, which is a must have for my next pc. For the last month ebuyer have offered this case with 1 usb3 socket on the front and are now offering on preorder a cheap 2 usb3 / esata replacement front module. When will Chillblast upgrade their cases so that I can place an order?

By robwild on 16 Oct 2011

Flash turned up!

Must say... customer service was spot on! Upgraded to the GTX 580 and the team even sorted me out a copy of arkham city.

Only downside was that windows displays the clockspeed at 3.3 Ghz.. would be nice to see 4.8 somewhere.. but that aside the system is class, and service was amazing! would use again in the future simply off the service from the team.

By jacegrizza on 17 Oct 2011

USB 3.0 Cases now on the flash

Robwild, I can confirm that the Fractal Design case used on the Flash is now the USB 3.0 version - our new stock arrived yesterday. Our website has been updated to reflect this upgrade :)

By Chillblast on 18 Oct 2011

Delivered with graphics card not fitted?

MY fusion flash was delivered today on the 15 th working day, but the graphics card wasn't fitted, it was instead included in its original retail packaging inside a box containing software disks and motherboard manuals?
I've emailed them and will phone tomorrow (Saturday) and see what they say, very dissapointed!

By bygjon on 21 Oct 2011

Please call me if you need fitment assistance!

Hi bygjon

This is unfortunately a necessity when shipping machines by courier with very powerful (and therefore very heavy!) video cards. To ensure the card does not tear the slot off the motherboard if it is bumped in transit, we remove the card after it has passed all stress tests and carefully repackage it in its original box. We do include an installation guide within your box and I am very happy to personally talk you through fitment - it will take only a couple of minutes.

Thanks

Chillblast
0845 45678 31

By Chillblast on 24 Oct 2011

Graphics sorted in 10 minutes

Apologees to the chillblast people, as stated by the customer services very quickly, as relayed above the card isnt fitted as a safety feature. Easy to fit with a nice clear email. Also apparently the ECU will switch between speeds as an anergy saving feature, windows will always show the standard speed. Hopefully they can sort a utility that will tax the ecu and show the speed under load?

cheers

By bygjon on 30 Oct 2011

Price amendment on the Flash

With a heavy heart we have had to increase the prices of the vast majority of our PCs. Systems with a 1TB drive have been increased by £50ex VAT in line with the increases in the channel. We are doing our best to buy in as many hard disks as we possibly can to preclude any further increases. We apologise for any disappointment this causes, but please understand it is due to forces beyond our control.

By Chillblast on 7 Nov 2011

Delays on shipping?

Well I ordered mine on the 14th October and I'm still waiting for delivery! Cards been charged but it's still in build and test, for 2 weeks now. Grrrr.
Would be nice not to have to chase updates Chillblast, especially when your emails say build time of 10-14 days!

By KwakaFB on 7 Nov 2011

Just Ordered

After reading various review of uk pc builders I decided to order from Chillblast. I was considering the Flash but decided on the Volt in the end and I placed my order today. So far the customer service has been absolutely fantastic and answered lots of my questions and helped me choose the right system for me. I will post an update as and when my system arrives.

By AlexHurd on 7 Nov 2011

Very Very Miffed

I know how you feel Kwaka, I ordered my computer on 11/10/2011, expecting it to arrive within the build time of 10-14 days, it ended up arriving after 18 days (that’s with me chasing it up and paying extra for weekend delivery), then it turns out to be faulty  It has been a week now since returning it, still no email saying it is on its way back me. All I can say is if you are going to be relying on your new computer, for work etc, I suggest buying a back up computer at the same time, so you are not going to be losing money every day you are without it for an unspecified amount of time, next time you computer needs repairing because some component is faulty. I feel very disappointed, and let-down, especially after such a good review above. Question: does anyone know if I have the right to get a refund, because I am unhappy with the product, and service. Any other suggestions are welcome?

By verymiffed on 7 Nov 2011

lack of hard drives

So far whenever I've contacted them the response has been prompt and courteous.
I've been told my delay is down to lack of hard drives due to the flooding in Thailand. That's fair enough, but why not tell your customers of the delay proactively.
I did want to add something else to the order but I'm loathed to delay it even more!
Fingers crossed for a delivery this week. Hope you get yours sorted verymiffed.

By KwakaFB on 7 Nov 2011

Shipping

We humbly apologise for any delays in shipment, this is due in part to a massive global shortage of hard disk drives. We aim to deliver all systems in 10-14 working days - please note this is not the same as 10-14 calendar days, and this ETA is clearly shown on all systems and on our front page. Anyone needing to chase an order, please feel free to contact me personally on customspec AT chillblast DOT COM and I will personally find out about its status for you.

We have tried our best to keep customers informed about delays using our news feed, but comments on this forum have been taken on board and I will see if there are ways in which we can be more pro-active with our communication.

Once again, I apologise for anyone experiencing a delay to their order, but please understand there are forces beyond our control in action here and we are all working our hardest to ensure everyone receives their order in a timely manner.

