CompX Stalker 2_350 gaming PC review: an abnormal bribe for a gamer

CompX Stalker 2_350 is designed for true connoisseurs of modern technology and, most importantly, for fans of the cult series S.T.A.L.K.E.R. who want maximum immersion during the game. With ray tracing and graphics at their best. In this review, we will check if this build meets the expectations of demanding gamers, evaluate its performance and find out if it justifies its hefty price tag.

Technical specifications of CompX Stalker 2_350

Technical characteristics
Processor	AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D
Motherboard	MSI X870 GAMING PLUS WIFI
Video card	GeForce RTX 4070 Ti SUPER 16G GAMING SLIM STALKER 2 EDITION
Drive	Kingston SKC3000S/1024G
RAM	Kingston FURY Beast DDR5 6000 MHz 2x16Gb
Body	Gorilla Custom X-ATX stylized in the style of S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2
Cooling	MSI MAG CORELIQUID C240
Power supply	MSI MAG A850GL PCIE5 850W (Gold)
Operating system	Windows 11 (not activated)

I’d like to move on to the exterior, which is quite authentic, but let’s start with the classic hardware. Our PC is based on a powerful AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D processor with 8 cores and 16 threads, as well as a huge 96 MB L3 cache. It’s one of the best models for gaming, not least because of its 3D V-Cache technology.

The included RAM is two 16 GB DDR5 6000 MHz strips from the famous Kingston brand. This is a modern standard of high-speed memory for comfortable work in both games and resource-intensive tasks.

Graphics adapter – limited edition video card NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Ti Super. She is cold and productive. I would like to see a little more exclusivity from it, because it differs from its sisters only in appearance. The vendor hasn’t even overclocked the frequencies one iota.

There is a fast 1 TB NVMe PCIe 4.0 drive on board. A pair of a high-quality 850W power supply with 80+ Gold certification and a liquid cooling system makes the stalker PC a very productive solution for a modern gamer.

Package and packaging

The PC itself comes in an ordinary cardboard box, and you can’t immediately tell what kind of valuable bribe is inside. Perhaps it’s for a greater wow effect, who knows. It weighs 20+ kg. Steel case.

The second box is a little smaller and contains a beautiful MSI RTX 4070 Ti SUPER 16G GAMING SLIM STALKER 2 EDITION in an antistatic package. We will need a stylized fixing bar when installing the video card, as well as a riser extension. In this case, its role is fully justified. And let’s not forget that the package includes a deluxe edition of the game from GSC. However, it is a bit of a quest with registration through the MSI website and beyond. But this will not stop experienced stalkers.

Let’s get back to our system, where I met my first real quest! To fix the video card, I had to use a drill, because in one place there was a bolt with a broken «cap». As Qui-Gon Jinn said: there is always a bigger drill! So I also customized this case on behalf of ITC and gave it a stalker gift: a bolt and a nut.

Everything else is top notch, the system looks very cool. You can easily imagine it on the desk of a loan shark. It adds atmosphere and lowers temperatures. Because the airflow is not restricted by a glass aquarium or case. They are free like real stalkers. Everything is assembled well and to the best of our ability.

Work productivity

Benchmark	Result
Speedometer 3.0	35.5
WebXPRT 4	386
Google Octane 2.0	106904
Geekbench Single	2793
Geekbench Multi	15225
Geekbench Open CL	222709
Geekbench Vulkan	200540
CPU-Z Single	671.3
CPU-Z Multi	7422.2
Cinebench Single	110
Cinebench Multi	1050
Cinebench GPU	23404
Blender CPU	260.52
Blender GPU	6918.24
RAM read MB/s	58622
RAM write MB/s	78706
SSD read MB/s	7349.87
SSD write MB/s	6141.11

Thanks to the Ryzen 7 7800X3D and fast 32 GB DDR5, the PC is great not only for gaming but also for professional tasks. It easily handles video rendering in Adobe Premiere Pro, works quickly in Photoshop, Blender, AutoCAD, and can be used to work with offline neural networks.

Synthetic benchmarks demonstrate decent performance results, and most importantly, even at maximum load, the PC keeps temperatures that can be characterized as cool. Neither «bagel», nor rendering, nor anything else creates any prerequisites for heating up the components. Liquid cooling works for all the money, with a fairly hot processor out of the box.

Drinking the best Toussaint wine and doing witchcraft is comfortable, and most importantly, very smooth. There are some differences (wind effects, color filters, etc.) from the vanilla version, but that’s a matter of taste. In technical terms, the picture looks much better. This is a fact.