Verymiffed – please send me a mail with your name and order ID number and I will see what the situation is regarding your return immediately.

By Chillblast on 8 Nov 2011

Order Arrived...one word FANTASTIC!!!

Ok so my order arrived one week earlier than expected packaging was first class and the product even better than expected the build quality and installation of this sytem has to be seen to be believed. I will never order a pc from anywhere else the whole experience from start to finish has been a pleasure all my questions answered and great advice given a better version of the graphics card than what was expected. The only way I can describe the way I feel right now is like being a kid on Christmas morning. A big thanks to the team at Chillblast a special thanks to Ben.

By AlexHurd on 18 Nov 2011

Power supply upgrade

Still looked to purchase one(despite price increase) but I'm looking to upgrade the power supply to the BeQuiet 680W model. Does anyone know if Chillblast use the E8 or E9 version as listed on BeQuiet's website?

By robwild on 20 Nov 2011

ordered a volt today

After a bit of research I decided to buy A Chillblast fusion Volt. Im not very clued up on which pc companies are best and after stumbling across these review comment's im delighted I chose to buy from chillblast they seem to be a reputable company, its nice to actually see one of there customer service guy's give answers and advice to all you guys posting concerns on pc pro's reviews

By tuckerto2 on 3 Dec 2011

Change in Spec?

Chillblast no longer seem to be listing the LG Flatron IPS231P monitor but instead the spec shows a(cheaper?) Asus VS247H.

So readers might want to ignore the monitor part of the review!

By rex149 on 11 Dec 2011

jimm2004

Today is the 20th working day since placing my order and still no sign. Been at the build and test phase for more than a week now. First time I've ordered a complete system rather than building my own, but looks like I'm going back to building my own systems in future

By jimm2004 on 13 Dec 2011

jimm2004

Today is the 20th working day since placing my order and still no sign. Been at the build and test phase for more than a week now. First time I've ordered a complete system rather than building my own, but looks like I'm going back to building my own systems in future

By jimm2004 on 13 Dec 2011

Change in screen

The LG has been changed to the Asus VS247H due to supply inconsistencies from LG. Please note that this product Asus is the current A-listed screen in PC Pro. It won their group test with a 6/6 rating (against the LG in fact) so it is actually regarded as a better product :). Jimm2004 please mail me personally on customspec AT chillblast DOT COM and I will see what I can do to hurry things along for you!

By Chillblast on 14 Dec 2011

I have contacted Chillblast and they have advised that they are taking steps to make sure customers are kept informed about any delays, and as a gesture of good will have agreed to refund the delivery charge. I have received an email from the courier as well so should be with me tomorrow. I chose the Asus screen anyway, as it was the same price and the extra screen size was worth more to me than the IPS display.

By jimm2004 on 14 Dec 2011

This is my third Chillblast PC

I can't praise these guys enough. The build quality is superb, the price versus performance of this rig is spot on (and you can upgrade to a 27" Asus for a real steal!). Sales and technical support (if you ever need it) are exemplary too, what's not to like.

By lesdd on 6 Jan 2012

Just ordered!

Just ordered one of these with a number of upgrades (most notably the 27" Asus monitor, GeForce 570 and a 2TB caviar black HD) and couldn't be more excited! Have to say that so far the pre sales support has been very good. There's a £30 delivery charge, but I won't blame them for that - I tried pricing up the same thing on a "very large competitor"'s website. I couldn't get the same spec but I estimate it would've been in the region of £800 more. I'll update when it gets delivered.

By LanceSagar on 30 Jan 2012

Great company

I ordered one before Christmas. It had hard to trace problems with Windows freezing on bootup. Martin got me to test a few things, and when that didn't work, they built a new one from scratch and swapped them over. The new one is superb. I've been very impressed with their quietly helpful service.

By BruceCk on 13 Feb 2012

Got it!

Computer arrived after 9 working days. All worked straight out of the box. Graphics card was installed too. Very pleased with it. Just been running Minecraft at 600fps! Next I may go and fetch my sledgehammer as I have a nut that needs cracking... Would definitely recommend Chillblast.

By LanceSagar on 14 Feb 2012

I wonder?

dear chillblast ......... will you at some point in the near future be offering this system with the HD 7970? :)

By morrisonbuckley on 24 Feb 2012

disgraceful

Just arrived.
Paid extra for delivery before
10 am -arrived 16:25.
Excuse given that computer system had booked it in as normal next day delivery.
Out of the box has frozen 3 times and blue screened 4 times.
Have emailed them requesting immediate collection and refund.
Suggest waiting developments before ordering anything .

By muggins on 14 Mar 2012

feedback

Martin has refunded the extra charge for 10am delivery.
Has responded quickly to my email with detailed instructions on resetting cards and memory sticks and if necessary the BIOS settings.
So far no problems.
Credit where it's due,it's easy to handle praise,more challenging when things go wrong.

By muggins on 15 Mar 2012

return

Crashed again.
BIOS noted CPU fan error.
Martin's arranged for collection next Monday and a new build.
Must be optimistic.

By muggins on 16 Mar 2012

Never again

I bought a system from Chillblast near the end of Nov 2011 and paid extra for fast delivery and weekend delivery.

The system was dead on arrival and a box was missing.

I had to take the system back to the courier's depot myself and get it sent back for repair.

It came back dead on arrival.

I then asked for a refund and was told I would have to wait for a refund because their card refund system wasn't working (I still have all their emails).

I finally got my refund near the end of January, so I was without a working PC for 2 months and they had over £1600 of my money for nearly 2 months.

I would never buy from them again.

By ourpete on 16 Mar 2012

Muggins PC Update and 7970 Added.

Muggins, your rebuilt machine is in the final stages of testing and will ship out as soon as it gets the all clear - I am sorry for the frustration caused by your original machine being faulty!

morrisonbuckley, the 7970 is now an option for you on the Flash :)

By Chillblast on 23 Mar 2012

Beginning of the end

Ryan,the production manager, rang me on Friday 23rd to apologise for the problems, and assured me that the "new" build machine had been thoroughly stress tested and was in perfect working condition.

Received my "new" machine today.The graphics card was loose lying on the motherboard and the screws to hold it in place were missing .The hard drive was loose at an angle in the drive bay area. Two of the drive carriers were also loose out of their slots.
One of the power leads was disconnected, lying loose.
The box, hard drive, SSD, and graphics card were the original supplied.The only "new" part was the CPU fan.
On booting into windows it once again froze.
On reboot it crashed.

I rang Ryan immediately and asked him why if it was "new" it was just the old computer with a new CPU fan.

He said he didn't know.

But he did wish me a good weekend.

I have asked for immediate refund and collection.

By muggins on 24 Mar 2012

one step forward, two steps

Ben, Director of Sales .
Apologised,agreed to refund,arranged same day collection.
Stayed in all day.Nothing.

By muggins on 26 Mar 2012

Final End

Collected 27th, full refund in my account 30th.
The team at Chillblast have never tried to hide behind "not available" "out today" "will get back you" etc.
They wil be fully aware that their whole business infrastructure is an absolute shambles.
What should have been an exciting and pleasurable experience ,turned into one of misery.
A lesson for all us punters,a great deal of care is taken to get on the PCPro A List, if you're actually a paying customer , good luck.

By muggins on 30 Mar 2012

An apology to muggins.

To clarify the case above, the customer received his machine in a non-working condition due to the cooler being damaged in transit. This caused the heat pipes to separate from the base of the cooler as it heated up, causing instability. A brand new replacement PC was agreed with the customer, but unfortunately this instruction was missed by the returns engineer working on the system, and it was processed as a normal warranty repair. This is extremely unfortunate, but as with any company we do make mistakes from time to time, for which we have apologised profusely.

When this repaired machine was returned to the customer in error, it again was significantly damaged in transit, as noted in the above post. Understandably a full refund was requested and was agreed to without quibble. The same courier then failed to collect the system on the afternoon instructed, making matters even worse. The following day we sent two separate courier companies to be sure the machine would be collected in a timely manner. On arrival of the machine back to our premises the customer's card was immediately refunded in full.

A mistake was made when processing the initial return for this order for which I can only once again offer our most humble of apologies. However circumstances beyond our control also conspired against us, precluding our ability to deliver a working computer. We will be lodging a formal complaint to the courier for the two deliveries damaged in transit and for the failed collection as it reflects very badly on the level of service we strive to achieve. The customer experience as detailed by Muggins is not typical of buying from Chillblast, however we fully understand and accept responsibility for the problems he experienced. :(

By Chillblast on 30 Mar 2012

Ditch the courier

Dear chillblast I think it goes without saying that you guys need to find another courier company. I work for one and can honestly say that kind of carry on would of never of happened with us and any damage I caused to a customers product would be coming out of my wages :)

By morrisonbuckley on 2 Apr 2012

Only ever had excellent service.

I think Muggins has just been extremely unlucky with his experience with Chillblast. I have bought two systems from Chillblast now and cannot speak highly enough about them.

By Terrorwrist on 3 Apr 2012

leonardo

Took delivery of a Fusion Flash with u/g GTX 570 card on 12th March.Works like a dream best computer I have owned since 1989.Service and pre delivery advice from Chillblast also best I have ever had.Corsair 120GB makes it lightning fast as stated by the reviewer.Had only one slight problem on delivery one the handles on the package box was damaged (looked like a case of somebody carrfying it in one hand instead of two) rang Chillblast to report it (they charge £50 if you have to request another box to return for any servicing) They apologised and undertook to note the problem on my invoice and to deliver a box free if ever needed.

By leonardo198 on 4 Apr 2012