A fresh adventure RPG Avowed, a shooting range for old-fashioned 80s RoboCop: Rogue City, techno demo of the good old Half-Life 2 and GTA V, charged with rays of light and goodness, all show excellent fps at maximum graphics settings. And where without the eternal question Can it run Crysis? Answer: yes, it does 🙂

And how is Indiana Jones doing? It’s doing great. This time lack of VRAM is not, so ALL sliders are to the right. Including textures. In 1440p resolution, DLSS Performance mode looks much better than in 1080p, while giving a stable 80+ fps.

Moving into the 4K gaming league, the PC does not lag behind. We keep the maximum graphics settings and add a little magic from Mr. Huang for a comfortable gaming experience. DLSS at 2160p is just what we need. Plus, the image quality is better than QuadHD.

But wait, where is the main culprit of the holiday? We have given him a special place in the review.
S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl leaves no one indifferent: someone falls in love with it right away, someone sheds a few nostalgic tears, someone is waiting for the next patch, and someone can’t stand it. Don’t be in the latter cohort.

In the summary table, I went through all the possible settings and resolutions. Graphic preset — Epic. Without any compromises.

For even more immersion, I traveled to the Borderlands. The place where it all began. And when Dirge for the planet played in Sydorovych’s bunker, I applauded and rejoiced. It’s a fan service for your own people that works. And the lines in the dialogues hint that you were expected. Actually, here we are.

You can play comfortably and smoothly in any resolution: from 1080p to 2160p. I even managed to push» 120 fps in 4K!

Does the build, which was inspired by the stalker series, cope with the game itself? Yes, and yes again. No temperature anomalies or crashes of the UE 5 engine.

Energy consumption, heating, noise

Under maximum load in benchmarks and modern games, the system consumes up to 440-490 watts. If you do office work, watch videos, or just surf the Internet, the power consumption drops to 85-100 watts. In idle mode on the desktop, the system consumes about 80-85 watts.

Ryzen 7 7800X3D efficiently distributes power under load, but consumes more power than similar solutions from Intel when idle. So be prepared for slightly higher power consumption.

The system works quietly. The noise level is 40-45 dB near the case, and 35-38 dB at a distance of one meter. The MSI MAG CORELIQUID C240 liquid cooling system operates stably, without sudden jumps in volume. The GeForce RTX 4070 Ti SUPER video card is silent when idle, because the coolers are «quiet».

At peak loads, the processor heats up to 68-71 °C, which is normal for this liquid-cooled CPU. Video card: when idle, it stays at 38-40 °C, while in games the temperature does not exceed 70 °C. In short, stable operation without overheating and excessive noise.

Software

The build comes with Windows 11 preinstalled, but it is not activated. This can create minor limitations in functionality, but it does not affect system performance.

The backlight control software is preinstalled, as well as the standard set of MSI utilities. For gamers, there’s Steam and FPS Monitor.

The system is ready to go right out of the box. Plug it in, turn it on, and you can work or, to be honest, play and play some more. No unnecessary movements and hassle.

Experience of use

Two weeks flew by like one. A time anomaly, no doubt. No BSODs or crashes have been recorded. It works reliably: it does not overheat and makes moderate noise. In my case, I placed the PC on the table, because why hide such beauty from the eyes?

Yes, stalker aesthetics is the main thing here. Everything was customized for this purpose, to please the eyes of the player who realized one thing back in 2007: that S.T.A.L.K.E.R. is not just a game. And now, having grown up, he can realize the dream of that boy and buy himself an authentic collection that will add atmosphere to the sequel of that story. Does it collect dust more actively than a closed system? There is such a story, but in moderation.

The build quality is high and the balance of the PC components is also a big plus. In addition, there is obviously room to upgrade. There is enough space for any video card. But here and now, this is a machine that allows you to play AAA projects in 4K smoothly and calmly.

Price and competitors

Today, the cost of a custom stalker build isCompX Stalker 2_350is 130,699 UAH. By assembling such a PC in «pieces» with your own hands, you can save a little money. If you have the time and inspiration, why not?

It has no competitors as such. We can recall the classic «closed» assembly option CompX Stalker 2_545 (RTX 4070 Ti Super, Core i7 14700KF, 32 GB, SSD 1 TB) for 121,899 hryvnias. But it’s so boring and not stalker-like.

There is, of course, an option for those who want ultimatum for all the money in the world. Here, please, meet ARTLINE Overlord STLKR from UAH 346,144.

Дякуємо комп'ютерному магазину Compx.ua за наданий для огляду ПК CompX Stalker 2_350.